How Can You Tell Flannel from Regular Cotton Fabric?? Is it hard sometimes?
 

I know this sounds like a crazy question. I purchased a bundle of scrap fabrics from the Riley Blake Sugar & Spice line and while I was taking each piece of fabric out of the package, I noticed on only a subliminal level that the green argyle print was so soft--I actually stroked it a few times before moving to the next fabric. After I had all the fabrics out I realized that the green argyle one seemed "dull" in finish compared to the other and then it hit me that it must be flannel. It is slightly fuzzy and doesn't have the sheen that the other fabrics have.

I couldn't find any markings on the selvage to indicate one way or another. I let the seller know that I received one piece of flannel and wouldn't be able to use it in my project and if she could swap it out for a regular cotton piece. She sent a note back that said that she didn't carry ANY flannel so it couldn't be so. I still feel like it probably is flannel (and I know from research that this line came in flannel as well as regular). One more message back to her and she was quite insistent and was obviously not going to do anything about it (I just asked her if she still had some left in her shop if she could see if it felt fuzzy?). I am not 100% certain but I really want to know.

So, if you have any of this fabric (Riley Blake Sugar & Spice--the green argyle specifically--is it a bit fuzzy and "dull" in finish and doesn't seem to match any of the other fabrics in the line in feel?? I told the seller that I would probably take it in to my LQS and have them take a look just so I could settle my curiosity but haven't had a chance to do this yet (the seller didn't respond back after the second time--she just thinks I am crazy and doesn't want to deal with it). I just want to know.

Is it possible that this piece of fabric is a "brushed" cotton? Sometimes brushed cottons will feel almost like a flannel. You could contact Riley Blake Designs and ask them if they made this fabric in a cotton, brushed cotton or a flannel. They may not have made this line in flannel. That would certainly clear up the mystery. http://www.rileyblakedesigns.com/

I agree about the brushed cotton. I once received a bundle of flannels, and some of them felt like a hybrid between cotton and flannel -- not quite one or the other. I still feel them and go back and forth. I choose to call them whatever I need them to be!

I also have a piece that is thinner than flannel but yet softer than cotton. I agree with what others have replied I think it is brushed cotton you are looking at. :)

Here is a link that may help. It seems Riley Blake's flannel is a double brushed cotton.
http://www.rileyblakedesigns.com/faq/

the Riley Blake flannels are double sided flannels---so, is your soft/brushed on both sides (or does it have a definite right/wrong side?)
it is probably simply a brushed cotton---
and WHy would you not be able to use it in your project? I don't understand that statement- even if it was flannel- flannel is 100% cotton too- and is used with regular (flat cottons) all the time- i would be thrilled to receive something as luscious as one of the fabulous brushed cottons with a fq pack.

ckcowl--my concern about it being flannel was simply related to what I have heard about shrinkage. I am using scrap fabrics so I don't intent to prewash and since all the other pieces will be regular cotton, I am concerned about uneven shrinkage.

Why would Riley Blake make one fabric out of a collection a brushed cotton? There are 2 other argyle prints in this line (red and aqua) and they aren't brushed cotton? I now have pieces from all the fabrics from this line and this is the only one. That just seems weird.

As I said, my concern is shrinkage. If this will shrink relatively consistently to regular cotton, then I don't need to worry. Just not sure.

If you wash everything before you cut it - most of the shrinkage will be removed from the pieces - so I don't see why it would matter how much it did - or didn't shrink.

It does seem odd to me also that only one piece would feel drastically different from the rest.