At Nature’s Fabrics, we always love hearing about what our customers are making with the material they purchase from our online fabric store. And what we’re hearing is that more and more people really enjoy using tencel for clothing projects, including those for both kids and adults.
If you aren’t familiar with this type of fabric, we would love to introduce you to it. Ready to find out all about tencel fabric and the various sewing projects you can make with it? Let’s go!
What is Tencel Fabric?
Also referred to as lyocell, tencel fabric is made from a combination of wood pulp from sustainably grown trees and other organic ingredients. When blended with rayon or cotton, the finished product is an eco-friendly stretchy fabric with a smooth texture. In fact, a lot of people compare it to standard jersey fabric or even silk. It is usually compared to viscose but seems to have a better drape and holds up better when used in apparel projects.
What Are the Benefits of Using Tencel Fabric?
There are numerous reasons to use tencel fabric in your sewing projects. The first is the delightful texture. This drapey, stretchy material just screams to be made into a dress or skirt. It’s simply a fabric that’s feminine, comfortable, and--as a benefit--is machine washable. Tencel is often preferred over cotton, as it is much more eco-friendly.
The Downside to Tencel Fabric
If we’re going to talk about the benefits of using tencel in your sewing projects, we have to at least give you a few of the disadvantages, too. Tencel can be a little finicky when it comes to washing. In most cases, you’ll want to use the delicate cycle or a garment bag, or even opt to hand wash items. It can also snag while you’re sewing, so make sure you’re using the right thread.
Types of Sewing Projects You Can Create with Tencel Fabric
There are so many different kinds of sewing projects you can make with tencel fabric. While there can be a little bit of a learning curve when it comes to the sewing process, once you have the hang of it there’s generally no problems.
Of course, women’s clothing items like dresses, skirts, and even blouses are incredibly common tencel sewing projects. For those with little ones, custom leggings or matching “mommy-and-me” outfits are really easy to create out of this type of material.
And, recently, more people are buying tencel to make face masks. The stretchy fabric works as a great material for gaiter style facial coverings, which are simple to sew and very comfortable to wear.
Tencel from Nature’s Fabrics
As your favorite online fabric store, we have several different styles and colors of tencel fabrics for you to choose from. Whether you want to make a cute skirt with our rose tencel jersey fabric or leggings for the whole family with our navy tencel fabric, we have what you’re looking for. And, as always, that’s just a fraction of the hundreds of different fabric options we have available. Please check out our inventory now for more details.