Top Tips for Buying Fabric Online

We know not all of you are able to visit us in store,  so shopping online for fabric is your means to starting your next sewing project.  To boost your confidence to shop for your next project, here are our top tips to make your online fabric shopping as easy as pie! 

We spend a lot of time getting the photos and descriptions of our products on our website as accurate as possible. But we are aware that nothing beats feeling the fabric in person!

We have compiled some of our top tips to give you confidence buying fabrics online:

  • Order a sample before ordering a full piece. This will give you the ultimate peace of mind! There is an option to buy a sample of everyone of our fabrics.  Do keep in mind however what fabric we still have in stock - this will be listed on each fabric page in the 'Order Fabric' box. 
  • Keep a notebook of fabric samples listing fabric content and weight next to each sample. This is a great reference point for you to compare against new fabrics online.
    • collect samples from previous sewing projects, samples ordered (or complimentary ones we have included with previous purchases), samples collected from you local fabric store, and snippets from your existing stash. 
    • Weigh other fabrics in your stash to help give you a comparison, and add them to your scrap book. We have a handy equation on our Understanding Fabric Weights Blog to help you.
    • How important is colour to you? While we try our best to accurately photograph our fabrics, all devices and computer screens will display colour differently.  There is bound to be a difference (even if slight) between what you see on the screen and what you see in person.  If specific colour matching is important to your project - we recommend you order a sample piece first. 
    • If you are considering a print fabric, check the scale of the print. We take photos of our fabrics draped on mannequins to help give you a good idea. 
    • Always check how the fabric is priced and in what increments you can purchase the fabric - different online stores do vary here, so beware!  At Miss Maude we list the price of each fabric by the meter and after the first minimum 0.5m we sell by 10cm increments.  Note: once you get to the final checkout online at Miss Maude, the fabric length will be listed as the number of 10cm you have ordered.   For example 1m with show as 10units: 10 x 10cm = 1m.  We will of course, cut you fabric as one continuous piece!!
    • Check the width of the fabric, We stock fabric that rages from 1m wide through to 1.8m wide, so this will really impact how much you need!
    • Check the opacity of the fabric - this is often a personal preference.  Look for explanations in the fabric description, photographs and any videos that might be provided. 
    • Still unsure? Call us or pop in if you can! We are always happy to help and to go through your project with you to ensure you get the right fabric for you.

SAVE IT FOR LATER....

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8 comments

Hi Wendy, thank you for sharing the link. Always useful to find out more about the fabrics! Caroline from Miss Maude

Caroline April 20, 2022

Hi Debra, those are great tips! Thank you, I can’t believe I forgot to mention Nap! Definitely something to consider when choosing and cutting fabric. Thank you for reminding me and for your other tips too! Caroline from Miss Maude!

Caroline April 20, 2022

Hi Chrissy! Thank you for letting us know you found it helpful! Really good to hear! Caroline from Miss Maude

Caroline April 20, 2022

Thanks Frances, really glad that you found it helpful! Caroline from Miss Maude

Caroline April 20, 2022

Nice advice; I like the idea of keeping a log of samples; I had not thought of that. Thank you

Frances Anderson April 20, 2022

This is incredibly helpful ,especially the scrap/ sample fabric book suggestion.
I hadn’t thought there’d be a way to estimate weight of fabric :)
Thanks so much .

Chrissy Harris April 20, 2022

My extra tips

check that the NAP of the fabric (eg corduroy) or direction of the print is catered for in the amount of fabric you need consider using lighter fabrics for pocket linings etc if you wish to reduce bulk when using heavier fabrics decide if you will need to line a garment to reduce transparency or if the fabric (like some woollens) might cause itchiness don’t forget your sewing notions – thread, buttons and zips,…
Debra April 20, 2022

Useful information thank you! Merchant and Mills also have a useful blog post on their lovely linens which you stock thankfully! https://merchantandmills.com/linen-cloth-focus/

Wendy April 20, 2022

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