What fabric you use in your stitching practice can make a big difference not only to the finished piece, but also to the process of working and creating. Choosing what you use takes time to experience what you like best, but it never hurts having someone help you along. In this blog post I’m going to talk about natural animal fibres to use for slow stitching and improv quilting.

This is part two about different fabrics to sew with. In part one I talked about natural plant fibres that I like using for slow stitching and improv quilting.

Does it matter what fabric I use for slow stitching?

Ok, it does and it doesn’t. I know this isn’t really helpful, but let me expand upon this.

While you can ultimately use whatever you want - and in fact I think you should. You should test, experiment, try different things. Use what you have to hand or what you find easily. Use what someone passes down to you. Use what you find at your local second hand shop (op-shop / thrift-store / charity-shop). Use old clothes for slow stitching and improv quilting.

If you love the colour, print, and feel of the fabric - then please use it.

But it does help to understand a little about the fabric, it’s weight, weave, texture, and components - basically what are the fibres used to make the fabric and how is it made. This can help you determine how it will fall or drape, or if it will hold it’s shape once sewn up.

Knowing some properties of your fabric also helps to work out what needle and thread to use, what process might be best suitable, and what might be best to leave for a different fabric.

I talked about fabric weight and weave here, but in essence the way a fabric is woven, or knitted, determines that stiffness, the thickness, the softness, the shift while working with it, or how easy it might be to sew through.

Something that has a tighter weave - ie the warp and weft threads and closer together, and the fibres are probably heavier / thicker to begin - will need a sharper needle to push through the fibres. When you hold the fabric up to the light, you won’t see the holes between the weave as easily.

Something softer, like a finely woven or knitted mohair or cashmere, or a soft double gauze cotton, will have more holes that your needle can slip through. These sorts of fabric are best hand sewn with a more round-tipped needle, so you won’t damage the fibres. The needle slips between the fibres, into the holes, rather than piercing the fabric.

the texture of slow stitching on silk creates ripples on water

Natural animal fibres: silk and wool

Silk

Silk is a joy to stitch on when you’re seeking delicacy. Its surface can vary from matte to glossy, depending on the type (raw silk, dupioni, chiffon, habotai, and more). I love to use scraps of silk and put them in my dye pots for colour experiments, then they’re perfect for using in my little slow stitch projects.

Lots of fine running stitch build up amazing texture when you layer silk onto linen or cotton. You’ll get a bumpy feel, that can be accentuated depending on your fabric choices, your thread, and your stitch tension.

Be gentle, though; silk can fray at the edges, and your needle needs to be extra fine. Always test first, and if you’re new to stitching on silk, consider using it as an accent rather than a base.

I love using silk from vintage kimonos if I can. Have a look on Etsy if there’s anything nearby to you, or just pop over to the flea markets in Kyoto! And Indian saris are an excellent addition - they usually have a lot of fabulous colour and prints; often block printed which can add great mark-making impressions to your stitching.

I also find that using silk fabric mixed with a plant fibre, such as linen or cotton, can be another layer of texture. See image at the bottom of this post with naturally dyed linen/silk blend. Silk velvet is luscious fabric to dye and use, but it can be on the pricer side of materials, combining it with rayon (a plant-made fibre) brings the price down considerably.

In Australian I buy silk from:

Kraft Kolour which has a variety to work with, from very fine tissue silk right through to absolutely delicious hand loomed silk noil, which has what’s called a slub texture - a coarse feel under your hands. This often has a visible warp and weft, so you can use a more blunt-tipped needle so as to not harm or pierce the fabric. They also offer Eri or peace silk, which is made once the silk worms have naturally emerged from their cocoons. As the threads are shorter, this gives the fabric a matt finish.

We Are The Fabric Store sells a lot of dead stock, which is an excellent way to discover what silk you like using, and make sure you’re using something that may have gone to landfill.

Wool

Wool fabrics are a great fabric to try for your slow stitching. The needle moves differently through wool, offering a cushioned resistance that can feel meditative. It’s ideal for appliqué or stitched collages as it has a lovely weight to it, and is probably a very different texture to your other fabrics.

There's something inherently comforting about working with wool. Its gentle weight and natural spring remind you of where it comes from: the sheep, the land, the seasons. As you stitch, the fabric often softens under your touch, creating a quiet, tactile connection that feels deeply comforting, especially in the cooler months.

I love using woollen felt as it takes natural dyes marvellously, is soft and luscious to stitch with, and doesn’t need finishing, as it doesn’t fray. A blanket stitch is a perfect edging to round off a stitch project.

You can make zippered purses, tote bags, and especially cushions or quilt backs.

I’ve also used woollen blankets as the backing for quilts - such an excellent way to have the warmth and nourishment of a blanket, while having the fun of the pieced top. I rarely find woollen blankets at my local op-shop, so snap them up when I can.

But investing in a woollen blanket can be a special thing to add to your layers during winter months. You might consider your surroundings while you’re stitching, how you envelop yourself in comfort, cosiness. These Australian wool blankets from Creswick Wool are a beautiful quality - many are made using recycled wool - and lovely blanket to snuggle up with while you do your slow stitching.

Wool felt is one of my favourites to sew with. It doesn’t fray, so can be used for all sorts of projects that don’t require turned edges. My Keepsake felt pouch being my favourite of all.

Make sure when you’re looking for felt that you use 100% wool. There are many available made from plastic and some from recycled, which while a good initiative of itself, you won’t be able to dye it with natural or botanical plant dyes, and it just doesn’t have the same luscious feel of wool.

I buy wool felt:

Indigo Inspirations, and dye it myself.

You can also find pure wool felt on Etsy, from many local small businesses in your area.

wool felt dyed with coreopsis and eucalyptus, hand stitched with slow stitching and blanket stitch

Synthetic and polyester fibres - using what you have

While my aim is to always use natural plant or animal fibres I don’t get too pedantic about it. If I find a synthetic fibres at a second-hand and it feels nice to me, then I’ll consider it. While I do always search for tags on items in op-shops, it can be hard to determine.

Many synthetic fibres are very similar to the natural fibre they’re replicating. From silk, linen, and wool, it isn’t always easy. You’ll likely find people saying to do a burn test - but try that inside your local charity shop!

Polyester is made from petroleum-based chemicals, so it’s not something that we’d ideally like in our hands while we stitch, or against our bodies. You might also find that it is a recycled fabric, made from water bottles or similar. These are melted down and spun into new fibres.

Often it’s better to use what’s available - if a second-hand fabric suits your needs, but has a synthetic component then it’s totally fine to use. Keeping fabric and fibres from landfill is always ideal.

How to tell the difference between synthetic and natural fibres:

Silk: Turn it in the light to see the shimmer and slip - test this in a fabric shop when you can hold two different fabrics side by side. Silk does have a lustre that is slightly more shimmery, and the hue of the fabric should shift slightly under the light as you move it. Take note that is a tag says silk satin then this is likely synthetic. Even though satin is in fact a type of weave, rather than a fabric, it’s not illegal to label polyester in this way.

Wool: wool often has a softer feel and loft. I always find it’s just that little bit more ‘natural’ feeling, trust your instinct on this one. Acrylic yarn (though also sometimes called wool on it’s label) can often have a slight stiffness and ‘plastic’ feel to it. You’ll also notice, especially on say a jumper from an op-shop, that acrylic pills, whereas wool generally doesn’t. These are the little lumps that appear all over the fabric through wear.

Linen: It really is becoming increasingly harder to tell the difference. Synthetic fibre manufacturers are getting better and better at replicating natural materials. I recently bought some fabric new at the fabric shop. It was on the same shelf with all the linens, and giant signs saying linen. There was no individual tag on that roll of fabric. In my overwhelm of choosing the fabrics, and having a child (plus two adults - me included) needing to leave the fluorescent lights, I accidentally purchased when I realised was not 100% linen. When I got it home I could feel the fibres to be a little stiffer than linen, and there was a slight shimmer. I imagine that someone without experience, or even taking the time to notice, would see a difference, but I could feel it as soon as I started cutting it out.

If you do buy new - and please know that I buy new fabrics as well - then consider what you buy, where you buy it, and what you’ll use it for. Please make sure to use your fabric… while it’s lovely sitting in a cupboard ready to be stroked, it’s a whole lot more lovely seeing in your couch, your loved one carrying it in a bag, or snuggling up under it in a quilt.

Taking the time to select fabrics that you use for quilting or slow stitching can make a difference to what you pick up. Deciding on recycled, up-cycled, new, or the scraps from your other projects. In the end you want to love what you create, and enjoy the process while making it. So - use a fabric that you truly love and makes you feel good.

With slow stitching and hand quilting we can create the world we want. Choosing our fabrics wisely means we’re actively saying what are our value. Be it second-hand, up-cycled, or purchased new, natural and sustainable fibres make a difference to our sewing process, and our environment.

Choosing fabrics for slow stitching - natural animal fibres