Swimwear Fabric Sourcing

Fabric Sourcing For New Swimwear Brands.

(154/009).  One of the things that swimwear startups  find very difficult and  time consuming  is  fabric and trim  sourcing.

Finding specialist swimwear fabrics, and especially suppliers who are prepared to provide sample lengths to small  new  brands can be a nightmare.

Especially as these new brands would just be requiring  very small quantities even for their final production runs.

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High Street Shops.

Sometimes it is better to source small rolls of fabrics from specialist retailers who purchase left over stock remnants. You cant be too picky, but you can often get a pretty good deal from these shops. There are plenty  around London, although there are no swimwear fabric specialists.

Fabrics In Stock.

We keep in stock a certain amount of basic swimwear fabric just for the purpose of  sampling and testing clients designs.  Once the samples are made, we can advise on what types of fabrics and hardware can be used for production.

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Our Fabric Sourcing Service.

We provide a full swimwear fabric and hardware sourcing  service for new brands.  You can concentrate on other aspects of your business while we deal with the bits that we know well. Or  we can show you how to do the sourcing yourself, through our clothing startup workshops.

Choosing Swimwear Fabrics.

There are a variety of swimwear fabrics with  different properties. Often there will be a mixture of fabrics in order to obtain the properties required for a swimwear garment.

It used to be that all swimwear fabric was called Lycra, which is  a brand of the generic Elastane (or Spandex as it is known in the USA). But today there  are many more varieties and mixtures of fabrics available for swimwear.

Swimwear fabric needs to have a number of properties, depending on its intended use. It needs to be hard wearing, strong but lightweight,chlorine resistant, UV resistant , drag resistant, friction resistant, shrink resistant, quick drying, comfortable, stretchy and easy to print on.

The first thing to determine when choosing a swimwear fabric is whether the garment is to be used for competitive swimming, or for leisure. The next consideration is whether to use two way or four way stretch.

Two way stretch is a fabric that stretches across the grain only, while four way (multi-way) stretch, stretches  across and down the grain. Two way stretch is more likely to be used for two piece swimsuits, while four way stretch is more suitable for one piece swimsuits.

The most common fabrics used for swimwear are lycra, Nylon, cotton and Polyester. Swimwear fabrics should normally be made of 100% man-made fabrics  as natural fabrics will tend to hold water. Cotton is still used for some fashion swimwear though.

Nylon.

Abrasion resistant

Soft feel

Low moisture absorbency

Washes easily

Excellent elasticity

Extremely strong but lightweight

Not chlorine resistant

Does not hold dye well.

Lycra.

Very elastic,

Not very comfortable on its own

Not very chlorine resistant

PBT.

Natural stretch

Chlorine resistant

Lightweight

Repels water

Snag resistant

Cotton.

Does not provide a good fit

Sags after a while

Holds water.

Used more in cheap or fashionable swimwear.

Polyester.

Holds its  shape and colour well.

Resists the effects of chlorine.

Strong fabric.

Soft comfortable fit.

Resists shrinkage

Abrasion resistant.

Quick drying.

Chlorine resistant.

UV protection.

Exceptional breathability

4 way stretch.

Washes easily.

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