Fabrics & Materials
Singles (Yarn Count)
Singles is the yarn-count system where a higher number, like 30/1, means finer, thinner yarn, and a lower number, like 18/1, means thicker, coarser yarn.
Singles count measures how many 840-yard hanks of cotton yarn it takes to weigh one pound. A 30/1 single is fine, thin yarn — it takes 30 hanks to hit that pound — while an 18/1 single is coarse and thick, needing only 18 hanks. Twist two singles together and you get a ply yarn, written as a fraction like 20/2, but the raw singles number is what most spec sheets quote for a knit's base yarn.
On the floor, this one number tells you a lot before you even touch the blank. The Bella+Canvas 3001 spins around 30 singles combed and ringspun for that soft, lightweight 4.2 oz hand buyers expect from a fashion tee, while heavier workwear tees and some fleece base fabrics drop to 18s or 20s for durability over drape. We've had customers order a "soft, thin tee" straight off a lifestyle photo and get back a boxy 18-singles blank because nobody read the yarn-count line on the spec sheet.
For fashion tees, drapey left-chest prints, and anything meant to feel premium against the skin, look for 30 singles or higher. For hoodies, workwear, and heavy screen-printed team gear, 18s to 20s singles hold up to abuse and are often the better structural choice, not a downgrade.
A frequent mix-up is treating singles count like bedsheet thread count — it isn't the same measurement, and a 30/1 garment isn't automatically softer than an 18/1 one if the finishing, knit gauge, or fiber blend differ. Singles only describes the yarn; the fabric it becomes still depends on how it's knit and finished.