| Base cloth | habotai (mulberry silk) base |
|---|---|
| Finish | yam juice + river mud process |
| Width | 92 cm width |
| Weight | 14 mm weight |
| Cutting | 1 m cut min |
Definition
Habotai is a plain-weave mulberry cloth, thin enough that light passes through it. Thinning the yarn also thins the margin for error: fewer soak cycles are possible before the cloth stiffens, so this branch comes out softer and browner than the heavier bases.
Order this one when the brief says sheer. It is not a substitute for the heavier cloth, and it will not behave like it.
What light does to it
Backlit, the tannin reads amber rather than black, and the weave shows. That is the look buyers photograph for summer collections, and it is also why a shade card can misrepresent this weight — a flat scan loses the amber entirely.
Where it fails if misused
Seam strength and abrasion. A thin gambiered cloth takes a fine seam and no rubbing at stress points, so it is wrong for bags, for heavy topstitching, and for anything a customer will lean on. We would rather say that before an order than after.
All figures on this page are illustrative sample values, not measured specifications.
Can it be used as a lining?
Yes, and it is a common use: the tannin finish keeps the hand dry, so it does not cling the way a smooth lining does. Cut it with a slightly looser allowance than a synthetic lining.