GB2495982A

GB2495982A - A fabric

Info

Publication number: GB2495982A
Application number: GB1118646.7A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Katharine Giles
Original assignee: JKUK SPORTS Ltd
Current assignee: JKUK SPORTS Ltd
Priority date: 2011-10-27
Filing date: 2011-10-27
Publication date: 2013-05-01
Anticipated expiration: 2031-10-27
Also published as: GB2495982B; GB201118646D0

Abstract

A fabric for a garment is made from three yarns, one being a blend of bamboo charcoal and a polymer, the second having hollow fibres comprising a polymer, and the third comprising spandex. The fabric has deodorising and UV absorbing properties, because of the bamboo charcoal, and yet may be relatively breathable and quick drying, and have acceptable texture and comfort for the wearer. The spandex allows elastic deformation before any tearing or ripping occurs. The fabric may be used for a sports garment such as a running top.

Description

A FABRIC

The present invention relates to fabrics suitable for use in garments.

J\ wide variety of fabrics are used in garments. The choice of fabric for a particular garment depends on the type and purpose of that garment, i.e. how and/or when and/or where the garment will be worn. For example, the desirable properties of a fabric for use in socks may be very different to the desirable properties of a fabric for use in a coat.

For many types of garments, for example sports garments such as running tops or garments intended to act as base-layers, it is desirable that the fabric of the garment is breathable, so that the fabric allows is ventilation through the garment. This may facilitate temperature regulation of a person wearing the garment. It is also desirable that the fabric of the garment dries quickly, so that it absorbs and disperses sweat quickly.

This may result in the person wearing the garment remaining dry and comfortable even when performing strenuous exercise that causes substantial sweating or perspiration, such as playing sports.

It is known that-a fabric comprising bamboo charcoal particles (i.e. particles of carbonised bamboo) blended with polyester has the advantages of being relatively breathable and relatively quick drying, e.g. compared to a fabric made solely of standard polyester. The highly porous nature of bamboo charcoal means that a yarn made from fibres comprising bamboo particles blended with polyester has various micro-gaps and micro-holes. The micro-gaps and micro-holes increase the extent of ventilation through the fabric, thus making the fabric more breathable relative to a fabric made of standard polyester.

The micro-gaps and micro-holes also lead to a significantly increased surface area of the fabric relative to a fabric made solely of standard polyester. As the surface area of the fabric is increased, there is more surface area available to wick and disperse moisture, e.g. sweat, from a person wearing a garment made with the fabric. Thus, the drying time of the fabric may be reduced relative to the drying time of a fabric made solely of standard polyester.

A fabric comprising bamboo charcoal particles blended with polyester is known to have various other advantageous properties that make it a suitable choice of fabric for many types of garment. The porous structure of the bamboo charcoal particles means that they may act as a filter to absorb and decompose odour-causing molecules, such as those released in sweat. The fabric may therefore have de-odorising properties. The size, structure and colour of the bamboo charcoal particles means that they absorb UV rays. The fabric may therefore protect a person wearing a garment made from the fabric from exposure to harmful UV radiation. As the bamboo charcoal particles are embedded in the fabric, rather than, for example, being simply coated on the surface of the fabric, the effectiveness of the fabric may not diminish significantly with washing of the fabric.

As bamboo is widely considered to be a sustainable resource, for example because it does not require replanting after harvesting and grows rapidly, reaching maturity in 4 years or less, the resulting fabric is more green' and environmentally friendly than similar products made with e.g. standard charcoal produced from wood.

At its most general, the present invention provides a fabric having a yarn made from a blend of bamboo charcoal and a polymer, a yarn made from hollow polymer fibres and a yarn made from spandex.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there may be provided a fabric for garments, the fabric having: a first yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and a polymer, a second yarn having hollow fibres comprising a polymer, and a third yarn comprising spandex.

Spandex is the generic name for a group of fibres made of different types of polyurethane. An alternative name for spandex in some countries is elastane. The terms spandex' and elastane' are interchangeable in this application. The International Bureau for the Standardization of Man-Made Fibres defines elastane as having the distinguishing attribute that "the fibres are composed of at least 85% by mass of a segmented polyurethane and which, if stretched to three times its un- stretched length, rapidly reverts substantially to the un-stretched length when the tension is removed". The term spandex' is used in this application to mean any elastic material composed of at least 85% by mass of polyurethane.

As the fabric has a first yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal (i.e. carbonised bamboo) and a polymer, the fabric may have some or all of the advantageous properties discussed above in relation to known fabrics having a yarn comprising a bland of bamboo charcoal and polyester. In particular, the fabric may be relatively breathable and allow ventilation through a garment made of the fabric, it may be relatively quick drying, it may have anti-odour properties, it may provide protection from UV radiation and it may be relatively environmentally friendly.

The inclusion in the fabric of a second yarn having hollow fibres comprising a polymer may improve the texture of the fabric relative to known fabrics having only a single yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester. For example, the fabric may have the texture and comfort (e.g. softness) for a person wearing the fabric of a cotton or a wool fabric.

s the second yarn has hollow polymer fibres, i.e. each of the fibres of the second yarn has one or more channels running along the length of the fibre and enclosed within the fibre, the oross-secticn of the resulting yarn is multi-channel in nature. The hollow fibres create a large number and volume of air pockets in the second yarn.

Thus, the resulting fabric is made significantly more breathable, i.e. ventilation through the fabric is significantly increased, relative to known fabrics having only a single yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester.

The hollow fibres of the second yarn may also enable moisture to be transported away from the skin of a person wearing a garment made from the fabric more quickly and effectively than known fabrics having only a single yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester. Thus, a person wearing a garment made from the fabric may remain relatively dry and comfortable even when performing strenuous exercise that causes sweating. The hollow fibres of the second yarn may significantly increase the surface area of the fabric relative to an equivalent fabric made with a yarn having non-hollow fibres. Thus, there may be a significant increase in the surface area of the fabric available to wick and disperse moisture away from a person wearing a garment made from the fabric. The fabric according to the first aspect of the invention may therefore have advantageous quick-dry' properties. Unlike some known fabrics, where a quick-dry' property may be achieved by adding a chemical additive to the fabric which may eventually wash out with repeated washing of the fabric, the quick-dry' properties of the fabric according to the first aspect of the invention are effectively permanent, as the hollow fibres are built into the second yarn and thus may not wash-out.

As the polymer fibres of the second yarn are hollow, the weight of the second yarn is significantly reduced relative to a regular (i.e. non-hollow) polymer yarn. For example, a weight reduction of 25% may be achieved relative to a regular polymer yarn when the polymer fibres have four channels running along their length. Thus, the texture and quick-dry properties of the fabric nay be improved without significantly increasing the weight of the fabric relative to known fabrics having a yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester.

The third yarn comprising spandex, i.e. a yarn made from fibres of spandex, may increase the elasticity of the fabric. Thus, the fabric may be able to deform elastically under load before substantial damage or failure, e.g. tearing or ripping, of the fabric occurs. As such, the durability of the fabric, i.e. the amount of wear and tear that the fabric can experience before significant damage to the fabric occurs, may be increased relative to a similar fabric that does not include spandex.

The fabric according to the first aspect of the invention may have any one, or to the extent that they are compatible, any combination of the following optional features.

Each hollow fibre of the second yarn may have a plurality of channels running through the fibre. That is, each of the fibres of the second yarn may have more than one channel running along the length of the fibre and enclosed within the fibre. Thus, the surface area of the fibres, and therefore the surface area of a fabric made from a yarn including the fibres, may be increased relative to fibres having only a single channel therein. As discussed above, increasing the surface area of the fabric means that a greater surface area of the fabric may be available to wick and disperse moisture away from a person wearing a garment made from the fabric. Thus, providing fibres having a plurality of channels running through the fibre may improve the quick-dry' properties of the resulting fabric.

Each of the hollow fibres of the second yarn may have is four channels running through the fibre. Thus, the quick-drying properties of the fabric may be advantageously increased. A second yarn in which each of the fibres has four channels running through the fibre has been found to provide a good balance of breathability, softness and texture of the resultant fabric. Thus, the resultant fabric may feel to a person wearing the fabric like a natural cotton or wool fabric, but with the advantageous properties discussed above of the fabric being relatively quick drying, having anti-odour properties, providing protection from DV radiation and being relatively environmentally friendly.

The polymer of the first yarn may be polyester, i.e. the first yarn may comprise a blend of bamboo charcoal and pclyester. Thus, in addition to the advantages discussed above, the fabric may share some or all of the advantages of known materials made from a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester, e.g. it may be relatively breathable and allow ventilation through a garment made of the fabric, it may be relatively quick drying, it may have anti-odour properties, it may provide protection from UV radiation and it may be relatively environmentally friendly.

The polymer of the second yarn may be polyester, i.e. S the second yarn may have hollow fibres comprising polyester. The hollow polyester fibres may have a texture and comfort to a person wearing a fabric made from the fibres similar to that of cotton fibres, but with the advantageous quick-dry performance of polyester.

The polyester of the second yarn may be recycled polyester, i.e. the second yarn may have hollow fibres comprising recycled polyester. As recycled polyester is produced by recycling previously used polyester, for example used plastic bottles, it is a more environmentally friendly material than newly produced polyester.

Therefore, the second yarn may be an environmentally friendly material. As bamboo charcoal is also widely considered to be an environmentally friendly and sustainable material, the first yarn may also be an environmentally friendly material. As both the first and second yarns are environmentally friendly materials, the fabric according to the first aspect of the invention may be considered to be an environmentally friendly fabric, i.e. a fabric which has a minimal, or small, negative environmental impact.

By volume, the fabric may be 30% to 40% comprised of the first yarn. Increasing the proportion of the first yarn in the fabric may improve the breathability and ventilation, quick drying, anti-odour, UV protection and environmentally friendly properties of the fabric.

However, increasing the proportion of the first yarn in the fabric means that the proportions of the second and third yarns in the fabric are reduced. Reducing the proportion

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of the third yarn in the fabric may negatively affect the durability bf the fabric, as the spandex yarn adds resilience to the fabric. Reducing the proportion of the second yarn in the fabric may negatively affect the texture and the quick-dry properties of the fabric, as these properties depend on the proportion of the second yarn in the fabric. These conflicting requirements need to be balanced when determining the proportion of the fabric that is to be made up of the first yarn.

A first yarn content of the fabric, by volume, in the range of 30% to 40% has been found to provide a good balance between these conflicting requirements. A first yarn content of the fabric, by volume, of 34% has been found to provide a particularly good balance between these conflicting requirements.

The first yarn may be 95% to 99% comprised of a polymer, and 1% to 5% comprised of bamboo charcoal.

Increasing the proportion of bamboo charcoal in the first yarn may increase some or all of the breathability and ventilation, quick drying, anti-odour, (iv protection and environmentally friendly properties of the fabric. It may also make the fabric feel more soft and comfortable against the skin of a person wearing the fabric. However, increasing the proportion of bamboo charcoal in the first yarn means that the proportion of polymer in the first yarn is reduced. Thus, the mechanical properties of the first yarn, for example the durability of the first yarn, and therefore the mechanical properties of the resulting fabric, may be negatively affected. These conflicting requirements need to be balanced when determining the proportion of the first yarn that is to be made up of polymer.

A polymer content of the first yarn, by volume, in the range of 95% to 99% has been found to provide a good balance between these conflicting requirements. A polymer content of the first yarn, by volume, of 97% has been found to provide a particularly good balance between these conflicting requirements.

Preferably, by volume, the fabric is less than 15% comprised of spandex. A higher spandex content increases the elasticity of the fabric. Thus, the fabric may be more durable and a garment made from the fabric nay have a closer fit to a person wearing the garment. However, as discussed above, increasing the proportion of the fabric that is spandex means that the proportions of the fabric made up of the first and second yarns are reduced. Thus, some or all of the breathability and ventilation, quick drying, anti-odour, UV protection and environmentally friendly properties of the fabric may be negatively affected by an increase in the spandex content of the fabric. A spandex content of the fabric of less that 15% by volume has been found to provide a good balance between these conflicting requirements. Preferably, the fabric is between 2% and 10% spandex by volume. The spandex content of the fabric may be 6% by volume. This particular spandex content has been found to give a good balance between the conflicting requirements discussed above.

Preferably, by volume, the fabric is between 50% and 70% comprised of the second yarn. Increasing the proportion of the fabric that is comprised of the second yarn may improve the texture and feel of the fabric to a person wearing the fabric, and may improve the quick-drying properties of the fabric. However, increasing the proportion of the fabric that is comprised of the second yarn means that the proportions of the first and/or third yarns in the fabric are reduced. Reducing the proportion of the third yarn in the fabric may negatively affect the durability of the fabric, as the spandex yarn adds resilience to the fabric. Reducing the proportion of the first yarn in the fabric may negatively affect the breathability and ventilation, quick drying, anti-odour, UV protection and environmentally friendly properties of the fabric. These conflicting requirements need to be balanced when determining the proportion of the fabric that is to be comprised by the second yarn.

A second yarn content of the fabric in the range of 50% to 70% by volume has been found to provide a good balance between these conflicting requirements.

Preferably, the second yarn content of the fabric is between 55% and 65% by volume. The fabric may be 60% second yarn by volume. This particular second yarn content has been found to provide a good balance between the conflicting requirements discussed above.

Preferably, the second yarn is thirty count yarn (30's yarn) . This particular type of yarn has been found, for example, to have a soft and cotton-like feel. Thus, a garment made from a fabric including the yarn may be more comfortable for a person to wear. The second yarn being thirty count yarn leads to a fabric of a desirable weight, in terms of comfort and texture for a person wearing the fabric. Thus, the resulting fabric may have a cotton or wool like texture and feel. A higher count yarn would be lighter, but may be more expensive to produce and may negatively affect the technical properties of the resulting fabric, such as the mechanical strength and breathability 3D of the fabric.

Preferably, the spandex is thirty Denier spandex (30D spandex), e.g. the spandex yarn has a mass of 30 grams per 9,000 metres of the yarn. Including spandex with this particular Linear mass density in the fabric has been found to produce a fabric that is sufficiently elastic and durable without negatively affecting the breathability and ventilation, quick drying, anti-odour, UV protection and environmentally friendly properties of the fabric. The spandex being thirty Denier spandex leads to a fabric of a desirable weight, in terms of comfort and texture for a person wearing the fabric. Thus, the resulting fabric may have a cotton or wool like texture and feel. A lower Denier value would make the fabric lighter, but may be more expensive to produce and may negatively affect the technical properties of the resulting fabric, such as the mechanical strength and breathability of the fabric.

Preferably the fabric is a fabric for making sports garments, such as running tops.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there may be provided a garment having a fabric comprising: a first yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and a polymer, a second yarn having hollow fibres comprising a polymer, and a third yarn comprising spandex.

Features of the first aspect discussed above may also be applicable to the second aspect.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a table illustrating the composition of a fabric according to the present invention.

In an embodiment of the invention, as illustrated in Figure 1, a fabric for use in garments includes three different yarns. The first yarn, "yarn 1", is a yarn that is made up of fibres that are formed from a blend of bamboo charcoal particles (particles of carbonised bamboo) and polyester.

As the first yarn has fibres that are formed from a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester, the fabric including the first yarn may have some or all of the advantageous 3 properties of known fabrics made from blends of bamboo charcoal and polyester. In particular, the fabric may be relatively breathable and allow ventilation through a garment made of the fabric, it may be relatively quick drying, it may have anti-odour properties, it may provide io protection from UV radiation and it may be relatively environmentally friendly.

As illustrated in Figure 1, the fabric also includes a second yarn that is formed from hollow fibres of recycled polyester. As the second yarn is made up of hollow fibres, the second yarn has a cr055-section that is multi-channel in nature. The hollow fibres cause a large number and volume of air pockets or channels to be present in the second yarn. The presence of these air pockets means that a fabric including the second yarn may be significantly more breathable, i.e. ventilation through the fabric may be significantly increased, relative to known fabrics formed from only a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester.

The hollow fibres of the second yarn lead to a significantly increased surface area of a fabric including the second yarn relative to a fabric made from a yarn having non-hollow fibres. Therefore, there may be an increase in the surface area of the fabric available to wick and disperse moisture away from a person wearing a garment made from the fabric. The fabric may therefore be able to dry out more rapidly, i.e. it may be a quick-drying fabric. As the hollow fibres are a structural feature of the second yarn and are built into the second yarn, the quick drying properties of the fabric may be effectively permanent and may not reduce significantly with washing of the fabric.

The hollow fibres may therefore enable moisture, for example sweat, to be transported away from the skin of a S person wearing a garment made from the fabric more quickly and effectively than known fabrics having only a single yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester.

The inclusion of the second yarn in the fabric may improve the texture of the fabric and the feel of the fabric to a person wearing the fabric relative to known fabrics having only a single yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester. For example, the fabric may have the texture and comfort (e.g. softness) to a person wearing the fabric of a cotton or a wool fabric, but with the quick-dry performance of polyester.

In this embodiment, each of the hollow fibres of the second yarn has four channels running through the fibre, i.e. extending substantially along the length of the fibre and within the fibre. In other embodiments, the hollow fibres may have a different number of channels. For example, each fibre may have only a single channel or a plurality of channels. In other embodiments, the second yarn may have fibres having a range of different numbers of channels therein, e.g. not all of the fibres have the same number of channels and some of the fibres may not be hollow. The inclusion of four channels in the fibres of the second yarn may result in a weight reduction of the second yarn of up to 25% relative to an equivalent yarn made from non-hollow polymer fibres. The hollow nature of the polymer fibres may also improve the texture and feel of the fabric for a person wearing the fabric relative to known fabrics having only a single yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and polyester.

As the second yarn is made up of fibres of recycled polyester, the second yarn may be an environmentally friendly material. For example, the use of recycled polyester rather than newly produced polyester may reduce the amount of polyester that is disposed of e.g. in a landfill site or an incinerator. Using recycled polyester may reduce the amount of carbon dioxide produced in manufacturing the fabric, i.e. the carbon footprint' of the fabric may be reduced relative to using non-recycled material.

As bamboo charcoal is also considered to be a sustainable and relatively environmentally friendly material, e.g. relative to wood charcoal, the first yarn may also be an environmentally friendly material.

Therefore, a fabric made from the first and second yarns may be an environmentally friendly, or green', material.

As illustrated in Figure 1, the fabric includes a third yarn, yarn 3", which is formed from fibres of spandex, e.g. an elastic material composed of at least 85% by mass of segmented polyurethane. The inclusion of a yarn made of spandex into the fabric means that the fabric may be able to deform elastically when under load, e.g. under tension when the fabric is being stretched, before substantial damage or failure of the fabric occurs. As such, the durability of the fabric, i.e. the amount of wear and tear and the applied forces that the fabric can experience before significant damage to the fabric occurs, may be increased relative to a fabric made only from the first yarn.

When making a fabric according to the present invention, the first, second and third yarns are produced separately. The first, second and third yarns are then knitted together to make the fabric. In this embodiment, the first, second and third yarns are knitted together using a circular knitting machine with a diameter of 61 cm (24 inches) . This specific diameter of the knitting machine is chosen based on the desired weight and width of S the fabric. Of course, in other embodiments where a different weight and/or width of the fabric are required, a different diameter of knitting machine may be used to knit together the first and second yarns.

As illustrated in Figure 1, the resulting fabric has a composition, by volume, of 60% the second yarn (recycled polyester) , 34% the first yarn (bamboo charcoal and polyester) and 6% the third yarn (spandex) . In other embodiments, the composition of the fabric may be different, i.e. the same advantageous properties discussed above may be obtained by varying these amounts by e.g. plus or minus 5%.

As discussed above, the relative proportions of the first, second and third yarns in the fabric are chosen to balance a number of conflicting requirements.

Increasing the proportion of the first yarn in the fabric may improve the breathability and ventilation, quick drying, anti-odour, UV protection and environmentally friendly properties of the fabric. However, increasing the proportion of the first yarn in the fabric means that the proportions of the second and/or third yarns in the fabric are reduced.

Reducing the proportion of the third yarn in the fabric may mean that the durability of the fabric is negatively affected, i.e. because the fabric is less able to deform elastically before significant damage or failure of the fabric occurs when there is less spandex in the fabric. Reducing the proportion of the second yarn in the fabric may negatively affect the texture and the quick-dry properties of the fabric, as these properties depend on the proportion of the second yarn in the fabric. Similar considerations apply when determining the proportion of the fabric to be made up of the second and third yarns.

As discussed above, increasing the spandex content of the fabric may increase the durability of a garment made from the fabric. However, increasing the spandex content of the fabric means that the proportion of the fabric made up of the first yarn is reduced. Thus, some or all of the breathability and ventilation, quick drying, anti-odour, UV protection and environmentally friendly properties of the fabric may be negatively affected by an increase in the spandex content of the fabric.

A fabric having a composition of 34% first yarn by volume, 60% second yarn by volume and 6% third yarn by volume has been found to provide a good balance between these various conflicting requirements.

Increasing the proportion of bamboo charcoal in the first yarn may increase some or all of the breathability and ventilation, quick drying, anti-odour, UV protection and environmentally friendly properties of the fabric.

Increasing the amount of bamboo charcoal in the first yarn may also make the resulting fabric feel softer and more comfortable against the skin of a person wearing the fabric. However, increasing the amount of bamboo charcoal in the first yarn leads to a decrease in the amount of polyester in the first yarn. Thus, the durability of a fabric nade from the yarn may be significantly reduced, i.e. the fabric may snag and tear more easily and may wear out more rapidly. Increasing the proportion of bamboo charcoal in the first yarn may also make the fabric more expensive to manufacture. These conflicting requirements need to be balanced when determining the proportion of the first yarn that is made up of bamboo charcoal.

A composition of the first yarn of 97% polyester by volume and 3% bamboo charcoal by volume has been found to provide a good balance between these conflicting requirements.

In this embodiment the first yarn is thirty count yarn (30's yarn). This particular yarn size has been found to lead to a beneficial weight cf the fabric, in terms of the texture and feel of the fabric for a person wearing the fabric. Thus, the fabric may have a soft and cotton like feel. tn other embodiments, a different count of the first yarn may be used instead.

The second yarn (the spandex yarn) is thirty Denier spandex (30D spandex), e.g. the spandex yarn has a mass of 30 grams per 9,000 metres of the yarn. This particular linear density of spandex has been found to lead to a beneficial weight of the fabric, in terms of the texture and feel of the fabric for a person wearing the fabric.

Thus, the fabric may have a soft and cotton like feel.

The fabric of this embodiment is for forming part of a garment, e.g. a sports garment such as a running top.

Claims

<claim-text>CLAIMS1. A fabric for garments, the fabric having: a first yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and a polymer, a second yarn having hollow fibres comprising a polymer, and a third yarn comprising spandex.</claim-text> <claim-text>2. A fabric according to claim 1, wherein each hollow fibre of the second yarn has a plurality of channels running through the fibre.</claim-text> <claim-text>3. A fabric according to claim 1, wherein each hollow fibre of the second yarn has four channels running through the fibre.</claim-text> <claim-text>4. A fabric according to any one of the previous claims, wherein the polymer of the first yarn is polyester.</claim-text> <claim-text>5. A fabric according to any one of the previous claims, wherein the polymer of the second yarn is polyester.</claim-text> <claim-text>6. A fabric according to claim 5, wherein the polyester of the second yarn is recycled polyester.</claim-text> <claim-text>7. A fabric according to any one of the previous claims, wherein, by volume, the fabric is 30% to 40% comprised of the first yarn.</claim-text> <claim-text>8. A fabric according to any one of the previous claims, wherein, by volume, the first yarn is 95% to 99% comprised of the polymer.</claim-text> <claim-text>9. A fabric according to any one of the previous claims, wherein, by volume, the fabric is less than 15% comprised of spandex.</claim-text> <claim-text>10. A fabric according to any one of the previous claims, S wherein, by volume, the fabric is 50% to 70% comprised of the second yarn.</claim-text> <claim-text>11. A fabric according to any one of the previous claims, wherein the second yarn is 30 count yarn.</claim-text> <claim-text>12. A fabric according to any one of the previous claims, wherein the spandex is 30 Denier spandex.</claim-text> <claim-text>13. A fabric according to any one of the previous claims, wherein the fabric is a fabric for sports garments.</claim-text> <claim-text>14. A fabric for garments substantially according to any one embodiment herein described with reference to, and as illustrated in, the accompanying figure.</claim-text> <claim-text>15. A garment having a fabric comprising: a first yarn comprising a blend of bamboo charcoal and a polymer, a second yarn having hollow fibres comprising a polymer, and a third yarn comprising spandex.</claim-text>