Fabric isn’t just about fashion—it’s a full-body experience. The best materials delight the senses, soothe the skin, and move with you effortlessly. But what exactly makes one fabric feel better than another? From featherlight silks to plush modern blends, we’re breaking down the qualities that create that “ahh” moment the second you slip something on.
What Makes a Fabric Feel Good?
You can probably determine what is the best feeling fabric through touch alone. When your fingertips glide across a fabric, you’re experiencing a dialogue between your skin and centuries of textile artistry.
The most pleasing textiles balance five essential elements:
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Softness – Derived from fine fibers with fewer rough edges.
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Stretch – Allows the fabric to move harmoniously with your body or contour perfectly against any surface.
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Breathability – Affects how air flows through a fabric and determines whether a fabric feels refreshingly cool or envelopingly warm.
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Weight – Offers either comforting pressure or liberating lightness.
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Drape – Determines how fabric falls, either clinging, cascading or maintaining its structure against a form.
Natural fibers from plants or animals create a distinct tactile experience based on their inherent structures. Synthetic fibers created in laboratories are engineered to mimic these qualities or serve more technical purposes (like waterproofing or thermal regulation).
11 Top Contenders for Best Feeling Fabric
Imagine wrapping yourself in a feather-light silk scarf, the soft fabric barely touching your skin. Or picture pulling a cashmere sweater over your head on a chilly morning, its gentle warmth enveloping you like a hug.
Whether you prefer something soft and silky or plush and warm, what defines an excellent tactile experience is deeply personal. Even still, these are our top contenders.
Cotton
Premium cotton offers a familiar yet luxurious sensation against the skin. It has exceptional breathability, a gentle softness and reassuring simplicity with natural moisture-wicking properties that maintain comfort throughout wear.
This versatile fiber also adapts remarkably across seasons. It’s ideal for everything from lightweight tees to year-round bedding and plush bath towels.
Despite its numerous excellent qualities, cotton does have a few drawbacks. Namely, it can shrink dramatically in hot water and wrinkle easily, and it’s not the most breathable option compared to other fabrics.
Modal
This luxurious fabric comes from beech trees and is often blended with spandex or cotton to enhance its inherent strength.
Modal delivers an incomparably smooth and rich texture while offering excellent absorbency, durability and low maintenance care. Its few considerations include a tendency to wrinkle and a potential loss of elasticity over time.
However, the superior drape, silken touch and resilience to regular washing make modal perfect for underwear, pajamas and home linens.
Wellness Fabric
Wellness Fabric® was engineered to deliver maximum comfort. In fact, sleepwear made with Wellness Fabric® actively regulates body temperature, keeping you up to 7°F cooler throughout the night. How?
This specialized fabric incorporates drirelease® technology—a moisture-wicking blend that dries four times faster than cotton. Drirelease® pulls sweat away from skin and fights odors to help you wake up feeling fresh.
Its advanced moisture-wicking properties and ultra-soft feel make Wellness Fabric® the premium choice for sleepers who run hot.
Shop Wellness Fabric® Aria Slim Notch Collar Capri PJ Set
Tencel™ (Lyocell)
This fabric comes from eucalyptus trees—the same aromatic plants used in floral arrangements and essential oils.
Lyocell is an excellent choice for lightweight garments like summer dresses, lingerie, bed linens and blended activewear, thanks to properties like:
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A supple hand that’s often compared to cotton and silk
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Breathability that surpasses even premium cotton
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Excellent moisture-wicking capabilities
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A tendency for wrinkles to naturally release during wear
Lyocell does present some care considerations. This textile’s highly absorbent nature means stains set in quickly. It can also slightly shrink after the first wash, but maintains its new size after.
Bamboo Viscose
This eco-friendly option comes from bamboo plants, which grow rapidly with minimal water. The resulting fabric is naturally antimicrobial and hypoallergenic. It has a silky finish with a liquid luster and a sumptuous feel that’s difficult to find outside of silk.
However, bamboo fabric comes with its own challenges. The textile wrinkles easily, and sheets may retain heat (not ideal for hot sleepers), so they require careful washing.
Bamboo viscose is popular for bedding, children’s clothing and pajamas.
DreamTech
This textile makes loungewear feel absolutely luxurious. DreamTech is designed for peak performance and long-term wear, making this the quintessential all-day fabric.
Breathable, refined and impossibly soft, DreamTech loungewear is equally comfortable whether you're nestled in bed or navigating a long-haul flight.
Shop DreamTech 1/4 Zip Jogger Set
PureDream
PureDream is made from the same fabric blend as DreamTech, but with half the weight. As the most lightweight textile in the Softies collection, this premium modal blend responds exceptionally well to body temperature, providing cooling comfort in warmer conditions and gentle warmth when the temperature drops.
The only downside? Once you put it on, you'll never want to take it off. Luckily, PureDream loungewear looks just as effortlessly stylish on the couch as it does at brunch.
Shop PureDream V-Neck Lounge Set
Silk
This legendary fiber sets the standard for luxury textiles. Silk's distinctive sheen and texture make it instantly recognizable among fabrics. Despite its delicate appearance, silk fibers show surprising strength. The fabric resists wrinkles naturally and allows skin to breathe freely.
However, silk does show wear more quickly than other fabrics, and most silk items require gentle hand washing or professional cleaning.
It creates stunning eveningwear, lingerie and special-occasion garments, thanks to its natural luster and waterfall drape.
Cashmere
Often nicknamed "soft gold," this luxury fiber comes from cashmere goats living in mountainous Asian regions. The resulting fabric feels feather-light while providing exceptional warmth against winter chill.
High-quality varieties are durable and breathable, with an unparalleled natural luster and soft hand. However, cashmere requires careful storage due to its tendency to attract moths and pill with abrasion. It also poses a potential for irritation to those with animal fiber allergies.
Most people associate cashmere for winter staples like sweaters, scarves, gloves, and throw blankets.
Marshmallow
This aptly named fabric delivers a plush, cozy feeling, perfect for lounge sets and blankets. Its looser weave creates extra softness against the skin, almost like wearing a cloud.
Marshmallow Fabric feels particularly inviting when its plush surface provides all-enveloping warmth during colder months. Its inherent coziness makes it excellent for gifts like blankets and accessories.
Velvet and Velour
Velvet and velour are timelessly luxurious. These iconic fabrics are made from a dense, short-pile weave, creating a smooth and rich surface that you can't help but touch repeatedly.
They also offer:
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A soft, diffused sheen that ripples across the surface thanks to light scattering from individual fibers
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Superior heat retention, ideal for cooler environments
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A fluid drape that cascades around forms with the viscous elegance of warmed honey
However, velvet does require some careful handling. It can be prone to snags or wear in areas of frequent contact. Plus, velvet and velour’s surface easily attracts lint and dust, necessitating the occasional lint-rolling session.
These fabrics appear prominently where comfort and luxury come together, like fine upholstery and winter eveningwear.
Loungewear & Sleepwear Made of the Best Feeling Fabrics
At the end of the day, the best fabric is the one that feels just right for you—whether that’s cool and breathable, buttery and drapey, or warm and cocooning. Softies is all about capturing that feeling and elevating your everyday comfort with fabrics designed to indulge. From ultra-soft loungewear to dreamy sleepwear, explore our best sellers and find your perfect fit in comfort.
