Hello, I will try to keep this short but still give you pertinent information for you to understand my dilemma. while garage/estate selling a few weekends ago, I came across a fabric store that was going out of business. I know zilch, nada, zero about fabric, however I know a good deal when I come across it. They were practically paying you to take bolts of fabric and tubs of trim. That is how cheap it all was. it was three young collage boys putting on the sale. The house was huge and very old with room after room of fabric and lace trim, embellishments for sewing...on and on...up above a lot of the fabric was boxes, taped with masking tape and very dusty, the boys were bringing the boxes out and selling them for $3 a box, without even knowing what was in them...yikes...sorry I got sidetracked. I purchased numerous bolts of fabric, and they were letting you fill tubs with trim for $5....I had to go home and come back cause there was no more room in my car. I am going back today, they will be open till Sunday they said. anyway, all the bolts of fabric and the trim I bought has no names on them. I went to a ladies house, and paid her to tell me what the bolts of fabric were and she performed the burn test on all of them, but was rather vague as to EXACTLY what they were. She did not even look at the trim I had. So for the last week and a half, I have been going cross-eyed trying to identify the trim and the fabric, but I am having no luck. someone said I may not be finding the exact trim, because they may not make it any longer and it may be vintage. I looked for fabric and trim forums but no help there. I was hoping perhaps you could tell me what I have. absolutely ANY information would be helpful at this point. thank you so much a head of time. this is some of the trim I have and one picture of a bolt of fabric, the fabric is reversible and absolutely gorgeous.
Sounds like quite the haul. The trim definitely looks vintage the black and white pieces which look like an elongated collar look quite early, difficult to say for sure without handling but possibly from the teens to the 30s. The fabric you are showing looks as though it may be an upholstery fabric. Let's see what others here have to say.
Sorry Mary Jane, but all the lace looks quite contemporary to me - not older than the 1960s, and probably 1980s and up. Certainly all machine made, so not of any great collectable value - more the stuff for home sewers.
You may well be right, Jonathan. I find it very difficult to tell with the photos. Could be a lot of trim for wedding dress, appliques, etc.
Thank you both so much for the info. I was really hoping for someone to tell me what the lace is called, more so than what year it was from, if that's ok. Because some sites I have been looking on say Alencon, or Venise, or corded lace?? Does that make sense? also, if I am in the wrong type of forum, please let me know. But, if I am not that much of a pest, would it be alright to post a few pictures of some of the bolts of fabric for identifying? again thank you so much.
The appliques looks to be a Guipure lace, but I cannot be sure from just the photo. Yes, please post photos of your fabrics. I would like to see them and I or someone may be able to help you with them. The bolt you posted does appear to be an upholstery fabric, a brocade. Probably a rayon/cotton or cotton/poly blend. I really like the pattern.
Oh thank you so much Barbara, I got so excited when you said I could post more pictures, I've been taking them left and right. I sort of think quite a lot of the fabric is upholstery fabric. and I do not really know what it is you guys would have to see in order to tell me what the fabric is. I suppose it would be the way it draped possibly?? here are a few , I have a lot more. the first one is my favorite, I have tried to show you the front and back of the fabric the one with the blue flowers says "made in Japan" on it. an the one with giraffes the lady told me was silk?? I will post more in another thread, hope this one opens okay.
I am getting the distinct feeling, that I am asking the next to impossible of you all. the lady I PAID to tell me what the fabric was, seemed very knowledgeable, she showed me how to measure the repeat on fabric, which I had never heard of. but, as KNOWING as she was, she could not be specific, saying "it's probably a cotton blend or a polyester blend or?" and she had the material IN HAND. so, for me to expect answers, from pictures, seems a little extreme on my part. so sorry this is so long and taking up your time. you see, the crux of the matter is, I purchased the trim and material for resell, online. But, how am I supposed to sell something when I don't even know what it is? I cant very well say "Material for sell", I would be asked questions, I could not answer. if any of you have any advice for my situation, it would be very much appreciated. I was thinking of cutting a swatch from the bolts, and going to a fabric store or even Walmart, and trying to find that material, and just copying what it said. but I am unsure if I could do that. I just read where a lady sold material on eBay as silk, only to find out it was Viscose. no one wants negative feedback, you know? Thank you Jonathon and Maryjane for your replies. MORE
A lot of what you have shown does look like upholstery or perhaps drapery fabrics. The black with embroidery might have been for use as dress fabric. It is difficult to know because we cannot tell how "supple" the fabric is from the photo. I know doing the burn test is long and involved and you need to do this very carefully but that is what we did when we purchased lining fabrics from a furrier that was going out of business after three generations as some of this was silk but most was rayon. If you put in burn test for fabric into google you will find some you tube videos that are quite helpful. Just be sure if you do the burn test to be careful and have water nearby to extinguish. Most likely some are cotton, cotton blends, rayon and it looks like you showed some velvet or velveteen fabrics. It is really difficult to say for sure what yours are with just the photos, but I can say you found some lovely fabrics!!!
I agree that most of the fabric is either meant to be used as upholstery (on furniture) or is multi-purpose and can be used for cushion covers, drapery or pillows, table skirts, etc. Most upholstery fabric is 54" wide and most multi-purpose fabric is 48" wide. Most fabric meant for clothing is narrower - usually 44" wide. (Some upholstery fabric is wider and some drapery fabric is much wider.) Sometimes clothing is made from wider or heavier fabric. However - just looking at the photos, I don't think that any of the fabric you have shown us was made to be used for clothing. A burn test will give you the fiber content but it will not give you the actual name of the type of fabric. Fiber content refers to what the threads that make up the fabric are made of - e.g. silk, cotton, linen, rayon, nylon, synthetics like polyester, or blends - etc. etc. Fabric describes the finished cloth or type of weave like brocade, chiffon, moire, faille, etc. Then to make it even more complicated there are various types of weaves so just describing something as cotton or silk doesn't give you the whole story. For example there are silk, cotton, rayon and other types of synthetic velvets. Some patterns are printed on the fabric and some patters are woven into the fabric. I think your idea of going to a fabric store and handling various fabrics and comparing them to what you bought might bring you closer to being able to identify what you have. It is not possible to identify fiber content without either handling the piece or doing a burn test. If you have some inkling of what you have you can look through the VFG Fabric Resource - but you need a starting point: https://vintagefashionguild.org/fabric-resource/
Thank you, thank you, Linn, for your succinct clarification of identification of fabrics, a topic that confuses so many. Marian
We had a fabric manufacturing plant in my area in the 1990s that would sell bolts of similar fabric. Most of it was for upholstery. They look very much like what was produced in the 1980s and 90. Sometimes, after all the fabric was removed from the bolt, a name may possibly be stamped. Of either the manufacturer or style. I still have a few bolts
I truly appreciate all the replies, and yes Linn, you gave a very clear picture of what I am up against, and made me understand fabric, in a way I had not, before. thank you especially. it really is become somewhat of a problem to a degree, as I have bolts of fabric and tubs of trim throughout my house. lol but, not one that isn't solvable. The more I think about it, the more I think, there must be some sort of terminology, that would cover a broad spectrum of material, without actually naming it. I noticed the majority of posts on eBay concerning fabric, or lace, the person was rather vague, as to the EXACT type of such. saying things like "gorgeous wedding lace, for use in making any item of Brides outfit" at no time did she name what the lace was made of.?? I do think I will take a few swatches at a time to a fabric store though. I never thought to look on YouTube, as far as performing the burn test, and I am always raving about YouTube, saying you could build a house, just from their "how to" videos. I will definitely watch the burn test ones. and like I say, Linn clarified what exactly you are looking for in the test...with the name of the fabric added after you know the fiber content. I am sure I am not the only one who has had this occur, you cannot be an expert on everything, I suppose. again , thank you so very much.
also, that is a good idea to check inside the bolts, as far as naming them. I am going to unroll one with little on it. ty for that input.
