It Starts With the Fabric
We make our shirts from long-staple Giza cotton, specifically Giza 94 & 95, two of the named cotton varieties grown in Egypt's Nile Delta.
"Giza" isn't a marketing term, it's the official naming system for Egyptian cotton, indicative of the spec. Most proclaimed "Egyptian cotton" sold is neither Egyptian nor real Giza. Ours is, hand-picked in the Nile Delta and authenticated by the Cotton Egypt Association, sourced directly from our partner farms.
How the fabrics compare.
Tap a column to isolate it against Giza · → scroll
| Organic Giza Cotton | Polyester | Poly-cotton | Standard cotton | Bamboo | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fiber | Natural, 32-38mm | Plastic, petroleum | Plastic + cotton | Natural, 22-27mm | Rayon, from pulp |
| Bundle strength | 32-50 g/tex | n/a (filament) | Low at cotton | 20-25 g/tex | Weak when wet |
| Made how | Spun from long fiber | Melt-spun petroleum | Plastic blended w/ cotton | Spun from short fiber | Pulp cooked in carbon disulfide, lye, acid |
| Initial Hand Feel | Soft, smooth | Slick, synthetic | Average | Stiff until washed | Soft, silky |
| After 50 washes | Softer, holds shape | Pills, holds odor | Pills at the cotton | Pills, fuzzes, thins | Weakens, thins |
| Breathable | Yes | No | Partly | Yes | Yes |
| Holds odor | No | Up to 3× more | More | Low | Low |
| Microplastics shedding | No | Every wash | Every wash | No | No |
| Raw fiber cost | $$$$$ | $ | $$ | $ | $$$ |
- Longer fiber, fewer flaws
- Giza runs 32-38mm, up to 73% longer that standard cotton. Longer fiber means fewer loose ends to prevent pilling and fuzz, and stronger fibers so it won't thin out.
- Standard Cotton vs. Giza Cotton
- Standard cotton often relies on chemical treatments for softness, but once those treatments fade, the difference is clear.
- Polyester is plastic
- A synthetic fiber derived from petroleum. It sheds microplastic fibers during washing, which researchers have detected in human blood, brain, and reproductive tissues.
- The Cost of High-Grade Cotton
- Giza cotton costs up to 5X more than standard cotton, polyester, or bamboo. Other brands spend less on the material & more trying to convince you it's premium.
Staple length is the number that decides everything.
Staple length is the length of a single cotton fiber, the most important factor in how a shirt feels and how long it lasts.
Drag the thumb. Shorter staple gives weaker yarn, more short-fiber waste, higher pill risk. Our Giza runs 32-38mm. Staple, bundle strength & short-fiber index per Egypt Cotton Research Institute / USDA HVI classing.
- Giza fiber: 32-38mm. Commodity cotton: 22-27mm. Up to 73% longer, hand-picked to keep it intact.
- Longer fibers need less twist to hold together, so the yarn is softer, smoother, and less susceptible to pilling.
Why Giza is scarce.
Giza cotton grows only in the Nile Delta, silt-rich soil, around 200 sunny days a year, humidity that lets the fiber reach full length without breaking. It yields less per acre and is hand-harvested, so it costs several times commodity cotton.
Polyester is plastic, worn against your skin.
- Microplastics. Up to ~496,000 microfibers shed per wash. Microplastics are now detected in human blood, arteries, and reproductive tissue. "Recycled" polyester sheds 55% more.
- Heat & charge. It traps heat against the body and builds static, both shown to disrupt the testicular environment in the same clinical work.
- Odor. Its lipophilic surface soaks up sebum and feeds odor-causing Micrococci that water can't rinse out, "permastink" by design.
We don't use polyester. Ever. Not recycled, not as a blend.
Every stage, and the standard behind it.
Nile Delta farms
No synthetic pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, or GMO seed.
Long-staple yarn
Selected for softness and strength before it's ever knit.
To our spec
No toxins or harmful dyes. No chlorine bleach, no banned chemicals.
Built to last
Treated to resist pilling and hold its feel through washing.
Organic vs conventional cotton LCA per Textile Exchange. Conventional cotton accounts for ~16% of global insecticide use; ours, none.
Behind the "organic" label
Our fabric is produced in accordance with the strictest organic textile standards. Our partner fabric supplier is certified, audited, and adheres to that strict standard across the fabric, fiber, yarn, knit, dye, and finishing process.
- Premium organic grade cotton requires a minimum of 95% certified organic fiber which we maintain.
- No banned chemicals, formaldehyde, azo dyes, heavy metals, chlorine bleach.
Our cut-and-sew work is done by independent local facilities that we trust & that employ skilled craftsmanship required for our quality standards.
The Science behind the Stretch
Elastane functions only to provide 4-way stretch and shape recovery, so the shirt doesn't bag at the knees and elbows. It's spun into the core of the yarn and wrapped in cotton, so it never touches your skin, the feel, breathability, and softness are 100% from the cotton.
The 95/5 split is the exact threshold allowable to maintain the highest grade "organic fabric" designation under organic textile standards. At 5%, we believe that is the perfect threshold to maintain flexibility & wearability while retaining the fabric's natural feel.
GOTS "organic" label grade requires ≥95% certified organic fibre; elastane permitted, virgin polyester and acrylic prohibited. GOTS Version 8.0 (1 March 2026), global-standard.org.
Read the spec. Then feel it.
Every claim here is on every shirt we make.
Shop the Collection →
Fiber length & yarn strength: Textile School; cottongins.org (2026); AATCC; J. Cotton Research. · Giza 94/95 classification: Egypt Cotton Research Institute; USDA FAS. · Polyester odor: Callewaert et al., Applied & Environmental Microbiology, 2014; McQueen 2007. · Microplastics in tissue: University of New Mexico, Nature Medicine 2025; Toxicological Sciences 2024. · Recycled polyester: Changing Markets Foundation, 2025 (Çukurova University). · Bamboo / FTC: US FTC textile labeling enforcement. · GOTS: Global Organic Textile Standard v8.0.