Alexander S. Kabbaz - Joelle M. Kelly
... & Sons
Fine Custom Clothiers
Three Thousand Fabrics
Three thousand fabrics. Yup, we got 'em. The world's largest collection of top quality shirtings. All three thousand of the darn things. They're in the showroom. They're in the workroom. They're in the office, in the storeroom, in file cabinets, in the pattern room ... there's even a pile under each of our desks! Actually, last time we counted, there were exactly 3,126 fabrics.
But ... let's get real. This is the Web. If we were to put 3,126 graphic images on this page, you could have a
1000MHz Pentium with T-1 connection and it would still take a week for the page to download. Sooo ... we've scattered about 400 of them around the web site in mini-image form. Click on the style you like and it will come in larger for your viewing. (In truth, we've only scattered about 200 as of
November 8. Bookmark us and check back for more. We're busy scanning as you read this!)
But let's talk about fabric for a minute ... and price. Cotton. The ageless fabric. Always in style, always comfortable. And Oh! Such a wide variation in price. Why?
Fabric Quality
Denier - correctly termed "Yarn Number"
The measure of fineness in cotton is referred to as the "yarn number". Actually, that's got something to do with what a hank of cotton weighs in
England, but for practicality's sake, let's say it is the thickness of the yarn. A cheap ready-made shirt might be of fabric woven from
#30 yarns. The better specialty shops feature fabrics of #80 yarns. Our least expensive is woven of
#100 yarns, our finest is of 200's. 200's ... thinner than a human hair. The thinner the yarn, the harder it is to weave. The thinner the yarn the nicer it feels. This thinner the yarn, the more it costs!
Ply
Ply refers to how many spun yarns are twisted together to make a weaving yarn. Why care? You've heard of 'pilling'. Pilling is caused when the fibers which make up the yarns fray and form into little balls. When you twist two spun yarns together into a weaving yarn, each serves to keep the other intact and prevents pilling. Those
#30 yarn shirts are single ply yarns (1x1). The better specialty shops will sometimes feature 2-Ply as an added attraction. Remember, though, that there are yarns in both directions (length x width). A fabric can be called 2-Ply if either the length or width yarn is 2-Ply (1x2). ALL of our fabrics are 2-Ply in Both directions (2x2). We use nothing less. Twisting spun yarns together prior to weaving them is an added step. It costs more!
2007 Update: We now have a three-ply (3x3) broadcloth available.
Fiber Length
Cotton fibers range in length from about 1/2 inch to 1 3/4 inches. The shorter the fiber, the more joints in the yarn. The more joints, the more
opportunity for pilling, and the rougher it feels. Those #30 yarn shirts are the ones made from the shortest fibers. When you hear of 'long-staple' cotton, it refers to those fibers above 1 1/2 inches in length. ALL of our fabrics are made from 'long-staple' fibers.
Country of Origin
You've heard of Sea Island? Probably. Did you also know that it is an island off the coast of Georgia? A Hot, Moist environment, perfect for the growing of long-staple cotton. Fifty years ago, that is exactly what the islanders did. These days, about the only thing growing on Sea Island are luxury condominiums! And the majority of what
was called Sea Island® cotton during the 1990's was being grown in Arizona, woven in Japan, and sewn in the Dominican Republic. Sadly, the venerable term had become a trademark of a Japanese weaver. "We don't carry anything that bad",
was my usual answer when asked.
Now, however, the trademark once again belongs to the West Indian Sea Island
Cotton Growers Association. Their wonderful cottons are again like the days of
old. Speaking of "old", watching both the desecration of the term Sea Island ...
and its recent rescussitation ... is making me feel exactly that!
The bulk of our cottons are grown exclusively in Egypt's Nile River valley,
an environment closely resembling that of Sea Island. From there, it goes to
Italy for combing and spinning into yarn. Some of what we use is then woven in
Italy by two small specialty mills. The bulk of our fabric, however, is woven in
Switzerland. And they weave just like they make watches. So when that fine
specialty shop says 'imported', you want to hear Switzerland or Italy, not Japan
or India. Just to give you a rough idea, the Japan/Indian woven shirt fabrics
cost about $9 per shirt. What we use costs about $175-$300 per shirt!
To Sum Up Fabric Quality
All of our cotton fabrics, which range from #100 to #240, are of Egyptian-grown long-staple cotton
or Sea Island, Italian-spun into 2-Ply weaving yarns, and woven in Italy or Switzerland. And every time you select a fabric, rest assured that we shall tell you exactly what it is. Our prices are determined by
yarn number. 100's are
$750-$775, 120's are $775-$825, 140's are $875-$925, 170's & 180's are $950-$975, and 200's are $1050-$1075. The styling of a shirt (with one exception) is not a determinant of price.
Fabric Type
Well, let me see. There's broadcloth ... also called poplin. There's voile (the see-through summer stuff). There's oxford ... and royal oxford. There's gabardine. Twills, jacquards, dobbies, crepe de chine, charmeuse, faille, tone-on-tone, chintz, mesh, basket weaves, and, and, and. But if you don't leave us something to talk about when we meet, I may as well teach you to measure & fit and then you won't even have to come in. Or, even better, perhaps a sewing course could be thrown in and then you wouldn't need us at all!
Back to those 3,126 fabrics. Click on any image on this page. If I've done my HTML right, you should get a larger image of the fabric. If you don't, well, I'm really a custom shirtmaker. Come into the shop. Look at our small swatches. Find one you like and I'll bring you the larger piece. Thanks for reading.
