Sewing PUL fabric is a little different to sewing most other types of fabrics, and if you are not used to working with it, then you may struggle.  Our tips will help you to work with polyurethane laminate fabric.

What is PUL fabric?

PUL fabric is a polyester fabric that has been laminated with a waterproof layer.  PUL stands for polyurethane laminate fabric, as the knitted polyester fabric has been laminated with polyurethane.  This laminate layer can make sewing difficult, you do not want to damage the layer, as this will make it leak, which in most cases will ruin the item that you are working on.  It is also difficult to sew, as the laminate layer can stick as it passes under the foot of your sewing machine.

Cutting out PUL

One of the first difficulties that you have when sewing PUL fabric is cutting your pattern out, without damaging the laminate layer.  You cannot pin a paper pattern to the fabric, as this will add holes.  If you have a cutting wheel and cutting mat, you can cut around the pattern piece without needing to add pins.  Another option is to actually draw around your pattern with a biro before cutting out.  White PUL such as the fabric we sell is ideal for this, as you can see the ink clearly.

Pinning PUL fabric

You will need to secure your fabric somehow when you are sewing PUL fabric, as it will slip around other wise and could ruin your project.  If you use pins, then try pinning in the seam allowance, so that the holes that you put in the fabric are not in the body of the item.

Personally I like to use clothes pegs or paper clips to hold the fabric in place.  Use them where you would use pins, but they will hold everything and stop them slipping around when sewing PUL fabric without leaving holes.

Some people like to use glue stick to hold the PUL in place against the other fabric, it will wash about after sewing, but it can build up on the needle of your sewing machine, which is less than ideal.

Sewing PUL fabric

When sewing PUL fabric, you might find that if you have the laminate layer facing up, it may stick to the foot of the sewing machine.  One way around this is to make sure that they PUL layer is facing downwards on the sewing machine.  If you need to sew the PUL with the laminate layer facing up, then you can buy teflon feet for your sewing machine, as these won’t stick.  As these can be quite expensive, a way around this is to place a piece of sticky tape on the underside of the sewing machine foot.  The PUL should be able to move under the foot without sticking.

What are your top tips for sewing PUL fabric?

Related posts:

Sewing without pins Tips for sewing with minky What is PUL Fabric? Cutting out fabric