This article covers:

• A general description of a knitted bamboo fabric
• The composition of the material specific to bamboo fabric available in Australia.
• How bamboo jersey looks, feels, and behaves.
• Recommendations of garments that best utilise the material’s characteristics.
• How to care for your bamboo fabric knits.

What is a jersey bamboo fabric?

Bamboo jersey is the common name given to knitted bamboo fabric made from bamboo fibres and blended with elastane to produce a fluid, yet flexible material. Bamboo is a relatively new knit fabric to Australia, due in part to the recent development of technology for processing the bamboo fibres, also due to the rise in demand for eco-friendly textile options.

Composition of a bamboo fabric

To produce a bamboo jersey knit fabric, the bamboo fibres are combined with a stretchy elastane fibre commonly known as Spandex or Lycra. The percentage of elastane is dictated by the weight and end use of the material but ranges from 5-8% in most fabrics.

At MaaiDesign we stock two different weights of bamboo jersey.

• 180g (light) which contains 96% Bamboo + 4% Spandex and is Oeko-Tex 100 certified
• 265g (medium) which contains 92% Bamboo + 8% Spandex and is Oeko-Tex 100 certified

The characteristics of bamboo jersey: how it looks, feels, and behaves

Bamboo knits are known for their light, drapey hand, and subtle sheen. They are more ‘fluid’ in movement than their cotton counterparts and yet the material is robust and durable.

This fabric is also divinely soft.

Which garments are best suited to a knitted bamboo fabric?

Because of its lustrous properties, bamboo jersey is lauded as superlative for garments such as:

• Underwear
• Sleep wear
• Maternity dresses
• Athletic clothing
• Tops and dresses
• Transitional outerwear

For pattern inspiration, click here to see all our sewing pattern suggestions for bamboo jersey.

How to care for your bamboo jersey fabric

Initial care instructions

Pre-washing your fabric is the first step to caring for your material. 

This allows the fibres to relax in the water and take their final form. What is referred to as ‘pre-shrinking’ is actually the removal of factory stiffeners (used during production) that results in the fibre allowing to move and take its permanent form.

Ongoing care for your material

We recommend that your bamboo fabric garments be machine washed on a gentle setting, using cold water (less than 40°C). Line dry your finished garment away from direct sunlight to prevent colour fading. Additionally, turning your garments inside out will protect the colours from fading.

MaaiDesign aims to be one of the top suppliers of quality bamboo jersey fabric online in Australia and to be the fabric store of choice for home sewists. 

We pride ourselves on supporting indie sewing pattern businesses and stocking only high quality materials so that your projects look great, feel great and last a lifetime.