Pearl Weave & Single Weave Gi Fabric for BJJ, Judo & Karate

Pearl weave, single weave and gold weave compared

Pearl weave is a tightly woven cotton or poly-cotton cloth whose face shows small rounded knots in rows, which is where the name comes from. The knots are formed by the weave structure itself, not by a coating, so they never wear off; they give the jacket a textured surface and a high tear resistance for its weight.

Single weave is the simpler, older construction: a flatter, more even weave with less texture, lighter and cooler than pearl weave at the same yarn count, and quicker to dry. Gold weave sits between single and double weave, a mid-weight hybrid common in competition gis before pearl weave took over. Double weave is the heaviest traditional construction, still preferred for judo jackets where thick, stiff cloth suits grip fighting.

ZipaSports offers pearl weave and single weave as its standard jacket cloths for BJJ, judo and karate uniforms.

Jacket weight: choosing within 350–550 GSM

Gi jacket cloth is specified in GSM, grams per square metre, and the ZipaSports range runs from 350 to 550 GSM. The figure describes the jacket fabric only, not what the finished gi weighs on a scale; total weight also depends on size, cut and the trouser cloth chosen.

Heavier is not automatically better. A 550 GSM jacket resists abrasion and frustrates grips, but it is hotter to train in, slower to dry between sessions and heavier at a weigh-in, where most rulesets weigh the athlete wearing the gi. Many academies therefore order two specifications: a 450–550 GSM pearl weave for daily training and a 350–450 GSM gi for competition. The full weight-by-weight reasoning is in our BJJ gi fabric guide, and the GSM chart shows how gi cloth compares with other sportswear fabrics.

Cotton vs poly-cotton gi fabric

Both pearl weave and single weave are woven either from 100% cotton or from a polyester-cotton blend, and the choice changes shrinkage, drying time and colour retention more than it changes the look of the jacket.

For a club or academy ordering training gis, poly-cotton is the practical choice: it dries overnight, holds its colour and keeps its size. For gis that will be worn at sanctioned competitions, confirm the current fabric rule of the federation your athletes compete under before specifying a blend. ZipaSports produces both compositions in Sialkot, Pakistan, and the mockup and sample stage is the point to confirm which one your buyers will accept.

Shrinkage, pre-shrunk cloth and sizing

Cotton gi fabric shrinks the first few times it is washed hot and tumble dried, so shrinkage has to be planned into the size specification rather than discovered by the customer. There are two accepted approaches, and a buyer chooses one at the spec stage.

• Pre-shrunk (sanforised) cloth: the fabric is mechanically shrunk at the mill before cutting, so the finished gi keeps close to its labelled measurements. The size chart is graded to the finished size.
• Shrink-to-fit: unshrunk cloth is cut deliberately long in the sleeves and legs and the customer shrinks it to size with warm washing. The size chart is graded oversize and the hang tag or care label states this clearly.

Either way, ZipaSports measures every batch against the approved size specification as it leaves the line, before any domestic washing, and the tolerance on those checks is ±1–1.5 cm. Poly-cotton cloth shrinks far less than pure cotton and is the safer choice when a club wants predictable sizing across a whole team order.

Trousers: 8–12 oz ripstop or twill

Gi trousers are not cut from the jacket weave. They use a flatter woven cloth, 8–12 oz cotton or poly-cotton ripstop or twill, which trades some abrasion resistance for mobility and faster drying. Trouser cloth is quoted in ounces per square yard rather than GSM; the conversion is fixed at about 33.9 GSM per ounce.

Ripstop is the usual pairing with a light competition jacket; twill is the usual pairing with a heavy training jacket. Both are reinforced at the knees and crotch and closed with a rope or flat drawstring through multiple belt loops. Some federations restrict ripstop for jackets while allowing it for trousers, so buyers supplying competitors should confirm the current rule. The weave structures, weights and reinforcement points are covered in detail on our ripstop and twill fabric page.

Collar, reinforcements and construction

The collar is the most-gripped part of a gi and is built as a separate component: a stiff foam, rubber or EVA core wrapped in the jacket cloth or in a ripstop cover so it dries quickly and resists being bunched into a grip. Judo collars are typically thicker and stiffer than BJJ collars because judo grip fighting is more collar-dependent; some rulesets set a maximum collar thickness and width, and ZipaSports cuts the collar to the measurement you specify.

Every seam on the jacket is sewn on lockstitch lines with multiple-stitched reinforcement where cloth layers meet, and the whole gi passes in-line and final quality checks against the approved specification before packing in Sialkot.

Patches, embroidery and labels

Academy branding on a gi is mostly embroidered or patched rather than printed, because dense cotton cloth does not take sublimation and the jacket surface is under constant abrasion. ZipaSports runs multi-head embroidery directly onto the jacket back, chest, shoulders and trouser leg, and sews on woven patches supplied by you or produced to your artwork.

• Direct embroidery: the most durable option for logos, academy names and lettering; thread colours matched to your Pantone reference.
• Woven patches: sewn onto the jacket back, shoulders, chest and trouser thigh; edges bound or embroidered so they do not fray under grips.
• Contrast stitching: seam and cuff-tape colour chosen as part of the design, a low-cost way to make a plain white gi identifiably yours.
• Sublimated inner lining: an optional polyester lining inside the jacket printed with your artwork, specified on request.

Most federations restrict where patches may sit on a competition gi and which areas must stay plain, so the mockup marks patch positions against the ruleset you name. Private-label finishing is included: woven neck labels, printed size tags, hang tags with care instructions, and branded polybags or boxes, all detailed on our labels, tags and packaging page.

Competition colours and federation rules

White, blue and black are the colours accepted for competition gis by most BJJ federations, and the jacket and trousers are normally required to be the same colour. Judo competition uniforms are white or blue, with blue used to distinguish the second competitor. Karate competition uniforms are white. Training gis can be any colour a club wants, and ZipaSports dyes the cloth to match any Pantone reference.

Federation rules also cover patch positions, collar dimensions, sleeve and trouser length relative to the athlete's wrists and ankles, and in some cases the jacket fabric itself. These rules change, and they differ between federations, so we do not publish specific figures here. Tell us which federation your athletes compete under and the design studio will produce the mockup to the current rule, with contrast stitching and patches placed accordingly.

Ordering custom gis from ZipaSports

ZipaSports manufactures pearl weave and single weave gis in Sialkot, Pakistan, for BJJ academies, judo clubs, karate dojos and fightwear brands. Minimum order is 20–25 pieces per design, lower quantities are possible on request, and there is no MOQ limit for sportswear brands and companies.

Send a logo, a sketch or a reference photo and the in-house studio returns a free digital mockup within 24 hours, with unlimited revisions before approval. A physical sample takes 5–7 days, is charged at sample cost, and that cost is credited against your bulk order. Bulk production runs 15–25 business days after design approval; express production in 7–12 days is available at additional cost. Air freight by DHL, FedEx or UPS takes 5–10 days worldwide, and sea freight 3–6 weeks for large club or distributor orders.

Sizes follow fully custom charts for men, women and youth, following standard gi A-sizing or any chart you supply. Quality Guarantee: if any garment arrives with a manufacturing defect, we remake it free of charge — the remake goes into production within 3 days of your report.