Spandex Fabric: the Best Elastane Fabric for Sportswear

Spandex is a synthetic fiber renowned for its exceptional elasticity. Spandex fabric can stretch to more than five times its original length while maintaining excellent recovery. This remarkable flexibility makes spandex fabric ideal for activewear, yoga apparel, bodywear, and swimwear, where comfort and freedom of movement are crucial. At JIOVANCE, we offer spandex fabrics blended with a variety of other fabrics, including nylon, polyester and etc. By adjusting the blend of these materials, we tailor spandex fabric to meet diverse design requirements and ensure it performs perfectly for different garment applications.

• Excellent Elasticity and Flexibility

Spandex fabrics offer outstanding stretch and flexibility, making them perfect for sports that require stretching and controlled movements. These spandex material fabrics allow for a wide range of motion, enabling the body to move freely and comfortably.

• Moisture-Wicking Capabilities

Known for their superior moisture-wicking properties, spandex fabrics effectively pull sweat away from the skin and evaporate it quickly. This keeps wearers feeling dry and comfortable while minimizing the risk of chafing during exercise.

• Shape Retention

Spandex fabrics are incredibly durable and retain their shape even after extensive stretching and repeated washing. This ensures that sportswear made from spandex elastane fabric continues to fit well and maintain its shape over time, making it a cost-effective choice for those who frequently wash their garments.

• Comfort and Fit

By blending spandex with other yarns, these textured spandex fabrics contour to the body, offering a snug and comfortable fit while ensuring that the clothing stays in place during physical activity.

Spandex fabric has many excellent properties as mentioned above. However, spandex rarely used as 100% of the fabric composition. Instead, it is typically woven with other synthetic, semi-synthetic, or natural fibers. Even a small amount of spandex mixed into other textiles can significantly enhance the fabric’s elasticity. This blending approach greatly reduces garment production costs, as pure spandex fabric is quiet expensive. The more spandex content a fabric has, the greater its elasticity. Fabrics with high spandex content are commonly used in swimwear, cycling apparel, yoga apparel, and dancewear. These activities need clothing that is fit closely to the body to provide a streamlined effect that reduces friction and resistance during movement. Additionally, they offer support to stabilize muscles and joints during intense physical activities and to minimize the risk of injury. 

JIOVANCE mainly offers two types of blended spandex fabrics: the nylon-spandex blend and the polyester-spandex blend. Both are ideal for sportswear, but they have some differences in performance.

Spandex fabrics with nylon

• Softer and Smoother: Nylon-spandex fabrics are known for their soft and smooth texture.
• More Durable: They offer superior durability and abrasion resistance.
• More Hydrophilic: These fabrics are better at absorbing and wicking moisture away from the body.
• Brighter Colors: They have a more vibrant color compared to polyester, which often has a matte finish.
• Excellent Resistance: They offer outstanding resistance to chlorine, saltwater, and sunlight, making them ideal for swimwear.

Spandex fabrics with polyester

• Better Shape Retention: Polyester-spandex fabrics maintain their shape well, keeping garments firm and structured, and they retain their size over time.
• Color Retention: Polyester has good dye absorption and colorfastness, making it easier to achieve vibrant colors.
• Less Hydrophilic: Polyester is less hydrophilic than nylon, so it does not absorb water as readily and dries faster.