Is Slinky Material Stretchy? (Slinky Fabric Uses and Guide)
This material is not that favorite kids’ toy made famous during the 1960s and 70s. The fabric does not climb downstairs nor is it made from metal. Plus, it is not durable enough for children to play with but it is a good fabric that flows well when cut just right.
Is slinky material stretchy? The fibers that make up slinky are knitted. That means that the fabric will stretch when you work on it. Plus, it will stretch when you wear this material. It is a good idea to add a stabilizer to those parts of the outfit you do not want to grow longer.
To learn more about slinky fabric just continue to read our article. It has the information you want to know about using this material to help you look slimmer and more beautiful. Take a few minutes to read up on this interesting fabric.
What is Slinky Fabric?
This fabric is a unique material that is not made from the normal processes that create so many synthetic fibers. Instead, it is made from acetate that has a crepe-like texture or looks blended with viscose materials.
That combination would place slinky into the in-between category of fabrics as it is a combination of synthetic processes and natural ones. Then the fibers that make up this new material are knitted together so that it has some stretch to it.
It is a type of material that works well with uncomplicated dress blouses and other outfit patterns. Plus, when you make the material into pants, you want to add in plenty of ease to ensure you avoid that skimpy look when you put them on.
Then it is an easy fabric to care for needing cold water wash and low heat from your dryer. When done right, the fabric can be absolutely slimming so you look pounds lighter when you go out in public.
In other words, it is a very complimentary fabric that should help your figure look its best no matter where you go.
What Is Slinky Fabric Made Of?
As reported earlier, it is made from acetate with crepe-like qualities and combined with viscose-type ingredients. But that is not the complete story. There are many variations to this fabric and those variations include rayon, polyester, lycra elements included in those variations.
Acetate is not the only element used to create this material. Basically, when synthetic fibers are combined with elastane and turned into a knit fabric, then it is called slinky fabric or slinky knits.
Also, you may find that this material is classified according to the main fiber that is used to create this knit. So you may not find it right away in your favorite fabric outlet.
Because it is made with synthetic processes, and fibers this material is said to be the perfect travel fabric. It does not wrinkle and will still drape well when you pull it out of your suitcase and put the garment on.
That is a comforting thought for all those women who take a lot of business trips or vacations.
Is Slinky Material Stretchy?
Since we have already said it was, we cannot change that declaration and only confirm it. Yes, slinky is a stretchy fabric and the reason for that is that it is usually made into a knit material.
Then since elastane fibers are a part of the blend, the material will stretch with ease. However, this fabric also stretches when you wear it so you have to be careful and watch how much it will stretch over time.
If you do not have a good stabilizer holding those sections of the outfit in place, you may look a little weird the next time you put the clothing item back on. When you use a stabilizer or an interface material, you want those pieces of cloth to have about the same stretching ability as the fabric itself.
Just make sure that those pieces of cloth do not have too much stretch to them or you are facing the same problem once more. If you take care of the material properly it should last you for many years.
Slinky Knit Fabric
This material can be very comfortable to wear as it does come with 4 way stretching ability. That characteristic helps you move freely and without worry. When you work with it, you need to use a ballpoint needle (75/11 or a 90/14) or a jersey needle.
Then you will want to use a polyester-type thread to hold your seams in place. A 2.0 stitch width and a 2.0 stitch length are recommended as is the zig-zag stitch pattern. The material does not unravel on you so you have time to do other aspects of your project before finishing the hem and the seams.
Be careful when you are sewing and do not pull the fabric through the needle. You may end up stretching it beyond what can be repaired and ruin your sewing project. Simple designs with vertical lines are the best patterns to use when making something from this fabric. Horizontal lines do tend to sag on you.
Also, make your collars, v-necks, scoop necks, and similar top designs higher than normal.
Slinky Fabric Uses
Even though it is a unique fabric option, it still has many uses. When you find patterns with those uncomplicated and simple designs, you will find that you can use this fabric for a wide variety of applications.
For example, the material is good for cardigan sweaters, any number of tops, t-shirts, and tank tops are also good outfits to use this material. Then the slinky knit can be used for skirts, dresses as well as pants but keep in mind you will want plenty of ease in the material when you make that last group of clothing items.
When making your ops, you need to remember that any horizontal lines will help the material to sag or droop. This is not good when you make V-neck sweaters or blouses as well as scoop neck clothing tops.
There is some weight to this fabric so you have to be careful about how you design your clothes and watch those necklines. You may end up exposing more than you anticipated when you bend over to pick something up off your desk.
Is Slinky Material See-Through?
This may be hard to say as our research has come up with the fact that the design of the fabric may have changed over the years. We have found complaints that the more recent version of this fabric is too thin while the original version was thick and a bit heavy.
The reason for this change is that the original designer of the material has gotten old and the younger ones are not following in his or her footsteps. There are a lot of complaints about the newer style of this fabric.
Because slinky fabric is made with crepe-like acetate, you will find it to be a bit thin but not see-through. That is when it is made right. There are some men’s intimate clothing that appears to be and advertised as see-through when made from this material.
So yes, it can be see-through and no it cannot not. It will depend on the designer of the clothing and fabric which element you get.
Finding Slinky Fabric by the Yard
At the risk of repeating ourselves, if you are an online shopper then this quest will not be difficult. There are more than enough internet outlets that have this material and they probably offer the fabric in as many designs and colors.
The prices that we saw look good as they range between $5 and $10 per yard and if you can wait for the delivery you probably saved a little bit of money. If online shopping is not your thing, and many people do not do this, then you have your usual outlets to visit.
Try your locally owned fabric shops first to see what they can do for you or head over to your mall’s department stores to see if they have a sale on. Or if you are like a lot of other people and want really low prices, head on over to the many big box stores in your city or area.
They should have a fine selection of slinky materials at a price you want to pay. There are enough of these stores to provide you with a nice selection of colors, designs, and quality.
Can You Shrink Slinky Material?
We have not seen anyone comment on this topic yet. But since there are natural and synthetic elements involved in the construction of this fabric it may be a possibility and it may not be.
Synthetic ingredients are used to discourage and resist shrinking and since they are essentially plastic the result you will get may not be so pleasing to the eye. The problem you will have is that the acetate fibers do not react well when water is used. That is why most acetate fabrics, like slinky, say dry clean only.
Of course, that instruction may be taken on a case-by-case basis and may not apply to all acetate fabrics. If you try to shrink slinky material do so at your own risk as we cannot guarantee what your results will be or if you will be successful or not.
Do a test or two using some scrap fabrics to see if the material will shrink.
How to Shrink Slinky Material
Given what we just said there may be one risky way of shrinking this fabric. Since the material is and can be blended with polyester fibers, chances are you will not get the fabric to shrink.
It may happen when there is a natural fiber blended in or an in-between fiber but there may also be chemical coatings on those materials to resist shrinking. With that said, you can try heat.
Very hot water in the wash cycle and a high dryer heat when you want to dry the fabric. That will be your best option to shrink slinky fabrics. Just be careful as acetate is not the strongest fiber in the world and your results may be less than hoped for.
The instructions to care for this material say cold water wash and low dryer heat so if you turn up the heat, chances are the material will lose some of its size. Exactly where it loses its size is anyone guess.
Can You Dye Slinky Material?
Synthetic materials are almost impossible to dye. And slinky is made from synthetic fibers and other materials. if the fabric is 100% synthetic then the answer will be no. Then if you used polyester thread to make your garment, that thread will not change color either.
If by chance the slinky material you bought was made with 50% rayon, then that 50% will accept the dye and the 50% of polyester fibers will not. You will have an interesting-looking outfit but one that is not uniform in color.
Then the dye options that you can apply to slinky materials use heat. If spandex or other polyester fibers are in the blend then heat is a very risky option to use. When you want to change colors on your slinky wardrobe, you may consider fabric paint as the best solution.
Some final words
It is nice to have stretchy fabrics. These materials provide you with a lot of confidence and allow you a lot of freedom of movement. The only thing you have to be wary of is if they will stretch too far on you and it is always a possibility.
Slinky material is stretchy and it helps you look slimmer which is a great confidence builder and combination of fibers.
