JoeCamaro

T-Shirts: 100% cotton or 50/50 blend?

What do you prefer when buying a t-shirt for yourself?  

28 members have voted

  1. 1. What do you prefer when buying a t-shirt for yourself?

    • 100% cotton
      17
    • 50/50 blend (polyester & cotton)
      13
    • Other
      0


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As many of you know, I make shirts and I am about to start my t-shirt brand (finally).

I must choose if I want to go 100% cotton or 50/50 blend.

I need to know what do you guys prefer when buying a brand t shirt or yourselves.

Also if you dont mind explaining why, I will appreciate it.

Thank you

Joe

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Hi Joe, I always go with the 50/50 because there is no shrinkage to deal with. No shrinkage so now the shirt is too small that the customer ordered and interfering with the design itself. However, personally I like the feel of 100% cotton better. It is thicker than the softer thinner feel of 50/50. Also, the kids at the schools always choose the 50/50 over cotton. The thinner fabric Ts are in around here.

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I think 100% screens/cures better, not sure how you are making these shirts.

There are some Cotton blends that are ultra-soft.  I don't use 50/50, because they typically are thinner and cheap looking.

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This is true I was assuming you were heat pressing them, not screening. And while I agree the 50/50 look cheaper (they hold up well to wash/wear) how are you selling the 100% cotton to the younger kids? All there Ts are thinner around here.

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Not a shirt maker but for wear I only buy 100% cotton with pockets. I don't know how people get by without pockets? I have actually taken printed tees and had pockets added.

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Ok, I will be outsourcing my shirts to a screenprinter. I just want to design and sell.

The thing is that the popular brands are mostly using 100% cotton shirts. Also, they are perceived by the public to be more expensive and "fashion".

So what Im trying to do is to figure out if I want to keep using 50/50 shirts (which I can buy locally) or to buy 100% cotton shirts and be comparable in looks and feel of high end t shirts.

Do I want to look like a fashion brand? My shirts will have funny/offensive designs, not so "fashion", but, Do I want my shirts to be comparable to popular brands (at least by what people think is quality)? YES.  

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Guest sciondrgn

I voted on 100% Cotton, That is all Ive used so far.. granted I have not done shirts very long but have sold quite a few and even make them for myself and I love 100% cotton..  :D

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Although I like 50/50 personally... I would suggest offering both 50/50 & 100% cotton. Some people each style for different reasons. 100% feels better but fades faster, while 50/50 isn't as comfortable, but seems to last longer.

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Although I like 50/50 personally... I would suggest offering both 50/50 & 100% cotton. Some people each style for different reasons. 100% feels better but fades faster, while 50/50 isn't as comfortable, but seems to last longer.

my thoughts exactly.

customers like the thicker tees because they look upscale so i have started using anvil brand which is 100 cotton but the same cost as the 5050.  we have not had any fading or stretching which is normally found with 100 cotton tees as of yet. have been using anvil for about 6 months now. the customers love em. i have also noticed the 5050s are getting thinner and thinner, which leads the customers to question the quality.

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i use jerzee 50/50 blend since they won't shrink. Nothing worse then buying a sick shirt then having it fit a young child after a wash.  :D

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Thank you for your thoughts guys and girls  :D

Im almost sure I will do this:

I will buy 50/50 shirts for the guys which I get locally and which I prefer.

I will buy 100% cotton shirts for the girls which I will get online.

They will be the same colors as they will all be Gildans, which I prefer over FOL and Hanes.

I cant get girl shirts locally and all I could find online (that shipped to PR) was 100% cotton, plus girls are delicate and I think they will like the cotton.

Although I like 50/50 personally... I would suggest offering both 50/50 & 100% cotton. Some people each style for different reasons. 100% feels better but fades faster, while 50/50 isn't as comfortable, but seems to last longer.

Firemlat, I appreciate your input, but I dont think thats a good idea. Im not talking about a custom stuff, Im talking about a brand. For custom stuff, thats perfect, but Im trying to establish a brand.

When I worked with a friend, we had a t shirt brand (it was his brand, I was the artist), we used to print a design in different t shirt colors, BUT that was bad. For example, I remember that many times we had customers that wanted X design in a Large Red shirt. We ran out of them in Red BUT we had it in Blue, but as they saw it and liked it in Red, they preferred not to buy. So when it comes to branding, I dont think it is a good idea.

I mean, you cant go to American Eagle Outfitters and tell they seller you want that shirt but as the eagle is printed in white and you want it in gray, then you wont buy it. You know? It is what it is.

Thank you.

Joe

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I mainly use 50/50...But I went with Hanes 6.1oz. 100%. I really like them and use them a lot more now. It really depends on you client...In this case it starts with you and what you like, but keep in mind your demographic...theres not a huge feel difference btwn the 2 but you might want to look into the American Apparel soft shirts. I don't really care for them, but thats just my personal preference. Also, they cost more!

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I normally use 50/50...but if there is a good sale on 100% cotton..I'm There!  :D

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Both Alpha and Jiffyshirts have pretty good prices on the 6.1 Tagless Hanes shirt.  Most customers probably arent going to necessarily attach a value to cotton or 50/50, but Tagless adds value in my opinion.  Just something else to think about..

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Good point Joe... with that said, I would go with the 100% cotton, as it gives off a more "quality" feel to the customer.

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Well guys

Thank you for your input. I already ordered the shirts. I ordered the women's shirts online and they will be 100% cotton (as that was all i could find that shipped to PR) and the men's shirts will be 50/50 as that what we are used to wear here and people seem to like it.

There is no turning back now. Im finally starting my brand! Woohoo! I've been holding it back for years, now Im taking the risk.

Wish me luck.

Joe

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Would you mind showing your shirts? Or posting your site? I would like to see them. If not I understand.

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Yes, I will show my site (when I get it done). Anyways, my target market is Puerto Rican College students and party people,and what I wanted to do is to bring daily life jokes and sayings to shirts, so most shirts will be in Spanish although someof them will be in English. I will make a bilingual site tho.

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I wish you lots of luck!! Hope it all turns out well for you. Jose you live in a tourist town you have to be able to make lots of dollars with that industry? Between the cruise ships and people at the resorts?

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Thank you Tory!

Well I guess you are right, but that aint my thing, plus competition is really strong. You know you can get 3 Puerto Rico shirts, full color for $10? Thats crazy!

I had a friend who had a store in Old San Juan (where all the cruises stop and the most visited  tourist spot) and he was selling his brand there, but didnt make much money, because he wasnt in the right spot. He was in the right spot to do what you say, sell shirts for tourists and other souvenirs, but he didnt. To develop and sell his brand I would think he would have been better at a mall. If I had that spot I would try it, but still not what I want.

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Wow, here I always thought I'd have it made if I lived in a resort area in this business. Obviously you'd have a lot of competition but never thought 3 for $10. I don't blame you, nobody wants to work for nothing. Of course I dunno, maybe the qty needed would outweigh that?? Again, hope it works out for you.... always a bit scary putting money out there and wondering if it is going to give you a return.

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WOW! I never bought t shirts online before, I get my stuff localy, but yesterday (late night) I ordered in broderbros.com and they already shipped my order! That was fast.

Im very happy for 3 main reasons

They ship to Puerto Rico

They have good prices

They are fast

Wow.

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I personally prefer 100%.  I like the feel and the weight of most of the shirts.  My opinion is a bit biased however because I've been printing tee's for quite some time and 100% cotton offers the best "canvas" so to speak when it come to screen printing.  Particularly when working with specialty inks such as process colors.  If you plan on selling to the general public, you may want to offer both 50/50 and 100%.  It's been my experience over the years that people tend to get attached to different blends and try not to sway away from them.  The 50/50 shirts have been historically percieved as not shrinking as much as 100%, but I've found that that depends on the make of the garment (different dyes from different manufacturers have an effect on shrinkage, although somewhat minimal).  I remember a while back that we were getting "ASH" colored (gray) shirts that were a 90/10 blend and They had a great feel with good charactistic for garment decoration. 

Just my two cents.  :thumbsup:

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