What's Up Wednesday-Fabric: My Picking Process

Hey guys! It's "What's Up Wednesday!" Every now and then I'm going to give you a little peek into my creative side of things. Today I'll be sharing the process of picking my fabrics.

In case you are not aware, all my clothing is upcycled. This means that I either found leftover pieces of fabric at a second-hand store or I found something that I can use to make an item (e.g. pillow cases, a table cloth, bed sheet, etc.)

1. The local thrift store where I live is closed on Mondays so that they can get the store ready for Tuesday by putting out all that was brought in over the weekend. Occasionally I will go for 9:30am on Tuesdays when they open, but it's a MAD HOUSE of people rushing around hoping to get the best of the best before anyone else does! *I'd MUCH prefer to go when it's quieter so I can really think about the fabric before purchasing.

2. I head straight over to the fabric section, followed closely by the pillowcases, bed sheets and table cloths.  I tend to gravitate to knits and breathable cottons, as most of what I make has stretch to it, and I like to be comfy and hang well when worn.  I also obviously am attracted to patterns-floral print, stripes, graphic prints, etc.  I'll usually grab those before I even know what kind of material it is ;)

3. I make sure to feel the fabric to make sure it's something I can work with, and think about what I could make with it. If I don't have an idea of what to make with it, I don't buy it. Even if it's awesome. There's nothing worse than having fabric cluttering up my work space that eventually is going to go straight back where it came from 

4. I always forget-and this should be most important-to check for holes and stains. Occasionally I'll come home with bags full of fabric and open up the pieces only to find that there is a big 'ole nasty stain right in the middle. That sucks. So I need to make sure to be more careful in checking before purchasing.

5. My fabrics ALWAYS go through the wash before I use them, I wash them on a normal cycle (with hot water), and run them through the dryer. I want to make SURE that the item isn't going to shrink when you get it :)

So there you have it!  Now you know a little bit more about the thought process behind the items in my shop :)