A Quick Guide To PUL Fabric

A Quick Guide To PUL Fabric

by | Apr 22, 2021 | Fabric Guides, Fabric Information Guide, My Makes, Product Guides, PUL Projects, Tutorials

What Is PUL Fabric?

So, what is PUL fabric? Or  polyurethane laminate – apart from being a mouthful!?

Polyurethane laminate can be abbreviated to PUL fabric.

PUL is special… It’s a waterproof AND breathable fabric!

 

Waterproof swim bag

Boring Legal Bit: If you follow any tutorial or guidance found in this post, or on this blog, you agree to be bound by our disclaimer which can be viewed here

Why is this important?

Well, it means if you make waterproof items of clothing your body heat has a better chance of escaping into the atmosphere!

Heat escapes THROUGH the fabric – so you “glow” less.

It’s pretty brilliant!

Composition of PUL Fabric

PUL has 2 sides.

One side is a polyester knit, so has a slight stretch which is great for clothing.

The other side has a laminate coating applied.

It’s slippery and shiny – this is the waterproof bit.

PUL fabric - smooth and knitted side

 

  • PUL is soft & flexible
  • It doesn’t really crease
  • It air dries in super quick time
  • It’s safe – there’s no lead, phthalates or BPA

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What is Sandwich PUL? 

As well as single layer PUL we also stock sandwich PUL which works in the same way but instead of being composed of 2 layers of fabric there are 3 layers. The layer of laminate is sandwiched in between 2 layers knit fabric. This is especially helpful if you don’t want to have the shiny laminate side against the skin as it’s hidden away between the knit layers. It’s also stronger so if you are applying a kind of fastener such as KAM snaps, extra reinforcement isn’t required around the fastenings.

Uses: Cloth nappies and wraps, anoraks, waterproof trousers, wet bags, swim bags, changing mats, changing bags, mattress protectors, pillow protectors, baby bibs, picnic blankets, incontinence products, anywhere you need a waterproof, breathable layer.

Is there a right or wrong side?

We ALWAYS get asked this.

Is there a right side to ensure “waterproof-ness”?

There isn’t really, it’s a personal preference.

The fabric will be waterproof no matter which side you choose, so go with the look that pleases you most!

That said, for aesthetic & comfort reasons I usually use the knit side as the “right” side most often.

It’s more comfy if your project will be close to the skin.

 

Waterproof fabric

 

Tips for sewing with PUL fabric

✂️  Needle: Use a stretch needle

✂️  Stitch Length: Use 3mm stitch length

✂️  Machine Foot: A walking foot is helpful. If your machine foot is sticking then you can apply a bit of Scotch Magic Tape to the base of your normal machine foot

✂️  Thread Type: Polyester thread is recommended to match the fabric composition

✂️  Sealing sewing holes: When you sew your needle will leave tiny holes behind in the laminate layer which MAY affect the waterproof effectiveness of your garment.

These holes are easily resealed … either:

✂️ Pop your garment in the tumble dryer on low for 20 minutes

✂️ Or if you’re using our White PUL it’s weldable so just iron it (using a pressing cloth!) and the holes will seal!

❤️  A special note regarding our own brand of white PUL … we get this manufactured ourselves here in the UK & it has some very special properties:

☔ Its waterproof YET breathable

☔ Its medical grade

☔ Its weldable giving you a completely sealed seam (Look! No leaks!)

☔ Its fungistatic which – apart from being a brilliant word – means it inhibits the growth of fungi & bacteria ?

☔ Its double laminated – whaaaat’s that?! It means it lasts longer & is less likely to delaminate over time as it’s washed loads

☔ Its fire retardant

Uses For PUL Fabric

Love the sound of PUL? So where can you use it?! Well… anywhere you need a waterproof layer really…. here’s some handy projects on our blog!

PUL Backed Waterproof Bib
PUL lined waterproof wet-bag tutorial
Waterproof Swim Bag Tutorial
PUL Lined Wash bag tutorial
Waterproof mattress protector tutorial

 

Other ideas include….

  • Waterproof trousers
  • Wet bags
  • Cloth Nappies (We have a guide all about these here)
  • Changing mats
  • Changing bags
  • Picnic blankets
  • Pillow protectors
  • Incontinence products
  • Cloth sanitary protection

Have you sewn with PUL fabric? Have you got any tips to share?

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Cloth Nappy Fabrics 101 Part 2: PUL Fabric

Cloth Nappy Fabrics 101 Part 2: PUL Fabric

by | Apr 20, 2015 | Cloth Nappy Making, Fabric Guides, Fabric Information Guide, Sustainable Sewing



Hello! And welcome to day one of Real Nappy Week 2015. In this series I hope to share information about nappy making fabrics as well as letting you know about the offers we have running this week, so let’s talk about the offer first. Today you can enjoy up to 20% off PUL which is the waterproof layer used in a cloth nappy (as well as a whole host of other applications). We will be having different fabrics on offer each day. If you’d like to get involved in more than one offer but are worrying about the accrued postage costs – don’t! Just leave us a note at check out and ask us to hold your order until the end of the week then we’ll dispatch it all together and refund you any postage charges due. We also have 20% off nappy making kits all week long.  (more…)

A Waterproof Fabric Guide

A Waterproof Fabric Guide

by | Jul 31, 2013 | Fabric Guides, PUL Projects, Sustainable Sewing, Tutorials



1

Image Source: Michael Miller

Following on from my popular post about the fabric possibilities for dribble bibs I thought it would be a good idea to run a  series of these posts to talk about the other more specialist fabrics we stock in the Plush Addict Shop. We get lots of questions about which is the best waterproof fabric to use for a particular type of garment or handmade item so I figured this would be the next one in line for a bit of (hopefully!) helpful blurb. (more…)

20 Minute Peg Bag Tutorial

20 Minute Peg Bag Tutorial

by | Jul 7, 2013 | Tutorials

**UPDATE** Thanks for stopping by! I felt this project, first created in 2013, could benefit from an update so I’ve re-designed it and made the peg bag a little more polished. The updated version is still a very speedy sew so don’t fret!

Check out the updated peg bag tutorial here or read on for the original version…

I have no idea why I keep doing laundry-related tutorials seeings as I hate the task so much but it just keeps happening so I’ll roll with it. Inspired by Makower’s new fabric collection which goes by the name of “Wash Day” I’m a complete sucker for anything kitschy and retro so I decided I needed this fabric to cheer me on through the dull laundry days. And this really did only take 20 minutes to put together, hooray! 

You will need:

30 cm of the fabric of your choice.

30 cm of PUL which is here. (I suppose the PUL is optional but it gives the bags some structure and will also protect your pegs from rusting should you leave them on the line and they get rained on!) You could use regular fabric for the lining, just be sure to interface it to add some structure.

50cm of bias binding, I used a lace-edged bias binding

A child’s coat hanger (I stole this from my daughter’s wardrobe, it probably came from eBay)

Wonderclips or pins

Odif 505 temporary adhesive spray

Step 1

Lay your coat hanger onto your fabric and leave about a 1 inch allowance on either side of the hanger. Trim your fabric to size.

Step 2

Cut your PUL to the exact same size as the fabric. (I used a pinking blade on my rotary cutter as it gives a much nicer finish to the seams and is really easy to use) and then use some 505 spray to keep the 2 layers together

Step 3

Cut 2 strips of your bias trim to the same length as the short side of the  peg bag edge and sew along the 2 short ends

Step 4

Fold over the top of the fabric enough to cover the coat hanger and iron a crease line, and then fold in half down the length of the fabric and mark with a temporary fabric pen. You are marking where you are going to put the buttonhole to make the hole to put the hanger through.

Step 5

Make the buttonhole on your machine and carefully cut down the centre to make a hole

Step 6

With right sides together sew up the 2 sides of the bag. Clip the corners and turn out

Step 7

Turn the right way and place the hanger in place and voila! You are ready to peg, so hop to it!

Did this tutorial help you? If it did I’d appreciate it if you’d leave a comment or a ❤️ on this post to help other people find my work! And if you’d like to hear more from me I’d love it if you would subscribe below… thanks so much!