Glossary of Fabric Terms
Our famous brand golf and polo shirts feature the latest in fabric technology. Below you will find a brief descriptionm of many of the terms used to describe the fabric or shirts.
Moisture Wicking. All moisture wicking shirts are polyester or polyester blends. These are treated with a special finish that absorbs moisture or sweat and wicks it away from your body. This allows the moisture to be drawn to the surface of the fabric where it can easily evaporate, giving the shirt a cooling effect. Many of these products are made of lighter weight fabrics that make them even more comfortable to wear on those hot days. The added bonus is that polyester is inherently resistant to fading and shrinking, making these shirts wear even longer, and a better value.
Mercerized Cotton. Generally the most luxurious of all fabrics used in the making of golf shirts. Only the finest long staple cotton is selected, and then it is specially treated or mercerized to give it more luster and strength. The end result of using these smaller, finer, stronger, mercerized yarns, is that you get a fabric with a silky touch and luxurious hand. Mercerized cotton has been used for years in the finest golf shirts and polo shirts available.
Pique Knit. This refers to the weave pattern in the fabric and is sometimes called a waffle weave. If you look closely how the yarns are knitted together, you will see that some yarns are higher than others creating small squares, or other geometric shapes. Most all types of yarns from 100% cotton to 100% polyester or all of the blends in between can have a pique knit pattern.
Jersey Knit. This refers to the type of weave in the fabric. A jersey, or flat weave, has all of the yarns on the surface of the fabric at the same level, giving the fabric a softer or smoother hand. The most common jersey knit fabrics are T-shirts. A jersey knit can be done on a variety of types of fabrics including cotton and polyester.
Ottoman Weave. The ottoman weave or knit has a distinctive ribbed or corded effect that produces lines on the fabric that may run in either direction. This fabric will have more texture to achieve this distinctive look.
Interlock. This is a tighter stitch fabric usually done with finer yarns to give it a softer feel. Because more yarns are packed in in usually has a beefier feel to it as well.
Pima Cotton. Named for the Pima Indians in the Southwest US. Because it is a long, smooth, strong fiber it is generally revered to be one of the best cottons in the world.
Jacquard. This is a patterned fabric, and may be woven in one color or multiple colors. Most often in golf shirts you may find a jacquard collar that has a multi-colored pattern woven into it.
Organic Cotton. Generally refers to any cotton that is raised and process without the use of chemicals, fertilizers, pesticides or artificial dyes.
Wrinkle Resistant. Also wash and wear, wrinkle free. Some fabrics like 100% polyester are inherently wrinkle resistant. Many others, especially cotton and cotton blends are finished with a chemical that helps give the fabric a “memory”, which allows it to return to its original shape.
Hand. Refers to the feel of the fabric to the touch. May be soft, rough, smooth, etc.
Pilling. Some fabrics may pill or “ball up”, developing tine balls of fabric when they are exposed to wear. This is especially true in some synthetic fibers. Cotton fibers on the other hand ted to break , so the fabric will show wear, but not pill.
Polyester. Polyester is a synthetic fabric produced from PET, the same plastic used in the production of soda bottles. This is why polyester fabrics can often be made with recycled content (using recycled soda bottles.
Soil Release finish. Finish applied to the fabric to help inhibit staining.