Why We Use Comfort Colors for Almost Everything (And When We Don't)

If you've ordered from Floorboard Findings or browsed our ready-to-ship collection, you've probably noticed that most of our pieces are made on Comfort Colors blanks. That's not an accident and it's not because they're the cheapest option. They aren't. I use Comfort Colors because they produce the best results for ice dye, take graphic prints beautifully, and feel like something customers actually want to wear more than once.

But I'm not sponsored by Comfort Colors, and there are real situations where I grab a different blank off the shelf. Here's an honest breakdown of why Comfort Colors blanks are my go-to for almost everything, along with the times I choose something else.

What Makes Comfort Colors Blanks Different

The thing that sets Comfort Colors apart from most other blank brands is their garment-dyeing process. Most t-shirt brands cut and sew the garment first, then sell it in the original fabric color. Comfort Colors takes the finished garment and runs it through an industrial dye process after construction. Even when you buy a "white" Comfort Colors blank, that garment has already been through multiple wash and dye cycles before it ever reaches you.

This process changes the fabric in ways that matter for ice dye and graphic tees:

• The cotton fibers open up. The garment-dyeing process agitates and softens the fibers, giving them a slightly open, textured structure. When I soak a Comfort Colors blank in soda ash and pile ice and Procion MX dye on top, that open fiber structure absorbs color like a sponge. The dye penetrates deep rather than sitting on the surface.
• The blank is already pre-shrunk. Because the garment has already been through multiple wash cycles, it won't shrink significantly after the ice dye process. With other blanks, I have to account for shrinkage (sometimes a full size) during the soda ash soak and hot rinse. With Comfort Colors, what you see is what you get.
• It's soft from day one. There's no stiff "new shirt" feeling. The broken-in hand feel that comes from garment-dyeing is the same softness most shirts develop after a dozen washes, except you get it immediately. Customers notice this the second they pick up a piece.

How Comfort Colors Takes Ice Dye

I've been ice dyeing professionally since 2021, and I've tested dozens of blanks in my studio in York, PA. Nothing takes ice dye like Comfort Colors. The 1566 crewneck sweatshirt and the 1717 heavyweight tee are the two I use most, and both produce rich, saturated color with the kind of organic pigment splitting that makes each piece one-of-a-kind.

The heavyweight construction (roughly 9.5 oz on the 1566) gives the melting ice a lot of fiber to travel through. More fiber means more time for the dye to react with the cotton, which translates to deeper color gradients and more complex patterns. When I compare a Comfort Colors ice dye piece to the same dye palette on a lighter-weight blank, the difference is obvious. The Comfort Colors piece has layers of color depth that lighter fabrics just can't produce.

The 100% ring-spun cotton is the other factor. There's no polyester content to leave undyed, heathered patches in the fabric. Every fiber bonds with the Procion MX dye, so the colors are true and saturated. If you've ever seen ice dye that looks washed out or speckled with light spots, there's a good chance it was dyed on a poly-blend blank.

Why Comfort Colors Works for Graphic Tees Too

Ice dye isn't the only reason I stock Comfort Colors. For our custom graphic tees (the Pine Ridge Campground line, fire department apparel, and other custom graphic tee orders), Comfort Colors blanks give DTF transfers a premium look and feel.

The slightly textured surface of a garment-dyed blank makes DTF prints look like they're embedded in the fabric rather than sitting on top of it. The colors in the print interact with the softness of the blank in a way that feels high-end. A DTF print on a stiff, slick-surfaced budget blank looks like a printed shirt. A DTF print on a Comfort Colors blank looks like boutique merchandise. That distinction matters when someone is wearing your client's brand.

Sizing and Fit — The Honest Truth

Comfort Colors runs big. Not a little big. Legitimately oversized. Their "relaxed fit" is generous in the chest and body, with dropped shoulders and a boxy silhouette. Right now that oversized look is trending, and a lot of my customers want that relaxed fit. But it's something you need to know before you order.

I always recommend sizing down one size from what you'd normally wear if you want a more fitted look. If you love the oversized feel, order your regular size. For wholesale orders, I make sure shop owners understand the sizing so they can guide their customers and avoid returns.

The Real Downsides

I wouldn't be giving you an honest review if I didn't mention the drawbacks.

• Cost. Comfort Colors blanks cost more than Gildan or other budget options. The garment-dyeing process adds to the production cost, and that gets passed on. For my business, the quality justifies the price, but if you're a beginner learning ice dye technique, spending $12-15 per blank on practice pieces adds up fast.
• Availability. White Comfort Colors blanks sell out at distributors during peak seasons. I've had to plan wholesale production around blank availability more than once. When everyone wants garment-dyed blanks for fall crewneck season, supply gets tight.
• Weight. That heavyweight construction that produces beautiful ice dye also means these are fall and winter pieces. Nobody wants a 9.5 oz crewneck in July. For warm weather, I need a lighter option.
• The oversized fit isn't for everyone. Some customers want a modern, tailored fit. Comfort Colors isn't designed for that.

When I Choose Something Else

For tee shirts, especially spring and summer pieces, I switch to Bella Canvas 3001. The modern, retail-quality fit is what customers expect from a tee, and the lighter weight makes it wearable year-round. The cotton-poly blend produces a more muted, vintage ice dye look that has its own appeal. It's a different aesthetic, not a lesser one. I covered both blanks in detail in my full blanks comparison post.

For budget-conscious wholesale orders or when a client needs a lower retail price point, I'll use Gildan 18000 crewnecks. The 50/50 blend means less color saturation, but the price point makes ice-dyed apparel accessible to shops that can't carry $55 crewnecks. I wrote about when Gildan makes sense in that same comparison.

For kids' pieces, I use Rabbit Skins 3321, 100% cotton toddler tees that take dye beautifully and are designed for little ones.

The Bottom Line

Comfort Colors isn't the only blank I use, but it's the one I reach for first. The garment-dyed softness, the dye absorption, the pre-shrunk consistency, and the customer perception of quality all add up to a blank that makes my finished pieces better. Every crewneck in our ready-to-ship collection and most of our wholesale ice dye orders start with a Comfort Colors blank.

If you're a maker deciding which blanks to invest in, or a boutique owner evaluating ice dye suppliers, the blank matters more than most people realize. It's not just the canvas — it's part of the finished product. And for my work, Comfort Colors is the foundation that everything else is built on.