What a fantastic find! This is real moiré silk paper taffeta and at least 35 years old! The watered design is pressed into the specially sized taffeta with 2 hot steel rollers with the negative design, the pressure of the rollers then leave the watered marks on the taffeta and the sizing plus pressure and heat result in the paper-like texture and enhanced lustre of the moiré silk. The fabric is sensitive to wrinkling and these leave marks which cannot be removed completely with an iron, but they also lend the finished garment quite an antique character. This moiré structure is quite narrow and eminently suitable for the use on antique dolls. Moiré fabric has been produced throughout the 19th century and earlier. The water waves do not respond well to washing or too much moisture - they will still be there but more faint and the taffeta will lose its paper taffeta texture. So, this is quite suitable for dolls since their garments won't be washed.
