Cotton Fabric 101: Supplies for Sewing

Let's talk about the varying types of cotton you'll regularly find on the market today and what's appropriate for historical costuming! There's a lot of different textile options and it can quickly end up confusing, so I'm not only going to break down the definition of each, but we'll look at the textile close up, see how it handles, and even sometimes how it makes up into a finished garment! - Quilting Plain weave, but varying in weight. This textile is commonly found in fabric stores and can come in a wide variety of prints and colors. The key factor to watch for is the weight and hand. - Voile - Lawn - Batiste Plain weave, sheer weight. These three are technically different historically, however, in modern day they are often used interchangeably (each company may have its own standards, but those are not universal). If you are looking for a plain sheer cotton, then use all three terms for searching. - Gauze - Double Gauze Plain weave, sheer weight. Wide spacing of the threads and occasionally a crinkled texture (this can be woven or pressed in). Double gauze takes two layers of gauze and tacks them together in a grid. - Swiss Dot Plain weave, sheer weight. This takes a typical sheer cotton like a lawn and add small dots that are woven in or tufted. The size, shape, and spacing of the dots can vary widely. - Organdy - Tarletan Plain weave, sheer weight, VERY stiff. Organdy is the stiffer of the two and often has a much tighter weave structure. It does well for ruffles and accessories. Tarletan is looser weave and is best suited for internal support and can be found in many 19th c womens garments. - Muslin Plain weave, lightweight. Today it is a cheap cotton, bleached or unbleached, that is used for trial garments. Historically it was a very fine, sheer cotton. - Broadcloth/Shirting Ribbed plain weave, lightweight. Not all shirtings have a pronounced rib, but the technical definition of cotton broadcloth is that the warp and weft threads are different weight