Welcome to our master guide to spandex and stretch fabrics. Whether you're sewing swimwear, designing a line of leggings, costuming a dance team, or simply trying to understand the difference between nylon and polyester, this hub brings everything together in one place. Below you'll find an overview of the main fabric types, the most popular uses, and links to our in-depth guides and collections so you can go straight to exactly what you need.
Understanding Stretch Fabrics
"Spandex" (also called elastane or Lycra) is the elastic fiber blended into a fabric to give it stretch. On its own it's rarely used; instead it's combined with a base fiber — most often nylon or polyester — to create the four-way stretch that activewear, swimwear, and dancewear depend on. The qualities that matter most across all stretch fabrics are stretch and recovery (how far it stretches and how cleanly it snaps back), opacity, weight, and durability against the conditions it will face.
From there, the right fabric depends entirely on what you're making. The sections below organize our full range the way designers actually shop: by material, by garment, and by style.
Shop by Material
The base fiber sets the character of the fabric. Our nylon spandex is prized for its soft hand and excellent recovery, making it the standard for premium leggings and swimwear. Our polyester spandex excels at holding vivid color and resisting chlorine, ideal for printed and performance pieces. For an ultra-soft matte finish, brushed nylon spandex delivers that buttery feel athletic brands are known for, while spandex fleece adds warmth for cooler weather.
For breathability and structure, performance mesh is essential for linings and ventilation panels. For shine and drama, metallic spandex brings high-shine impact to costumes and statement pieces. And for full-color custom graphics, sublimation spandex tricot takes detailed printed designs beautifully.
Shop by Garment & Use
Most projects start with the finished garment in mind. For the gym and studio, our activewear fabric covers leggings, sports bras, and training gear, while athleisure fabric offers soft, everyday comfort that moves from workout to street. For the water, our swimwear fabric by the yard is built to handle chlorine, salt, and sun while holding its shape.
For the stage and performance, our dancewear fabric moves freely and recovers cleanly for leotards and costumes, and our festival wear fabric brings bold color and shine to expressive looks. Each of these uses has its own demands, and choosing a fabric built for the job is the surest path to a garment that performs and lasts.
Shop by Pattern
Patterned stretch fabric turns a simple garment into a statement. Our printed spandex collection brings ready-made personality with full performance stretch. For specific looks, explore floral spandex for a soft, seasonal feel, geometric spandex for a modern athletic edge, abstract spandex for artistic movement, and animal print spandex for bold, fashion-forward attitude.
Shop by Color
Color is often the starting point for a design, and we carry a full spectrum by the yard. The essentials — black and white spandex — are the most versatile foundations, while bold shades like red, blue, and yellow make a statement. Round out any collection with purple, pink, green, and orange, or browse our full solid spandex range.
How to Choose the Right Fabric
With so many options, the simplest method is to work backward from your finished garment. First, identify the end use — swimwear, leggings, dancewear, and so on — since that points you to the right collection. Next, prioritize the performance qualities that matter most for that use: chlorine resistance and recovery for swim, opacity and softness for leggings, freedom of movement and shine for dance. Finally, choose your finish, pattern, and color to complete the vision.
One tip that saves time and disappointment: order swatches before committing to a full project. Stretch percentage, weight, opacity, and hand feel vary between fabrics, and feeling them in person tells you far more than a screen. A quick stretch-and-recovery test — pulling the fabric and watching how cleanly it returns to shape — is one of the fastest ways to judge quality.
Stay Current
New colors, prints, and specialty fabrics arrive throughout the year. Browse the new fabric arrivals collection to see what's trending now, and check back often to discover fresh designs before they sell out.
Start Your Project
However you like to shop — by material, garment, pattern, or color — this guide is your starting point. Pick the path that matches your project, explore the collection, and order a swatch when you're close. With the right spandex fabric by the yard in hand, you have everything you need to create stretchwear that performs beautifully and looks exactly the way you imagined.
