Vintage Fabric Names: What Can I Use Today?

There’s nothing quite like finding an old sewing pattern and reading the fabric suggestions.

You can almost hear the pattern talking to you:

“Make this delightful frock in rayon crepe, silk shantung or cotton organdy.”

And then you look at your local fabric shop and think, “Lovely… but what on earth am I supposed to ask for?”

Well, don’t worry. Help is now here!

Vintage fabric names can sound wonderfully exotic, but quite often there is a modern fabric that will give you a very similar result. The trick is to think about how the original fabric behaved rather than simply looking for exactly the same name.

Here’s my little sewing-room cheat sheet.

Vintage Fabric Name → What to Look for Today

Vintage name	What it was like	Similar fabric to look for today
Batiste	Fine, soft and lightweight	Cotton batiste, cotton lawn or fine voile
Broadcloth	Smooth, closely woven and fairly firm	Cotton poplin or modern broadcloth
Calico	Plain, practical cotton	Cotton calico or unbleached cotton
Challis	Soft, lightweight and drapey	Viscose challis or lightweight viscose
Charmeuse	Smooth, shiny and fluid	Silk charmeuse or polyester charmeuse
Chiffon	Sheer, fine and floaty	Polyester chiffon or silk chiffon
Chintz	Printed cotton with a glazed surface	Printed cotton, polished cotton or chintz reproduction
Corduroy	Ribbed fabric with raised wales (the number of ridges per inch).	Cotton or cotton-blend corduroy
Crepe	Slightly textured with good drape	Viscose crepe, polyester crepe or silk crepe
Crepe de Chine	Fine, soft and fluid	Silk crepe de chine or good-quality polyester crepe
Damask	Woven pattern with a subtle sheen	Modern damask or jacquard
Dotted Swiss	Fine fabric with raised dots	Swiss dot cotton or viscose
Faille	Firm fabric with horizontal ribs	Modern faille or ribbed structured fabric
Gabardine	Firm fabric with a strong diagonal twill	Wool, polyester or cotton gabardine
Georgette	Sheer, slightly grainy and drapey	Polyester georgette or silk georgette
Gingham	Woven checks	Cotton gingham
Habutai	Lightweight, smooth silk	Silk habotai or lightweight polyester lining
Lawn	Fine, smooth and lightweight	Cotton lawn
Linen	Cool, breathable and crisp	Linen or linen/viscose blend
Matelassé	Raised, quilted-looking texture	Modern matelassé or textured jacquard
Melton	Dense, heavy and warm wool	Melton wool or wool-blend coating
Muslin	Lightweight plain cotton	Cotton muslin or lightweight calico
Nainsook	Very fine, soft cotton	Cotton batiste, lawn or fine voile
Organdy	Crisp, sheer and lightweight	Cotton organdy or crisp synthetic organza
Organza	Crisp, sheer and structured	Polyester organza or silk organza
Peau de Soie	Smooth, substantial silk with a soft sheen	Duchess satin or modern peau de soie
Piqué	Textured, raised surface	Cotton piqué or textured cotton
Poplin	Smooth, firm with a fine rib	Cotton poplin
Sateen	Smooth cotton with a slight sheen	Cotton sateen
Satin	Smooth, shiny and often fluid	Polyester satin, silk satin or duchess satin
Seersucker	Lightweight and permanently puckered	Cotton seersucker
Shantung	Crisp with characteristic slubs	Silk shantung or shantung-look polyester
Taffeta	Crisp, smooth and rustly	Polyester taffeta or silk taffeta
Toile	Lightweight fabric often used for test garments	Calico, cotton muslin or toile fabric
Tussah/Tussar silk	Slightly irregular, textured wild silk	Tussar silk or textured silk
Velour	Soft fabric with a plush surface	Stretch or non-stretch velour
Velvet	Dense, soft pile	Modern cotton, silk or polyester velvet
Velveteen	Cotton fabric with a shorter pile than velvet	Cotton velveteen
Voile	Fine, soft and semi-sheer	Cotton voile or viscose voile
Wool crepe	Soft, slightly textured and drapey	Wool crepe or wool-blend crepe

A Few That Deserve a Little More Explanation

Some vintage names are fairly straightforward. Others are the sort that make you stare at the pattern envelope over your tea and wonder whether the fabric shop assistant has any idea what you're talking about!

So let's have a closer look at a few.

Rayon Crepe

If your vintage pattern asks for rayon crepe, you're looking for something with a lovely fluid drape and a slightly textured crepe surface.

Today, I'd look first for:

Viscose crepe

It's often a very good modern alternative because viscose is closely related to rayon and can provide the soft movement that makes these vintage garments work so beautifully.

Just don't substitute a crisp cotton simply because it's the same weight. You'll lose the drape.

Silk Shantung

Shantung is one of those fabrics where the little imperfections are part of the charm.

Traditional silk shantung has slubs - small irregularities in the yarn that give the surface character.

Today you might find:

• Silk shantung
• Dupioni silk
• Polyester shantung

Dupioni silk can be a useful alternative, although it isn't identical to traditional shantung.

If your pattern is for a fairly structured 1950s dress or jacket, that crispness is worth preserving.

Organdy

Now here's one I particularly love for vintage sewing.

Organdy is crisp, lightweight and slightly sheer, and it can give collars, sleeves and full skirts that lovely vintage shape.

If you can't find cotton organdy, look at:

Cotton organdy first, if available.

If not, organza may work for some projects, although it can behave differently and may have more body or a different surface depending on the fabric.

Nainsook

Nainsook sounds rather mysterious, doesn't it?

It was a very fine, soft cotton often used for lingerie, baby clothes and delicate garments.

Today, I'd have a look at:

• Fine cotton lawn
• Cotton batiste
• Very soft voile

For delicate vintage underwear or nightwear, cotton batiste can be particularly useful.

Challis

Challis was prized for its soft, flowing quality.

If your pattern says:

“Suitable for challis”

I'd head straight towards lightweight:

Viscose/rayon

especially if you're making a softly draped dress or blouse.

A crisp cotton may be lovely, but it won't give you the same movement.

Peau de Soie

This is one of those wonderfully French names that sounds much more complicated than it needs to be.

Peau de soie has a smooth surface, a soft sheen and more body than a very fluid satin.

For modern sewing, look for:

Duchess satin or modern peau de soie.

It's particularly useful for vintage bridal gowns, evening dresses and structured formalwear.

What About “Rayon”?

This is one that catches many of us out.

When you see rayon on an old pattern, don't immediately assume you need to find something labelled exactly “rayon”.

Depending on where you are shopping today, you may see:

• Viscose
• Rayon
• Modal
• Lyocell

They are all manufactured cellulose fibres, although they are not interchangeable in every situation.

For vintage dressmaking, viscose is often the first modern fabric I'd investigate when a pattern originally called for rayon.

What If the Exact Fabric Still Exists?

If you can find the original fabric name today, that's wonderful!

You don't necessarily need to replace it.

For example, you can still find:

• Cotton lawn
• Cotton poplin
• Gingham
• Corduroy
• Velvet
• Taffeta
• Organza
• Gabardine
• Seersucker
• Silk shantung
• Silk chiffon
• Linen

The important thing is to check the weight, drape and handle as well as the name.

Two fabrics can both be called “satin” and behave completely differently.

My Little Vintage Pattern Rule

When I'm trying to work out what fabric to use for an old pattern, I like to ask myself three questions:

1. Does it need to drape?

If yes, look towards viscose, rayon, silk crepe, georgette, challis or other fluid fabrics.

2. Does it need to hold its shape?

If yes, look towards taffeta, faille, gabardine, duchess satin, wool coating or other structured fabrics.

3. Is the fabric part of the look?

This is especially important with vintage sewing.

A 1940s dress made in a crisp cotton will look very different from the same dress made in fluid rayon crepe.

Neither is necessarily wrong—but they will give you different garments.

A Handy Way to Read an Old Pattern

Don't be frightened by the fabric list.

If your pattern says:

“Rayon crepe, silk crepe or wool crepe”

the designer is giving you a clue about the behaviour of the fabric.

They're suggesting fabrics that have enough drape and movement for the design.

If it says:

“Taffeta, faille or shantung”

you're probably looking for something with more body and structure.

And if it says:

“Organdy, organdie or crisp lawn”

you're looking for something lightweight with a certain amount of crispness.

Once you start thinking this way, those old fabric lists become much less mysterious.

There are some more handy tips on our ‘Guides’ tab – How to Read a Vintage Sewing Pattern

Vintage Fabric Name Cheat Sheet

If you want the very short version to keep beside your sewing machine, here you are:

Rayon → viscose/rayon
Challis → viscose challis
Crepe → viscose, polyester or silk crepe
Crepe de Chine → silk or good-quality polyester crepe
Georgette → polyester or silk georgette
Shantung → silk shantung or dupioni
Peau de Soie → duchess satin
Organdy → cotton organdy or organza
Nainsook → cotton batiste or lawn
Habutai → lightweight silk or suitable lining fabric
Chintz → glazed or polished printed cotton
Faille → modern faille or similar ribbed fabric
Gabardine → modern gabardine
Sateen → cotton sateen
Taffeta → polyester or silk taffeta
Velveteen → cotton velveteen
Voile → cotton or viscose voile
Batiste → cotton batiste
Lawn → cotton lawn
Piqué → cotton piqué
Seersucker → cotton seersucker

And there we are - a little vintage fabric translation guide for those moments when you're sitting with an old pattern, a cup of tea and absolutely no idea what “three yards of rayon crepe” means in today's fabric shop.

The golden rule is simple: don't just match the name; match the behaviour of the fabric. If the original fabric was soft and drapey, find something soft and drapey. If it was crisp and structured, find something with body.

That way, your lovely vintage pattern still gets the fabric it deserves- even if the name on the modern fabric bolt is completely different.

Happy Sewing…