The type of cotton used to make a tee has everything to do with its quality and softness, but not all ring-spun tees are created equal. There isn’t much regulation around the cotton and fabric industries, so it’s easy for manufacturers to do the bare minimum when it comes to combing and processing their cotton and still claim a “combed and ring-spun” product. But what makes BELLA+CANVAS t-shirts so soft?
Well, we don’t cut any corners. At BELLA+CANVAS, we take measures at every stage of our fabric development process to engineer the highest quality combed and ring-spun cotton on the market, and we do it in an eco-conscious way. The result, called Airlume, is what makes BELLA+CANVAS t-shirts so soft. Read below for what makes Airlume combed and ring-spun cotton different!
Clean Cotton
Did you know that any manufacturer can claim a combed and ring-spun cotton by combing out just 1 percent of impurities? Well, our process begins with creating the most clean cotton. About 25 – 30 percent of the cotton we start with is combed out during our unique refining process, because it contains impurities or does not meet our standards. For some manufacturers, some of that inferior cotton is then dumped back in before the yarn spinning process, but for us, once it’s combed out, it stays out.
Long Staples
When creating BELLA+CANVAS t-shirts, during the Airlume process, we use only long staple cotton. That means the actual length of the cotton fiber is long, which determines that ultimate soft feel of the final yarn. By using long staple cotton, there are less stray fibers, which keeps our yarn smoother on the microscopic level. This also makes for a tight, even knit, which can be seen easily by the naked eye, especially when it products an ideal surface for printing.
Read More: Making of a Tee: Inside BELLA+CANVAS T-shirt Design
Eco-Dyed
The unique innovation continues even until the dyeing process. We use seven times less water than any other apparel manufacturer and only use the most eco-friendly dyes.
Read More: Making of a Tee: Inside BELLA+CANVAS’ Eco-Friendly Clothing Production
There’s a right way to do combed and ring-spun, and it’s through our Airlume process that BELLA+CANVAS t-shirts are made with the industry’s softest cotton.
At BELLA+CANVAS, we are committed to using 100% Airlume combed and ring-spun cotton. Watch the video below to see this process come to life:
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11 Comments
Mary Linda Graham
Does a bella canvas shirt run true to size , smaller or larger?
BELLA+CANVAS
Hi Mary! All of our garments are typically true to size however please keep in mind that most of our garments have what we call a “retail fit”. Which means our tees don’t fit like your standard boxy promo tee. Ours unisex style is more tailored with fitted sleeves. The standard practice in wholesale is to just take a size medium and increase or decrease the grading across all fit points. So what ends up happening, for example, is the sleeve of a size XXL becomes disproportionately oversized. Our technical fitting results in T-shirts that are flattering, comfortable and in line with what you’ll find in retail stores!
myla
i would like to purchase scrap or yard of the blend jersey fabric. i am sewing for free face mask groups. .mostly nursing homes ob clinics and prison.i have used my old Thrivent shirts for ear band and ties . your shirt fabric worked the best . i use strips 1 in to make ties 20 inches or full tie of 50 in . thanks for your help
BELLA+CANVAS
Hi Myla! That is so thoughtful and caring of you to do this act of kindness! We unfortunately do not have a program of such, however, as soon as we do we will keep her info and contact you. Keep up the good work!
Brittany Joswiak
I’m having a hard time finding the RN 87370 women’s vneck marble on the website had that been retired?
BELLA+CANVAS
Hi there! Please reach out to our customer service team at [email protected]!