Poly satin is a horrible, horrible fabric.

[DWH]

So, I'm just jumping in here to be disgruntled about my bridesmaid dress. Which, granted, could be WAAAAY worse. I get to choose my cut, at least, and I found one that has a nice silhouette.

But there are two problems. a) It is pale yellow, which is one of the worst colours on me, and b) it is a polyester satin.

Given my choice, I would have gone for one of the cotton sateen dresses. Oh, natural fibers. You breathe in the summer, and take dye after the wedding is over. But the bride specifically said that she didn't want anyone showing up in a cotton dress, so we had to choose a satin one. Cringe.

Let me tell you about polyester satin. It will melt if you heat it. It will stain if you spill water on it. It won't take dye unless you take some pretty extreme and potentially noxious measures. I honestly resent having to pay $120 for a poly satin dress (srsly guys, at $8/yd at non wholesale prices, and a dress that takes three yards at most?) when I could have bought the silk to make the same damn dress for about the same amount. Real silk satin is pricey, I realise, but have any of you ever worked with silk? After my college years of having to squeak by with using satin for costumes because it was all I could afford, and having to deal with slippery fabric and accidentally melting pieces of my costume as I attempted ironing them, I cannot even express the pure joy that was getting 9 yards of double-weave red/black silk and sewing with it. It glides through the machine with naught but a whisper, it presses neatly and doesn't threaten to leave burn marks, and if I ever wanted to dye over it, it would soak it right up. Not that I would, the double weave is gorgeous. It's cool in the summer and warm in the winter, unlike satin, which is just holds heat like nobody else's business. It drapes, which satin does only reluctantly.

Not to mention that David's Bridal has truly mediocre construction. Last dress I got from them has a zipper that doesn't like going up past the center back seam. A seam which is, by the by, 100% unnecessary. I can only assume they wanted to continue the line from the front, but if it interferes with actually getting the dress on? It's a problem! Also, the dress was just so, so ugly. I pulled it out of the closet today to make sure I'm still the same dress size as I was then, and it is just really unfortunate. My new dress will at least not be an ugly cut, so there is that.

Maybe poly satin has some fans around here, but I am telling you, natural fibers are a million times better. You can get really high quality cottons that look a million times better than poly satin. And I am seriously going to be watching Thai Silks for their sales, because when I get married, I'm doing it in silk. I don't care how crazy I'll make myself sewing my own dress, I will be ten billion times happier that way.

Aaaaaaaaaaand fabric snob out.

[rowan]

When we got married we found paint swatches in the color we wanted, sent them to our two bridesmaids, and said "Here's the color. Make/find something you like. They don't have to match." And we made sure to pick a color that would look good on both of them.

[Sonic#]

Oh, no, I agree with preferring the natural. I don't work with fabrics, and I don't often get the opportunity to wear such fine fabrics, but I like my fabrics to breathe and to not be wimps when it comes to a wash.

[monk]

Agreed, poly satin or really polly anything is really horrible unless of course you want to set someone on fire and horribly maim them.

[Tookie]

The first time I worked with silk was an absolute wonder. I have only made one dress out of it (dupioni, I think), because of the whole handwashing/possibly dry clean only? thing, and because I haven't had any big dress up events since my grad, but it was so lovely. I don't work with anything except natural fibres anymore if I can help it. I made a linen sundress this spring and it's just the absolute best thing to wear on a summer day.

[Aum]

I don't understand why you are forbidden from wearing cotton if the dress would still match the dresses of the other people?

I have read elsewhere that natural fibers release negative ions into the air, just like the ocean does (though on a smaller scale).

All I ever wear are natural fibers year round. I can't take stuff that doesn't breath or feel good on the body.