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Straight grain is arguably the most fundamental concept in sewing: whether simple or complex, all your projects will always begin with "cutting out your pattern pieces from the fabric, following the straight grain." But what does following the straight grain mean? Why is it so important? We'll explain everything.
"Sewing is easy!" That's what you've read all over the internet before finally getting started and wondering what possessed you. Don't worry, sewing really isn't complicated, as long as the basics and all the jargon that comes with it are properly explained. And that's why we're here.
In a previous article, we explained that fabrics have a right side and a wrong side (basically a front and a back). Well, fabrics also have a direction, and we're talking in particular about the "straight grain" direction.
Straight grain is arguably the most fundamental concept in sewing: whether simple or complex, all your projects will always begin with "cutting out your pattern pieces from the fabric, following the straight grain." But what does following the straight grain mean? Why is it so important? We'll explain everything.
It is indeed essential to respect the direction of the straight grain when cutting your fabric: in fact, a fabric will not have the same strength or elasticity in one direction or another. In particular, it is in the direction of the straight grain that the fabric is the strongest.
Therefore, respecting the grain direction will have a direct impact on the final appearance of the garment, but also on how it ages over time. If we make a mistake in the direction, or if some pieces are cut in the grain direction and others not, we will very quickly end up with a garment that loses its shape.
Furthermore, the direction of the fabric will also have an immediate impact on the aesthetics of the garment since the fabric does not always reflect light in the same way in one direction or the other. There are also fabrics like velvet that even have a pile direction for example, or simply printed fabrics where the pattern must be respected quite simply, like here:
The straight grain, you will find it materialized by an arrow on all the pieces of any pattern:
Most of the time, this arrow also says "DF" or "Grain line" along it, so you're not likely to miss it. You'll sometimes see "DL" written for "Direction Length": this is simply another term for grain line, but it's exactly the same thing.
In real life, the direction of the grain follows the direction of gravity. In concrete terms, we could draw this same arrow from the top of your head to the ground.
On a roll of fabric, the straight grain corresponds to the vertical direction of the fabric: in concrete terms, the straight grain follows the length of the roll.
After cutting out the different pieces of your pattern, you must position them on your fabric, respecting the grain direction. In concrete terms, this means that you must position your pattern pieces on the fabric so that the arrows indicating the grain of each piece are perfectly aligned with the grain of your fabric (and therefore with the edge of the fabric):
The little diagram you see here is what is called in sewing, a " cutting plan ". The cutting plan tells you how to place your pieces on the fabric: it is always provided with the sewing pattern. You can see here that the grain direction is respected, since all the pieces are placed in the correct direction, with the arrows on each of the pieces of the pattern perfectly parallel to the grain of the fabric.
To fully understand the concept of straight grain, let's take a look back at our childhood memories: if you've ever had a loom, you'll surely remember that to make a fabric, you need "vertical" threads, and another thread that weaves them horizontally.
These "vertical" threads are called the warp threads , and the "horizontal" threads are called the weft threads .
The warp and weft threads are therefore woven together to form a fabric. In concrete terms, during weaving, the weft thread passes alternately above and then below the warp threads. In sewing, woven fabrics are called " warp and weft fabrics ", as opposed to meshes, which are "knitted" fabrics (a single thread), such as jersey, for example.
The straight grain therefore corresponds to the warp threads (vertical direction). The warp threads are very taut during the manufacturing process and are therefore stronger than the weft threads. Concretely, they will tend to relax less than the weft thread: the fabric is not at all elastic in the direction of the warp (unless of course we have integrated elastane to make the fabric stretchy). This is why it is important to respect the straight grain when cutting the fabric: it is in this direction that the fabric is the strongest, our garment therefore does not risk deforming over time.
Since the weft threads (horizontal direction) are less taut, the fabric will always be a little more stretchy in the weft direction (even without elastane). The weft threads follow what is called the " countergrain " direction, as opposed to the straight grain direction.
If we stretch our fabric diagonally, it will stretch even more. This is called the fabric's bias .
The bias direction corresponds to an imaginary line oblique at 45° on the fabric. The bias direction is found by bringing the weft back to the warp.
A fabric will stretch the most along the bias. So, sometimes we're told to cut certain pieces of the pattern along the bias when we want to give them elasticity or a flowing drape: this is the case with skater skirts, for example. But overall, most pieces of your pattern will be cut along the straight grain.
In sewing, we sometimes use "bias" to neatly finish a neckline or armholes: it is a small strip of fabric that is cut precisely in the direction of the bias in order to give it the elasticity necessary to allow it to follow the curve of the edge that it is to embellish.
The width corresponds to the width of the roll of fabric: the width therefore follows the weft threads (horizontal).
Fabric rolls come in different widths: for clothing fabrics, you'll generally find widths ranging from 90 cm to 150 cm. Larger widths (from 140 cm to 300 cm) are available for upholstery fabrics, for example.
The selvedges correspond to the edges of the fabric. They follow the warp threads (vertical threads), and are therefore in the direction of the straight grain .
In short, we can remember:
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If you're new to sewing, we recommend starting with small accessories like our < villette > bob hat or our < holly > dog bandana to get familiar with these new concepts and get your hands dirty before tackling larger projects. All our designs come with highly detailed assembly instructions, suitable for beginners, as well as a tutorial video that explains each step of the process step by step.
If you have any questions, please feel free to share them in the comments or write to us directly at hello@disclothed-paris.com, we will be happy to help you.
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