Description
Knitwit Printed Dry Handle Jersey Knit Simplicity is suitable for tops, soft skirts and dresses – easy-care i.e. doesn’t need ironing and great for travelling. The base cloth has a dry handle and handles differently from a normal polyester knit.
A dry handle knit has a very fine surface texture; a normal polyester knit is smoother and softer. This means that the dry handle knit often feels less “synthetic” and more comfortable against the skin. If you were to handle the two fabrics at the same time, the difference would be immediately obvious, and for want of a better way to describe the difference, you would probably come to the conclusion that the one has a drier handle.
Care of dry handle knits is exactly the same as for any polyester knit – both are very easy care, virtually uncrushable – and the use of the word dry has nothing whatsoever to do with dry cleaning.
High stretch, by which we mean 50% stretch. If your pattern is sized for a medium stretch (25-35%) fabric, you can still use it, but you may need to take the garment in on the side seams after you have tried it on.
Two way stretch, by which we mean the fabric stretches in one direction only, from selvedge to selvedge, but if your pattern is sized for a four way stretch, you can still use this fabric.
94%Polyester/6%Spandex 145cm wide Medium weight – 205gsm Country of origin – Korea
Sewing with Jersey Knit Fabrics
For jersey knit fabrics, we use and recommend Gutermann Sew-All Thread, a top quality 100% polyester thread available in a huge range of colours to match your fabric.
You will need stretch needles for sewing knit fabrics. Use Schmetz Stretch needles – 75/11 on fine knit fabrics, and 90/14 on other knit fabrics.
Start each new project with a fresh needle, especially if the fabric contains cotton or wool. Blunt needles can leave holes on the stitching line.
Vliesofix Bondaweb Tape is a must if you want to get more professional looking hems and neck edges.
If you need more help, visit our sewing with jersey knit fabrics page.
[Spandex is the preferred name of spandex fibre in the US. It is known in Europe as elastane, and in the UK and Australia as Lycra®. Spandex is actually an anagram of expands.]
