English Garden Viscose Fabric | 60" Wide | Sold in Metres

English Garden Viscose

Blown roses, peonies and garden blooms in blush, coral and deep rose, set against teal and olive gold foliage on a soft sage ground. The printing is fine enough to hold the shading inside each petal, so the flowers read as painted rather than drawn, closer to a botanical study than a pattern.

There is a second layer most people miss at first. A delicate white lacework is printed tonally into the sage ground beneath the flowers. It only shows in the open spaces and it gives the cloth depth that a flat ground never has. It is the reason this one looks expensive.

This is a viscose, so it is cool against the skin, soft to handle, and it drapes close to the body rather than standing away from it. It gathers without bulking at the seams, which is why viscose is the standard choice for anything cut to hang.

60 inches wide, sold in metres and cut as one continuous length. Order three metres and it arrives as a single three metre piece, not three separate cuts.

What to make with it: Abayas, maxi and midi dresses, kameez and shalwar, wide leg trousers, kimono jackets, skirts cut to hang, dupattas.

Scale matters on this one. The blooms are large, so lay every pattern piece out and look at where the flowers land before you cut anything. A full rose sitting on the bust or across the seat is the mistake everyone makes once. Buy a little more than your pattern states so you have room to shift pieces around, and keep the shapes simple, because a print this big does not need gathers or ruffles competing with it.

Before you cut: Pre-wash, because viscose shrinks on its first wash and you want that happening before the pieces are cut. Wash cool, hang to dry, and expect it back slightly narrower. Cut single layer with pattern weights or plenty of pins, since viscose moves under the presser foot. The cut edges fray, so overlock or zigzag your seam allowances before you go further. Use a fine needle and let the machine feed the cloth rather than pulling it.

Care: Machine wash cool on a delicate cycle, hang to dry, never tumble dry and never wring it. Press on a medium heat while slightly damp.