Picking the right activewear fabric is hugely important when it comes to sewing workout leggings. So in order to succeed with the Personal Hour leggings or any other sewing pattern for activewear leggings, we need to understand fabric properties and what type of fabric that is best suited for sewing leggings.
- A mix of polyester or polyamide and Lycra(Spandex). A good ball-park for the Lycra content is around 10–15%. For compression tights, it’s not unusual to have around 20% Lycra, that said, a higher Lycra content does change the feel of the fabric, it becomes less soft and will venture into swimsuit fabric territory, which just doesn’t feel as nice when used un workout clothes in my opinion.
- Lots of stretch in both directions. I recommend at least 65% crosswise stretch and at least 50% lengthwise for the leggings.
- Transports moisture. Which means that the fabric allows the sweat to pass through the fabric. This is huge since otherwise, you’ll end up feeling like you are working out in a plastic bag!
- Holds the shape, i.e. doesn’t sag when stretched out. The fabric needs to recover after it has been stretched out.
- Dries fast, especially compared cotton and other natural fibers.
- Quality inspection before shipping
- Warranty included
- Support included