Thread: Is there a way to soften stiff Assuit?

I've bought several pieces of Assuit over the years, some antique and some new. I have an assuit dress that I bought years ago, just one of those regular tunic type dresses that are always available on Ebay, plus a few assorted shawls and scarves.I'd like to make a U-front dress with a matching assuit bra and belt, The problem is that the're so darned stiff and scratchy that the thought of wearing them isn't very appealing.
I've tried washing the dress several times and ironing it but it only seems to get even STIFFER.
Is there any way to soften these newer assuits so that they're at least BENDABLE?

Regards
Priscilla

Well . . . a few weeks ago I need to press mine because it had wrinkled. It's the stiff kind. Someone here on Bhuz suggested I iron it in between towels to protect the fabric. I did that with the steam setting on high. It took the wrinkles out and the fabric was much softer afterwards too. I'm not sure if it will work for you, but it seemed to soften mine some.

Originally Posted by jessedan

I've bought several pieces of Assuit over the years, some antique and some new. I have an assuit dress that I bought years ago, just one of those regular tunic type dresses that are always available on Ebay, plus a few assorted shawls and scarves.I'd like to make a U-front dress with a matching assuit bra and belt, The problem is that the're so darned stiff and scratchy that the thought of wearing them isn't very appealing.
I've tried washing the dress several times and ironing it but it only seems to get even STIFFER.
Is there any way to soften these newer assuits so that they're at least BENDABLE?

Regards
Priscilla

One dancer I know swears by carefully beating assuit with a padded mallet to help soften it. It seems to work, but the idea makes me nervous.

I bought a nice higher end Eman dress and the net was soft - but the metal was doing a cheese grater number on my shoulders where the weight of the dress rested on my upper back. I think the newer metal is thicker than the old. My solution was to line the dress just in the upper body and arm area with a nice thin black chiffon. No more scratches.

Modern assuit is very sturdy. John Compton of Hahbi Ru once outlined his process for working with modern assuit, and I have tried it myself and it works great.

DO NOT use these techniques with antique assuit! NOT WITH ANTIQUE NOT WITH ANTIQUE!!

With modern assuit, pound it with a wide, flat, heavy object (an old iron works great!). Then wash in the washer a couple of times to take the sizing out (sizing is a stiffener used in the mesh to make it easier to work with for the workers who put the metal on it, but has no purpose beyond that).

Do not dry in a dryer. Air dry, but not in the sun (can fade and shrink).

Works every time. Done this many times.

Thanks for all the tips! I would never have thought of pounding it. I have an old smooth river rock that would probably work, I'm off to give that a try right now!
It also seems to be the mesh itself that resists softening, its so much stiffer and thicker than the antique pieces. I had a couple of modern pieces folded up neatly in a plastic bag and I practically had to pry them apart to get them to lay out flat.

Again..Thanks!
Priscilla