When you choose your wedding dress fabric, you need to take your wedding theme, wedding location and your budget into consideration. The right dress fabric ensures the right dress. So when you opt for your wedding dress, you need to pay the most attention to your dress fabric.
A wedding dress is probably the most important purchases in a girl’s life. Fabrics on wedding dresses are available in a variety of different styles and costs. In terms of selecting the ideal fabric, it’s important to think about the formality of your wedding ceremony. Also, will you feel comfortable with the fabric you intend to choose? To hold the perfect wedding, a stylish and comfortable wedding dress is a must-have item.
A little bit of knowledge goes a long way when you’re trying to find the perfect wedding dress! For example, understanding the difference between a fibre and a finish ensures that you don’t unintentionally purchase a wedding dress made from synthetic fabric when you have your heart set on natural fibres. The finish is what the cloth feels and looks like once its woven – for example, taffeta can be made of silk or polyester. It’s a good idea to discover which one you’re buying.
Below is a selection of wedding dress (bridal) fabrics available at Minerva:
Satin
Satin is the most popular wedding dress fabric. It is a densely woven silk with a lustrous sheen on one side. It is bright and soft and good for traditional wedding ceremonies. It is also good for slinky, sheath dresses and styles that are required to shimmer. Satin is among the most popular materials for wedding dresses due to the fabric offering a bridal gown more structure. If you are keen on elegant wedding gowns, satin is an ideal choice. A draped skirt usually looks better if being made from satin.
Some designers prefer duchess satin because the skirt keeps its full draped curves, rather than fluttering, as a thinner fabric would. Satin may be used on semi-formal and formal ceremonies and is great either plain or decorated with lace.
Chiffon
Chiffon wedding dresses have never gone out of style. Soft, sheer, and transparent, Chiffon can be made from silk (more expensive) or polyester (more affordable). On account of its delicate transparency, chiffon is often layered and is popular for sleeves, overskirts, and wraps. It goes well with long veils and is considered one of the most glamorous ways to decorate a bride. This lightweight and slightly rough fabric is translucent with a soft drape. Made with either cotton, silk, or synthetic fibres, it is quite delicate and is usually thought of as a summer fabric.
Lace
More and more brides are choosing a lace wedding dress. Lace wedding dresses can make the bride feel romantic and there are many styles of lace to pick from. Vintage lace wedding dresses are worn by many brides, whether for sentimental reasons, or to try to recapture the air of another era. Because of the delicate detailed design, many brides make lace wedding dresses their first choice.
Silk
The most common, cherished, and priciest wedding gown fabric, silk is a smooth and soft natural fibre. Silk threads are woven to create tons of other fabrics - such as Satin, Duchess satin, Paj, Habotai, Chiffon, Organza and Tulle. A dress made from pure duchess silk will be much more expensive, for instance, than a dress made from a mix of man-made fibre and silk. Prized for its lustre, drape, and softness, traditional silk fibres are created from boiled silkworm cocoons from which the worms have not been allowed to emerge. This allows the cocoon to be unfurled into a single continuous thread that is strong, light reflective, and useful in making fabric in a variety of finishes.
Organza
Much lighter than satin and other fabrics mentioned, organza also offers wonderful styles on wedding gowns. Organza is a wonderfully semi-translucent fabric with a slight twinkle and a hint of sparkle. Beadwork and lace are popular accessories on organza. A sheer, stiff fabric of silk or synthetic material, Organza is similar to tulle, but less coarse and more flowing. Unlike tulle, it flows well, which is why it is frequently used in skirts and overlays.
Georgette
A sheer, lightweight fabric, Georgette is made of polyester or silk with a crepe surface. The sheer and seductive property of georgette makes it a favourite fabric for dresses featuring excessive draping. Georgette can be used on skirt overlays, train attachments or body-skimming designs. Georgette must be lined while being used as the main fabric of a wedding dress.
Tulle
Typically made of nylon or lace, tulle wedding dresses usually feel lightweight and look exquisite. Tulle also creates stunning structures on a dress, usually with a hexagon shaped mesh effect. A fine, starched netting made of silk, nylon, or rayon, Tulle is often used for skirts and veils. Also called Illusion or English net, this is a mesh-like fabric woven from synthetic fibres, though it can be made from silk. The weave determines the weight of the fabric, which is most commonly used for veils or underskirts, with bobbinet being some of the strongest and most durable. Most dance costumes and bridal veils are also made from tulle.
Satin-backed Dupion
A plain-weave silk or cotton fabric, Satin-backed Dupion is notable for its rubbed, rough texture. This fabric has a grainy finish and can be used on either the matt crepe side or the shiny satin side, or a combination of the two for contrasting textures. It accompanies lace, velvet, beading, chiffon, tulle, and organza beautifully.
Velvet
Velvet is a soft, thick fabric with a felted face and a plain underside. Ideally created from silk, this heavy, tufted fabric with its characteristic pile can also be made from cotton and sometimes synthetic fibres. In wedding dresses, velvet is often used in those gowns designed with the winter-time bride in mind because it offers a bit more warmth than other fabrics.
In conclusion, the same style of dress will look and feel different, depending upon the fabric. Some fabrics will absorb light; some will reflect light and some fabrics will cling to the body whilst others will stand away. Some fabrics will be light and perfect for a summer wedding with other fabrics being heavy and warm for a winter wedding.
The choice is all yours!
