Fabric Types - Zed Pet Apparel
When making my pet range, to have a variety of different designs, I use a number of different fabric bases, these are listed in brackets next to the name of the fabric. Each Fabric type corresponds to a heading in bold below.
Alpine Fleece
Alpine fleece is a super warm fleece made of 65% Polyester, 30% Cotton and 5% Elastane. This fabric is double sided and has a smooth tracksuit-like outside and a soft and fluffy inside. With its cotton content, this fabric is better for dogs that are sensitive to static as it is less staticky that 100% polyester fabrics. The elastane content makes this fabric stretchy. This fabric is exceptionally warm, I do not recommend it for dogs in hot climates.
Bonded Polar Fleece
This fabric is made from 100% Polyester and is comprised of 2 fabrics, a regular polar fleece that is heat bonded to a fluffy fleece making it very warm. The outside is smooth and the inside is super soft and fluffy. This fabric very warm, warmer than the alpine fleece, I do not recommend it for dogs in hot climates.
Burnout Fleece
This fabric is a warm fabric made from 100% polyester and is soft and fluffy on both sides. Rather than the print being dyed into the fabric like coral fleece, these fabrics go through a process called Devore where the print is “burnt” into the fabric.
Coral Fleece
This fabric is a warm fabric made from 100% polyester and is soft and fluffy on both sides. The print is dyed into the fabric, which is the only difference between coral fleece and burnout fleece
Deluxe Velour Fleece (DVF)
This fabric is made from 95% Polyester and 5% Elastane and is double sided, the outside is amazingly soft and smooth while the inside has a knitted texture. Although thinner than most fleeces, this fabric is just as warm as most fleece due to how tightly knitted it is and the high GSM (grams per square meter). Given the elastane content, this fabric is stretchy and is great for dogs that are active in their onesies as it has a similar stretch factor to leggings. Please note that new variants of this fabric that have been added in 2023 (daisies, Strawberries, tie dye swirls, Space - Blue) are not as soft as the deluxe velour fleece from previous years however, they have far better structural integrity and work far better for onesies than deluxe velour fleece from previous years.
French Terry
This fabric is a lighter winter fabric made from 100% Cotton. As a natural fibre, cotton is great for dogs that are sensitive to static as natural fabrics produce little to no static whereas synthetic fabrics like polyester do. This fabric is warmer and thicker than cotton lycra and is often used in pj pants and light jackets. This fabric is great for dogs that live in warmer environments but still get cold in winter or for fluffy dogs that need a little extra warmth in cold climates.
Husky Fleece
This fabric is made from 100% polyester and is smooth on one side and “husky” on the other. Although this is generally the warmest and thickest kind of polar fleece, that is not always the case as some fleeces may have higher GSM than others and are therefore thicker. This fabric is great for short haired dogs that feel the cold.
In my plain colours of husky fleece, Black, Grey, Pink and Purple have higher GSM than most of the other solid colours, however I also have Black, Pink and Purple in the lower GSM husky fleece. The Husky fleeces that have the higher GSM will be renamed to Alpine fleece to avoid confusion.
Micro Fleece
This fabric is a lighter weight fleece made from 100% polyester. It is mostly smooth on both sides. This fabric is great for short haired dogs in warmer environments or long haired dogs in cooler environments that need something a little warmer than French terry.
Micro Polar Fleece
This fabric is a medium weight fleece made from 100% polyester. It has a slightly “husky” feeling on the outside and is smooth on the inside. The warmth is in between husky fleece and standard micro fleece. This fabric is great for short haired dogs in warmer environments or long haired dogs in cooler environments that need something a little warmer than micro fleece.
Minky
This fabric is made from 100% Polyester and is similar in feel to deluxe velour fleece but doesn’t have any stretch. The outside is amazingly soft and smooth while the inside has a knitted texture. Although thinner than most fleeces, this fabric is just as warm as most fleece due to how tightly knitted it is and the high GSM (grams per square meter).
Nursery Fleece
This fleece is the thinnest kind of fleece available and is made from 100% polyester. Nursery fleece is super soft and is the only fleece that is water wicking rather than water resistant. It is not recommended that dogs wear onesies made from this fabric outside as any moisture or dew will soak through almost instantly, all other fleeces require a substantial amount of water before they begin to soak through. This is a great fabric for light weight winter onesies for long haired dogs in cold environments or short haired dogs in warmer environments.
Polar Fleece
This fabric is made from 100% Polyester and is slightly lighter than husky fleece. It is smooth on both sides and looks identical on both sides. This fabric is great for short haired dogs that feel the cold.
Sherpa
This fabric is often known as Faux Fur and is made from 100% polyester. Sherpa is super warm and is super fluffy on the outside, with a knitted texture on the inside. Sherpa is great as a lining for soft shell/raincoats for dogs in cold environments as it is super warm. The type of sherpa used for lining raincoats and the type used on the outer of winter coats are two different kinds. The sherpa for raincoats is much thicker and warmer and has a higher GSM, the Sherpa used on the outer of winter coats is slightly thinner but is super snuggly. Although cobblers pegs stick to all fabrics, sherpa is particularly bad as they are difficult to remove due to the fluffy nature of the fabric.
Soft Shell Fleece
This fabric is similar to what is used in ski jackets and is mostly 100% Polyester, however some of my soft shells have a 5% spandex content. This fabric has a plasticky outer that is heat bonded to a smooth fleece. This fabric is great for raincoats, wind breakers and snow coats as it is water and wind resistant.
Sports Active Fleece
This fabric is 100% Polyester and is the kind of fabric used in tracksuit pants. It has a smooth knitted outer with a soft and slightly fluffy inner. It is similar in warmth to polar fleece and husky fleece.