Corduroy Fabric
Corduroy is a versatile, hard-wearing fabric with a distinctive ribbed pile surface. It can be dressy or casual, is wonderful for kids' clothing and equally special for adults, and it's comfortable to wear, easy to care for, and not at all challenging to sew. It comes in a wide range of colors, textures, and fiber contents - and some corduroy has a little lycra added for stretch and extra comfort.
Corduroy is described by the width of its channels, or "wales" - the raised vertical ribs that give the fabric its texture. It shares many properties with velveteen, so it's worth a look at our velvet & velveteen guidance for extra pointers before you start.
Wales: types of corduroy
The wale count is the number of ribs per vertical inch, and it sets the whole character of the fabric:
- Wide wale - as few as two or three wales per inch; bold and substantial, great for jackets and trousers.
- Standard / mid wale - the familiar all-rounder.
- Baby wale (micro wale) - up to 15-20 wales per inch; fine and soft, lovely for shirts and children's clothes.
Stretch corduroy
Stretch corduroy is simply corduroy with lycra added for give and comfort. It sews like regular corduroy with one caution: keep your iron temperature on the lower side, since the lycra is heat-sensitive.
How to sew corduroy
Pretreatment
Cold-water wash, no bleach, machine dry. Remove promptly from the dryer unless you plan to iron it smooth later. To press out wrinkles without crushing the pile, fold the fabric in half right sides together so the texture embeds in itself.
Needles & thread
Universal 80/12 needles are good for larger wales; choose a smaller 70/10 for baby-wale corduroy. Cotton, cotton/polyester, or all-polyester threads all work well.
Seams, seam finishes & hems
Use a standard straight seam at 2.5 length. Corduroy ravels, so seams need finishing - a 2- or 3-thread overlock is best, or bind the allowances with seam tape, or use enclosed seams such as fell seams. Hems can be done by hand or machine; corduroy is a perfect candidate for machine blind-hemming.
Interfacing
Fusibles work beautifully with corduroy. Use a lightweight tricot knit fusible for most applications, and a medium-weight weft-insertion fusible for structured areas (collars, button bands, cuffs). If you prefer sew-in, try cotton batiste cut on the same grain as the corduroy.
What to make with corduroy
Jackets, coats, shirt jackets, biker jackets, pants, skirts, jumpers, hats, bags, and vests.
Creative possibilities
Corduroy looks great paired with leather, velvet, suede, or tweed. Try machine embroidery for a fun embellishment, and lean into topstitching - use a heavier thread or several strands of construction thread to make it pop.
A pressing tip
Always use a velvet board or a thick towel on your ironing surface when pressing corduroy seams, and keep the iron on the cooler side (especially with lycra-added corduroy). Steam the seam allowance, gently finger-press it open, and let it dry before moving on.
Shop & related guides
Corduroy is a cousin of velveteen - see the velvet & velveteen guidance for related tips, and browse EOS's cotton fabrics and wovens. Back to all fabric care guides.
FAQ
What is corduroy fabric?
Corduroy is a durable ribbed-pile fabric, usually cotton, defined by its vertical "wales" (ribs). It ranges from bold wide-wale to fine baby-wale and is used for everything from jackets to children's clothes.
What is stretch corduroy?
Stretch corduroy is corduroy with a small amount of lycra added for give and comfort; it sews like regular corduroy but needs a cooler iron.
How do you sew corduroy?
Use a universal 80/12 needle (70/10 for baby wale), a 2.5 straight stitch, and finish the seams since corduroy ravels. Fusible tricot interfacing works well, and pile is best pressed on a velvet board.
What is wide wale corduroy?
Wide wale corduroy has just a few wide ribs per inch (often two or three), giving a bold, substantial texture - versus baby wale, which can have 15-20 fine ribs per inch.
How do you wash corduroy?
Cold-water wash, no bleach, tumble dry, and remove promptly to limit wrinkles; press on a velvet board or towel to avoid crushing the pile.