Here's what I ended up going with:
Silk
WM: 0.57
Cost: $160
DR/inch: 6
Max DR: 6
Notes: CF*
Construction: fabric
Spider Silk
WM: 0.43
Cost: $800
DR/inch: 8
Max DR: 8
Notes: CF*
Construction: fabric
*The
full DR only applies against cutting and impaling damage. Divide DR (and DR/in) against other damage types by 1.5 (silk) or 2 (spider silk). Negates the effects of barbed weapons. Eliminates the -2 in penalties to HT rolls for infection due to dirt in the wound.
Basically cloth armor that is 50% or 100% better at stopping cuts and stabs for 20 and 100 times the cost. As for how realistic it is for the TL, Golden Orb Spider silk was collected from Madagascar and used to make a gown (
link). Meaning it might have been
possible for primitive people to manage it, though it'll take forever-and-a-half (hence the +99 CF). Additionally, I've already established that "Mage-Breeding" (basically genetic engineering with magic) is a thing in this setting, so mages can breed spiders who produce unnaturally large amounts of web and harvest it with the assistance of magic or magic devices. Is all good.
Jinumon