Velvet Fabric • Stretch Velvet • Velvet Fabric Dress
Velvet has a long history, most of it as a silk fabric. During World War II, silk became scarce forcing mills
to turn to other fibers like cotton, rayon and acetate. Today silk velvet fabric is still available, but it is
a blend of silk and rayon, usually 14% to 18% silk with the balance being rayon. A 100% silk velvet fabric,
rarely seen, would be extraordinarily expensive.
Velvet is a pile fabric made by cutting the warp (lengthwise) yarns. Velveteen, a close
cousin to velvet and sometimes mistaken for velvet, is also a pile fabric but the pile is formed from the fill
yarns (crosswise). Velvet is the more luxurious and generally more expensive of the two fabrics and is
produced in a greater variety of types.
Our velvet fabrics include traditional rigid velvet, both cotton and synthetic blends, and stretch velvet. All
our stretch velvet fabrics contain spandex or other elastic fiber but have varying percentages ranging from
1.3% to 4% We are particularly proud of our Italian velvet from Pontoglio. This is luxury, designer quality
velvet fabric that looks rich and beautiful with the added benefit of a soft, sensual hand.