Fabrics are made of different materials like cotton, wool, polyester, linen, etc. It can be made of a single material or it can be a blend of different materials. In blended fabrics, two or more different types of staple fibers are twisted or spun together to form the yarn. Polyester/cotton is an example of a typical blended fabric.
For shirts cotton is the most common material, it comes in a variety of qualities depending on the plant, where it is grown, etc. The main quality of cotton is measured in fibre, or staple length. The longer the staple, the better, smoother and more comfortable the fabric becomes. The different types of shirting fabrics that we provide are as follows:
The different types of suiting fabrics that we provide are as follows
Single/Double Ply
Typically, shirting fabrics can either be Single Ply or Double Ply (also known as two ply). Ply refers to the number of yarns that are twisted together to make a single thread. Two-ply fabrics are generally superior to single-ply fabrics. They have a smooth, crisp hand feel and are luxurious to wear. This is not to say that Single-ply fabrics are not luxurious – higher count single ply fabrics with compact construction are equally sought after. The 2 in a 2/100s or the 1 in the 1/70s refer to the ply of the fabric.
Thread Count
Generally higher thread count means a smoother, silkier, more expensive fabric. Thread count is often referred to with a number like 80s, 100s, 120s, 140s etc up to 200s. These numbers refer to the yarn size. 140s means there are 140 hanks (1 hank = 840 yards) of yarn in one pound. Regardless, 140s fabric has a higher thread count than 120s and 160s fabric has a higher thread count than 140s and so on. If you ask us what the thread count of a fabric is, we will probably tell you something like “140s” because that number is easy to understand even if it’s not a literal measure of thread count.
