How to Sew with Rayon Fabric

If this is your first time working with rayon, let me assure you that it is probably not going to be as difficult to work with as you fear. While different types of rayon fabric will offer different challenges, the main area that you’ll need to work through is the slippery, drapey nature of the material (which you are totally capable of dealing with!)

Before you dive into the actual sewing, prewash your fabric to account for any potential shrinkage (which is a common characteristic of rayon). Rayon’s slippery personality means you should take your time during both the cutting and sewing stages to ensure precision and avoid snagging the fabric. 

Stabilizers or even tissue paper can help a lot, providing the extra grip needed to keep the fabric in place while you cut and sew. And remember, a moderate iron heat setting will help you tame any wrinkles without damaging or burning the fabric.

Learn more about the environmental impacts of rayon fabric

How difficult is rayon to sew with?

The flowy nature of rayon fabric is what usually gives new sewists a bit of a challenge. Since rayon drapes well, it’s great for making lovely skirts and blouses, but this same feature can make it slip and slide under your fingers and sewing machine foot.

Here are the challenges that you will learn to overcome with rayon fabric:

• Slippery: While rayon fabric is not the most slippery I’ve ever dealt with, it can be a challenge for beginners. If you’re having trouble, think about using pins. Lots of them.
• Fraying: If you’re using a woven rayon fabric, be prepared for a lot of fraying. Make sure you finish your seams, and avoid over-handling the fabric.
• Warping: Rayon fabric can warp out of shape much more easily than cotton, so be sure to staystitch your necklines and any edge that’s cut on a diagonal or curve.

Learn more about different types of rayon fabric

How to sew with rayon

Personally, I love the look and feel of rayon fabric, so I find the difficulties of sewing with it to be well worth it. If you’re a beginner sewist getting ready to venture into more difficult types of fabric, rayon is a great choice. It offers a challenge without being so difficult that you’ll be disappointed in the end result.

1. Prewash rayon fabric

Before diving into your sewing project, you’ve got to prewash that rayon fabric. Yeah, it’s annoying, but rayon is notorious for shrinking in the wash, especially the lightweight kind. You don’t want to sew a garment together, only to wash it and realize it no longer fits.

While many people will advise you to only wash rayon on delicate settings, I find that’s usually unnecessary. If the fabric itself is delicate (for example, a rayon chiffon), then you want to be extra careful when washing it. However, most of the time I use standard wash settings with rayon and it’s fine.

With that in mind, when you pre-wash your rayon make sure to use whatever wash setting you intend to use when washing your final garment.

2. What type of needles to use with rayon?

When you’re working with rayon, picking the right needle will help in avoiding damage and puckering. You’ll want to use needles that are sharp and of the right size to prevent snagging the delicate fibers.

Here’s a quick guide to help you choose:

• Universal Needles: Sizes 70/10 to 80/12 are your go-to sizes. These work well for most rayon fabrics.
• Microtex/Sharp Needles: Opt for sizes 60/8 to 70/10. Use these if the small universal needles are still causing problems while stitching.
• Ballpoint Needles: If you’re dealing with knitted rayon (such as bamboo or modal), sizes 70/10 to 80/12 in ballpoint can prevent skipped stitches and snags.

Always do a test run on scraps of your rayon fabric. This way, you can make any necessary adjustments to your needle and machine settings before diving into your main project and accidentally ruining something.

3. What type of stitch setting to use on your sewing machine?

In general, a length of 2.5 to 3.0 mm works well for rayon, preventing puckering while providing adequate hold.

For areas needing stretch, switch to a small zigzag stitch. This gives the seam a bit of give, necessary for the natural movement of the fabric. The precise settings can vary a lot depending on you sewing machine and the material you’re using, so test everything with scrap fabric first.

4. Be careful with the heat settings on your iron

Working with rayon can be a bit tricky when it’s time to press your seams and hems. It can take some heat, but if your not careful, rayon will burn.

While I’m not as careful with rayon as I am with polyester (which will melt!), I still make sure to keep my iron at a lower temperature. Generally, this means putting the heat settings to the low side of medium. 

If you want to be completely safe, start with the iron on low setting and increase it little by little with a test piece of fabric. This way you can ensure your setting are correct before touching the fabric for your final garment.

5. Consider using a rotary cutter when cutting the pattern pieces

Because rayon fabric is a bit slippery, it can be a pain to cut. To keep your cuts clean, I really recommend using a rotary cutter. This honestly makes the process so much easier and faster, with less fabric slipping.

To use this method, you’ll need a cutting board. I recommend getting a large one (like one of these). I also recommend getting two different sizes in rotary cutters, an 18mm for the small curves, and a 28mm for the cutting the rest (OLFA is my preferred brand, their blades are sharp!).

You use the rotary cutter method by laying your fabric flat on the cutting mat, placing your pattern pieces on top and placing pattern weights on the pieces to hold them down (you can use anything you have laying around as weights, or purchase them separately). With the pattern pieces stabilized with the weights, use the rotary cutter to cut them out.

6. How to stabilize rayon fabric

If the rayon you’re working with is particularly shifty, you may want to stabilize the fabric to make it easier to sew.One option is stay tape. This is perfect for areas needing a bit of extra strength, like necklines and shoulder seams. By sewing this tape along these stress points, you prevent stretching and warping. This gets fused directly to the fabric, like interfacing.

If you don’t want to fuse something directly to the seam, you can use the tissue paper method. Use a strip of tissue paper under the fabric when you sew. It’s an old-school trick that provides extra stability, and you can just rip it away once you’re done. I use this method most often with knit fabrics, but it can be used for slippery fabrics as well.

If you want to make a whole section of the garment more stable (the bodice, for example) add featherweight interfacing onto the wrong side of your rayon piece.The interfacing should be just enough to give support without adding bulk.

7. Rayon is more prone to warping

Rayon is more prone to warping than many other fabrics. By this, I mean that necklines, armholes, waistlines, and other types of curved or diagonal edges are likely to warp out of shape if they are tugged on or handled too aggressively.

First, handle with care. As much as you can, avoid pulling on the rayon material. In fact, try to handle it as little as possible.

You also do not want to skip the stay stitching. I know this seems like an optional step, but this is what will prevent your neckline from stretching out and causing a gaping, ugly collar.