What Fabrics Should NOT Be Steamed?

Steaming is incredibly convenient. It’s so much faster than ironing, and usually does just as good a job at getting rid of stubborn wrinkles. However, steam and heat from steam is much less controllable than heat from an iron. This means that there is a greater potential to accidentally damage fabric.

You want to avoid steaming unique materials, including leather, suede, and velvet. You also want to be conscious of any embroidery, beading, or plastic decorations, since these can damage fabric while the clothing is being steamed.

Contrary to popular belief, delicate materials, such as silk, can be steamed as long as you are careful during the process. It’s always best to test-steam any delicate fabrics on an inconspicuous area, or the reverse side of the garment before committing to steaming the whole thing.

• Learn more about my experiments with a steamer and the types of fabric you can use it with

Leather and suede (including faux versions)

When I tested the steamer with some faux suede I had in my fabric stash, I confirmed that it is a bad idea. It not only created a water mark on the fabric almost instantly, but it also gave the suede texture an ugly fuzzy, almost pilling look to it, rather than the smooth fuzz texture it should be. So, the common wisdom that you should not steam leather or suede (whether real or fake) holds true. 

My understanding is that the real material has even worse reactions to excessive steam than the fake stuff. Steaming leather can cause it to become warped, shrink, or lose its shape. It can even cause discoloration and cracking in the worst case scenarios. Suede is also a delicate material when it’s introduced to heat and water together. Steaming can cause the suede to become discolored, misshapen, or develop water stains. The high temperature and steam can also flatten the distinct texture of suede, making it appear uneven or less soft. 

Fur and faux fur

When fur or faux fur is steamed, there is a high chance that it can become matted and frizzy. The excessive moisture and heat from the steam can cause the fur fibers to clump together, leading to matting. This matting can make the fur look tangled, messy, and difficult to restore. The hot steam can also make the fur lose its shine and become flat, messing up the texture and shape of the fur.

I don’t have any real fur in my fabric stash, but I did have a bit of faux fur remnant from a cosplay I made years ago. When I tested the steamer on a bit of the faux fur, it completely ruined it pretty much immediately. Instead of being wispy and fur-like, the fibers became frizzy and matted.

Velour, velvet, and velveteen

Velour, velvet, velveteen, and other fabrics with a pile (such as corduroy) should not be steamed either. Velvet is a delicate fabric with a luxurious pile that can be easily distorted or flattened by heat and moisture. Steaming velvet can cause the fibers to lose their plushness and potentially leave permanent marks or streaks on the fabric.

When I tested my steamer on a remnant of velvet material, it did not have as extreme an effect as suede had on the texture of the velvet. If you didn’t see it from the right angle, you might not notice the damage. However, looking at the fabric from the side, you can tell that the pile was slightly crushed and there were streaks of water marks all along the fabric where I’d steamed it. The fabric was pretty much ruined, unless I want to use it for a casual costume or something like that.

Waxed jackets

Waxed jackets should not be steamed (or ironed) because the wax coating is extremely susceptible to damage if it’s heated. Steaming could potentially melt or strip away the protective layer, leading to permanent damage or altering the intended look and functionality of the jacket. To maintain the quality and performance of your waxed or coated jacket. Some manufacturers will include instructions for how you can re-apply a wax coating, but if that’s not something you want to do, just avoid any type of heat (even dryer heat can be too much)

Fabrics with embroidery, sequins, or beading

This one depends a little bit on the type of fabric that’s beaded, embroidered, or sequined. A thick, heavy duty fabric is less likely to be damaged than a lightweight delicate fabric. For example, I tried steaming a sequined spandex, and the fabric was perfectly fine. However, trying to steam an embroidered voile fabric did not turn out so well since voile is so thin and delicate (more on voile fabric, if you’re curious).

So while I would say you can never steam a material that has embellishments sewn in, you should always approach it with caution. The additional weight of embroidery, beads, or sequins can make the fabric more susceptible to stretching or warping when exposed to steam, causing little holes in the fabric near the embellishments.

Embroidery also often involves intricate needlework that can be sensitive to heat and moisture. Steaming these fabrics can cause the embroidery threads to shrink, distort, or even melt, compromising the design and overall look of the piece.

Anything with soft plastic pieces

I wouldn’t worry about hard plastics, like buttons or zippers (these have never given me an issue while steaming). However, if you happen to have softer or thinner plastics as a part of your garments, they are more likely to get damaged due to the heat from the steamer. 

I guess I’m specifically thinking of the kind of decorations I might use for costumes when I used to be a cosplayer. There were always random craft foam pieces or even styrofoam pieces attached to the costumes that could easily be damaged with heat. However, any kind of garment that has odd little plastic pieces can fall into this category.

Plastic decorations, such as patches, or appliqués, can be adversely affected by the heat from steaming. High temperatures can cause plastic to melt, warp, or lose its shape, resulting in permanent damage to the fabric. 

Additionally, the moisture from steaming can also negatively impact plastic decorations, causing them to become discolored, brittle, or even detach from the fabric (especially if they were glued on, rather than sewn).

Steaming delicate fabrics (such as silk and rayon)

There are many types of delicate fabrics that it’s perfectly okay to steam, but you need to be careful. Silk, for example, is often touted as a material that should not be steamed. However, in my experience, it’s easy to steam silk as long as you don’t overdo it. Rayon is another fabric that is somewhat delicate, but is absolutely okay to steam.

Use these tips to help you have success with steaming your more delicate garments:

• Test a small section first. Always test an inconspicuous portion of the garment (or a scrap piece of fabric if you made it yourself) before steaming the whole thing. Somewhere around the bottom of the back or the inside of the garment works well.
• Use a handheld steamer. Using a handheld steamer can give you a little more control over where the steam goes than one of the large steaming systems.
• Don’t hold the steamer directly against the material. Most of the time when steaming, I’ll hold the steamer head right up against the fabric. However, with delicate material, you want to hold the steamer a little bit away to keep the steam from getting too concentrated.
• Don’t hold the steamer in one place for too long. You don’t want to let the steam accumulate in one area, so be sure to move it around. Steam works pretty quickly anyway, so there’s usually no need to keep it in one spot for any length of time.
• Hold the steamer upright to prevent spitting. You want to make sure the steamer doesn’t spit droplets of water on your garments since this can stain (especially with silk). Make sure there is enough water in the steamer tank and keep it held upright to prevent this.
• Let the garment hang until it dries completely. Once you’ve finished steaming, avoid moving the garment until it’s completely dry (about 5-10 minutes) since most delicate materials are more delicate when they are wet.