From Seed to Tee - How is your T-shirt made.

FROM SEED TO TEE Q>Y HOW IS YOUR T-SHIRT MADE 10 STEPS: FROM SEED TO TEE 1. FARMING 2. GINNING 3. SPINNING 4. KNITTING 5. FINISHING 6. CUTTING 7. SEWING 8. PRINTING 9. DYEING 10. FINAL TEE M Although T-Shirts are made of differenct fabric materials, Cotton is pre-dominantly the most and best used fabric around the world. Cotton is easy to dye and has a good colour retention. In addition it also blends well with other fibres such as elastane. Cotton processing has been perfected over many generations and the result is the quality that we enjoy today. The production of a cotton T-shirt can be summarised in 10 proceses: FARMING Growing cotton is not an easy process, as cotton requires a long growing season, sunny and warm weather, plenty of water and dry weather for harvest. In early spring, cottonseeds are planted in rows. Taking several months, flower buds turn to blossoms to becoming green pods which are called cotton bolls, which ripen and become fluffy coton bolls.These cotton bolls are hand picked or machine harvested, stored in large containers and sent for ginning. GINNING The principal function of the cotton gin is to separate lint (cotton) from seed and produce the highest total monetary return for the resulting lint & seeds. After compression, a sample of each bale is taken and tested for staple length and quality before the bale is packaged for shipment. The seed collected from ginning is often sent for extracting cottonseed oil, also known as vegetable oil. Some also sell it as feed for cattle and other live- stock. Eco-businesses also explore the possibility of pressing the oil out of the cottonseed and using it to make biodiesel. СОТTON SEEDS SPINNING Spinning involves a series of machines that turn the compacted, ginned cotton into yarn. First, the compacted bale is beaten and picked to loosen the cotton into a more manageable state, after which it is carded to straighten and smooth the ginned cotton fibers into a sliver - an even, consistent rop. After creating slivers of consistent thickness, multiple slivers are combined to produce a very thick rope of fiber, which is then thinned and twisted, creating yarn. After twisting, yarn is wound around bobbins and prepped for shipment. SPINNING MACHINE SPUN YARN COTTON BALE KNITTING During the knit process, spun yarn is turned into cloth by pulling loops, called stitches, through one another. To achieve superior quality, cotton is circularly knit, creating a seamless tube for the body. Circular knitting is accomplished by cylinder knit machines. Because this knit method creates a tube for the body without side seams, it requires a separate tube of cloth be knit for every garment size. SPUN YARN KNITING YARN - CIRCULAR FISNISHING After the cloth is knit, it must be finished in order to wash out any particulate matter, bleach or dye it to a consistent color, shrink the fabric as much as possible, and soften the fabric to prevent any holes from being created during the sewing process. Some fabrics are not dyed until the garment dye process, but often are bleached white with hydrogen peroxide during the finishing process. FINISH FABRIC KNIT FABRIC BLEACH / DYE CUTTING FABRIC CUTTING The cutting process involves cutting the bodies and sleeves out of the tube of fabric received from the finisher. Fabric is typically cut several stacks at a time with modified jigsaws, allowing for a large number of pieces to be created simul- taneously. The cut bodies and sleeves are then tied together and sent for sewing. Ribbed fabric for the shirt collars is also cut for each body size during this phase. FINISH FABRIC CUTTING STACKS STACKS TIED SEWING Sewing is the last step in the actual construction of the shirt itself, and is the most labor-intensive. After receiving the bodies, sleeves, and collars from the cutter, the sewers use an array of sewing machines to attach each piece via a batch assembly line. CUT BODIES SEWING SEWED TEES PRINTING After receiving the shirt cuttings, the tshirt panels are printed using various techniques, i.e. screen- printing, digital printing, heat embossing or spray painting. Screen printing is one of the best and most conventional way. Its done using mesh screens to squeegee ink onto the shirts on manual or auto- mated presses. The T-shirts are generally printed with water-based inks, as they soak into the shirt rather than stick on top of it, creating a fully breathable print that will not crack or peel. Printing via vegetable/eco-inks is growing in popularity with the awareness of Organic cotton and increase in its use, worldwide. SEWED TEES SCREEN PRINTING DIGITAL PRINTING DYEING To add more value to the fabric feel and colour, T-shirts are garment dyed after printing. Though there are many dye methods available, paddle dye tubs are used because of their ease of operation and maintenance. After dyeing, the shirts are inspected and shipped to the customer. Responsible manufacturers dye fabrics with low-impact, bi-functional reactive dyes, offering superior wash and light fastness in addition to their low environmental impact. Some fabric manufacturer's dye the fabric straight after the finishing proces, s0 as to supply direct to the dealors for cutting, printing and sewing or vice-versa. SEWED TEES DYEING PROCESS FINISH T-SHIRTS FINAL T-SHIRT After all the processes have been done, the final T-shirt is then sent to the retailers, both in-stores and online stockists. The process until now was the simplest one. Multiply that with the import-export, trade laws, taxes and regulations, environmental impacts of production etc. and you would know the true value of your favourite Tee. SOME FACTS ABOUT COTTON # The use of cotton for fabric is known to date to prehistoric times; It was first cultivated around 5000 BC, by the inhabiants of Indus Valley civilization. # Cotton is a warm climate crop and is mainly grown between 37°N and 32°S. The northern hemisphere accounts for about 90% of global cotton production. The time of planting in the northern hemisphere is the time of harvesting in the southern hemisphere. # About 70% of the over 100 million bales of cotton produced globally are harvested by hand. # Current estimates for world production are about 25 million tonnes annually, accounting for 2.5% of the world's arable land. China and India are the world's largest producer of cotton. Third is the United States which has been the largest exporter for many years. # In addition to the textile industry, cotton is used in fishing nets, coffee filters, tents, explosives manufacture (nitrocellulose), cotton paper, and in bookbinding. The first Chinese paper was made of cotton fiber. Even fire hoses were once made of cotton. # Cotton seeds are tough enough to survive travel across oceans on the wind. This probably explains why similar varieties grow sometimes thousands of miles apart-and why botanists are not sure where the first plants came from. # Mahatma Gandhi's Khadi Movement was launched in the 1920s. It was a way to help the people of India become independent of British rule by spinning and weaving their own cloth instead of relying on British-made fabric. # After World War-2, the displaced people were given work in cotton spinning mills in Germany. Textile manufacturing was a key industry in the rehabilitation of a peaceful economy. (an original image is shown in the Spinning process above). # US paper currency isn't paper at all. It is a blend of 75% cotton lint and 25% linen. # Fiber for one cotton T-shirt requires no less than 256.6 gallons of water. So now you know, how to cherish your favorite Tee. Content Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton http://www.cottonofthecarolinas.com http://www.intracen.org/cotton-guide http://library.thinkquest.org/4132/info.htm http://www.fickr.com/photos/vic-and-becky/4390511561 http://www.oocities.org/possumjim/xhtml/spinning_tools.html http://www.nanok-kids-clothing.com/facts-about-cotton.html PS Infographic by : http://www.lifestylebyps.com FROM SEED TO TEE Q>Y HOW IS YOUR T-SHIRT MADE 10 STEPS: FROM SEED TO TEE 1. FARMING 2. GINNING 3. SPINNING 4. KNITTING 5. FINISHING 6. CUTTING 7. SEWING 8. PRINTING 9. DYEING 10. FINAL TEE M Although T-Shirts are made of differenct fabric materials, Cotton is pre-dominantly the most and best used fabric around the world. Cotton is easy to dye and has a good colour retention. In addition it also blends well with other fibres such as elastane. Cotton processing has been perfected over many generations and the result is the quality that we enjoy today. The production of a cotton T-shirt can be summarised in 10 proceses: FARMING Growing cotton is not an easy process, as cotton requires a long growing season, sunny and warm weather, plenty of water and dry weather for harvest. In early spring, cottonseeds are planted in rows. Taking several months, flower buds turn to blossoms to becoming green pods which are called cotton bolls, which ripen and become fluffy coton bolls.These cotton bolls are hand picked or machine harvested, stored in large containers and sent for ginning. GINNING The principal function of the cotton gin is to separate lint (cotton) from seed and produce the highest total monetary return for the resulting lint & seeds. After compression, a sample of each bale is taken and tested for staple length and quality before the bale is packaged for shipment. The seed collected from ginning is often sent for extracting cottonseed oil, also known as vegetable oil. Some also sell it as feed for cattle and other live- stock. Eco-businesses also explore the possibility of pressing the oil out of the cottonseed and using it to make biodiesel. СОТTON SEEDS SPINNING Spinning involves a series of machines that turn the compacted, ginned cotton into yarn. First, the compacted bale is beaten and picked to loosen the cotton into a more manageable state, after which it is carded to straighten and smooth the ginned cotton fibers into a sliver - an even, consistent rop. After creating slivers of consistent thickness, multiple slivers are combined to produce a very thick rope of fiber, which is then thinned and twisted, creating yarn. After twisting, yarn is wound around bobbins and prepped for shipment. SPINNING MACHINE SPUN YARN COTTON BALE KNITTING During the knit process, spun yarn is turned into cloth by pulling loops, called stitches, through one another. To achieve superior quality, cotton is circularly knit, creating a seamless tube for the body. Circular knitting is accomplished by cylinder knit machines. Because this knit method creates a tube for the body without side seams, it requires a separate tube of cloth be knit for every garment size. SPUN YARN KNITING YARN - CIRCULAR FISNISHING After the cloth is knit, it must be finished in order to wash out any particulate matter, bleach or dye it to a consistent color, shrink the fabric as much as possible, and soften the fabric to prevent any holes from being created during the sewing process. Some fabrics are not dyed until the garment dye process, but often are bleached white with hydrogen peroxide during the finishing process. FINISH FABRIC KNIT FABRIC BLEACH / DYE CUTTING FABRIC CUTTING The cutting process involves cutting the bodies and sleeves out of the tube of fabric received from the finisher. Fabric is typically cut several stacks at a time with modified jigsaws, allowing for a large number of pieces to be created simul- taneously. The cut bodies and sleeves are then tied together and sent for sewing. Ribbed fabric for the shirt collars is also cut for each body size during this phase. FINISH FABRIC CUTTING STACKS STACKS TIED SEWING Sewing is the last step in the actual construction of the shirt itself, and is the most labor-intensive. After receiving the bodies, sleeves, and collars from the cutter, the sewers use an array of sewing machines to attach each piece via a batch assembly line. CUT BODIES SEWING SEWED TEES PRINTING After receiving the shirt cuttings, the tshirt panels are printed using various techniques, i.e. screen- printing, digital printing, heat embossing or spray painting. Screen printing is one of the best and most conventional way. Its done using mesh screens to squeegee ink onto the shirts on manual or auto- mated presses. The T-shirts are generally printed with water-based inks, as they soak into the shirt rather than stick on top of it, creating a fully breathable print that will not crack or peel. Printing via vegetable/eco-inks is growing in popularity with the awareness of Organic cotton and increase in its use, worldwide. SEWED TEES SCREEN PRINTING DIGITAL PRINTING DYEING To add more value to the fabric feel and colour, T-shirts are garment dyed after printing. Though there are many dye methods available, paddle dye tubs are used because of their ease of operation and maintenance. After dyeing, the shirts are inspected and shipped to the customer. Responsible manufacturers dye fabrics with low-impact, bi-functional reactive dyes, offering superior wash and light fastness in addition to their low environmental impact. Some fabric manufacturer's dye the fabric straight after the finishing proces, s0 as to supply direct to the dealors for cutting, printing and sewing or vice-versa. SEWED TEES DYEING PROCESS FINISH T-SHIRTS FINAL T-SHIRT After all the processes have been done, the final T-shirt is then sent to the retailers, both in-stores and online stockists. The process until now was the simplest one. Multiply that with the import-export, trade laws, taxes and regulations, environmental impacts of production etc. and you would know the true value of your favourite Tee. SOME FACTS ABOUT COTTON # The use of cotton for fabric is known to date to prehistoric times; It was first cultivated around 5000 BC, by the inhabiants of Indus Valley civilization. # Cotton is a warm climate crop and is mainly grown between 37°N and 32°S. The northern hemisphere accounts for about 90% of global cotton production. The time of planting in the northern hemisphere is the time of harvesting in the southern hemisphere. # About 70% of the over 100 million bales of cotton produced globally are harvested by hand. # Current estimates for world production are about 25 million tonnes annually, accounting for 2.5% of the world's arable land. China and India are the world's largest producer of cotton. Third is the United States which has been the largest exporter for many years. # In addition to the textile industry, cotton is used in fishing nets, coffee filters, tents, explosives manufacture (nitrocellulose), cotton paper, and in bookbinding. The first Chinese paper was made of cotton fiber. Even fire hoses were once made of cotton. # Cotton seeds are tough enough to survive travel across oceans on the wind. This probably explains why similar varieties grow sometimes thousands of miles apart-and why botanists are not sure where the first plants came from. # Mahatma Gandhi's Khadi Movement was launched in the 1920s. It was a way to help the people of India become independent of British rule by spinning and weaving their own cloth instead of relying on British-made fabric. # After World War-2, the displaced people were given work in cotton spinning mills in Germany. Textile manufacturing was a key industry in the rehabilitation of a peaceful economy. (an original image is shown in the Spinning process above). # US paper currency isn't paper at all. It is a blend of 75% cotton lint and 25% linen. # Fiber for one cotton T-shirt requires no less than 256.6 gallons of water. So now you know, how to cherish your favorite Tee. Content Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton http://www.cottonofthecarolinas.com http://www.intracen.org/cotton-guide http://library.thinkquest.org/4132/info.htm http://www.fickr.com/photos/vic-and-becky/4390511561 http://www.oocities.org/possumjim/xhtml/spinning_tools.html http://www.nanok-kids-clothing.com/facts-about-cotton.html PS Infographic by : http://www.lifestylebyps.com