When it comes to textiles it can be fun to dabble in something exotic for a special collection or limited release.  But I actually prefer building our in-line product out of a palette of very high-quality basics that have been designed in a range of weights for versatility, but share a basic supply chain and common foundation to reduce complexity and compliment each other.  

All of Evergoods’ primary materials are woven to order for each production.  They have been custom developed for our brand to deliver exceptional performance, beauty and durability at a reasonable cost.  So, let’s take a look at what goes into textile, how we’ve chosen to handle it for Evergoods, and what you can expect to find in a finished Evergoods product.

For this post I’m going to focus on our 3 primary materials, our 210d, 420d and 840d fabrics. 

To start with, these are all wovens (as opposed to knits or non-wovens).  This simply means that they are created by intersecting sets of perpendicular yarns.  If you unroll fabric on a table, the long direction that goes around the roll is the warp direction.  All weaving starts with the warp, a series of long parallel yarns set up on a loom.  By itself, the warp is just a bunch of individual yarns all running in the same direction. 

Textile is created by running another set of yarns perpendicular to this warp, linking everything together.  This yarn is called the weft (or fill) and by weaving it back and forth between the individual warp yarns, alternating intersections over and under the warp, textile is made.  This is a fairly basic process that I’m sure you’re familiar with, but even at this stage there are an astounding number of variables involved, the first of which is the yarn.

Evergoods 210d, 420d and 840d fabrics are all made from nylon yarn.  The “d” stands for “denier” and is an old term referring to the physical weight of the yarn.  These days, I’m not sure if denier still refers to yarn weight, but in my mind and in conversation with suppliers it seems more synonymous with yarn diameter.

Basically, 840d fabric is made from yarns that are twice the size of what’s used in 420d fabric, which uses yarns that are twice the size of what’s used to make 210d fabric.  But this refers to the raw material yarn input only, depending on the weaving specifics (and a bunch of other variables) not all 420d fabrics are equal.  The weaving matters, and each of these textiles has its own weaving construction tailored to its specific application in our product lineup.

We described weaving above as a field of perpendicular yarns that intersect each other.  Depending on the frequency and regularity of these intersections many different surface patterns can be created, but Evergoods exclusively uses a 1x1 pattern, also called a plain weave, where every weft yarn goes between every warp yarn.

This is the most basic of weaving patterns and the least flashy, but also the most reliable and abrasion resistant.  We’ve chosen plain durability over fancy patterns and shapes so that our products are long-lasting and aesthetically classic.

Our 210d uses the smallest diameter yarn in our lineup and is woven extremely tightly.  This is the only one of our primary textiles that has a higher density of yarns in the warp than in the weft, specifically to achieve this tight, high-density face.  This gives the fabric a very smooth, almost impenetrable surface while remaining light weight, making it great for linings. 

The nylon for this yarn has an extra-long molecular chain (known as Nylon 6,6 or High-Tenacity Nylon), giving the material added tensile strength and abrasion resistance, making it a great fabric for outdoor pursuits where lightweight must also be durable.

In addition, the fabric is finished with an 80g polyurethane coating on the back and a silicone finish on the face making it very weather resistant for outdoor use, and smooth to the touch in lining applications where low friction aids loading and unloading.  It also has a dense and durable handfeel despite its light weight and modest drape.

The next step up in fabric is our 420d.  This is a larger diameter yarn made from a bigger bundle of the same nylon filaments as the 210d (except for black color, which is solution-dyed to reduce environmental impact).  This is also a 1x1 plain weave, but unlike the 210d the weaving is “balanced”, meaning it has the same number of yarns per inch in the warp direction and the weft direction. 

This probably doesn’t sound like a big deal, but it is more time-consuming (and hence more expensive) to weave this way.  We do it for a number of reasons that might not be obvious, but I believe are worth the cost. 

This 420d is the versatile workhorse of our brand. 

Medium weight, very durable, makes a solid shell textile, but also a suitable lining.  For weather resistance it has a 40g polyurethane coating on the back side and a C0 water repellant finish on the face that sheds water and dirt.  The fabric has a durable heft that is slightly stiff and feels good in the hand.  We could probably make everything in our product line out of our 420d and get away with it.  

We do use 420d in a lot of places, but prefer something slightly more distinctive for our CIVIC collection.  Introducing our 840d Balanced Ballistic. 

This 840d yarn is actually made by taking two 420d yarns and plying them together with a slight twist.  This twist is one of the defining characteristics of DuPont’s original Ballistic Nylon developed for the military during World War II (though in modern time there are many qualities of material being sold as “ballistic nylon”).  This twist adds cost to the textile, but also improves abrasion resistance, tensile strength and pick resistance. 

We’re also balance weaving this 840d yarn for the same aesthetic and performance reasons as the 420d.  The result is a very durable, very abrasion resistant, very attractive textile that feels burly and strong, but still refined and orderly. 

A 70g polyurethane coating on the back and a C0 water repellant finish on the face give this textile excellent weather resistance.

I’ve really enjoyed extending Evergoods design focus into raw materials.  It only makes sense to honor the time and effort that goes into our product design by using best in class materials that are as thoughtful as the designs they help to realize. 

It also gives us a high degree of control over the look and feel of the finished product and a cohesive product line that carries our DNA through and through. 

Thanks for being interested and for committing your time to reading these words. 

– Kevin Dee
EVERGOODS Design Director