Low-cost technical fabrics in garments sold by mass manufacturers have flooded the market, promising to keep players cool and dry just like the women’s shirts, skorts, pants and jackets made by high-end women’s golf clothing designers. Over the past few years, however, the copycats have also managed to create quite a stink, literally. And, it’s not because they have stolen the high-end designer styles.
The problem cheap technical fabrics used in copycat clothing have is that they cause their owners residual body odor in the sportswear after it is washed.
To solve the problem, women have turned to fabric softeners. The fragrance is great, and sometimes using fabric softener makes the garment wearable again, but their use causes yet another problem and often quickly ends the life of the piece. So much for the cost-savings.
The result is this warning: never use fabric softener (including dryer sheet versions) with technical fabrics. If you do, the fabric will lose elasticity and its ability to keep you cool in hot weather, and warm when the temperature drops.
The reason: oils, waxes and fragrances contained in nearly all fabric softener are designed to cling to fibers, and that diminishes the fabric’s water repellency, breathability and wicking characteristics.
“These fabrics are designed to pull moisture from your skin during periods of sweating, spreading it evenly throughout the fabric so that the sweat evaporates quicker and, ultimately, so you stay dryer when playing sports,” says Tracey Lynn Blake, designer and maker of the fashionable women’s golf apparel line, Tracey Lynn.
Many boutique women’s sportswear designers like Blake moved beyond cotton several years ago. They started the trend toward technical fabrics, which are more flattering when worn and don’t require a dryer or ironing. Blake uses technical fabrics exclusively in her line of women’s golf shirts, skorts, pants and jackets.
“The fabric softener tip and odor problem surprises people,” Blake said. She adds that when it comes to technical fabrics, “You get what you pay for.”
“If it’s thin, if you think it has any possibility of wrinkling— wind it up into a ball to test it—if it does it has the possibility of holding residual body odor.”
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