Poplin Weave Not Cutting It In Humid Weather?
So I bought this Uniqlo U oversized shirt in cream thinking it would be a gread addition in my collection. Seeing as how it passes the light test for breathability and it's in a poplin weave, I'd assume it would be great in my very humid country. Turns out, even in cooler weather, I end up sweating in it a lot!
Am I missing something regarding poplin or is it not really a good weave for humid weather?
13 Replies
Voile will wear cooler. Linen wears cooler than cotton, possibly even voile depending on the specific details. Certainly cotton poplin can be okay but at some point it doesn't keep up with the heat index.
Ohhh
What's voile?
I also experience that poplin makes me sweat faster than even some oxford cottons. I guess it is because it is quite tightly woven and does not have a lot of texture.
Thought I was the only one. Wait, what about texture that makes something breathable?
Tightly woven vs loose weave means different amounts of airflow. Check out what the weaves look like in google. Voile, poplin, oxford cloth, wtc
Uniqlo U shirts make me sweat even in winter
some weaves let more air in than others, either through the structure or density of the weave. there are oxford cloth shirts out there that feel practically like canvas or denim, and oxford cloths that feel light and airy. Poplins, although “light” in the sense that they’re not heavy, are generally densely woven (think of high count vs low count bed sheets) and so may not be breathable despite their weight
Voile is indeed very light but is also usually sheer, which you may or may not be comfortable with. I highly recommend a seersucker or madras shirt if you can find one, they are visually interesting and among the breeziest fabrics for warm humid weather. Seersucker essentially has a sort of waffled, puckered weave that promotes moisture wicking, good madras is usually made from soft cotton that feels like wearing tissue paper in a good way. chambrays or plain weave cottons in general are also a solid bet, but it’s best to try on if you can as the weight of the fabric can vary
Interesting. What shirts do you have from them?
I LOVE seersucker! Yeah I'm definitely getting more seersucker in this case. Ever got to try seersucker in humid weather?
So any way one can tell if the shirt would be breathable aside from just trying it on (the air conditioning in malls may not reflect the breathability as much)? The poplin shirt passed the "light test" so it's not a reliable way to determin its breathability
Yeah I’ve worn my seersucker shirt in like 90 degree super humid weather it does a good job
It sounds stupid but you might want to walk in circles in the dressing room and see if you can actually feel airflow through the fabric of the shirt. Poplin might feel light but doesn’t let air pass through
Really good warm weather fabrics like seersucker or madras will actively make you feel cooler just by putting them on
Just this guy: https://www.uniqlo.com/us/en/products/E422992-000/00?colorDisplayCode=37&sizeDisplayCode=003
UNIQLO
U Crew Neck Short-Sleeve T-Shirt | UNIQLO US
Heavyweight fabric gains character the more you wear it. Flattering roomy fit.
Linen is the obvious hot weather dress shirt, as long as you find wrinkling to not be too off-putting.
It's pretty thick which also has it's upsides. Maybe the airsim variant would work better for you
I second the AIRism variant. Wore it during a hot summer, was freezing when I went in a mall lol.