And why does it matter?
If you’re new to sewing, you might find yourself looking at a pattern that tells you to line up the selvedge with an arrow, with mentions of the grain line and the bias. You might be wondering “What is a selvedge, and if I ignore this, will my sewing still look ok?” If you ignore the selvedge, your fabric will not sit right in the pattern and your projects won’t turn out correctly. So if you want to make sure you are cutting your patterns correctly, read on.
What is a selvedge?
The selvedge is the self finished edge of your fabric. It is the woven finish that typically has writing on it. This edge is finished, so it won’t fray and it runs parallel to the weave of the fabric.
What is a grain line?
The grain line is the weave of the fabric. There are three general grain lines. The straight grain line is the woven part of the the fabric that runs parallel to the selvedge. The crosswise grain is the woven part that is perpendicular to the selvedge. The bias line is the diagonal line of the weave.
What is the Bias?
The Bias is the diagonal line in the weave of the fabric. The bias is the stretchiest part of your fabric. Take a piece of woven fabric and hold diagonal corners and pull gently, it will pull much farther than you would expect. Cutting on the bias can be important in clothing. It allows you to move in your clothing without any pulling on the seams.
How do I use the selvedge to line up my pattern?
When you are sewing on a pattern, there are arrows that are meant to be on the grain line. You want to line these arrows up with the straight grain line, the easiest way to do this is using the selvedge. Place your pattern down on the fabric you are using and measure how far away the left most side of the arrow is from your selvedge. Now measure the right most side of the arrow’s distance from the selvedge. Make sure the distance is the same for each side of the arrow, which means your fabric is correctly lined up.
