A Comparison of Cotton, Polyester and Blended Fabrics

Recently updated on March 23rd, 2019 at 02:36 pm

Starting a clothing line from scratch is fun, but can also be quite challenging especially when it comes to choosing the right types of fabrics for your design and finding the right China clothes manufacturer. If you’re on a budget, you might be tempted to use the cheapest polyester for your collection at first, don’t rush with the decisions. Think about your targeted customers and how you present your brand. The fabrics you choose have to go well with your design, your brand identity and targeted audience. Three of the most popular primary fabrics used in fashion industry are cotton, polyester and blended fabrics.

Cotton
Cotton is composed of natural fiber that is known for comfort and durability. The natural fibers extracted from cotton plant seed pods are so versatile that they can also be woven into different fabrics like denim, jersey flannel and so on. With its unique feel and wear, cotton is perfect for warm weather, formal wear and for people with sensitive skin. However, it can shrink with high temperature, a common characteristic of natural materials. Therefore, on the washing tag it’s suggested to provide care instructions. Use cold water and don’t put too much detergent that might lead to color fading.

Cotton is perfect for screen printing, digital printing and transfer printing.

Polyester
Polyester is man made synthetic fabric from petroleum based products. With its light weight and strong durability, polyester is getting its ground in the fashion industry by those who are looking for fabric that can stand lots of tearing and washing but with a friendly price tag. Besides, polyester is also known for being anti-shrinking, anti-wrinkling and anti-fading.

Light weighted, with a bit silk feel and durability, polyester is widely used in sportswear manufacturing in China.

Printing on polyester used to be a challenge, however, with advancements of printing techniques, inks and dyes, achieving high quality prints on polyester is simply a breeze now.

Blended fabrics
There’re many variations of cotton blended with polyester, while the most common seen are 65% cotton blended with 35% polyester or 50% cotton 50% polyester. Unlike cotton, polyester is anti-shrink and retain the shape after many washes, with blended cotton component, apparel fabricated from blended fabrics are more breathable and comfortable while compared to pure polyester or pure cotton products.