Imagine that you are a British representative living in India during the colonial period and it is summer. You are desperate for air. Under the tightly woven cotton suit, you feel like being boiled alive. You are in dire search of a replacement for your suits. Something that is lightweight and breathable. What did you get? A suit made out of seersucker fabric.
Table of Content:
- What is seersucker fabric and how it is made?
- Seersucker fabric does not need ironing
- Seersucker is an ideal summer wear
- You get more than a shirt
- Seersucker means luxury
What is seersucker fabric and how it is made?
Named after the Hindustani words ‘Shir’ and ‘Shakar’ (which literally translates to Milk and sugar), seersucker is a smooth and rough stripe fabric made from cotton fibers. It is an ideal clothing fabric for the summer season.
Its characteristics are achieved on a fabric by implementing a slack-tension weaving process. To weave a fabric, we typically have to weave two sets of yarns in equal tension. In the weaving process, two warp yarns are involved. The first warp yarn is held in uniform tension. This causes a plain stripe look. The second warp yarn is held at a higher tension which results in a crinkled and puckered stripe effect. Groups of 10 or 16 yarns are wound onto the warp beams to create narrow stripes. For more noticeable crinkles, larger yarns are used.
“Warp is the vertical yarn and weft is the horizontal yarn mentioned in a weaving process”
In the earlier days, it was hand-made on looms, but now all processes are mechanized.
Seersucker fabric does not need ironing
Ironing is a repetitive task which most people hate. Seersucker fabrics are loved more by this kind of people.
The natural crinkled look of this type of fabric allows you to wear it without ironing it properly. In fact, ironing it completely would make the distinct characteristic go away.
Hence, people avoid ironing it. With joy.
It is an ideal summer wear
As we mentioned the story of the British living in India, you might have already understood that it is ideal for the summer season. The Muslim traders popularized it in Europe and America during the Victorian age.
You get more than a shirt
Traditional seersucker fabric is found in a blue and white stripe design widely used for suits initially. But as time passed, its demand and innovations by manufacturers pushed it to further colors and products. Now we can see, shorts, pants, shirts, skirts, and other fashion accessories like belts and caps made out of seersucker fabric.
Seersucker means luxury
In the early 1900s, people often thought of it as low quality and low-status clothes. It was made popular by people who wore suits made out of seersucker as a symbol of reverse snobbery. Suits were getting expensive. This was a cheaper alternative.
”I have been wearing coats of the material known as seersucker around New York lately, thereby causing much confusion among my friends. They cannot decide whether I am broke or just setting a new vogue.” – Damon Ruyon wrote in 1945
Later, famous designers like the Brook Brothers, Joseph Haspel, actor Jamie Foxx, and Luxury brands Giorgio Armani made it more mainstream.
Today, only a handful of manufacturers make seersucker fabric. Because it is more time-consuming.
Buy seersucker fabrics.
