The Best And Worst Suit Fabrics To Pack
When it comes to traveling with suits, zipping one neatly into a garment bag is always the ideal. But whether it’s a matter of carry-on restrictions or inadequate overhead bins, the garment bag is not always going to be an option. There may come a day when you’ll need to pack a suit for a business trip or a special occasion.
Aside from knowing how to pack a suit, It’s important to recognize that some fabrics are more likely to come out of your luggage looking fresher than others. Here’s our brief guide to the best and worst suit fabrics to pack.
The Best Suit Fabrics to Pack
The most important factor in knowing whether a packed suit can stand up to wrinkles and creasing is its texture. A suit woven in a flat, fine weave is far more likely to wrinkle. Instead, search for fabrics with a more open weave and a raised texture.
At the very top of our list would be fresco. Fresco suits are woven with a “high-twist fabric,” which allows them to more easily rebound from wrinkles. Better yet, the variated texture of fresco fabric can only be noticed up-close. From anything but point-blank range it will appear as just another solid business suit. Hopsack fabric has a similar quality.
Like fresco or hopsack, diamond dot has an open weave and a raised texture, but is less subtle, which reduces its versatility. The raised nap of a hearty flannel fabric makes it a great choice for winter-travel. And while it may not be as wrinkle-averse as the choices above, a brushed twill will do a better job of shedding wrinkles than its non-brushed cousins.
The Worst Suit Fabrics to Pack
It’s a bit unfair to consign your standard twill or worsted wool fabrics to the “worst,” section. They aren’t the least desirable picks when it comes to packing, but their plainer weaves will make them more susceptible to wrinkles and creases than the options we outlined above.
What you definitely want to avoid for a packed journey is a fine twill, whose tighter weave and slight sheen make it extra likely to wrinkle. Cotton, too, is more prone to wrinkling, though we have to admit that linen’s naturally wrinkle-prone state makes it the toughest fabric to stow away.
