What is sateen fabric?
Sateen, not to be confused with satin, is a type of fabric often
found in bed sheets.
Sateen is usually applied to cotton, or sometimes rayon. Better
qualities are mercerized to give a higher sheen. Some are only
calendered to produce the sheen but this disappears with washing
and is not considered genuine sateen. Sateen may be bleached, dyed,
or printed. It is difficult to make good bound buttonholes on it as
it has the tendency to slip at the seams.
Sateen produces the sheen and softer feel through the use of a
different structure in the weaving process.The sateen structure is
four over, one under, placing the most threads on the surface,
making it extremely soft, though slightly less durable than other
weaves. Standard, non-sateen, weaves use a one over, one under
structure. Satin also uses this structure, however, instead of
using cotton, different materials are used (e.g., silk, polyester,
etc).