I’ve done a couple projects with rayon velvet in the past several months – first the Ezio tailcoat lining, and later a kimono jacket that I made for a Christmas present – and sometimes I could swear that fabric is possessed. It likes to creep when you try to mash two layers together at the seams, with the result that the upper layer scoots in one direction while the lower makes a break for it in the other. Basting is more or less mandatory, but even holding the fabric still while you thrash it into submission with hand stitches can be challenging—and then it still creeps, because hand stitches don’t flatten the pile the way machine stitches do. And of course you can’t press the stuff properly unless you shell out $$$ for a needle board to protect the pile. (Yeah, I’m a jerk and haven’t gotten around to buying one. If this means I have to spend hours understitching things by hand then WHOOPS OH WELL SO SAD.)
Mind you, I still love the hell out of the final results. It’s soft and fluid in a way I’ve never gotten from synthetic velvets, you can do interesting stamping and embossing things, it weathers beautifully, and the pile and drape make it pretty forgiving of wobbly seams. Besides, I’ve already stashed away about six yards for a pirate coat I’ve been contemplating, and I’m trying to be better about not buying a lot of fabric I’ll never get around to using. I really want to try combining velvet and embroidery, and have been going on 18th-century court costume pinning sprees. Yeah, I totally have time to do something like that!