Studio notes: fabric selection

Every AURA fabric starts with a swatch book and ends, usually, in disappointment — most mills we approach can't hit the weight, hand, or minimums we need without cutting a corner somewhere.

The poplin used in the Oversized Shirt took four rounds of sampling before it held its shape through a full wash cycle without losing softness. The trouser twill took longer still.

None of this shows up in a product photo. It shows up eighteen months later, when the shirt still looks like the shirt you bought.