Wedding Dress Fabric Options: What's the Difference?
Many of you have grown up without the old school mandatory home -economics (sewing)classes, and have no idea about what different fabric types are and how they can help the look of our wedding gown. Picking the best fabric can help you chose the best dress style for you, as well as your body shape.
Lace
Lace is the most common choice in wedding dresses over the past few years, and has always been a favourite for brides. The choice of laces these days is endless, from classic French laces, to the modern stretch laces which make comfort easy in a wedding dress. Chantilly laces which are very fine and delicate giving a romantic look to any gown In a lot of dresses more than one type of lace is used, giving a layered look and highlighting feature areas. Laces can also camouflage a lot of body issues, and provide great wearability on the day. The only exception to wearability in laces may be the delicate and fragile Chantilly laces, which may pull easily but then certainly worth the inconvenience to get that special design and style that this lace offers.
Satin
This fabric is very soft, but can wrinkle easily depending on the quality of the satin used, and has a natural glossy shine. Be sure to do the scrunch test, to see if this is the type of fabric you want to wear on your wedding day. Satin can also leave water marks, so if you are having a beach wedding or beach photos might not be your best choice. Satin also does not breathe as much as other choices such as chiffon. So if you are getting married in the middle of summer, in the middle of the day, satin might not be for you.
There is also a matte satin, with a more subtle shine and more body in the fabric. This is very complementary fabric to use in plus size gowns, as it holds the shape of the garment design.
However, the natural shine of satin is wonderful, and adds that special red carpet glam to your wedding gown.
Chiffon
Chiffon is a wonderful delicate, sheer and transparent material. It is extremely soft and is usually finished in layers because of its transparency, making it a very popular choice. It is also very cool to wear, making chiffon the perfect choice for beach weddings, or weddings held in the tropics.If you want that soft floaty feeling in your dress, chiffon is your best choice.
Tulle
Just think of ballerinas, and tutus. Tulle is what the tutus are made of, wonderful layers and layers of tulle. Makes for wonderful princess gowns of any style, is soft and usually in dresses in many layers. The more layers of tulle, usually the more expensive the gown, but also the more glamorous. Tulle can also be used in more modern designs, and often is used with organza to create an even more princess style gown.
Tulle combined with lace is a very popular choice for wedding dresses, and gives a more detailed look to any dress no matter whether it be a fitted style or a princess style. The combination of both fabrics is also great for wearability on the day and will not show creases or any minor pulls or spillages during your special day.
Organza
Organza is a stiffer fabric, more like a matte satin, but is sheer like chiffon. Organza is often used in skirts, sleeves, and overlays in combination with other fabrics. A definite fabric choice for your princess gowns, and designs needing more body in styling. Organza will hold a bow with more shape, unlike a soft chiffon or soft tulle.
Taffeta
A very crisp fabric, with a soft sheen, taffeta sometimes has a dual colour sheen, which is being used more often in bridal gowns. Taffeta has the benefit of holding more creative designs in place, and giving more structure to your garment. Does not have the lustre of a full satin, taffeta is more like a dull satin. Even though it is considered an older style fabric, the newer designers are embracing the styles and cuts they can achieve with this fabric.
Silk
The most luxurious of all wedding fabrics, and is used in the most upmarket couture gowns. However, it is difficult to keep clean, it will water mark, and must be cared for with the utmost care. But it will make you feel like a queen in your gown, as it is the most luxurious fabric your gown can be made of. Silk as with satin comes in different weights and sheens. Silk can be soft, smooth (smooth as silk) and floaty to a more structured heavier weight, or with a natural look to the fabric with natures knots delicately woven into the fabric (like a Thai silk).
These are the main fabrics used in wedding gown design, however, other fabrics are used. If you are not sure of what you want your gown made of, just look at pre-made gowns and their structure, and it won’t take you long to be an expert in picking the right fabric for your design. This will make getting a short list of styles and designs of your gown easier, in your most major decision of choosing your wedding gown.
In most cases, your wedding gown will be the biggest dress purchase of your entire life, and you need to make it the best decision as well. Feel free to book a free bridal appointment with Forever and we can take the hassle out of wedding dress shopping.
