Our new Italian boiled wools

The annual arrival of our new Italian boiled wools is always much-anticipated at Tessuti Fabrics and so this year we’ve decided to announce their arrival with a blog post as well. I know we say this every year but this year we really do believe we’re bringing you the best colour range ever!

It’s no secret that we loooooove boiled wool and much of our pattern collections bears testament to that. Because boiled wool doesn’t fray, there’s no need to hem or finish seams. This means that pattern pieces are overlapped and hems are left raw which often results in some very speedy sewing gratification. Here’s a rundown of our boiled wool patterns and (shhh) there might even be a new one coming soon *cough cough vest*.

Our first pattern – the Sydney Jacket – was released in 2015 and is still as fashionably relevant as it was back then. The grey one featured in this blog post? Still wear it, still love it and still looks as good as the day I made it.

The Sydney Jacket

2016 delivered two more patterns. In May we released the Brooklyn Coat

The Brooklyn Coat

…and followed that up in June with the Berlin Jacket. With over 1700 makes and shares on Instagram, Berlin gets the award for our most popular boiled wool pattern.

The Berlin Jacket

In 2017, we release the Kyoto Vest, a simple, circular, shawl-collared wrap that’s available in short and long lengths. Fast forward to 2019 and we released the full length Florence Coat

The Florence Coat

…and a little later on, the Verona Jacket, a collared and cropped style that requires only 1 – 1.2m of fabric.

The Verona Jacket

In winter 2020 we released the stash-busting quick sew that is the Amara Vest. We think (and many of you agree) that it’s the perfect layering piece.

The Amara Vest

Two years ago we introduced the London Coat, an oversized and hooded style that allows for two-tone options…

The London Coat

…and then the Lyon Jacket, a semi fitted and classic collarless design.

The Lyon Jacket

Our most recent pattern for boiled wools is this versatile layering piece – the Torino Vest.

The Torino Vest

Let that little round-up show just how deep our love runs for boiled wools. And if you’d like to see everyone’s makes and shares, check out all theses hashtags on Instagram – #Sydney Jacket, #BrooklynCoat, #BerlinJacket, #FlorenceCoat, #VeronaJacket, #AmaraVest, #LondonCoat, #LyonJacket.

And can we just add that boiled wool is not only great for jackets, coats and vests. A few winters ago I made this colour blocked turtleneck jumper which is as warm and cozy as a winter piece should be.

What’s so special about our Tessuti boiled wools? They’re all made in Italy using Australian 100% virgin wool. 360gsm and Oeko-Tex certified, the quality and weight is sublime. They’re soft with good body and bounce – something you should always look for in the best boiled wools (beware the inferior flimsy, floppy ones!). Every year we take great care in selecting the best fashion colours for our winter collection and this year we’re particularly excited about the twelve colour options on offer which also include three marle shades (below) – Nuvola, Arancia Rossa and Avocado .

Boiled wool is made by agitating knitted wool fabric in boiling water. This causes the fibres to shrink, creating the trademark felt-like look and texture. And once made up, we like to think of it as a blanket in a textile in a garment. Other boiled wool qualities we love – it’s wind-breaking but still breathable, thermoregulatory and has a natural stretch.

How do you care for boiled wool? Great and important question. With our pure boiled wools, our advice is always ‘the less you do, the better’. Our very best recommendation is to spot clean if needed and regularly air outdoors to freshen up.

Here are our tips to get the best result when sewing with boiled wool:

  • When cutting out your pattern, use sharp scissors and cut evenly for a neat finish.
  • With overlapped seams, always use pins, chalk or thread tailor tacks to transfer notch markings. Do not cut or nick notch markings into the fabric.
  • Handle fabric with care to prevent stretching during the cutting and sewing stages.
  • Always identify the wrong side of fabric pattern pieces with chalk markings. The wrong side is usually fluffier and flatter.
  • If you have one, use a walking foot. This will help the fabric feed more evenly.
  • When ironing, always press from the inside of your garment on a low-med heat setting. A pressing cloth is also useful.

All images sourced via Pinterest

With the release of this latest collection, we’re so excited to bring you the very best boiled wool fabrics in Australia. Shop them all now at Tessuti Fabrics online, while stocks last.