Made by a Fabricista: Scuba Dooba Do- Venturing into Scuba fabric

Have you noticed that just when you think you've tried it all, someone invents a new fabric? That's one thing that I absolutely love about sewing- there is always something new to try. Scuba knits have been around for a couple of years, but they hadn't made it into my sewing room yet. But, as I have seen them more and more in ready to wear, I decided that they were worth a look!


I ordered two different types of scuba for this experiment- one with a sueded finish and one with a smooth finish. Then I compared them both to an ITY knit. Both of the scuba knits were considerably loftier than the ITY. You can see here in this photo- the thickness of the same size piece of the solid brown ITY knit is much less. The sueded scuba is the loftiest- it's thick but not heavy at all. The printed scuba is extremely lightweight- even lighter than the ITY knit next to it.



One of the things that attracted me to scuba was that I've heard that they do well in garments without hemming. Being hemming-adverse, that was a real advantage in my opinion! Here's a curved cut edge up close of all three fabrics- you can see that there is no curling of the edges.

For the sueded scuba skirt, I used Vogue 9154. Because the scuba is so stretchy, I left out the zipper and lining, and made an elastic waistband. The suede finish is really luxurious. Everyone that has felt it has gone "OOOHHHHhhhh!" Unfortunately, this color- Butterscotch, is sold out, but hopefully Fabric Mart will get more!


Here's a close-up of the non-hem. I think it looks nice, and I just dabbed a bit of fray-check on the threads at the bottom of the seams to make sure that they didn't come undone.


My top is a rayon challis that was in a mystery bundle. I used McCalls 7431 for it, cutting at top length instead of dress length, and omitting the ruffle on the sleeves for View C.

For the dress, I used a Kwik Sew pattern from 1997- Pattern 2672. I have a lot of older Kwik Sew patterns and find that they are some of my favorites to sew. I thought that the diamond pattern in the scuba knit would echo the diamond pattern in the bodice. Alas, this fabric has sold out also.




At first, I used a black ponte knit as the insert, but it looked very heavy and prominent, so I switched it out with the cocoa ITY knit, and was very happy with the change. I was careful to match the stripe of the print at the sides, and again, left it unhemmed.


The fabric is really comfortable, and completely wrinkle resistant, which is great for just pulling on and heading out for the day. So, I am completely sold on scuba! More of it will definitely be making it's way to my house.

I'll leave you with a photo of a black cat for Halloween. I think he sees a mouse in the field and is very excited.

Have you tried sewing with scuba knit yet? What do you think of it?