Fleece Hoodie

Loft Is What You Are Buying

A brushed surface holds a layer of still air against the body, and still air is a very good insulator. This is why a fleece hoodie is warmer than a plain knit of the same weight, and why two garments with identical fiber content can perform completely differently.

It is also why fleece loses warmth before it looks worn out. Compression and abrasion flatten the nap, the trapped air goes with it, and the garment cools down while still appearing intact. A hoodie that is not as warm as it used to be has usually not thinned; it has gone flat.

What Flattens It

• Fabric softener. It coats the raised fibers and mats them together, which is the fastest way to kill loft. Skip it entirely on anything brushed.
• Heat in a dryer. Tumbling with heat compresses the nap and, on a synthetic fleece, can partially melt the fiber tips. Air drying keeps the surface open.
• Washing right side out. The inside is the working surface, so turning it inside out puts the abrasion on the outer face where it costs nothing.

Pilling Is Not A Fault

Raised fibers that rub against each other tangle into small balls, and any brushed fabric will do this at the points that see friction, which is the underarm, the side seam and wherever a bag strap sits. It is inherent to the construction rather than a sign of a poor garment.

A fabric comb or a shaver removes the pills without damage and can be done as often as needed. What matters more is that the areas most prone to it are the ones nobody looks at, so on most hoodies it is a maintenance question rather than an appearance one.

Drying Is The Slow Part

A raised nap holds water the same way it holds air, so a fleece hoodie takes far longer to dry than a flat knit of similar weight. Hung on a hanger rather than folded over a rail, with the front unzipped or the body opened out, it dries in a day rather than two.

Sueded, Standard And Heavyweight

A sueded finish brushes the outer face as well, giving a soft, slightly matte surface on both sides. It feels better and shows marks more readily. A heavyweight fleece has a denser base cloth and a deeper nap, so it is warmer and stiffer and takes noticeably longer to dry.

If the hoodie is chosen for a print rather than for warmth, a midweight is the more comfortable choice year round, and the heavier weights are worth their bulk only if the garment is genuinely being used as outerwear. The same weight question decides how easily it layers, which the unisex hoodie pages go into.