With so much industry-specific jargon out there for branded apparel, it can be hard for newcomers to understand what everything means.
This is a glossary for some of the popular corporate apparel terms with definitions for each.
Art Proof – This is a line art drawing of how your final product will be decorated. It will show the colour, location and size of your artwork will be decorated to scale.
Breathable – The ability of a fabric to allow moisture vapour to be transmitted through the material.
Button Placket – The double layers of fabric that hold the buttons and buttonholes in a shirt. Usually found near the neckline.
CMYK – Standing for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key (black) it is a colour model and also a way to describe a full-colour print.
Compliance – This is the adherence to laws, regulations and guidelines specific to the production/decoration of the apparel. Usually regarding social and environmental practices.
Cotton backed – This means that the fabric on the inside of the garment that touches the skin is made from cotton. Sometimes found on cotton-blend materials.
Yarn Denier – The weight of yarn mass in grams measured by weighing 9000m of yarn. A higher denier is a thicker fabric.
DTG – Means direct to garment printing, it involves ink being directly sprayed onto the garment and then soaking into the fibres.
Easycare – Fabric that can be restored to its original appearance after laundering with minimum effort.
Embroidery – A decoration that involves your logo or design stitched directly into the product using a special machine. This is popular on polo shirts and headwear.
EPS – EPS is a vector file format standing for encapsulated postscript. This is an ideal file type to create high-quality decorations.
Eyelets – A small hole in the garment or headwear for better ventilation or to thread something through.
Garment – An item of clothing.
GSM – Stands for grams per square meter. Like denier it’s the weight of fabric, a higher GSM is a thicker fabric.
Herringbone – Named for its semblance to the backbone of a herring its stitching is composed of vertical sections in an alternating righthand and lefthand direction. Popular for suits, dresses and jackets.
Jacquard – A pattern and colour that’s incorporated into the weave instead of being printed or dyed onto the surface of the fabric.
Jersey Knit – A popular style fabric for t-shirts and undergarments. A jersey knit is a cotton fabric that’s stretchable and soft.
Lead Time – Is the difference between when the customer requests something to when it gets delivered. This will include production time, delivery time and the time taken to decorate the garments.
Marle – Also known as melange ‘marle’ is a colour effect found in knitted fabrics in which two or more different coloured yarns are knitted together to give a unique appearance. Popular for a more casual look.
MOQ – Standing for Minimum Order Quantity this is the minimum number required to make an order.
Outerwear – Clothing designed to be worn outdoors or outside other garments. Popular for winter on both casual and formal occasions.
Pilling – Also known as a bubble or fuzzball that forms on a piece of cloth. It’s generally an undesirable trait and something to be avoided.
Pique Knit – A textured fabric where one side has a fabric or honeycomb shape and the other side is smooth. This is a common knit for polo shirts and primary school uniforms.
Plated Fabric – Fabrics that have different colours or types of face and back.
Print – This is a common decoration type on apparel that transfers ink to the piece of clothing in a custom design such as a logo or art.
Raglan Sleeve – A sleeve that extends in one piece fully to the collar. Leaving a diagonal seam from underarm to collarbone.
Screen Print – A decoration method that involves pushing ink through a screen mesh onto the garment. This is done with spot colours.
Self Fabric Collar – This means that the collar is made from the same material as the main body and sleeves. Giving it a more tailored appearance and a consistent colour.
Stitch Count – The number of stitches used to embroider a particular logo or design. The larger the logo the more stitches are required to make it look its best.
Sublimation – A printing method that involves a special sheet and then transferring the image to another material (usually polyester). Sublimation means a solid to a gas state.
Technical Fabric – Fabrics that were created to serve a specific purpose. They are synthetically made such as polyester, Gore-tex and nylon.
Twin Needle Sleeve/Hem – Also known as double needles it produces two parallel lines of stitching along the top of the fabric as the bobbin thread zigzags between them.
Waterproof – How resistant to water the piece of apparel is. This is most important for jackets to work out how much protection they provide from the rain.
Wicking – The ability of the clothing to move moisture away from the body to the outer layer so it can evaporate away.
Windproof – A garment that provides protection from the wind. This is usually important information for jackets.
Workwear – Heavy duty clothing for physical or manual work.
Yoke – A shaped pattern piece that forms part of a garment. Usually fitting around the neck and shoulders.
Summing Up
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Matt has spent over eight years in Australia’s promotional products industry. As part of the Promotion Products marketing team, he manages product catalogues and content, keeping brands up to date with what’s new and what works. A contributor to the APPA Magazine, Matt brings practical insight into how quality merch helps businesses stand out.