Congratulations on your good taste! This rayon batik fabric is truly a work of art. Each piece has been hand-dyed and/or hand-stamped in Bali using both ancient and modern techniques combined with quality dyes to produce the unique fabrics you have chosen. In a world of mass-produced fabric, you now own fabric with "the personal touch". We work with a small, ethical, family-run batik factory that is environmentally responsible and small enough to allow us to get right in on the design process. The skilled factory workers take our artwork and colors and make our fabric dreams a reality. We hope you and your customers will enjoy what we are offering…

Rayon's quality has dramatically improved and it has become a fashion favorite. It used to be all rayon had to be drycleaned to prevent shrinking or pulling out of shape. Not these rayons! We use only the very best available in Southeast Asia. Our rayon is completely washable and easy care. And the dyes are colorfast. Rayon drapes beautifully, skimming over "figure challenges", making it a flattering choice for everyday fashions for work, leisure and special occasions. A "natural" fabric made of wood fiber and cotton linters, rayon breathes and is the most comfortable fabric to wear in the heat. But don't think of it simply as a summertime favorite, rayon is suited to year-round wardrobe planning.

Care of the fabric: Pre-washing is important for a few reasons: in Bali, the fabric has been put through several dyes and stamping processes to make up the finished design. After each dyeing, the fabric has been hung on tiny nails or staked to the ground to dry in the sun. This distorts the selvedge resulting in the peaks and tiny holes you may see. Washing the fabric helps bring it back to its original shape. While rare, there may be slight traces of wax residue or mud on your fabric; this will wash out. While shrinkage is minimal (approximately 4-5" per yard or metre), we recommend pre-washing. Any gentle detergent is fine but we love a product called Eucalan www.eucalan.com

For washing fabric, we suggest a gentle machine wash in warm water, followed by machine drying in a warm dryer. For washing garments, we recommend a gentle machine or hand wash, then hanging to dry. Once dry, tossing the garment in a warm dryer softens the fibers before ironing. Prevent shine on dark or solid fabrics by ironing from the wrong side or with a press cloth or a Teflon "iron shoe". The iron should be set on "wool" with some steam for best results.

Right side/wrong side of the fabric and cutting tips: The right side of the fabric will have the clearest designs and most distinct colour. To prevent rayon from slipping when cutting, we recommend frequent pinning and ensuring the grain-line is straight. Serrated blade scissors or rotary cutters work well.

Patterns… Check out our own pattern line, The Bali Collection, for beginner-friendly patterns that encourage inexperienced sewers with humor and detailed instructions that include lots of illustrations. These simple, comfortable garments are also a great quick project for experienced sewers, and offer the perfect palette for embellishments. Multi-sized from XS-XXXL, they are professionally graded reasonably priced. We also offer a *free* Trunk Show featuring our rayon batik fabrics and The Bali Collection patterns. We have three garment collections traveling the country all the time - call us to book! We've done the work for you…inspire your customers and boosts fabric sales the easy way!!

Sewing our rayon is easy. Use a new size 80/sharp needle for every project with all-purpose (polyester) thread and a stitch length of 2.5. On long straight seams, a slight zigzag will prevent puckers: try a width of .5 - 1.0 and length of 2.5 - 3.0 for best results. Serge seams (or use French Seams as a finish as the Balinese women do).

Interfacing… Avoid changing the "hand" or drape of our rayon with a good quality, lightweight fusible knit interfacing. We recommend using this interfacing with the greatest stretch running on the lengthwise grain of the garment. This permits the rayon to relax as it is meant to do. We have found great success interfacing whole jackets or vests to add structure to our soft rayons paired up with drapey pants or skirts!

Chinese Calligraphy translations: We hired a Chinese calligrapher to provide us with the images for our line of Asian-inspired fabrics. We wanted them to say something special…and they do…

"Bali - from the island of the gods, fabric to free the spirit"
"Connecting you to Bali with a single thread"
"Creativity brings us together"

Thank you for choosing our line of rayon batiks. We appreciate your business and look forward to a long and happy business relationship with you!
  

 - Barb Alexander, Owner