Faille Fabric: What Is It & Why Is It Used In Clothing
A woven type of ribbed fabric that has been around since the 19th century, faille fabric is becoming increasingly popular in fashion and home sewing.
But what is faille fabric? Why is it being used so much for clothing in the 21st century? And more importantly, how do we sew with it?
What Is Faille Fabric?
Faille – pronounced as ‘file’ in the US and ‘fail’ in the UK – is a type of fabric that is made from natural fibers like cotton, silk, and wool but is also available as a synthetic rayon version from some mills. It has a distinctive ribbed appearance and is often used for formal wear, though it is being used more now for casual wear garments in the home sewing community as more people become aware of this fabric type.
In fact, the New Craft House store in London always has plenty of faille fabrics available!
Faille’s distinctive texture runs on the cross grain – the ribs run from selvedge to selvedge – but it also maintains a very slightly shiny surface too. It is also able to hold its shape well when draped, which makes it perfect for gowns, dresses and other clothing items.
Where Does Faille Fabric Come From?
The history of Faille fabric dates back to the 18th century, when it was first used for ribbons and trimmings for clothing in France. Think of grosgrain ribbon, only less rigid!
It was only in the 19th century that faille became a popular fabric for clothing, particularly evening wear garments.
At this time it was viewed as a cheaper alternative to the more expensive silk cloth versions available but over the years since, it has become a firm favorite with high end fashion designers ready to take advantage of its structure and rich texture to design and make gorgeous clothing.
Faille fabric – whether made from silk, cotton or other fibers – continues to be used for a variety of fashion items including suits, dresses, skirts, and blouses.
How Is Faille Fabric Made?
Whether made from a natural fiber like cotton or semi-synthetic fiber like viscose / rayon, faille fabric is woven in a special way to give it the distinctive linear appearance.
The process still uses two sets of yarns, but the weft yarns – used for the horizontal weft threads – are much thicker than the yarns used for the vertical warp threads. It is this that creates the ribbed appearance running along the width of the fabric that is characteristic of faille fabric.
Why Is Faille fabric Used In Clothing?
When it comes to fashion, there is always a new fabric or material that designers are eager to work with – I myself am always on the lookout for new fabric types that may give a new look to an old style and have even been known to construct my own in search of something more unique!
This is most likely why faille fabric has been gaining popularity in recent years. While its main draw is its smooth surface and slightly ribbed appearance, the fabric is also quite lightweight, which makes it great for summer clothing – lightweight cotton faille fabric makes for a lovely top or dress that is more comfortable to wear in warmer weather than a woven polyester fabric right?
When woven in heavier weights, it can also be used for more formal or evening wear – imagine a gorgeous, structured dress made from a silk faille fabric for the holiday party season! – while the lighter weight versions are great for casual wear like a faille shirt or skirt.
It is this versatility that has made faille an ideal fabric for designers, dressmakers and home sewers.
5 Tips For Working With Faille Fabric
If your planning to sew faille fabric for your own projects, here are five tips to help you get started:
- Faille can be quite slippery. Pin or weigh the pattern pieces down so that there is minimal slippage.
- It’s important to use sharp scissors when cutting faille fabric – the ribbed texture requires extra care on curves.
- Sew faille fabrics with a slightly longer stitch length to prevent any weird puckering as you sew.
- As faille is a woven fabric, it will try to fray, so plan to finish the edges before sewing by zig-zagging or serging the edges.
- Finally, when pressing faille, use a press cloth to protect the fabric – we want that lovely ribbed texture to be visible, not flattened from over pressing.
As you can see faille fabric is a great option if you’re looking for a fabric that has more texture than a standard plain weave, while not being quite as distinctive as a jacquard fabric type.
I hope this article has given you a better understanding of faille fabric and why it is used in clothing. As you can see, it is a versatile type of fabric that can be used for a variety of clothing types, so do give it a go and let me know how you get on in the comments below!
And be sure to check out all the other fabric related articles here on my site for more information and inspiration.
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