Apparel suppliers at PRINTING United Expo, held in Orlando from Oct. 22 to 24, weren’t reinventing the blank at this year’s show. For the most part, the fabrics, colors and silhouettes that have been trending the last few years continue to have their moment in the sun. However, suppliers added a few twists to tried-and-true styles to keep things interesting. Here are three of the biggest trends from the show floor.

Oversized Comfort

Relaxed fits continue to be popular in tees and fleece, evident in this hoodie style from Stanley/Stella (asi/89011).

Heavyweight fabrics in relaxed silhouettes, often with a drop shoulder, continue to be hot sellers in T-shirts and fleece, according to apparel suppliers. “Without question, it continues to get bigger and wider and boxier,” said Jeremy Morillo of sustainability-focused supplier Stanley/Stella (asi/89011).

What’s been evolving, though, is the hand feel of these heavyweight garments – with a movement toward more softness, without sacrificing the sturdiness that a thicker fabric brings. “With streetwear, a lot of brands went really rough,” said Milissa Gibson, sales director of Lane Seven Apparel (asi/66246). “What you’re seeing now is a return to softness.”

Garment Dye

BELLA+CANVAS (asi/39590) was highlighting its Washed Collection, a premium spin on the garment-dye trend.

Garment dye and other wash treatments that give apparel a lived-in, vintage look has been one of the biggest apparel stories of late, with several suppliers introducing custom color programs with low minimums in the last year or two. With garment dye, color is applied after a garment is fully constructed, as opposed to traditional fabric dyeing done before apparel is cut and sewn. The process enables unique, often softer color variations due to how the dyes interact with the fabric seams and structure.

The garment-dye trend was still going strong at PRINTING United Expo, with several apparel suppliers showcasing their version of the technique. San Ferdinand, sales and marketing director for BELLA+CANVAS (asi/39590) in the U.K. and Europe, highlighted the supplier’s new Washed Collection, which comes in 28 garment-dyed colors and features a soft hand feel. “The colors are quite muted and tonal, which is super luxurious, super retail,” she said.

A New Twist on a Familiar Favorite

For some apparel suppliers, it was all about putting a fresh spin on a tried-and-true classic. Next Level Apparel (asi/73867), for example, used its popular CVC T-shirt fabric to create a lightweight hoodie. CVC fabric is a blend of 60% combed ringspun cotton and 40% polyester jersey, and the supplier’s 6210 T-shirt using the fabric is its top-selling style, thanks to a retail cut, soft hand feel and breathable fabric.

“Everyone’s familiar with our CVC fabric,” said Spencer Blair, national team account manager at Next Level. “What we wanted to do is take our bestselling fabric and combine it with a popular style.”

The CVC long-sleeve hoodie features a relaxed fit, comes in 10 colors and works well as a layering piece. “It’s really popular in the surf market,” Blair added.

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