how to jersey knit?

Jersey fabric is a knit fabric known for its stretch and comfort. It's perfect for a variety of garments, and is a popular choice for T-shirts and dresses.

Jersey is usually made from cotton, but can also be made in wool, bamboo, and silk. There are many varieties of jersey available, and each is better suited to different projects. Single-knit jersey has a wrong and right side, and fabrics such as a viscose jersey are very light and perfect for garments with drape. Heavier, double-knit jerseys are more stable, and fabrics such as Ponte Roma and scuba are used for dresses and jumpers.

It can feel daunting to work with jersey, but it's actually really quick to sew with, it doesn't fray, it's easy to wash, and easy to fit. If you're just starting out with jersey fabrics, you can make it easier for yourself by choosing a single-knit jersey with good recovery.

Here we give you some top tips for working with jersey, as well as a step-by-step guide to making a poncho so you can put your new skills to the test.

Some dressmaking patterns will call for a jersey with a certain stretch percentage. This can be confusing if the fabric store doesn’t specify, but it is very simple to calculate yourself. All you need to do is take a tape measure with you to the shop!

First, hold 10cm of fabric between your thumbs and pull to a comfortable stretch. Don’t pull as far as the fabric will allow you to, but try to replicate the amount of stretch that a fitted T-shirt might have when worn. Measure the stretched length of the fabric between your thumbs and this will allow you to calculate the stretch percentage. You now need to find the percentage increase between the original 10cm and the amount that the fabric stretched to. For example, if 10cm stretched to 12cm that is an increase of 20%, so your fabric has 20% stretch. If it stretched to 15cm, your fabric has a 50% stretch. Some stretch fabrics have a horizontal and vertical stretch, so you can use this method to calculate the stretch in both directions.

Ballpoint pins and sewing machine needles will pass through jersey easily, whereas regular machine needles will pierce the threads causing skipped stitches or laddering your fabric.

Sharp scissors are essential when cutting out jersey fabric – blunt scissors will ‘drag’ the fabric as you are cutting it, resulting in stretched edges before you even begin to sew!

If your machine allows you to do so, reducing the pressure foot pressure can help if your fabric is stretching when sewn. The dogteeth in your machine will guide the fabric through as you sew, but if the foot pressure is too high the foot will pull on the fabric as you sew, resulting in the dreaded wavy seams.

Sew slowly – if you have a speed control on your sewing machine select the slowest setting, and if you don’t have speed control press very lightly on your foot pedal.

Always sew a sample, or at least a use a scrap of fabric to practise your stitching before you start sewing the final garment.

When sewing garments in jersey fabric you might find that it is helpful to use different techniques and stitches, depending on the desired finish. For example, finishing a hem with a twin needle will give a professional look, whereas you might think that a neckline would look nicer when finished with binding. You may like the effect of overlocking without stabilisers for the ends of the sleeves for a wavy, ‘petal’ effect. The best way to see what works best on your machine and what is to your taste is to experiment with a scrap of your fabric, and make sure to note down the stitch details next to each sample. This will help you to decide which stitch to use and save time in the future!

From the main fabric cut:

• Secure your thread to the fabric. Then insert the needle from right to left through a few threads of the garment.
• Moving to the right, insert the thread again from right to left through a few threads of the hem.
• Repeat steps 1 and 2 until the entire hem is secure.

Learn all the tips for sewing jersey knit with these sewing tips and techniques. Jersey is the best knit fabric to sew and wear!

When I first started sewing there were not a lot of great knit fabric options so it was hard to learn how to sew knit fabric. Pretty soon jersey knit was readily available in so many prints and colors.

Jersey knit is one of my favorite fabrics to sew with, and it’s perfect for fitted stretch clothing. The best is cotton spandex jersey which is the easiest to find!

I will teach you everything there is to know about how to sew knit fabric and share a video, so you can learn and become comfortable with sewing jersey knit fabric!

Jersey knit fabric is yarns or threads looped around each other. When the fabric is pulled the the loops pull against each other. The space in between creates space for the fabric to move and stretch.

Jersey fabric comes in all weights and stretches. It can be made from lots of different fibers and fiber blends. Clothing made from jersey is more often tight and fitted. Some of them don’t drape that well, but it really depends on the fabric. Try one of these jersey knit sewing projects.

Jersey knit is one kind of knitting to create fabric, but there are lots of different fibers used to make jersey knit. Each jersey knit fabric behaves differently and stretches differently.

Jersey knits have little “Vs” on the front and “Ms on the back. There’s often a slight sheen to the right side, and it always curls towards the front. Sometimes it has spandex in the content and sometimes it doesn’t.

Most often jersey knit is lightweight or a medium weight. It can be found created from cotton, polyester, rayon, and spandex, and blends of these fibers.

rayon spandex jersey, bamboo rayon spandex jersey, cotton spandex jersey, double brushed polyester jersey, and single brushed polyester jersey

rayon spandex jersey, bamboo rayon spandex jersey, cotton spandex jersey, double brushed polyester jersey, and single brushed polyester jersey

Each fabric stretches differently. There’s stretch percentage and then there’s returnability.

The stretch percentage tells you how much a certain fabric has the ability to stretch, and the returnability tells you how much the fabric can return to it’s original length. Jersey usually has a good stretch percentage and a good returnability especially if there’s spandex in the content.

To figure out the stretch percentage line up the cut edge of your fabric next to a ruler*. Hold the fabric at the selvedge and 4″ and stretch the fabric as wide as it goes. Then release it and see if the fabric returns to 4″.

This fabric stretched from 4″ to 7″ which means it has 85% stretch.

When you sew jersey knit fabric you want duller needles to push the fibers apart instead of poking holes in the fabric. A sharp needle will pierce and cause runs in the fabric.

There are two kinds of sewing machine needles you should use with knit jersey fabric. Each needle comes in different sizes which corresponds with the weight of your fabric: smaller needles go with lighter weight fabrics and bigger needles go with heavier weight fabrics.

The medium ball point does not damage or break knit fibers. This is the best to use with jersey fabric.

Two stretch needles mounted on one shank that creates two rows of stitches simultaneously. I use a twin needle to hem all of my knits

Knits are a little tricky to cut out especially with pins and scissors.

The most accurate way of cutting out jersey knit fabric is to use a cutting mat, pattern weights, and a rotary cutter*. Rotary cutters make cutting curves and notches easier.

Jersey knit fabric does have a grainline like woven fabric. The grainline runs parallel to the selvedge.

Usually when working with a pattern, the pattern indicates a line for the greatest stretch of the fabric which is perpendicular to the selvedge. You want the greatest stretch to go around a body.

Different sewing machine thread can produce different results in your project.

I use all-purpose thread for almost all knit fabric especially any jersey fabric with polyester content. I rarely have a problem with it, and it works great.

Every once in awhile I notice holes forming in knit seams. This is caused by the polyester thread being too strong for the jersey knit fabric and slowly pulling holes in the fabric.

The cotton thread is not as unforgiving as polyester thread and won’t pull holes in the fabric.

There are some new thread types that stretch, but they can be used and treated like regular thread. Use the thread in the top and bottom threads and sew a straight line. The seam will have stretch to go with the knit fabric.

I have not tried it on all knit fabrics and seams, but I did write a review of each thread so that you can learn more. I tried the Eloflex thread and the Seraflex thread.

The most basic stretch stitches are a zigzag and a serger stitch. You cannot use a regular straight stitch because the thread will pop when the fabric is stretched.

You can use a zigzag on any sewing machine alone without a serger. I really want anyone without a serger to realize they can still sew knits! I have a serger, and I actually use a zigzag and a serger on every knit seam so I have double seams and don’t have to mend seams later.

on almost all sewing machines, always works, has a chance of tunneling, shows thread from the outside

a slow stitch that uses a lot of thread and it looks like a straighter seam from the outside

doesn’t tunnel the fabric, shows thread from the outside

the straightest looking stitch that still stretches but it’s not a stitch with a large amount of stretch

uses a lot of thread and a slow stitch

If you really struggle sewing jersey knit fabric because the raw edges roll toward the front, use spray starch* and an iron to stiffen the edges. This is the best tip for lightweight jersey knits and especially rayon jersey.

I was skeptical about it working until I tried it. It really does help the edges stop rolling so much.

Sometimes a sewing machine foot with a lot of pressure can make a fabric stretch out and become wavy. If you reduce the pressure you can help prevent this.

Some machines have a dial on the side to adjust the pressure and some machines you adjust the pressure by loosening a screw on the sewing machine foot.

Read your sewing machine manual to figure out how to do it.

I just got mine recently so I can’t give a lot of advice on this, but I’ve read lots and lots of posts about using a walking foot while sewing jersey knits.

A walking foot* is basically a foot with feed dogs and go in time with the bottom feed dogs so the fabric is moved evenly through the sewing process. I think I’ll use mine when sewing twin needle hems on jersey knit fabrics.

If a pattern recommends jersey fabric than the stretch percentage should be really close and will work the best for your project.

I think once you have enough experience with knit fabrics you can deviate a little bit, but if you are just learning you will have a higher rate of success of you follow the recommendations.

A neckband needs to be smaller than what it’s being sewn to so that it can pull it in. When you think of the two circles of a neckband, the folded side should have a smaller circumference than the circumference of the seam.

If you have trouble having your thread or fabric getting sucked down into the bobbin area, then holding the threads before and when you start sewing can solve this problem.

It prevents the threads from being pulled down, and it prevents the fabric from being sucked down in.

When you are sewing jersey knit fabric you should never stretch or pull the fabric but let the machine do the work. Pulling and stretching causes the fabric to become stretched out and wavy.

Don’t pull and stretch the fabric EXCEPT when sewing on bands. Don’t stretch the main part of the garment, but do slightly stretch the band to fit the length of what it’s being sewn to. The band will suck the stretched fabric back in.

Press every seam with steam because the steam can help the fabric return to its original state. Sometimes I even have to wash it once it’s finished before wearing to get it to fully return.

I hem jersey knit fabrics with a twin needle. A twin needle sews a stitch that is two parallel stitches from the front and a zigzag on the back.

The only way I’ve been able to get a successful knit hem is by using soft stretch hem tape*. It’s a lightweight hem tape that stretches; it prevents tunneling and thread pulling out. Read more about how to use a twin needle and hem tape.

This is the best tip of all because you need to make mistakes and practice to learn and improve!

If you make something using this tutorial, I’d love to see! Please share it on social media with the hashtag #heatherhandmade and tag me!

Sewing jersey on your regular machine is easy-peasy! All you need to do is find the right stitch for your fabric by practicing on a piece of scrap material to get the perfect setting for the best results. There are 5 methods to try below, so let's get playing with our machines!

Zigzag stitch

The easiest way to sew jersey on your machine is to use the standard zigzag setting. For most jersey a stitch length of 2mm and width of 2.5m will work but you can adjust slightly around these numbers to get the right measurements for your fabric. A good zigzag will not jump stitches or struggle to stretch after sewing.

Lightning bolt stitch

This clever variation on a zigzag is a neater alternative. It reduces puckering on lightweight or very stretchy knit fabric and bias seams, while permitting the seam to be pressed completely flat. Its so called due to its lightning shape and has a narrow width of 2.0 and a length of 2.5. Be wary that this stitch can be extremely hard to unpick so being confident with your sewing is key.

Overedge or overcast foot and stitch

If you don't have an overlocker at home you can replicate the robust stitch it creates with a special foot and stitch setting. The guide on the foot runs along the side of the fabric and a little brush spreads out the thread as you sew to cover the raw edge. You can also adjust the width you need, choosing a wider stitch for thicker fabric. It is a slightly slow process as the needle must stitch multiple times before moving on so patience is key with this finish.

Triple straight stitch

This tough stitch is formed when the machines feed dogs move the fabric forward and then backward while the machine sews a straight stitch. The forward-backward movement gives stretch but the multiple lines of stitching provide the durability. Use this stitch at points of stress, such as armholes, for a long lasting finish. This process isn't ideal for lightweight knits that may ripple or pucker but the results are great for durable knit garments that will have a lot of wear.

Twin needle

Using two spools of thread and a regular straight stitch, you can create a stretchy topstitch that mimics the effect of a coverpro machine. Your bobbin thread will zigzag behind the two stitching lines on the RS, creating a polished look inside and out. Simple thread a second spool through your machine using your extra spool pin and put one thread through each side of the needle. Don't have an extra spool pin? Tape a chopstick to the side of your machine using washi tape for a temporary fix!

Remember, with all these techniques it's important to use a ballpoint/stretch or universal sewing machine needle as this will push through the fibres of your fabric rather than making a hole that will cause your material to unravel.

Easy jersey skirt The Brigitte dress Tilly & the Buttons top