Mar 282014


The History of Safety Apparel

Since there were workers and clothing, there has been some form of work safe apparel. However, once machine-created clothing and equipment really caught on, safety apparel became more modernized and could better protect workers. For instance, according to, fire fighters in the United States first had access to a fire helmet in the 1730’s.

Different Types of Safety Workwear

There are as many types of safety gear available as there are jobs. Doctors wear masks that protect them from germs, construction workers need protective footwear, those who work outdoors may need high boots and thick pants to protect against snake or insect bites and those who are working on the road need reflective garments that allow oncoming motorist to easily spot them–even after dark. The most important thing is that the gear is specifically chosen for the job at hand.

Today, many workers aren’t left to their own devices when it comes to choosing the right safety apparel. There are different codes in place that regulate certain equipment be worn by workers in certain industries. OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) dictates this in certain cases. Additionally, many employers have a commitment to safety, so these firms may have even stricter requirements for those who work there.

No matter what industry or what job you have, it is important that you follow safety apparel guidelines. Not only does it protect you from danger–it may be required by law!

CornerStone – ANSI 107 Class 2 Safety Vest.

Feb 262014


Casual Fridays, or Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays, are a weekly favorite, but what if as a business you could provide your employees with the option to take part in ‘casual’ workdays every day? Companies and businesses can with the introduction of imprinted apparel as a part of their employee uniform.

Casual Employee Uniforms Create a Sense of Professionalism

A casual employee uniform is more than just providing a sense of comfort to employees; it is about creating a sense of professionalism. Businesses need to present a uniform, professional image to customers in order to gain trust and a casual uniform achieves that goal.

Casual uniforms can be made out of crisp, high quality materials that make them appear almost as if they are as professional as a business suit or dress shirt, but without the stiff, uncomfortable feel. Materials, such as silk fibers or microfiber, provide businesses with the option to choose apparel that looks clean, crisp and professional.

Options Available for Casual Employee Uniforms

There is a considerable number of shirt styles available for businesses to choose from in an effort to create a casual employee uniform. Short and long sleeved t-shirts, polo shirts, and button down shirts are available. For the colder months, sweaters, zippered jackets, and hoodies can also be incorporated into a business’s casual uniform dress code.

In addition to having the ability to choose the style of shirts, businesses can also have control over the color of the clothing. Casual apparel comes in a variety of colors ranging from bright, vibrant shades to subtle, earth tones. Businesses can make their company recognizable to customers by trying to pick a color theme that represents their business.

Ability to Imprint Logos, Business Names, and Pictures on Apparel

The real key to creating a casual business uniform that looks professional is having some sort of logo or emblem that identifies the employees as representatives of a business. Casual employee uniforms can have this done by imprinting the company name or logo onto the shirt.

Businesses can purchase blank, solid colored t-shirts, sweatshirts, or polo shirts and then opt to have a logo, business name, or other picture imprinted on the apparel. The logo can be printed on the shirt sleeve, back, or pocket.

Boost employee morale by making every day casual Friday by incorporating a casual employee uniform into the dress code.

Be comfortable and casual everyday.L502_K502_Model_GA13

Feb 262014


The term preshrunk actually describes an entire process that the fabric has gone through before being made into the t-shirt that you are wearing. The following is a closer look at what exactly ‘preshrunk’ means and the process the fabric goes through before being used to create a shirt.

Fabrics Naturally Want to Shrink

All natural and synthetic fabrics have a natural tendency to want to shrink when they are washed. This is because the fibers of the fabric will want to tighten up and bunch together. This tightening action results in entire fabric shrinking, which results in a change in the overall shape and size of the article of clothing.

The Preshrinking Process

Seeing the term ‘preshrunk’ may automatically bring up images of having the t-shirt washed and dried before it is sold, but it actually implies the use of a process that is known as preshrinking.

The preshrinking process involves placing the fabric that is used to create the t-shirt through a processing machine. The processing machine will force the fibers of the fabric to group together and tighten. When the fibers of the fabric are grouped together, it will eliminate the possibility of the shirt shrinking when it is washed.

Do the Preshrunk Shirts Never Shrink When Washed?

There is a common belief that preshrunk shirts will never shrink in the wash. This, unfortunately, is not true. Preshrunk shirts can, and sometimes will, shrink in the wash.

The preshrinking process will eliminate the possibility of a t-shirt shrinking in the wash, but it will not completely prevent any shrinkage. The t-shirt could shrink in the future, but the shrinkage will be very minimal. It is believed that the shrinkage is only about 3-7% of the size of the t-shirt, which would barely impact the fit of the shirt.

Why Many T-Shirts are Preshrunk Before Being Sold?

T-shirts are often preshrunk because it eliminates any type of guess work out of choosing a t-shirt size. If a t-shirt is a large, it most likely will not shrink in the wash to a medium or small. This makes it easier for people to choose a shirt that will fit them without fear that the clothing will shrink and not be able to be worn in the future.

Next time you are looking at a t-shirt label and notice the term ‘preshrunk’, you will be able to understand exactly what it means and how it impacts the t-shirt you are purchasing.

Feb 062014


Full-printed garments, especially t-shirts, are made possible with a printing process known as dye sublimation printing. Dye sublimation printing, or dye sublimation for short, allows full photographic images to be printed or transferred to a t-shirt or other garment. Some in the shirt printing industry call this process ‘all around printing.’

The following is a look at the process that is used during dye sublimation printing and why it is becoming a popular choice for t-shirts.

What is Dye Sublimation Printing?

Dye sublimation printing is a complex printing process that essentially takes a photographic image and transfers it to the entire shirt. The image often takes up the whole shirt, as opposed to a smaller logo or design located above the shirt pocket.

The process for dye sublimation printing is fairly time consuming. The desired photo, image, or artwork must first be taken and printed onto specialty paper. This is done using a special printer that will print the image onto large sheets of paper.

Once the images or artwork have been transferred to the specialty paper, they will then be transferred to the t-shirts. Transferring the images and artwork to the t-shirt requires the use of a special pressure machine called a heat transfer press. These presses reach the extremely high temperatures that are required to help transfer the images onto the t-shirts. This is typically 375-380 degrees Fahrenheit.

This is a heat press:

sublimation printing

How is an Image Transferred from Paper to the T-Shirt?

Images are transferred with a heat press as seen above. The extremely high temperatures these machines reach that will convert the dye on the paper into a gas. Once the dye is converted to a gas, it can be transferred to the t-shirt. The shirt will be placed on the botton with the sublimation printed transfer paper on top. The gas will instantly ‘bond’ with the fibers of the fabric resulting in the transferred image. At this point the design will very likely last as long as the shirt itself.

Why is Dye Sublimation Printing Becoming So Popular?

Dye sublimation printing has been around for a number of years, but it wasn’t until recently that it started to become popular. There are a number of reasons why it has increased in popularity.

Some of the reasons for dye sublimation printing’s popularity include:

  • No two images are alike, each t-shirt is considered unique as the process is never the same
  • Garments are soft, as the dye is absorbed by the fabric and does not sit on top of it
  • Bright, vibrant colors and images can be transferred to t-shirts
  • Details will not be lost during transfer of the images to the shirts

Understanding what dye sublimation printing is and why it is popular can help you determine if it is the right choice for your t-shirt printing needs. Check out our Sublimate Tees for him and her made especially this type of printing.

Sep 262013









Sep 192013








Sep 132013






Jun 172013




Brief History

The first known evidence of hats appears in drawings from Ancient Greece. Most of the early hats were worn by the higher society individuals or the wealthy. These people would have their very own hat makers known as a “milliner” – named after Milan Italy – where the best hats were made in the 18th century. Most milliners from that era were women. Early hats were an indicator of Military rank or occupation as can still be seen all over the world today. Among the most famous hat makers in the United States is John B. Stetson of the Stetson hat company. They are responsible for creating what most of us recognize as the Cowboy hat. In some cases hats are required attire at many horse races and formal events. These are among the last places where you will find very high end and extravagant hats. Hats have a deep history and have changed a lot over the generations. It used to be in the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s people would never leave the house without a hat. The men would don a dress hat similar to a fedora and the women would wear something more extravagant that was often decorated with lace or flowers or combinations of similar accessories. As we entered into the 1960’s the custom of wearing hats every time you left the house faded. Now a days you will most commonly grab a baseball cap if you are leaving the house with a hat.

Have a look at a Stetson hat being made:



Baseball cap


Features of the hat:


What are the differences in Baseball Caps?

  • Structured vs. unstructured:
  • Profile – low to high:
  • Type of Closure:
    snapback hat
  • Color combinations:
  • Panels:

Here is a man wearing a Fedora hat.
man wearing fedora


May 072013

The textile industry is one of the oldest yet fastest-growing industries in the world; after all, clothing is one of the primary commodities that every person on Earth needs to own. Textile manufacturers do a very good job today producing high quality materials from both synthetic and natural fibers that are offered to the general public. Textile producers, however, did not have an easy trail to follow leading to their success.

Its history

While a lot of struggling people were immigrating to America to start a new life, a small group of these people stood at the forefront and led America through its Industrial Revolution. This group of textile entrepreneurs invented power-driven machinery and developed business enterprises to produce products that had previously been made in low volume in homes and small shops, leading to a factory boom.

The industrialization of textile manufacturing began in the late 1700s in Great Britain when Richard Arkwright invented the “spinning frame” that could turn raw cotton into a mass produced yarn.

spinning wheel

An early Spinning Frame
However, it wasn’t until 1790 that the industry began to spread widely to the United States. This movement can largely be credited to an English-born businessman named Samuel Slater. At the age of 21, Slater had worked in a textile factory for six years and had learned the mechanical details of Arkwright’s machine. He carried this knowledge with him as he ventured out of his country and onto the American shores, confident that he could reinvent the spinning frame and make a fortune for himself.

When he arrived in Providence, Rhode Island, he formed a partnership with the textile-manufacturing firm of Almy & Brown. Slater built the spinning frame based on the Arkwright model just from the details he had memorized. Its first use was on December 20, 1790 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, where the waters of the Blackstone River turned the wheels of the mill. The success of Slater’s mill revolutionized the textile industry in America, which up to that point was dependent on cottage workers to produce yarn and thread.

slater mill

Slater Mill Pawtucket, Rhode Island
Because of this innovation, factories in the US began to multiply rapidly, earning Slater the title of “The Father of the American Factory System” as well as “The Father of the American Industrial Revolution.” By 1815, there were already 165 cotton mills operating in New England. These early mills were not large-scale, so New England merchants continued to utilize home workers to weave some of the yarn into cloth for some time after Slater’s innovation.

This video shows an early spinning frame in action at the Slater Mill.
The spawning of other products

The beginning of the 18th century marked the production of textiles made with wool from sheep farms across the midlands in Britain. More than a quarter of the British exports during that time were from the export trade in woolen goods, doubling between 1701 and 1770. Another textile industry that invested in cotton centered in Lancashire showed remarkable growth during that time, although it did not equal the huge value of the woolen trade. Before the start of the 17th century, only individual workers manufactured a somewhat limited number of goods, which were distributed around the country.

In the early 18th century, artisans started to find alternative materials to produce products. They were using silk, wool, fustian, and linen, but all were eventually overcome by cotton, which became the most important textile of the time.

Cotton was first imported into northern Europe in the late medieval period. At the time people did not have any knowledge of where it came from. They associated the material with wool, noting their similarities, they conceptualized that plant-borne sheep must produce it. It was later called “tree wool.” Even Christopher Columbus in his explorations of the Bahamas and Cuba in the late 1400’s, found natives wearing cotton garments. During the late 16th century, cotton became more and more popular as it was cultivated in the warmer regions of Asia and America.

The production of cloth involves not only the growing and harvesting of the fiber or raw material, but the product must then be prepared and spun into thread or yarn, and finally weaving the yarn into cloth. Thereafter, the cloth will be taken to the garment manufacturer. Preparation of fiber will depend on the fiber used, but it can involve retting and dressing. Wool needs to be carded and washed. Spinning and weaving can be similarly done to fibers, as well. Spinning is done by twisting the fibers by hand using a drop spindle or a spinning wheel.

The industry’s forerunners

Eli Whitney invented the modern mechanical cotton gin, which quickly separates the cotton fibers from their seeds, in 1793.
cotton gin

Cotton Gin on Display the Eli Whitney Museum
Here is a brief video history of Eli Whitney and his impact on the textile world:
It was in 1813 that the New England factory systems started to take off when Frances Cabot Lowell, Nathan Appleton, and Patrick Johnson established the Boston Manufacturing Company and opened their first factory, wherein workers operated spinning and weaving machinery. This enabled the home-based workers to shift their jobs from their homes to the factories. Fifteen years later, the company started adding branches throughout Massachusetts and New Hampshire. By 1840, the Boston Manufacturing Company had gained a great deal of popularity, as others tried to copy their corporate model.

boston manufacturing

Boston Manufacturing Company on the Charles River, Waltham, Massachusetts
Lowell and his team hoped to change the ways of the British industry. Building their facilities in Massachusetts, he hired young and unwed women from the farms of New England. Known as the “mill girls”, they were strictly chaperoned by matrons who established curfews and a stringent moral code for the girls to follow. The mill girls worked 12 hours per day, 6 days per week. Although it was a tedious job, most of the girls enjoyed the independence the mill gave them, in contrast to how they had lived on the farm. Moreover, the wages rose to triple the rate for a domestic servant at the time.

It was also during this time when leaders such as William Gregg of South Carolina established a home-based textile industry, which was resisted by the northern mills. After the Civil War, the south slowly replaced the use of slaves with regular workers. Edwin Michael Holt and his family in North Carolina built a number of mills all over the south at the end of the 19th century, including Glencoe Cotton Mill and mill village, which are still preserved to this day.

Later on, merchants such as the Marshall Fields of Chicago acquired and built mills of their own (Cone Mills and Fieldcrest Mills) so as to better control and regulate the supply.

As World War I took place, several new companies emerged to satisfy the war demand. After the war, imported machinery from Germany and Switzerland started to replace domestic supply.

During the late 19th century, the Made in the USA began to be replaced by a new world order. Because many textile manufacturers aimed to buy from the producers with the lowest cost, most textile companies considered importing from other countries.

Today’s industry

As the 20th century approached, major changes came to the textile industry as innovations allowed textile machinery to create synthetic fiber such as rayon and nylon, which is used in products ranging from pantyhose to toothbrushes.

Acetate was invented in the 1920s. A decade later, polyester and acrylic were introduced. Polyester became more popular in the Unites States than cotton for some time during that century.

By the early 20th century, globalization also led to the outsourcing of textile manufacturing to overseas markets. This created a trend of focusing on white-collar industries for fashion design and retail.

An apparel distributor, Outlet Shirts, specializes itself in the screen-printing and embroidery industry as well as blank apparel. It provides well over 1500 products from brands such as Port Authority Apparel, Port and Company, Eddie Bauer, Nike Golf, Sport-Tek and more. Offering a large selection of wholesale t-shirts, polo shirts, woven, outerwear, ladies styles and many more. Its products are available either blank or embellished with your company or group logo. Its low prices and generous discounts, also includes free shipping starting at $125, will make it easy for any customer to save more without sacrificing quality or service.

The textile industry has come a long way from just old-fashioned machines and factories. It has developed greatly over time, paving the way for companies who produce quality products for their customers. Today, it has become a very essential industry the world could not live without.

May 012013

Now we would now like to take a look at the Button. Not the kind that you push to get to your floor in an elevator nor the kind that you tap to turn off your phone. Here we are talking about the ancient and still every day item used in everything from clothing to home decoration. You can obviously find buttons in shirts, pants, as well as furniture and other home décor like drapery. Buttons come in a wide range of colors, sizes, shapes and materials. They have a rich and surprising history around the world. There are even museum displays dedicated entirely to buttons just as there are for clothing. One such famous place is the button exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution. The button is both a tool and a fashion statement. The button’s various uses, low cost and longevity probably means it will be with us forever.

General Description

The button is a type of fastener used mainly in clothing and most often in shirts and pants. But as mentioned previously you can also find them in furniture and in that case are mainly fabric buttons used as decoration and do not serve much purpose beyond that. The same can be said for large fabric buttons found on drapery. Most buttons are made of a from of plastic these days but you can still find many variations of this useful item.


Buttons have been unearthed by Archeologists that date back to 2,800 BC in both Middle and Eastern Asia. They were primarily used as a decoration first and then later it was found that they could serve as a useful item beyond just for looks. In some cases buttons are used for both aesthetics and function. Early buttons were an item that only high society would own until cheaper versions came along made of wood and bone and eventually were made of plastic as most are today. Some of these early buttons were actually art pieces that became collectibles for the wealthy. These early collectible buttons would have ornate carvings etched or inlaid into them and were not made for any clothing application but as an art piece. These were almost always bone or ivory and some even had precious stones added to them. Buttons that were used to hold clothing or fabric together first appeared in Germany in the 13th Century and were widely used in Europe within about 100 years. These types of buttons are the most common in the world. During World War I and II the military made locket buttons that contained miniature compasses. Buttons have proven to be such an important item that Charles Dickens even wrote about the process to make them in 1852.

Buttons have also shown up in political campaigns that date back to George Washington’s first campaign. The more modern style of campaign button is metal usually with a picture or slogan on the front. These are known as badge or pin-back buttons.

Before continuing on watch this short video on the manufacturing process of plastic buttons:

Button types and materials used

Buttons can be made from a variety of things. The earliest buttons were made of seashell or bone and even some were made of ivory. Eventually button making made its way to wood and then plastic and metal. Button that are still made of shell or bone tend to be reserved for collections as they are often one of a kind pieces made by an artist. Metal buttons are most common on jeans while plastic buttons are more common for shirts. The most common type of button is the flat or sew-thru button. These buttons have 2, 3 or 4 holes in them and are sewn onto the clothing item with thread. This type of button, after it is sewn to the clothing item, slides through a cut in the cloth known as a buttonhole or a loop of fabric. Flat buttons mostly come in metal or plastic and among these there are a few types. You have Dyed-to-match, which are colored to match the clothing item they are going on, there are Horn-tone buttons, which are plastic made with a brown and ivory coloring that somewhat resemble the antlers of an animal. Then the plain old metal button which is usually made of aluminum. Another type of button is the Shank button. These are much less common and involve a round button with a loop made of the same material attached to the back of it called a shank. You would sew the thread through the shank to attach it to your clothing item. This type of button would be mostly found in nice dress jackets and dresses. The last of the common buttons is a Stud button. These are metal pieces that are riveted onto the clothing item. These are much more durable which is why they are most commonly found on denim jackets and pants. These are fastened to the clothing in the same way that Flat buttons are.

Here some examples of clothing with various button types; Port Authority Silk Touch Shirt with Dyed-to-match buttons, Port Authority Long Sleeve Twill Shirt with Horn-tone buttons and Port Authority Authentic Denim Jacket with metal stud buttons.


As you can see buttons have a long and interesting history. They have changed a lot over time in both their uses as well as the materials used and who would own them. They have found there way into most clothing items we use and are very affordable which part of the reason they are so common. Last we leave you with a helpful video. Have you ever lost a button on your shirt or pants? Watch this video tutorial to learn how to sewn a button back onto a shirt. The same process works for pants and well.

Sewing 4-hole button onto a shirt