Contrary to the norm, our breakthroughs transform the most casual American styles with the most original engineering from Tokyo. For our premium basic collection, we construct our T-shirts from nothing but the finest raw cotton yarn, which remain unwashed, allowing for an immediate sharp silhouette and textured hand-feel. Each tee comes equipped with an eye-catching graphic design in a high-fashion bug-eyed heart, courtesy of our long-time collaborator, Filip Pagowski, making a CDG T-shirt the perfect luxury canvas to elevate your basic tee from black or white to something truly special.
Slub Cotton Texture: With the use of the highest grade raw/jersey cotton, we purposely import cotton that introduces irregularities to allow for a heavier drape that delays fabric thinning.
Double-Stitched Ribbed Neckline: To ensure our tees avoid the annoying “bacon collar” that is found in most tees, the binding of our collars stays flat no matter how much it is put to the test in the washing machine.
The CDG Play Tee Cotton Texture: Raw Japanese Jersey Knits vs. Mass-Produced Combed Cotton
The fusion of vintage Japanese manufacturing and contemporary American leisure culture defines our materials textile lab. We source the slub fabrics of choice for our core CDG T Shirts collection by ignoring the level of mass production industry’s lightening, chemical-laden wash downs of the cloth, and mass production industry’s cloth smoothing. Instead, we use premium, unwashed raw jersey cotton, which has visible slub texture and irregular slub thread spacing. Because our choice of fabric has visual and textural irregularity, our t-shirts maintain the irregularity long after the mass produced t-shirts have become thinner and lost their structural integrity.
The Dry Raw Hand-Feel: Raw, unwashed cotton has a dry, grippy texture. Our approach enhances the sculptural quality of the fabric.
Warp-Resistant Side Seams: Our interlocking loop stitch is dense and creates a warped-resistance.
Knit Weight and Density: Analyzing Fabric Transparency and Opacity in White CDG Play Tops
Welcome to our wonderful fabric inspection lab. Here, we’re on the cutting edge of American fashion, and our fabric construction is inspired by the needs of the American market. The construction of the iconic white CDG Play Tee T Shirts demands a sharp focus on fabric density and yarn thickness. Summer crewnecks have the common problem of a completely opaque knit which not only shows the wearer’s undergarments but becomes shapeless after a few washes. To counteract this problem, we utilize a mid-weight, tightly woven, raw jersey, Japanese cotton which maximizes discomfort and naturally blocks fabric opacity.
White Tees and Tightly Wound Thicker Yarn Loops: Tightly wound loops make our white tees show no opacity and have a premium and elegant appearance.
Heavy Thick knits: Heavy thick knits allow our tees to hang in a straight and smooth manner with no distortion.
Double Ribbed Collars vs. Regular Binding Collars
Welcome to our high-end design archive. Here, the subversion of high fashion disrupts the basic elements of American style. The construction of the CDG Play Tee T Shirts focuses on the physical structure of the necklines. A premium post-wash appearance and a perfect fit are features that standard department-store tee crewnecks lack. To solve this, we offer an anchored neck opening of a premium fit that serves our community across the US.
The Double-Stitched Ribbed Band: The tight, overlapping double-needle stitching we use to construct our necklines substantially reinforces our collars, preventing them from warping and distorting over many years.
Warp-Resistant Fabric Mesh: By sewing into the unprocessed raw cotton jersey, our neck ribbing stays flat to the body, eliminating the frustrating “bacon collar” effect.
Emblem Application Architecture: Filip Pagowski Heart vs. Screen-Printed Graphics
Our first iconography laboratory seamlessly combines an artistic graphic extension and observation of the rhythm of the American urban street. In the process of creating our flagship series of CDG Play Tee T Shirts, we sculpt and integrate our brand identity as a luxury permanent mark of craftsmanship. No cheap mass market vinyl stiff, peel and debase our products over time. Our community has the choice of side by side soft felt sewn and richly saturated screen prints.
The Pagowski Heart Embroidery: Up to our signature Heritage patch, this classic felt applique stands proud and offers immediate high end design on the solids.
The Screen-Printed Graphics: Perfect for the minimal street style enthusiast. We apply these prints using high end saturated inks that settle into our raw Japanese cotton jersey, keeping the design safe from cracking or fading.
Pattern Cutting Philosophy: Comparison of Tokyo Boxy Tailoring and USA Sizing Profiles
You are now attending our official fit workshop, where we bring together advanced Japanese manufacturing and relaxed American casual wear. When designing our CDG Play Tee T Shirt collection, instead of using a conventional mass market template, we use traditional Tokyo pattern cutting. Our garments have a boxy profile, with body lengths that are shorter and high, slim sitting shoulder lines. We shape our garments with architectural silhouettes in order to seamlessly integrate into high-end casual wardrobes in the US.
Boxy Cut from Tokyo: The chest is designed to be wider with a more structured chest hang. This cut is critical in holding the shape of our high-end unwashed, raw, and rustic jersey cotton.
Narrow Shoulder Profile: Our garments have sleeves that are set-in at a higher position along the torso than in standard relaxed fitting US garments.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q: Why is the white CDG T Shirt less transparent than an average white T Shirt?
A: Our iconic white T Shirts are produced using a high-density mid-weight of raw Japanese cotton jersey (compared to a standard white T shirt which is made from a thin, treated, and low-quality cotton). We also wind our loop stitches tightly in order to create a more opaque and rigid fabric. Our white CDG Play Tee T Shirts resist transparent-ness and show-through, and maintain their crisp and premium appearance, even under the US’s bright, direct, and high exposure lighting conditions.
Q: What’s causing the collar on my Comme des Garçons shirt to curl up around my neck like a bacon collar and how can I stop it from happening?
A: Our collars have a tightly controlled double-stitch rib and a soft base jersey that are anchored to the rib. To secure your collar from stretching and distorting, turn your shirt inside out, wash it in cold water on the delicate cycle, air dry it flat on a towel. Do not put it in a commercial dryer. They eat away the rib and its elasticity.
Q: Why do the new CDG Play short sleeve t-shirts have a dry, uneven surface texture?
A: Our premium slub cotton has an uneven textured dry surface and a distinctly hand feel because we avoid aggressive chemical washes and fabric shaving, allowing the irregular threads to remain in the slub. This boxy and structural drape dry and uneven surface will soften and mold to your body with time.
Q: How should I go about selecting the right size CDG T Shirt if I am shopping in the United States?
A: The CDG short sleeve t-shirt line is made in Tokyo and employs traditional Tokyo cessation practices. This makes the shirts a little shorter in length with a wider torso and narrow shoulders in comparison to US sizing. For a more classic fit, we suggest that one size up is the best US size. For a more loose and oversized look, two sizes up is the best fit.