clothing fabrics

I've made shirts and pants from Supplex. Yeah, very mosquito proof. And sun proof. And it doesn't absorb too much water so dries out pretty quickly. And it has a "cottony" feel – nice against the skin.

I get it from owfinc.com or the local fabric store, The Mill End store. I'm sure Quest is good to. I've bought other stuff from them.

There's 2-ply and 4-ply – the 4-ply is a little heavier so would be more durable, but weigh more. I usually get 2-ply or I just get either. 2-ply maybe 3 oz/yd2, 4-ply 4 oz/yd2.

I see ready-made clothing with fabric that is similar to supplex, but they don't name it. I think it's sort of generic.

owfinc.com – 2 ply is 3.4 oz/yd2, 4 ply is 4.4 oz/yd2

questoutfitters.com – Supplex is 3.4 to 4 oz/yd2 – doesn't talk about 2 or 4 ply

I would prefer 3.4 oz/yd2, but if I had to do 4 or 4.4 oz/yd2 to get the color I wanted or availibility, I'de do that.

Shirt or pants are about 1 yd2, so it would be an extra ounce at most.

Jerry, thanks for the reply. Good to know the material is skeeter proof. Color to me is not that big a deal but I usually like something a little lighter in the sun. The supplex seems to be very reasonably priced so I will have a go at it with the lighter material and if the pants are not quite durable I will try the heavier material.

What did you use for patterns for your shirts and pants. I just need a place to start. I was planning to tear down a bargain bin pair of pants/shirt that fits nice for a pattern.

Still interested in a 4 way stretch material for pants if someone has experience with a particular fabric. I tried some Prana stretch Zion pants on a while ago but didn't like the pants as much as I thought the fabric might be nice but it was a bit on the heavy side.

jimmyb

Roger and I both wrote articles how to make pants. I forget if I've done a shirt. Unfortunately you have to be a "M" person.

I just made a pattern by ripping apart a pair of pants I had. Then, it didn't fit right on my rear so I modified it until I got a good pattern. Buying a pattern is avoiding part of the fun of doing a MYOG project.

thru-hiker.com has some articles

quest has some patterns

It's really cheap at Rockywoods.com and they are doing free shipping through the 27th.

Text from email I got from Rockywoods.com :

FREE SHIPPING–THIS WEEKEND ONLY

Now through Sunday July 27th get free shipping via US Priority Mail on any item that we can ship through USPS Priority Mail. To get the Free Shipping promotion choose USPS Priority Mail as your delivery method and use promotion code FREESHIPPING0725.

The Fine Print
The customer must have an address that can be delivered to by the US Postal Service. Promotion limited to 48 contiguous states plus APO and FPO addresses. There is no limit to the number of orders a customer may place and receive Free Shipping under this promotion. There is no discount for orders that are not shipped via US Priority Mail. Rockywoods reserves the right to ship via other methods at our sole discretion under the Free Shipping Promotion. Free shipping does not apply to any Bargain Box or any item that cannot be shipped through US Priority Mail such as a roll of 18oz vinyl.

Thanks AndE, appreciate the tip. Great timing.

jimmyb