So, in my continued perseverance to try out different custom fabric printers I tried out a new one.
I bought two yards of fabric. Their site is not quite as developed as Spoonflower’s site and obviously has less users.
First one was Quadri Performance Sport Knit ($26/yard). It printed true to design and the yardage was as described. The fabric was a bit thin, so I think it is more for a wicking shirt than leggings. Fine. I will make myself a summer tank top of some sort out of it.
Next was their Cotton Slinky Knit ($24/yard). It appears a little heavier than Spoonflower’s Modern Jersey. I printed on black, and it was a little lighter than Spoonflower prints, so not a true black. The yard BEFORE washing is 32″. Yeah. After washing it was 29.5″. Not happy.
Oh yeah, and my washing machine broke mid-cycle when I went to wash these, so there they sat…sopping wet. I washed them up once I got my new front load washer. I hated that washer anyways, so I guess I’m not totally brokenhearted that the 2 YEAR OLD LG washer broke.
Onward.
I was having some fabric printed in China, that I am sure some of you have seen me talk about. It printed great and I love the quality, so I ordered 20 yards. Well, that supplier got really behind and decided to keep going and basically finally ran into the wall and had an emotional breakdown. It was not good. I’m hoping paypal will cover the $450 I have in fabric. She gave me the name and e-mail of her supplier, which in the custom world is like someone handing you the holy grail or the One Ring. *my precioussssss*
Once I (hopefully) get refunded from Paypal, I am going to give “Simon” a shout and see if we can’t get some squishy cotton lycra. I am hoping for a reduced cost/yard, since I am cutting out the middle man and can get it directly shipped.
Not be dissuaded, I ordered from a different custom fabric place, but this was in stock fabric. I ordered from Zenith and Quasar fabric, and got one of her “like a girl” panels. I got “fly like a girl” with Amelia Earhart. I am going to make the Girl a shirt with it, and probably do the Hibernis with the color blocking. I am hoping I can fussy cut the panel to get it all to work together like I want. It was a nice poly lycra, so basically the same as Modern Jersey, only thicker. I didn’t measure before I washed it, but after washing it was just a little less than a yard. I also got a space swim fabric, and it is a really nice weight fabric. It will be great to sew up a swim suit for the Girl (or me!).
Oh, and I got the new Cotton Spandex ($26.75/yard) fabric from Spoonflower. It had a coating on it when it arrived. Like it was stuck together and you had to peel the fabric apart. I washed it once in cold and dried it, and it still does not have a soft hand. Maybe more washings will make it better. I printed a black and white fabric, and it was a dark grey and not true black. Bummer.
MyFabricDesigns and Spoonflower’s version of “black”
This picture shows (left to right):
Cotton Spandex, Cotton Spandex sample compared to the China printed yardage, (bottom to top) Performance Knit ($24/yard), Minky ($27/yard), Silk Crepe de Chine ($38/yard) (that is the wrong side – right side was a good printing). The Performance knit would be fine for leggings, but isn’t super thick. The Minky printed great, but really low loft. Not super deep fabric that you want when it comes to minky. The silk was nice and would make a good see through blouse or scarf (but super expensive per yard). I still need to order a sample of their Sport Lycra to see if it would be good for exercise leggings.
So…there ya go! 🙂
