SNARK WEEK: Satin/Satan Is Not Your Friend

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Oh, satin. You magical, mysterious, annoying AF fabric. How much we all love you when you’re used correctly, shudder when you are not, and frequently wonder, “Is that costume SUPPOSED to look like that??!!” Because I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:

Satin can be a stunningly gorgeous fabric, but it also has a tendency to show Every Single Error you’ve ever made, patterning/sewing/fitting-wise. It can also go very, very wrong when cheaped out on. And honestly, it hardly ever lays smoothly the second you start moving in it. So let’s get into it — why isn’t satin (aka satan) your friend?

 

What Is Satin?

First, let’s clarify the important thing: satin is a WEAVE not a fiber. All fabrics are made up of fibers, i.e., their source material, whether that be natural fibers like cotton, linen, wool, and silk, or synthetic like rayon, acetate, polyester, nylon, etc. Whatever that source fiber is, it’s then woven into fabric, and THAT is where you get satin as well as taffeta, broadcloth, crepe, flannel, etc.

So, thing one: satin can be made of any fiber. It’s traditionally made of silk, but it can also be made of wool, synthetics, etc. It’s made by keeping more warp threads (the vertical ones) on top of the weft threads (the horizontal ones), with sateen being a similar weave but made of short-fiber materials like cotton, while satin is made from longer fiber materials like silk. With more warp threads on top, you get a lustrous fabric with a glow or shine to it.

Now, it’s important to know that there are different weights of satin. Lightest weight would be charmeuse and that’s the kind of thing you’d use on a drapey, 1930s, bias-cut gown. Heavier is crepe-back satin, which is still drapey, just not as drapey as charmeuse. Heavy-weight satin is thick and usually called “duchess” or “peau de soie” (literally “skin of silk,” but skin like leather). If you’d like a visual, this video goes into many of these types of silk fabrics (as well as others):

 

“Poly Baroque Satin”

Now, sidebar. We frequently mention “poly baroque satin” on this here site, and Trystan wanted me to explain it to you. I could SWEAR that “baroque satin” used to be something one encountered at fabric stores all the time, and it was one of those “let’s use a fancy-sounding name to upsell what is actually a cheap product.” We tend to put “poly” in front of the phrase to clarify that we mean synthetic, cheap-o fabric — specifically the kind of super lightweight, super synthetic shiny fabric you can buy for $1.99 and ends up looking like this:

HOWEVER, googling for “baroque satin” gets me very few hits! What happened?? Did everyone move on from this concept?

I know I’m not crazy because I found this excellent advice in a cosplay book:

But then I ALSO found “baroque satin” listed in a fabric reference guide as being heavier weight, like duchess satin and peau de soie!

 

What the hell? Anyone?

Why Isn’t Satin Your Friend?

Two reasons:

1. If you cheap out and buy synthetic silk, IT WILL SHOW in its awful shiny syntheticness. See that tablecloth above.

• While it can be incredibly gorgeous when constructed perfectly, it will show Every Single Error you’ve ever made. And I’m not saying I’m above this! Let me show you some examples of quality silk satin costumes I’ve made and show you what I mean:

So I say this with full sympathy: satin is a really hard fabric to work with, although it can absolutely be gorgeous.

Now, let’s look at satin in frock flicks!

 

Times Satin Went About as Well as Can Be Expected

Drapey

Lightweight satin like charmeuse and crepe-back satin works well on drapey gowns:

 

Good Fit/Underpinnings/Underlining/Boning

If you’re going to do something less drapey with satin, then it HAS to 1) fit perfectly, 2) be worn over serious undergarments, 3) be underlined with more fabric to support it, and 4) be boned when appropriate.

 

Times Satin Became Satan

Don’t cheap out or cut corners, because SATIN/SATAN SHOWS ALL.

Sooooo Shiny

 

Forgot to Iron

And yeah, unless you stand perfectly still, satin will show wrinkles. But you gotta iron it first to stay ahead of the game!

 

Stress Wrinkles

This is one that kills me. If you pull on satin too hard, it will make all these awful horizontal wrinkles that are Not Good.

 

Bad Corsetry

The worst? If you attempt to wear it without a corset and without the equivalent underlining/boning.

 

Fit & Construction Problems

And this is when chickens come home to roost. Fit just slightly (or very) off? Didn’t press your seams, or got your tension wrong? Didn’t bother to underline, bone, and/or put the actor in a corset? Satin will SCREAM IT TO THE WORLD.

So the moral of the story isn’t to NOT use satin, it’s just this: satin is a challenging fabric that’s worth it if you can put in the money to get the quality stuff and the time to fit and construct it correctly, but satin WILL show your Every Possible Minor Error. So, proceed with caution!

 

Got good or bad satin examples to share? Put them in the comments!