Silk Habotai (China silk) weights

Lisa, in my opinion, china silk or habotai are both too clingy to use as a lining. I would prefer to use silk broadcloth, which is crisper.

You can also use spun silk taffeta, both as a lining and an underlining, which was what Susan Khalje recommended to me. I was very pleased with this, by the way. I used it as the lining in both my daughter's wedding gown, and in the gown I wore to her wedding in late June of 2000. It was outdoors, down by the Ohio River, 93 degrees, and 100% humidity (so humid that it rained, briefly), and she and I were both cool and comfortable. Well, she was; I was having serious hot flashes. But if I had been wearing anything but three layers of silk I think I would have fainted with the heat.

Good luck with the gown! You don't have much time, so be sure to ask about delivery times. The silk I ordered (about 25 yards) was "on the boat", and we ended up in a bit of a time crunch, since my daughter lived five hours away at the time, and we needed a lot of lead time for fittings, decision-making consults, etc. It turned out beautifully, but I was a nervous wreck.

Karen Maslowski in Ohio

karlisa wrote:

What do you think of Dharma's silk twill?

Joy Beeson

lisa

For what purpose?

I have some that's 3-4 years old. I dyed it and made it into a skirt. It's still doing just fine, and I wear it once a month or so.

It's too heavy to use as a lining, and I'm dubious about its usefulness for work-style pants, as it's a fairly drapey twill. It would probably make great softly tailored trousers, though.

-- Jenn Ridley : snipped-for-privacy@chartermi.net

I agree with Jenn--too heavy to use as a lining.

Karen Maslowski in Cincinnati

Jenn Ridley wrote:

Hey Karen, Any chance we can see these wonderful dresses? I'm a sucker for a wedding gown. ;-)

BTW, I've been to Dharma Trading in Marin County too! I had no idea I was shopping at such popular places! The quantities of dyes made my head spin.

Unfortunately, the few pictures I have don't show the dress very well, and the kids never did ransom their wedding photos from the photographer. The only photos we have are long, group shots, and they just don't show any detail. I really wanted a photo of how her train worked, too, since it was my invention that I've never seen anywhere else.

The one or two photos of me are so bad; I was in the midst of severe, shall we say power surges? I was bloated, and my expression is so pained that I refuse to let anyone see the photos. I did get a chance to wear the gown again a couple of years ago. The daughters of three different friends made their debuts together--a once in a lifetime experience--and we were invited by one family to the Cotillion, which required formal dress. But again, the photos did not turn out well, unfortunately. Our youngest daughter was taking them, of mom and dad's "prom", and she was focusing more on our faces than on our fancy clothes. Oh, well.

Karen Maslowski in Cincinnati

wurstergirl wrote: