Brocade : is usually significantly more expensive than other woven fabrics made with similar materials. While computerized Jacquard looms have made brocade production significantly more efficient, there’s no denying that producing brocade is still more complicated than producing practically any other type of fabric. Brocade fabric remained reasonably popular among the European nobility throughout the Late Middle Ages, and this textile enjoyed a major revival in Renaissance Italy. Italian weavers pushed the complexity of their brocade designs to the absolute limits, and proof of the beauty of Italian brocade remains preserved in Renaissance-era paintings. The use of brocade in apparel remains relatively rare, but this fabric is a common sight in modern upholstery and drapes. Brocade is also reasonably popular as a material for ceremonial Indian clothing, and vestments worn by priests commonly feature this fabric.

Brocade fabric consists of three yarns woven together. In addition to the mandatory warp and weft yarns, which compose the basic structure of any woven textile, brocade features a supplementary weft yarn that creates the patterns that characterize this ornamental fabric.

Brocade is usually significantly more expensive than other woven fabrics made with similar materials. While computerized Jacquard looms have made brocade production significantly more efficient, there’s no denying that producing brocade is still more complicated than producing practically any other type of fabric. Brocade producers have to come up with and execute intricate designs, and Brocade’s aesthetic appeal alone more than justifies the premium price this fabric commands within the international textile market.