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Cotton Lawn

Best for blouses, summer dresses, heirloom dressmaking, linings

Fabric Size
$14.85
Tax included Shipping calculated at checkout.
80 GSM137 cm wide100% CottonSold by the metre
Want it printed?

Every design in PrintLab can be printed on Cotton Lawn, or upload your own artwork. From 1m.

See prints on Cotton Lawn Print your own design
Product Details
  • Width 137 cm
  • Weight 80 GSM
  • Composition 100% Cotton
  • Construction Plain weave, fine
  • Stretch None
  • Best for Blouses, summer dresses, heirloom dressmaking, linings
  • Origin Milled in China
Care Information

Pre-wash before cutting, as this cotton shrinks 3 to 5% on its first wash. The fine yarns fray readily, so finish raw edges with a serger or French seams.

  • Wash Cool, gentle cycle, ideally in a mesh bag
  • Iron Cotton setting with steam, presses crisp
  • Dry Tumble low, or hang to dry
  • Bleach No
Delivery & Shipping

Dispatched within 3 business days. In transit 10 to 18 days, tracked the whole way. Prices shown include tax where your destination requires it, and shipping and any duties are calculated at checkout and paid with your order, so there is no duty bill on delivery.

  • Dispatch Within 3 business days
  • Shipping 10-18 business days
  • Tracking Yes
  • Taxes Included in price
  • Duties Shown at checkout
  • Return Faulty items only

Description

Cotton lawn is 80 GSM, 100% cotton and 137cm wide, the lightest and finest cotton in our range. It is soft, almost silky, with a fluid drape and a little translucency. A step finer than Cotton Poplin, it is the fabric behind fine blouses, summer dresses and heirloom sewing. Buy it plain by the metre in natural white, or printed to order as the base for any PrintLab design.

What to sew with cotton lawn

  • Blouses and summer shirts
  • Gathered and tiered summer dresses
  • Children's pyjamas and nighties
  • Linings for dresses, bags and jackets
  • Heirloom sewing, smocking and fine pin tucks
  • Fabric gift wrap and handkerchiefs

What is cotton lawn, and how is it different from poplin?

Lawn is a plain weave cotton made from fine, tightly spun yarns, which gives it a smooth, soft hand and a light drape. Poplin uses the same plain weave with a denser, crisper finish. Choose lawn for softness and movement; choose Cotton Poplin (115 GSM) when the garment needs to hold a collar and a sharp press. For a linen texture at a similar weight, see Light Linen Cotton.

Printed cotton lawn

Fine lawn holds small, detailed prints well: ditsy florals, stripes and soft watercolours. Pick any design from the PrintLab catalogue, or upload your own artwork. Sewing for a summer Christmas? See our Christmas fabric guide.

Cotton lawn questions

Is cotton lawn see-through? Slightly, in pale colours. Line a dress bodice, or choose a print with a mid or dark background.

What GSM is cotton lawn? Ours is 80 GSM. Cotton lawns usually sit between about 70 and 100 GSM.

Does cotton lawn shrink? Expect 3 to 5% on the first wash. Pre-wash before you cut.

Is lawn good for quilting? It can be used, but it is lighter than standard quilting cotton. For quilts, choose Signature Cotton (150 GSM).

Can I feel it first? Yes. Order a 25 x 25cm swatch from this page, or the Base Fabrics Pack to compare every print base.

Fabric guides

Cotton lawn vs cotton poplin · Best fabric for a summer dress · Best fabric for pyjamas · What GSM means · Best fabric for kids' clothes · Large scale print fabric · Reactive printing

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From our studios

Printed on Cotton Lawn

Original artwork, licensed from independent artists around the world and printed to order on Cotton Lawn, from 1m. A few that suit it:

All dressmaking fabric →
How Cotton Lawn is printed

Natural fibre bases are printed with reactive dyes, then steamed and washed, so the colour bonds with the fibre and the fabric stays soft and breathable. How reactive printing works.

Find more prints

Choosing a base

Compare similar bases

Compare every base for your project, or feel them side by side with the Base Fabric Pack.

Why The Yard

Twenty years of trade behind every order.

01 · TRADE

Built by textile people.

Twenty years inside the trade: the same goods, the same mills, the same QC we have supplied to garment makers, brands and wholesalers across Europe and Asia.

02 · QC

Hand-checked, every order.

Looked at before it goes out, for flaws, for shade, for the small things a machine misses. The same standard, large order or small.

03 · WORLDWIDE

Shipped worldwide. Tracked.

Made for makers, wherever they make. Shipped worldwide and tracked from dispatch, typically arriving in 10 to 18 business days.

Printed on demand

Print your designs on many of our base fabrics.

Pick a designer print or upload your own artwork. Printed by the metre, shipped worldwide.

Browse PrintLab Upload your artwork Order the base fabrics pack