Pre-shrinking traditional kilt fabric?

[sydnie7]

I'm taking a tailoring class (watch out, world!) and we had a lengthy discussion about pre-shrinking all the components of a tailored garment. I've searched here and found some comments about pre-shrinking hair canvas, lining, stablizer, etc. but can't find any mention, here or in TAOK, about pre-shrinking the actual wool tartan fabric.

The idea is to run your raw fabric through whatever cleaning method you would use on the finished garment, prior to cutting and sewing. This eliminates the initial shrinkage, however minor it might be. One method for making wool "needle ready" is to steam it, either with a dedicated steamer or by shooting steam at it from your conventional iron (from a distance of an inch or so, never actually touching the material with the iron surface).

Seems to make a lot of sense to me, considering the amount of steam that a kilt will see during construction and subsequent "freshening" by the wearer. You can tell if the fabric has actually shrunk any by carefully measuring and basting around a 4-inch square prior to steaming, then measuring that square after steaming. Even a sixteenth inch of shrinkage could prove significant when you are measuring your taper in 1/32nds.

Or do you consider yardage from the top-name mills to arrive needle-ready? The prospect of steaming 4 yards of DW material is daunting, and I wouldn't want to tackle it needlessly. OTOH, I wouldn't want to suffer the consequences if I should have done it, and didn't.

Here are a few (unsatisfactory) references to the topic:
Tailor and Tailoring (doesn't mention the fabric itself, but pre-shrinks the notions)
Off The Cuff (not a method I would use with kilting fabric!)

[davidlpope]

Or do you consider yardage from the top-name mills to arrive needle-ready?

Yes. Kilts are best cleaned by gentle handwashing in the tub, as to avoid shrinkage. See this thread:

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...st-time-58379/

David

[sydnie7]

Yes. Kilts are best cleaned by gentle handwashing in the tub, as to avoid shrinkage. See this thread:

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...st-time-58379/

David

The point is that the fabric will have been "gently handwashed" or equivalent prior to making the kilt, so that any shrinkage which might occur will not affect the finished product.

[Pleater]

If it is any help - and it might not be - when I start out to make a kilt I press the folds into the fabric so I am working on only two layers of it. That is a fold for the outside and inside of the pleat from lower edge to hip, and then whatever is appropriate from hip to waist, which depends on how the taper is being dealt with.

I start off with the outer fold, then measure between them for the inner fold - so if there is any shrinking when pressed it is pretty much dealt with before sewing starts.

I don't press the original piece of fabric as there doesn't really seem to be much point, I work on the cut piece or pieces for the garment. I might iron out a bad wrinkle or twist in the original, just to check that it is not a permanent feature.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[davidlpope]

The point is that the fabric will have been "gently handwashed" or equivalent prior to making the kilt, so that any shrinkage which might occur will not affect the finished product.

Really don't think this is the case.

Matt, Barb, Rocky, John etc.: Do any of you do any sort of washing/cleaning to the tartan fabric prior to sewing up your kilts?

Cordially,

David

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Really don't think this is the case.

Matt, Barb, Rocky, John etc.: Do any of you do any sort of washing/cleaning to the tartan fabric prior to sewing up your kilts?

Cordially,

David

Nope. And never experienced a problem.

[sydnie7]

Nope. And never experienced a problem.

OK, so at least one professional kiltmaker considers kilt fabric to arrive "needle ready" from the mill. That was the gist of my question, sorry if it got obscured by the backstory.

From what I've read in several tailoring texts, this is generally not the case with woolens unless they are marked "needle ready" from the mill. Would be interesting to hear from the mills themselves, I know we have at least one representative here.

[Kiltman]

With proper care one should not have a problem with a wool kilt. The only shrinking problem usually involves the wearer gaining weight.

[Pleater]

Another factor would be if the original wool is treated to be washable or not.

Treated wool can be washed in a machine, and will not felt, so if all your original yarn is washable then the fabric is too.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[Barb T]

I've never done anything to "prep" the tartan. And I agree with Matt - I've never experienced any issues, either.

Well, I take that back. The only time I've had to prep tartan is when the tartan comes badly skewed from the mill (true of some of the F&K tartan in the last couple of years). I learned the hard way that you have to take care of this before you start sewing.