- Thread starter
- #1
Alexander Kabbaz
Tech and Business Advice Guru
I have received a significant number of requests lately for information regarding the high yarn number bargain 200's shirtings now available on the market, notably from Turkey.
The major European weavers, Alumo of Switzerland and Albini of Italy (Thomas Mason, DJ Anderson), use exclusively Egyptian grown Giza 45 cotton fibers in their weaving of the 140, 160, 170, 180, 200, and 240 yarn number shirt fabrics. Giza 45 has long been the highest standard in cotton. This Extra Long Staple features strong, fine, silky fibers in excess of 1.25" in length. The fibers are extremely smooth and exhibit very little nap, or "fuzz". Giza 45 is extremely stable and lends itself readily to fine spinning and finishing. Raw material cost for this precious fiber ranges from USD $4.50 to $5.00 per pound.
The bargain cloths, by contrast, are woven of Chinese E.L.S. cotton. The Chinese fibers are less stable and have three times the nap of Giza 45. This yields a much fuzzier and harder to spin yarn. It does not take to the finishing processes anywhere near as well as the Egyptian variety. Perhaps the greatest indicator of quality is the contrast in price. The best of the Chinese E.L.S. raw cotton sells for USD $1.30 per pound.
Although these fabrics may both feel similar when new, the higher nap and poorer stability of the Chinese-grown, Turkish-woven cloth will deteriorate much more quickly. The 3x greater nap of the Chinese cotton will also make it much more prone to pilling.
Couple this with the much faster speeds at which the bargain cloths are woven and the difference becomes even greater. As I have detailed previously, most Swiss and Italian weavers aim for 3,000 meters-per-day per-loom on the high yarn number fabrics. The bargain cloths are run as fast as 25,000 meters-per-day. The higher loom speed causes microscopic fractures in the yarns during weaving. Thought a new shirt will not show the difference, as laundering takes place these microscopic fractures enlarge causing the fabric much more rapid deterioration.
For a more complete discussion of shirt fabrics, click on the picture below.
The major European weavers, Alumo of Switzerland and Albini of Italy (Thomas Mason, DJ Anderson), use exclusively Egyptian grown Giza 45 cotton fibers in their weaving of the 140, 160, 170, 180, 200, and 240 yarn number shirt fabrics. Giza 45 has long been the highest standard in cotton. This Extra Long Staple features strong, fine, silky fibers in excess of 1.25" in length. The fibers are extremely smooth and exhibit very little nap, or "fuzz". Giza 45 is extremely stable and lends itself readily to fine spinning and finishing. Raw material cost for this precious fiber ranges from USD $4.50 to $5.00 per pound.
The bargain cloths, by contrast, are woven of Chinese E.L.S. cotton. The Chinese fibers are less stable and have three times the nap of Giza 45. This yields a much fuzzier and harder to spin yarn. It does not take to the finishing processes anywhere near as well as the Egyptian variety. Perhaps the greatest indicator of quality is the contrast in price. The best of the Chinese E.L.S. raw cotton sells for USD $1.30 per pound.
Although these fabrics may both feel similar when new, the higher nap and poorer stability of the Chinese-grown, Turkish-woven cloth will deteriorate much more quickly. The 3x greater nap of the Chinese cotton will also make it much more prone to pilling.
Couple this with the much faster speeds at which the bargain cloths are woven and the difference becomes even greater. As I have detailed previously, most Swiss and Italian weavers aim for 3,000 meters-per-day per-loom on the high yarn number fabrics. The bargain cloths are run as fast as 25,000 meters-per-day. The higher loom speed causes microscopic fractures in the yarns during weaving. Thought a new shirt will not show the difference, as laundering takes place these microscopic fractures enlarge causing the fabric much more rapid deterioration.
For a more complete discussion of shirt fabrics, click on the picture below.
