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Excessive shrinking of 100 % cotton t's

I gave away a couple of shirts One of which was the poly blend and one was 100% cotton. Both were extra large mens t's and the poly blend was jerzees and the all cotton hanes I believe. AS it turns out the all cotton did not fit--too tight. As I think about it does the hot wash to remove excess dye cause the extra shrinkage. I know that to dry the shirts I need to go to medium heat otherwise they are damp. I do not dry on hot cotton setting. I plan on using all cotton since the colors are more vibrant but do I need to go up one size? What are your thoughts guys? I plan on doing shirts with transfers on the front so I do not want to have sizing and shrinking issues. I will apply the transfer on the finished shirt.

By johncedars at 2012-07-06 10:00 | login or register to post comments

shrinkage

I would go up a size. The clothes shrink most during the hot-water wash-out that is necessary for getting all of the unattached dye out. Preshrunk clothing is good, because if it's not shrunk now, it is likely to shrink later.

Note that some t-shirts shrink more than others. You probably should look into buying a better grade of shirt online. The underwear-grade Hanes seem a lot tighter than the heavier Hanes Beefy-T or the Gilden Ultra Cotton, which makes sense since the underwear-grade shirts are intended to be worn under other shirts without showing.

Even the good shirts are not all cut alike. The Gilden Ultra Cotton, which I like because it has cotton thread that dyes along with the rest of the shirt, is cut longer than the same size of Hanes Beefy T. It's better to order shirts from Dharma or a wholesale supplier than it is to use underwear-grade t-shirts from the big box store, because the shirts look and fit better and last longer. All cotton clothing will shrink a lot, but some clothing is cut a little tighter than others so the shrinkage matters more.

For items that must not be allowed to shrink, such as a slipcover for a couch, you can use cooler water to wash out, and just accept that some loose dye may remain, always washing whatever item it is separately from other colors. The cooler water washout will still remove enough dye to prevent crocking (rubbing-off of dry dye).

For clothes, it's usually better to go ahead and do the hot-water washout and be done with shrinkage.

I never use high or medium heat to dry my clothing, because I think clothes wrinkle less if they are never exposed to the much higher heat of a hot dryer. I use the low-heat setting on our dryer, which still makes the clothes feel pretty hot when I take them out of the dryer. It does take longer to get the clothes completely dry. I think the shrinkage mostly occurs during the hot wash, though. I don't think the lower dryer setting helps much in avoiding shrinkage.

-Paula

By pburch at Fri, 2012-07-06 10:18 | login or register to post comments

I am happy to have found out

I am happy to have found out before I did the transfer project. I would have really been upset after the fact. Do you thing I should go up one size from Dharma?? The size I am shooting for seems to b a 2x in a women but the sleeves need to be more the mens t length. The xl poly blend did fit. I do want these to last. This is one of those surprise gifts which takes a lot longer than you think it should. So Dharma is the answer right?
thanks

By johncedars at Fri, 2012-07-06 10:44 | login or register to post comments

going up a size?

Dharma is the answer. You can get lower prices on bulk t-shirts from some other sites, but Dharma is the best for small quantities.

Whether to go up a size when also getting a better quality of shirt....that's really hard to say. Depends on how tight the other one was. Probably safer to go up a size. Read the description carefully, since Dharma sells some clothes that are oversized to allow for shrinkage, or made of compacted cotton to reduce shrinkage, but they always make it clear in the description. ("Compacted cotton" is squished together so that it's bigger than it looks and therefore doesn't seem to shrink as much, although it does shrink.)

-Paula

By pburch at Fri, 2012-07-06 11:11 | login or register to post comments

Thanks The more I look at

Thanks
The more I look at the differences in shirts the more confused I get. It seems that the beefy t may have the best properties to dye and then place a transfer on. I could just buy one of each and then do a measurement on how much shrinkage. I did call Dharma and they kindly responded to my question in person and email. The link Dharma sent me is below so I posted it. Kudos to Dharma on the reply.

    I WONDER HOW MUCH IT SHRINKS?
    Cotton shrinks! This fact is reported to have been discovered by the ancient Egyptians and has been confirmed by countless distraught women through the ages. You can figure about 3-5% in width and 8-12% in length depending on the type, weight & knit. Sharp changes in temperature cause more shrinkage than gradual changes. High agitation washing machines cause more shrinkage than gentle hand washing. Preshrunk goods shrink less, but still shrink. "Compacted Cotton" has been scrunched up between rollers so that there is built in extra length in the fibers so it seems to shrink less. Some big name T-shirt manufacturers call their T-shirts pre-shrunk, but they are actually only compacted, and have never been washed.
    Allow for the shrinkage!
    In some garments, this means buying a size larger. If the item is "cut oversize to allow for shrinkage" then it will be big at first, and then shrink down to the size on the label.
    In the end, we have to leave it you to judge the right size to buy.

I am a perfectionist so this sort of thing drives me crazy. However I can accept the variance in tie dye results. Each has its advantages and disadvantages.

By johncedars at Sat, 2012-07-07 08:19 | login or register to post comments

Bleaching the shirt when washing the first time

I see where the Gilden shirts come off white and can be bleached. If you do a soda ash synthrapaol wash for cleaning would not the soda ash effectively bleach the shirt?

By johncedars at Fri, 2012-07-06 17:59 | login or register to post comments

soda ash doesn't bleach

Soda ash helps get the shirts clean, but it doesn't bleach them. You need something more to do that, chlorine bleach or super-strong peroxide (not the drugstore stuff), and then treat with an optic brightener if you want it to be whiter-than-white. Dharma sells the optic brightener, but I don't think you should get it except for making designs with a lot of white.

The last time I got the GIlden tees, they were still selling the bright white version. I don't know how I feel about the newer PFD shirts. Probably not a problem if you're not leaving much white on your shirts, even if you don't bleach them at all. If you're leaving a lot of white, maybe you'd do better to buy a bright white shirt. Dharma has those, too, in other brands.

-Paula

By pburch at Fri, 2012-07-06 20:38 | login or register to post comments

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