Lighting clothing on fire for effect?

i'm making a costume (from a video game character) who's outfit is charred and burned. naturally, i assumed i could just sew it myself then have fun destroying it. is any fabric extremely flammable which wouldn't take well to this or would i generally be safe? i know using a cigarette or incense would make a very controlled burn and have tried this, but i'm looking for something that looks tattered to begin with. but i don't want to ruin the whole project and see it completely go up in flames (literally.) if i were to light the bottom of it and then immediately dunk it in water, dry, repeat, would that work or would i likely ruin the piece all together?