Sewing for 50 year, studied fashion design. I didn't know this. My mind is blown!! I wasted beautiful fabric I bought in Paris for my son's wedding. I couldn't wear the dress. I thought it was my pressing and sent it to the cleaners for the final press. I actually bought a dress to wear for the wedding instead.
That's a great idea for a video! Thanks for the nice comment and the suggestion. I'm actually just about to post a video on cutting plaids. I hope you find it helpful!
I am really frustrated right now and mainly with myself for thinking I could just sew satin fabric without knowing a lot about I'm about to finish a pair of satin pants and I made the mistake of not cutting it the right way, also I'm at a beginner level of sewing so I really overestimated myself anyway thank you for the great tip!!
Satin pants are quite ambitious for a beginner! Good for you for taking on a challenge. If you cut them on the lengthwise grain, you can still make some great pants; you're sideseams will just be a bit puckery. Next time, you'll cut on the cross grain and they will be amazing!
@@CatherineSews thank you so much !! They're almost finished and the side seams are quite puckery but I'll just make it look somehow intentional and call it a happy mistake, at least I got wearable satin pants :))
I hear you! Made satin Christmas dresses for granddaughters and what a pain! I never knew you could cut anyway but along the "straight grain of the fabric" as the pattern instructions say. And talk about fraying edges!!! I'm still traumatized!
Thank you, I am about to make boxers out of this type of fabric (which I've never used before), so I thought, 'I'll just see if there's anything I need to know.' I'm glad I checked! Thank you for your clear examples!
Oh thank you so much! I did not even know how to cut the satin like this I have been trying to figure out what I am doing wrong. Seams puckering and just horrible.
Thank you so much for this tip. I finished making lining for a small purse, but I didn't like how it turned out. The purse is something I made by attaching cord to an antique silver topper with an accordion opening. Then I macrame'd the cords into a purse in a very lace style of knots. The purse took me hours to create and the silver topper is one of a kind. Usually you'd see it on a chain purse, but the chain was missing when I bought it about 50 years ago. After waiting so long to complete this project, I was so disappointed about the lining. The lining is seen through the macrame knots. Now I know what to do. I have a lot of the satin fabric left so I will recut and redo the liner. Thank you! Great tip!
This is such a great tip! I just had a question about how to avoid the puckering if your item is cut on the bias? If it’s closely related to the direction of the grain what do you? I am about to make a brides maids dress and want it to look good 😊
This is so helpful, thank you! Do you have any tips however when we want to sew floor length satin pants that can’t fit if we trace the pattern along the cross wise grain? That’s my only issue now!
I wish I saw your video earlier. I made a dress for my son's wedding and the back seam is dimply. It's fully lined so fixing is daunting. I love your videos! Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
I am sooo happy to find this video it's so helpful I really want to use satin but this prblm always happened to me and that's why I am not using satin big problem solved thank u for making helpful video for everyone 💗
How to do everything backwards: 1. Start without any research on sewing satin 2. Get mad.... fight with it & redo x3 messing with diff settings 3. Throw the satin mess ups into burn barrel and light it up with dispair and defeat. 4. Watch ure vid. Ty!!!! P.s. I highly dislike satin now. But ure vid gives me hope.
In the 1980s I had a wardrobe of Satin. Those items would dry clean up perfectly and look like new. The manufacturers must have known what they were doing. "Diggin the Dancing Queen". The 1980s were booming until 1984, then life hit a Recession. What a wonderful lesson. Use the Cross-width for length!
Good question!! If you have a magnifying glass, lol, you'll look for the float yarns that run on the cross grain. If not, I'd suggest folding your fabric on the bias, into a corner, to bring two intersecting edges together, and baste the two sides together. You'll see a big difference between them, with one going into the seam smoothly and one looking dimply. mark the edge that is smooth, then remove your basting stitching. Place your grain lines parallel to the marked edge.
@@CatherineSews Oh, thank you for your quick response. I am a novice with fabrics (and in sewing terminology) but I am going to do what you said. Thanks, again 💖
What if i am making a long piece that can't be cut that way? I have a piece that is more than the width of the fabric. Plus what about the hem, wouldn't it be dimpled?
Yes, it does get tricky when your piece are longer than the width of the fabric. Sometimes it's logical to put a horizontal seam, like at the waist, but then that can defeat the whole purpose of cutting on the cross grain. Maybe you could go on the bias? And yes, the hem might dimple, but I would still rather have that than a dimpled side seam.
I'm so glad I found this - I've never sewn with satin before and wanted to do some research. I know I would have been so disappointed with those dimples in the fabric.
totally identified i tried it all with my satin fabric and impossible to get it perfect such a great discovery to see there is hope after death hahahahahahahaha🎉🎉🎉
Dumb question, but won't you usually have to sew along the long grain at some point (e.g. hemming pants if the leg of the pants are sewn on the cross grain)?
Not a dumb question at all. Yes, the hem will be on the straight grain but any dimpling there won't be as obvious as the long side or centre back seams of a long dress. Dimpled seams there can really ruin a dress! And if you hand sew the hem, you can avoid the dimples altogether.
I was looking to see if you had done a video on how to make a blouse lining, glad I found it before I cut it out. I cut apart a blouse that is too small to use as the pattern and need to line it also. I may be over my head.
When cutting pieces on the cross-grain, I assume you would need more fabric than when you cut on the lengthwise grain. Is there a rule of thumb as to how much extra fabric you'd need to buy?
Hmmm, I don't know of any rule of thumb but I guess it depends on how many pieces you have to cut on the fold. You might have to do multiple folds if there are a lot. Even so, I don't think you'd have to use a lot more fabric.
Thank you. This is great news. My concern is that I am attempting to make a wedding dress and the top will be a corset. Do you think the fabric will still be durable when cut on the crosswise grain? Any help is welcomed.
Charmeuse for sure. For the others, you can try sewing scrap cut on the warp and weft and see if one is smoother than the other. Good luck with your project!
Your videos are fab I cud do with some advice I'm using satin and tulle and taffeta to do my daughters prom dress and I'm inserting tulle geodes into the top 2 skirts so I can see where I show so it's a nicer fin with sewing the 2 satin pieces does cutting it on a cross grain help when jointing tulle and satin please
Interesting question! My initial answer is no, it doesn’t affect comfort at all, but then maybe you’re referring to a stretch satin? In that case, then yes, you’d probably need to stick to the lengthwise grain.
This works as long as you don’t have to cut longer than the width of the fabric. But for instance - a dress with princess panels, you can’t cut the fabric that way.
Hi Catherine. I have a satin fabric with intended purpose of a dress for granddaughter. I would never have thought to cut on cross-grain. Cutting on cross-grain is contrary to what I thought was a basic rule due to stretch factor of a fabric. Perhaps satin does not stretch more on the cross-grain vs. the vertical grain?
No, I don't think it has stretch in either direction, but the long float yarns run horizontally, I believe, which is why seams hang better on the cross grain.
Ok maybe I’m missing something, but what do you do if your garment is longer than the 52” on the cross grain? This won’t work for satin pajama pants for a man who is 6’2” 🤷🏽♂️🤷🏽♂️🤷🏽♂️
You're right that there's a limit to the length on the cross grain. Many satins come in 60 " widths which would be plenty for PJ pants for someone 6'2". Even 52" is 4.5 feet, so that's some pretty long legs!
@@CatherineSews so how are long trains on wedding dresses created? They’re definitely longer than 60”. I’m not being contradictory at all. I’m new and I truly don’t understand. I’ve seen dresses made of satin longer than the cross grain (as I’m sure you have) so my curiosity has been piqued. Thanks so much!
@@djtblizzle that's a good question! I don't have all the answers. I just know that the seam is SO much nicer if it runs along the cross grain, but there will be times when it's just not possible. Don't worry about how I might take your questions! It's all good! It's great to question everything, especially if you're new to sewing.
Great results in *appearance*. Equally, do you lose the stability and strength of aligning the verticals of the garment with the warp grain line to withstand the pull of gravity? (Love the channel! ❤)
At first, I thought it said, "Sanity Fabric," and I was like, "They make a cloth for me to hide my insanity??" LOL
Haha, I almost wrote satin fabrics, but I thought maybe it would read like Satan fabrics. I thought Satiny was safer!
@@CatherineSews LMAO!!
"So, how did the date go?"
"Ummmm....kinda Satany..."
I'm with you there... but I don't theres a factory big enough... 😂
Insanity fabric is a better name... because it can make you go insane while sewing.
Ironically satin can drive you insane lol
Sewing for 50 year, studied fashion design. I didn't know this. My mind is blown!! I wasted beautiful fabric I bought in Paris for my son's wedding. I couldn't wear the dress. I thought it was my pressing and sent it to the cleaners for the final press. I actually bought a dress to wear for the wedding instead.
Oh dear!! I could cry over your Parisian fabric! At least we know that next time will be better!
Lol I knew I hated sewing with that kind of fabric, now I know why! Great tip! Thanks!
Great tip! Could you make a video with more advice for difficult fabrics such as silk, chiffon, loose wovens? Your results always look super neat! :)
That's a great idea for a video! Thanks for the nice comment and the suggestion. I'm actually just about to post a video on cutting plaids. I hope you find it helpful!
@@CatherineSews great, I’ll definitely check that out :)
So glad I found this! I’ve been so nervous about cutting my satin for a dress project but I’m sure this will help!
I didn’t know this! After decades of sewing. Self taught…love you tube, learning lots
Wow thank you for this great advice! I never knew this. This will help me so much with getting nice results. Thank you again!
Thanks for sharing! I learned something new today, thanks to you !!!
I am really frustrated right now and mainly with myself for thinking I could just sew satin fabric without knowing a lot about
I'm about to finish a pair of satin pants and I made the mistake of not cutting it the right way, also I'm at a beginner level of sewing so I really overestimated myself anyway thank you for the great tip!!
Satin pants are quite ambitious for a beginner! Good for you for taking on a challenge. If you cut them on the lengthwise grain, you can still make some great pants; you're sideseams will just be a bit puckery. Next time, you'll cut on the cross grain and they will be amazing!
@@CatherineSews thank you so much !! They're almost finished and the side seams are quite puckery but I'll just make it look somehow intentional and call it a happy mistake, at least I got wearable satin pants :))
I hear you! Made satin Christmas dresses for granddaughters and what a pain! I never knew you could cut anyway but along the "straight grain of the fabric" as the pattern instructions say. And talk about fraying edges!!! I'm still traumatized!
@@vlw4165 the best is to cut satin fabric with a pinking shears
Same here but with chiffon! For a Barbie doll! 😂😂😂 What a learning curve!
So glad I watched this. I am fixing to cut out my Granddaughters flower girl dress for my sons wedding. Thank you so much.
Great tip, most if my linings in jackets & vests are satin and this will be so helpful. Love your many hints and tips..thanks.
O my God. What a tip Catherine 👏. Never heard such a thing before. God bless you. Thanks a lot.
Right!? That's a good one to know about! Thanks so much for watching and commenting.
Thank you so much Catherine. Starting a satin flower girl dress for my granddaughter and this tip made my day.
So glad I saw this after I had already cut, what a shame! However a great tip for next time!
This is extremely helpful!
Right!? I love that one! Thanks so much for watching and commenting.
That’s such a good tip! Thank you!
Thank you, I am about to make boxers out of this type of fabric (which I've never used before), so I thought, 'I'll just see if there's anything I need to know.' I'm glad I checked! Thank you for your clear examples!
Catherine, with this method my hems would be on the lengthwise grain of my skirt any tips for that?
Mind. Blown. Wow, thanks for this! I’m really enjoying your videos - so happy I found your channel
Right!? My mind was also blown when I finally figured this one out. So glad you found me!
Amazing tip! Thank you 😊
Amazing advice! Thank you 😊
Wow!!!!!💪💪💪
I had NO idea there could be a solution to this bane of satin sewing projects!
Hooray!!
Oh thank you so much! I did not even know how to cut the satin like this I have been trying to figure out what I am doing wrong. Seams puckering and just horrible.
Awesome tip, thanks
Thank you so much...i already cut in length grain. But i tried your tip in small piece and it looks perfect. Thank you again
Edit: ....and subscribed
Thank you so much for this tip. I finished making lining for a small purse, but I didn't like how it turned out. The purse is something I made by attaching cord to an antique silver topper with an accordion opening. Then I macrame'd the cords into a purse in a very lace style of knots. The purse took me hours to create and the silver topper is one of a kind. Usually you'd see it on a chain purse, but the chain was missing when I bought it about 50 years ago. After waiting so long to complete this project, I was so disappointed about the lining. The lining is seen through the macrame knots. Now I know what to do. I have a lot of the satin fabric left so I will recut and redo the liner. Thank you! Great tip!
This is such a great tip! I just had a question about how to avoid the puckering if your item is cut on the bias? If it’s closely related to the direction of the grain what do you? I am about to make a brides maids dress and want it to look good 😊
Good question! You don’t get that puckering on the bias, only on the straight of grain.
Thanks for replying that helps settle my fears haha! I’m still gonna to some tests first! 😊
great tip, if I sew it using tissue paper as stabilizer will it be better? I also cut the fabric the wrong way so maybe it will help a bit...
It's worth a try, but I honestly don't think it'll make a big difference. Let me know!
@@CatherineSews it helped a little bit! I haven't tried ironing it yet, maybe it will get even better :)
I just cut the skirt for my wedding dress!!! I'm so glad I watched this before I cute the corset & sleeves 🙈
Which foot to use sewing so doesn’t bunch up stitching
This is so helpful, thank you! Do you have any tips however when we want to sew floor length satin pants that can’t fit if we trace the pattern along the cross wise grain? That’s my only issue now!
That’s such a valuable tip. What if my fabric is a scrap piece and there’s no selvage? How can I tell which is cross grain?
Never mind, I found a tip .
@chickadeeacres3864 please share what the tip was 😊 I've also been wondering about this.
I wish I saw your video earlier. I made a dress for my son's wedding and the back seam is dimply. It's fully lined so fixing is daunting.
I love your videos! Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
I am sooo happy to find this video it's so helpful I really want to use satin but this prblm always happened to me and that's why I am not using satin big problem solved thank u for making helpful video for everyone 💗
Great to hear, Safa! It's a game changer!
Bless you for posting this!!!! Sooooo helpful.
How to do everything backwards:
1. Start without any research on sewing satin
2. Get mad.... fight with it & redo x3 messing with diff settings
3. Throw the satin mess ups into burn barrel and light it up with dispair and defeat.
4. Watch ure vid.
Ty!!!!
P.s. I highly dislike satin now. But ure vid gives me hope.
In the 1980s I had a wardrobe of Satin. Those items would dry clean up perfectly and look like new.
The manufacturers must have known what they were doing. "Diggin the Dancing Queen".
The 1980s were booming until 1984, then life hit a Recession.
What a wonderful lesson. Use the Cross-width for length!
If the material doesn't have the 'salvage' edge how do you tell which way is crossgrain? thanks
Good question!! If you have a magnifying glass, lol, you'll look for the float yarns that run on the cross grain. If not, I'd suggest folding your fabric on the bias, into a corner, to bring two intersecting edges together, and baste the two sides together. You'll see a big difference between them, with one going into the seam smoothly and one looking dimply. mark the edge that is smooth, then remove your basting stitching. Place your grain lines parallel to the marked edge.
@@CatherineSews Oh, thank you for your quick response. I am a novice with fabrics (and in sewing terminology) but I am going to do what you said. Thanks, again 💖
What if i am making a long piece that can't be cut that way? I have a piece that is more than the width of the fabric. Plus what about the hem, wouldn't it be dimpled?
Yes, it does get tricky when your piece are longer than the width of the fabric. Sometimes it's logical to put a horizontal seam, like at the waist, but then that can defeat the whole purpose of cutting on the cross grain. Maybe you could go on the bias? And yes, the hem might dimple, but I would still rather have that than a dimpled side seam.
every video I watch from you is teaching me so many things omg, thank you for real 😊😊
You are so welcome! Thanks for such a lovely comment. It makes my day!
thank you thank you. I needed this tip; Am just now working with silk and going crazy with the puckers. GREAT IDEA!!!
Wonder if you would do a video about cutting out a pattern on satin.
Fantastic Catherine, what a great tip for anyone sewing with satin. Thank you! X x x
No WAY are you kiddin, I have been suffering all of these years and all I had to do was turn the fabric around!!!!!!
Yup, isn't it surprising? It makes all the difference in the world!
Such a great and helpful video! Thank you so much 😊
I'm so glad I found this - I've never sewn with satin before and wanted to do some research. I know I would have been so disappointed with those dimples in the fabric.
totally identified i tried it all with my satin fabric and impossible to get it perfect such a great discovery to see there is hope after death hahahahahahahaha🎉🎉🎉
Thank you!!! I needed this tip!
Dumb question, but won't you usually have to sew along the long grain at some point (e.g. hemming pants if the leg of the pants are sewn on the cross grain)?
Not a dumb question at all. Yes, the hem will be on the straight grain but any dimpling there won't be as obvious as the long side or centre back seams of a long dress. Dimpled seams there can really ruin a dress! And if you hand sew the hem, you can avoid the dimples altogether.
I was looking to see if you had done a video on how to make a blouse lining, glad I found it before I cut it out. I cut apart a blouse that is too small to use as the pattern and need to line it also. I may be over my head.
Thanks! I've watched twice to make sure I don't mess up my skirt.
Thank you so much, what a fabulous tip!
Wow I wish I knew this years ago! I’m glad I found this video!
Thanks 🙏
Lovely❤ Great information 💕Thank You!
Does this work when sewing with a stretch satin? Would the skirt stretch out in length if i cut on the crosswise grain?
Awesome tip! Thank you, Ms. Catherine!
awesome and super helpful thank you!
Can you show how you lay your pattern to cut on the crossgrain
Wow thank you so much that's a great tip
Thank you so much for this information!!
Thanks for the tip for satin material.
Omg thank you thank you thank you
When cutting pieces on the cross-grain, I assume you would need more fabric than when you cut on the lengthwise grain. Is there a rule of thumb as to how much extra fabric you'd need to buy?
Hmmm, I don't know of any rule of thumb but I guess it depends on how many pieces you have to cut on the fold. You might have to do multiple folds if there are a lot. Even so, I don't think you'd have to use a lot more fabric.
Great tip! Music is distracting.
Excellent advice. Thanks!
Thank you. This is great news. My concern is that I am attempting to make a wedding dress and the top will be a corset. Do you think the fabric will still be durable when cut on the crosswise grain? Any help is welcomed.
Cutting on the cross grain won’t affect the durability. Best of luck with your project. It sounds amazing!
Great tip thank you so much !
Wow thanks for this great tip
Would this apply to all silky fabrics? Chamuse, 4-ply silk, and taffeta? Sewing a victorian gown for a costume, and would like to know your thoughts?
Charmeuse for sure. For the others, you can try sewing scrap cut on the warp and weft and see if one is smoother than the other. Good luck with your project!
What at GREAT TIP!!!😊
Your videos are fab I cud do with some advice I'm using satin and tulle and taffeta to do my daughters prom dress and I'm inserting tulle geodes into the top 2 skirts so I can see where I show so it's a nicer fin with sewing the 2 satin pieces does cutting it on a cross grain help when jointing tulle and satin please
So in this case I can disregard de grain of the fabric rule? It feels so rebellious!
Not exactly disregard. You can turn your pieces onto the cross grain, but they would now be perpendicular to the selvage instead of parallel to it.
Great tip!!! You rock.
It's videos like this that give me validation and make my mistakes bearable. Thank you!
thank you so much!!!
Thanks, Dawn! That means a lot!
Thank you so much.
Wish I would've watched this before I started 😅 now there's no turning back and me seems will just have to be mediocre
You're all set for perfect seams next time! (And I'm sure your current project will be lovely regardless). 😍
@@CatherineSews I ended up using iron on adhesive and that ended up looking good, not sure how durable it is but it'll work just fine I think.
@@nicolehollenbeck4205 Nice solution!
What about when sewing/working with stretch satin???
Thank you!!!
great tip!
That's awesome but isn't it more stretchy and comfortable if it was cut in the long or normal grain??
Interesting question! My initial answer is no, it doesn’t affect comfort at all, but then maybe you’re referring to a stretch satin? In that case, then yes, you’d probably need to stick to the lengthwise grain.
@@CatherineSews thank you for your fast response ❤️🪡
Hi! I would like to know if you can cut the satin in the fold, thank you
How does cutting on the cross grain compare to cutting on the bias? I’m making a bodysuit and want the most five possible without dimpling!
Cutting on the bias will result in more give, but it's more difficult to sew.
This works as long as you don’t have to cut longer than the width of the fabric. But for instance - a dress with princess panels, you can’t cut the fabric that way.
About 6 of my students are all working on strapless, floor length, princess seamed gowns, all cut on the cross grain. No problem.
Hi Catherine. I have a satin fabric with intended purpose of a dress for granddaughter. I would never have thought to cut on cross-grain. Cutting on cross-grain is contrary to what I thought was a basic rule due to stretch factor of a fabric. Perhaps satin does not stretch more on the cross-grain vs. the vertical grain?
No, I don't think it has stretch in either direction, but the long float yarns run horizontally, I believe, which is why seams hang better on the cross grain.
Ok maybe I’m missing something, but what do you do if your garment is longer than the 52” on the cross grain? This won’t work for satin pajama pants for a man who is 6’2” 🤷🏽♂️🤷🏽♂️🤷🏽♂️
You're right that there's a limit to the length on the cross grain. Many satins come in 60 " widths which would be plenty for PJ pants for someone 6'2". Even 52" is 4.5 feet, so that's some pretty long legs!
@@CatherineSews so how are long trains on wedding dresses created? They’re definitely longer than 60”. I’m not being contradictory at all. I’m new and I truly don’t understand. I’ve seen dresses made of satin longer than the cross grain (as I’m sure you have) so my curiosity has been piqued. Thanks so much!
@@djtblizzle that's a good question! I don't have all the answers. I just know that the seam is SO much nicer if it runs along the cross grain, but there will be times when it's just not possible. Don't worry about how I might take your questions! It's all good! It's great to question everything, especially if you're new to sewing.
That's so so helpful
Glad it was helpful! Thanks so much for watching and commenting, Yuri!
A year later and I'm coming back because I'm doing a new piece with a similar fabric and I wanted to refresh my memory of this wonderful tip!❤✨
What do you recommend for the top of a dress? Should I cut the neckline on the crosswise grain or the side seam?
The side seam should be cut on the cross grain.
That’s what I ended up doing! Thank you!!!
I really appreciate this video because I am sewing my first satin dress right now!
Great results in *appearance*. Equally, do you lose the stability and strength of aligning the verticals of the garment with the warp grain line to withstand the pull of gravity? (Love the channel! ❤)