Hoffman Fabric

Hoffman's reputation rests on colour. Their batiks are hand-dyed and hand-stamped in Indonesia rather than machine-printed, which is why the shade shifts subtly across a length and why two cuts of the same design won't be identical. It's a slower way of making cloth and it shows in the finished fabric: mottled, layered colour with a variation you can't get from a flat print.

In the UK, Hoffman is usually shelved with patchwork and quilting cottons. That's fair enough, they make plenty of it, but it undersells what the cloth can do. Depending on the weight, these fabrics cut beautifully for dressmaking, and a hand-dyed cotton makes a considerably more interesting summer dress than a plain one.

What we're stocking at the moment

Our current Hoffman range is the Bali cotton lawn: 112cm wide, 100% cotton, hand-dyed in Indonesia, across a spread of colourways from soft neutrals through to deep, saturated brights. It's a light dressmaking weight with a smooth, cool handle and a slight crispness, so it presses sharply and softens with washing without going limp.

That makes it a natural fit for anything you'd usually cut in cotton lawn or a light poplin: summer dresses, gathered skirts, camisoles, loose shirts and blouses. It takes a soft gather well, and it's a good choice for linings and facings where you want a print to show at the inside of a jacket or a bag.

Ranges do rotate, so the grid above is the definitive list of what's in stock today. Check the individual product page for the exact width, composition and weight of any piece.

Working with hand-dyed cotton

Buy the full amount you need in one go. Hand-dyed cloth varies between production runs, so a top-up length later may not match what you've already cut. Prewash before cutting, both to allow for shrinkage and because hand-dyed cotton can release a little surplus dye on its first wash. Wash separately the first time, and at 30 or 40 degrees on a gentle cycle unless the care label states otherwise.

Cutting is straightforward. Good-quality cotton behaves predictably: a sharp rotary blade or shears, a fine needle and standard cotton thread. If you're pattern-matching, remember a hand-applied design doesn't repeat exactly, so match by eye rather than by measurement.

For more in the same vein, our batik and tie-dye collection covers the wider category, and the full brand list sits on our Shop by Brand page.