Silk fabrics

The spirit of Josephine Silk Couture is “be chic, be unique”. Silk is elegance. So, the question remains, how to be unique using silk?
We are happy to provide this silk information guide to help you select the ideal fabric to meet your your needs & desires and to create your perfect silk garment.

Please, note that all information has been gathered from silk suppliers and many sources available on the web such as Wikipedia. For additional information, we advise you to refer to more specialized sources.

Why select a silk fabric?

Natural fiber

Silk is a natural fabric woven from the cocoons of silkworms. The worm spits this thread to make its cocoon. Once the cocoon is unwound, the yarn is woven into thread that consists of warp yarns and weft yarns. Silk fabrics are woven by entangling these threads in different ways to create satin weave, plain weave and twill:

Satin: four or more weft yarns floating over the warp thread, or under it
Plain weave: Each weft thread passes over a warp thread, then under the next one and so on
Twill: The weft thread passes under two then over two other warp threads, offsetting by one thread for each pick to give the fabric its diagonal effect

In our example, satin is both a weaving technique and a fabric made with this technique. Each weave type has a range of physical properties.

Physical properties

It is important to know about the physical properties when selecting your fabric. The following table provides you with the information needed to decide what is right for you.

Advantages Silk fabrics are:	Disadvantages However, they:
Natural and smooth	Are challenging to cut
Insulate cool in summer and warm in winter	Require delicate maintenance: Hand wash or dry cleaning; not resistant to sulfuric acid or chlorine bleach
Good at moisture absorbing	Should not be exposed to sunlight when drying (elasticity loss)

Further care instructions are displayed in the product section and on maintenance labels.

What silk quality to select?

It is important to take into account the silk weight in momme (mm), that is the unit of weight of the square meter of silk fabrics. One momme is worth approximately 4.3 grams per square meter. In simple terms, the higher the momme, the more opaque, durable and luxurious the fabric and the more suitable it is for heavy-duty use. For a given color, you will be able to choose a desired silk weight.

You should consider also the combination of colors. Silk fabrics are available both in plain colors and in prints. The most common patterns applied on silk this season are floral and geometric. Visit our website regularly, as we continue to display trend patterns for the coming fashion seasons.

What can you get in terms of look and feel?

Each weaving technique has a distinct fabric performance (not limitative).

Weave type	Fabric performance	Our suggested styles
Silk satin	Satin is a type of weave without apparent weft yarns, creating a double-sided fabric: The “warp” side is smooth, plain, thin and shiny; the “weft” side is rough. Silk satin has a fluid, slippery and shiny fall.	Pajamas Désirée, Gertrude, Yeyette Dresses Louise
Silk damask	Damask has a satin weave, characterized by a contrast of brilliance between the background and the pattern formed by weaving	Dresses Louise
Silk taffeta	Taffeta is a type of plain weave. It has main properties such as: stiffness and a smooth surface. It is completely opaque	Dresses Rose Claire
Silk organza	Silk organza is a stiff and thin fabric constructed in a plain weave. It is lightweight and its surface is transparent. It is slightly stiffer than taffeta and has a voluminous finish.	Dresses Rose Claire
Silk habutai	Habutai is a type of plain weave, which has a flat surface effect. The fabric is lightweight, soft, and sheer.	We use it as a silk lining type
Silk twill	Twill is a type of weave forming a pattern of distinct diagonal lines (as opposed to a plain weave or a satin weave). It puts the colors in value. Both sides are not the same. Silk twill fabric is smooth, soft and breathable and has a subtle sheen. The twill weave makes the fabric durable.	Skirts Amélie, Lucie Dresses Isabelle, Victoire Shirts Laure, Sophie, Thérèsa Trousers Roxane
Silk crepe	Crepe is a woven fabric created from high twist yarns. The original fabric is subjected to a very strong torsion and possibly heating to deform its fibers in a given direction. It has a soft, slightly rough and glossy texture. This fabric is opaque.	Combination-pant Brigitte Dresses Catherine Shirts Marie Scarves square formats
Silk chiffon	Silk chiffon is a woven fabric created from twisted crepe yarns. The twist in the crepe yarns puckers the fabric slightly in both directions after weaving, giving it some stretch and a slightly rough feel. It is thin, soft and lightweight. It has a rough and slippery texture.	Dresses Marie Jeanne Shirts Stéphanie
Silk satin chiffon	This silk chiffon has a satin effect, a soft texture, and a smooth finish.	Dresses Eléanor
Silk kawa	Kawa is a type of thick silk fabric. It has a sanded surface whilst retaining a soft feel.	Dresses Joséphine
Silk toshi	This 40mm fabric is a 2-layer weaving type. It is soft and luxurious.	Dresses Antoinette

Why Josephine Silk Couture?

We love silk and offer unique access to high-end quality silk via our Fabric Sample Service.
We will help you to design your stylish look using our unique 3D scanning measurement technology
You will enjoy an outfit perfectly fitted to your morphology with our Perfect Fit Guarantee
You will receive your order at home anywhere in the world in 2 weeks.

Order your fabric samples in the Fabric Sample Service section.
Choose your own style in our Self style creation section now!