Rodney

Quote: Also, I was wondering if anyone knows of any wholesalers/trade websites based in the UK - I don't really fancy paying international shipping!

If you look in the wholesale t-shirts section of this forum and browse some of the past topics, you'll see discussions about UK wholesale t-shirt suppliers.
http://www.t-shirtforums.com/wholesale-t-shirts/

Quote: P.S. Where's the link to edit my signature?

http://www.t-shirtforums.com/usercp.php

Quote: What I was wondering is, since I have a vinyl cutter and heat press, would I be able to heatpress designs onto these shirts? Or are they not suitable?

Back to the bamboo t-shirts topic

From the looks of it, the shirts seem like they would be perfect for all types of printing. But you could always buy one to test it out.

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gtsecc

I think these are a rayon cotton blend shirt.
The rayon is simply made from the bamboo.

 

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Rodney

Quote: I think these are a rayon cotton blend shirt. The rayon is simply made from the bamboo.

Why do you think that?

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gtsecc

Quote: Originally Posted by Rodney Why do you think that?

Well, Rayon is made from natural materials, such as wood or bamboo.
The material is broken down with chemicals like alkali and carbon disulfide to extract the viscose.



But, the word rayon is stigmatized by people who think of it as a synthetic fiber,( which it is and it isn’t. ) So, making it out of bamboo, and calling it some sort of bamboo fiber is technically true, but in reality it is a marketing campain to get around the the perception of rayon as a synthetic fiber.

 

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Rodney

Quote: So, making it out of bamboo, and calling it some sort of bamboo fiber is technically true, but in reality it is a marketing campain to get around the the perception of rayon as a synthetic fiber.

Interesting, thanks for the info on Rayon. That was going to be my next question

Are you sure that's what the bamboo shirts are "rayonized" bamboo, or is that just a guess based on the material and description?

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gtsecc

Quote: Originally Posted by Rodney Interesting, thanks for the info on Rayon. That was going to be my next question Are you sure that's what the bamboo shirts are "rayonized" bamboo, or is that just a guess based on the material and description?

I am sure - that is simply how you make yarn from bamboo. Everyone has a little article on it these days - even Land'sEnd.

 

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Solmu

I was under the impression Rayon was normally manufactured from wood and cotton fibres (i.e. not grass). Rayon could almost be said to describe a process more than it does the resulting fibre, so I would have thought that if bamboo isn't normally used (I don't actually know) marketing it as bamboo would be more than "technically true".

It's an interesting idea and I could see how it could be true, I'm just not convinced that anything dodgy is going on here (yet).

Ultimately if a plant that is more sustainable (as opposed to something like cotton) is being used, then it's a good thing.

 

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Jasonda

Rayon is made from cellulose from trees:

http://www.swicofil.com/viscose.html

Bamboo fabric is made from cellulose from bamboo:

http://www.bambooresearch.com/resour...cts/fiber.html

So it's not hard to imagine that they are made using a similar process. However, it is the fiber which the fabric is made of that is the defining characteristic, rather than the process.

I wouldn't consider it misleading if someone selling bamboo fabric did not disclose that it was manufactured the same way to rayon. However, it WOULD be misleading if someone said that bamboo fabric is the SAME as rayon, because the source material is different, and because bamboo fabric possesses many characteristics that rayon does not, including having antibacterial properties and being more environmentally friendly than rayon.

 

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Solmu

Quote: Originally Posted by Jasonda Rayon is made from cellulose from trees: Bamboo fabric is made from cellulose from bamboo: So it's not hard to imagine that they are made using a similar process.

The same process more likely.

Quote: Originally Posted by Jasonda However, it is the fiber which the fabric is made of that is the defining characteristic, rather than the process.

I definitely disagree. Neither is the defining characteristic, and both are extremely important. Some fibres are inherently bad (cotton) and some processes are inherently bad (fabric dyeing). So both matter. As a regenerated fibre rayon/bamboo may not be as environmentally friendly as some of the better natural fibres.

How a fibre goes from raw state to finished garment matters.

Quote: Originally Posted by Jasonda I wouldn't consider it misleading if someone selling bamboo fabric did not disclose that it was manufactured the same way to rayon.

I agree.

 

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Jasonda

Quote: Originally Posted by Solmu I definitely disagree. Neither is the defining characteristic, and both are extremely important. Some fibres are inherently bad (cotton) and some processes are inherently bad (fabric dyeing). So both matter. As a regenerated fibre rayon/bamboo may not be as environmentally friendly as some of the better natural fibres. How a fibre goes from raw state to finished garment matters.

I wasn't saying that one fiber is better than the other, or that the process isn't important. I was simply trying to make a point about what "rayon" actually is.

Quote: Originally Posted by gtsecc But, the word rayon is stigmatized by people who think of it as a synthetic fiber,( which it is and it isn’t. ) So, making it out of bamboo, and calling it some sort of bamboo fiber is technically true, but in reality it is a marketing campain to get around the the perception of rayon as a synthetic fiber.

From what I understood, gtsecc is essentially saying that bamboo fiber is just "rayon" which is made out of bamboo. I don't agree, because the current definition of "rayon" is a fabric which is made from wood pulp. The process is also very important in determining what "rayon" is, but you can't take just any fiber and put it through the exact same process, and say that it is "rayon". It won't be the same exact thing because it's not made from the same material, and even if wood pulp and bamboo both contain cellulose, they will still have different properties based on their origins. That's all.

I definitely agree that considering the process of manufacturing as well as the source material is essential when determining how environmentally friendly a product really is. That's just not what I was talking about.

 

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Solmu

The definition of rayon isn't that it's made from wood pulp though (for one thing it's not just wood pulp that's used to make rayon). The definition is that it's regenerated cellulose. So if bamboo is made the same way, it is rayon (not just like rayon). That doesn't mean you can't call it bamboo, just that calling it rayon would be equally accurate.

So, yes, you can "take just any fiber and put it through the exact same process, and say that it is "rayon".", provided the any fibre is cellulose.

I guess the question mark in my mind as to whether or not bamboo = rayon would be whether or not it is the exact same process (which I suppose it would be, I just hadn't given it much thought before).

 

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Jasonda

Quote: Originally Posted by Solmu So, yes, you can "take just any fiber and put it through the exact same process, and say that it is "rayon".", provided the any fibre is cellulose.

Maybe you're right, but even though I have my doubts about that, I can't find any solid evidence for or against it. It would be nice to see some sort of technical document which shows that bamboo fabric, wood pulp rayon, modal (made from cellulose from beech trees), and lyocell (Tencel) are all different (or the same) and why.

It's been a nice debate, but I can't think of any reasonable way to continue it without getting some fiber manufacturing experts to testify.

 

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Ross B