Fabric Guide
Choosing the Right Fabric for Every Season
Lawn, cambric, khaddar, karandi, raw silk, chiffon: a plain-spoken guide to how each fabric feels, when to wear it and how it behaves through the year.
By Hina Javed, Head of Fabric & Quality
4 min read
Depending on who you ask, Pakistan has anywhere between four and six seasons, from Lahore’s blazing June to Islamabad’s misty January, with a monsoon and two very short springs in between. Choosing the right fabric for each one matters more than any print or cut. This is our fabric team’s guide.
Summer (April – June): breathe
Lawn is the queen of summer: a fine, plain-woven cotton, light and slightly crisp, that lets air through and dries quickly. Look for a high thread count, because the finer the yarn, the softer the lawn and the better it holds a print.
Voile is lawn’s lighter, more translucent cousin, beautiful for dupattas and layered shirts when worn with a slip. Cotton net and chikankari-style cotton suit summer evenings: the openwork keeps you cool while still looking dressed up.
Monsoon (July – September): dry quickly
Humidity is the enemy. Choose fabrics that dry fast and don’t cling, so lawn and linen-cotton blends are best. Avoid silk and velvet, which spot with water, and keep trouser hems a little shorter to stay clear of wet streets.
Autumn and spring: layer
October, November, February and March are when cambric comes into its own. Woven from slightly heavier cotton yarn, it is opaque, smooth and structured: warm in the morning, comfortable in the afternoon sun. Cotton silk adds a soft sheen for evenings, and jacquard brings woven texture without the weight of embroidery.
If you remember one thing: cotton for heat, wool blends for cold, silk for occasions. Everything else is detail.
Winter (December – January): warmth with grace
Khaddar is a coarse, hand-loom-style cotton with a slubby, textured surface: warm, breathable and wonderfully relaxed. Karandi is a fine blend of cotton, silk and wool with a dry, slightly crinkled hand. It drapes like silk but keeps you warm, which makes it the winter fabric for formal occasions. Marina and velvet are for evenings, velvet especially at winter weddings, where nothing else looks as rich under the lights.
Pair winter shirts with a wool or pashmina shawl rather than a sheer dupatta.
Occasion fabrics, all year round
| Fabric | Feels like | Best for | Care |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chiffon | Light, fluid and sheer | Daytime festive, Eid, mehndi | Dry clean or gentle hand wash |
| Organza | Crisp, airy and structured | Festive shirts and dupattas | Dry clean only |
| Raw silk | Textured, with a natural slub | Formal evenings and weddings | Dry clean only |
| Tissue | Metallic, crisp and luminous | Wedding functions | Dry clean only |
| Velvet | Dense, soft and rich | Winter weddings | Dry clean; steam, never iron |
Lining and opacity
Fine lawn, voile, chiffon and net are all, to some degree, sheer. Our stitched pieces in these fabrics are lined wherever they need to be, usually with a soft cotton or silk slip, so you can wear them with confidence. If you are having unstitched fabric tailored, ask for a lining in the same tone as the shirt rather than plain white, which can show through darker prints.
Matching fabric to silhouette
Fabric also decides which shapes work. Crisp fabrics like organza, cambric and raw silk hold structure, so they suit A-lines, angrakhas and kalidar panels. Fluid fabrics like chiffon and silk crepe suit straight cuts, flared shararas and anything that should move. Pairing the two, with a crisp shirt over fluid trousers or the reverse, is often what makes an outfit feel considered.
How to read a fabric label
Every AURAQ product page lists the composition of each piece (shirt, dupatta and trouser), because a “lawn suit” can mean three different fabrics. A few terms worth knowing:
- Thread count: the number of threads per square inch; higher means finer
- Self-woven or jacquard: the pattern is woven into the cloth rather than printed on it
- Dyed or printed: dyed fabric is coloured all the way through; printed fabric is coloured on the surface
Still unsure? Our stylists can help you choose by fabric, season or occasion in any of our boutiques, or over WhatsApp.
