Calico Fabric Printing

Our organic Calico fabric is made from 100% cotton, and custom printed for you right here. The perfect fabric choice for summer shirts, calico dresses and small embroidery projects. Why not order a printed sample and see the wonderful results for yourself.

Surface textures

Tightly woven, this Calico fabric is firm and taut. We offer two types of material, standard white which has a bright white base tone and natural organic which has an unbleached base tone. The handle is warm, very dry and slightly starched; though it softens quickly with wear.

Print detail

Organic Calico fabric has long been a favorite base for printed patterns, and with our Cotton Calico you can see why! This tightly woven natural cotton produces a soft, slightly muted print with warm undertones. Details are clear, but the visible cloth pattern adds authentic charm. Brighter colors will be more subtle due to the natural cotton fibers.

Usage

This fabric’s lack of stretch and beautiful print quality make it an ideal choice for quilting. Calico's gentle-yet-hardwearing nature also makes it a favorite material for traditional rag dolls or other small bespoke sewing and embroidery projects.

Sizing For Hemming And Shrinkage

We have a full Cut & Sew service here at Contrado, and are able to hem your fabric prints for a small additional charge. We create a small one- or two-fold hem that typically uses 0.2" to 0.75" (5-20mm) of material, depending on the thickness of the fabric. So, for example, if you want a finished piece of fabric that measures 39.37" x 39.37", you will need to order a size of 39.96" x 39.96" to allow for the hem (on top of that please also allow for shrinkage of min 2%). The thicker the fabric, the bigger the hem will be. You can choose to have your prints hemmed with either Black or White thread. On our silk and other light woven fabrics, one hemmed edge will be straight (vertically down the roll) and the other will be slightly rippled. The hemming material allowances are as follows and you need to make your print bigger to accommodate the hem:

• Light Fabrics (0.59oz-2.95oz): For silks and other light fabrics, we use 0.24" - 0.32" / 6mm-8mm in the hem (2 fold), so overall width/height will be minus 0.48"-0.56""/ 12-16mm
• Medium Fabrics (2.98oz-5.90oz): For medium-weight fabrics that fray, we use 0.5 - 0.75" / 15-20mm in the hem (2 fold) so overall width/height will be minus 1.4" - 1.6" / 35-40mm
• Stiff/Heavy/No-fray fabrics: we use 0.5 - 0.75" / 15-20mm in the hem (1 fold) so overall width/height will be minus 1.5" / 35-40mm

All of these measurements are approximate and can vary. Including with shrinkage, it can mean a fairly significant difference to ordered dimensions, so please plan your print accordingly. Depending on how open the weave is, our fabric can shrink anywhere from 2% to 8% with the average being 2.5%.

How Would you Like the Edge?

• As it comes. We cut around your image, leaving a simply scissor cut, perhaps uneven white fabric border. 
• Hem with thread. We can hem your fabric with a choice of black or white thread. Please allow 1-2 days additional production time. See below for information on how hemming affects the size of your print. We offer an overlock hem, as well as a folded hem (one or two fold depending on the fabric) however not all fabrics are suited to both hem types. If you can see both options, it means both are suitable, and you will be able to choose whichever you prefer. 
• Cut on the line. We will cut neatly on the edge of your design. This means that if you have a border around your design we will cut around that border, if your design takes the whole space of the fabric, then we will neatly cut around the edge of that image. Please be aware, when we cut along the line, we have to cut against the grain of the fabric. This is the standard procedure for fabric cutting. This means that with some fabrics, for example, Georgette and Mulmul, which have a slight wave in them, some fraying will occur. This is unavoidable, as the cut follows the grain of the textile. 

All of our fabrics are cut manually by hand, with the utmost care and attention. If your fabric has a slightly uneven look on the edges or a touch of fraying, this does not indicate a flaw in the textile. It is not always possible to achieve a perfectly straight cut with certain fabrics, so please do bare this in mind when it comes to your design. If you have any queries or would like to know about our cutting methods in more detail, please get in touch and we will be more than happy to discuss them with you.

Please note: As we make everything by hand, all sizes may vary slightly.

For further information about our fabrics see our FAQs.

What is Calico material?

Calico material is a simple plain-weave cotton fabric. Unbleached, raw Cotton Calicos are often used for making toiles and dress prototypes. Inexpensive and simple, Calico has always been a favorite for creating fabric prints and homely designs like aprons, quilts and house dresses.

Where does the name Calico come from?

Calico is one of the oldest fabrics around the world and is named after the city of Calicut, in Kerala, India, where it originated. Block printed fabrics were exported from India as early as 1630 and known as “Calicuts”, and “Calico” was soon used to refer to any Indian plain-weave cotton. Today, Calico remains one of the most popular fabrics for simple printed fabrics.

What are the two types of calico we offer?

We offer two different cotton calico fabrics. A white bleached calico and natural organic calico. Both fabrics are very similar apart from the base tone and organic certification.