Journal · The cotton
What does 250 GSM actually mean?
GSM stands for grams per square metre: the weight of one square metre of the fabric. It is the single most honest number on a garment label, because unlike fit or feel it cannot be argued with.
Where 250 sits on the scale
Most fast-fashion tees sit between 140 and 160 GSM, thin enough to see light through. A decent everyday tee runs 180 to 200. Heavyweight starts around 220, and 250 GSM sits firmly in premium heavyweight territory, the weight you feel the moment you pick the shirt up.
What the weight does
Weight is structure. A 250 GSM tee holds its shape on the hanger and on the body, keeps a collar that sits flat instead of curling, and gives an oversized box cut the body it needs to drape instead of collapse. It also takes print differently. The raised, textured artwork on our back panels needs a stable base, and thin cotton simply cannot carry it.
Is 250 GSM too hot?
Heavier, yes. Hotter than you expect, no. Cotton breathes at any weight, and a boxy cut keeps air moving because the fabric hangs off the body rather than sitting against it. In a Cape Town summer it wears like a structured tee, not a jersey. In winter it earns its keep.
How weight changes ageing
Thin tees twist at the seams, go sheer, and lose their collar within a season. Heavy combed cotton fades slowly and keeps its shape through wash after wash, provided you treat it right. Cold wash, inside out, hang dry. The full routine is on our care page.
Every piece in the collection is cut from 250 GSM combed heavyweight cotton, printed per order in Cape Town.