s, sweaters and sweatshirts. For those of you that aren't techie-types, the Turtlenecks and collared shirts are the ones most appropriate for work, but some of the fabric types migrate across the styles. I'll list them beginning with the most likely to be used at work.
Interlock: Most shirts that are cotton interlock (or cotton varieties, like Pima) are a lightweight fabric with a smooth finish. There are some other terms that also apply, but they are all fairly similar. These fabrics look the most un-knitlike of the group. T-shirts (so named because they are T-shaped when laid flat) are also made using a relatively flat smooth finish.
Pique [that's french; pronounce it pe-kay] or Mesh: This fabric seems thicker than the interlocks, but it is often about the same weight. Instead of being knitted flat, the stitches form a sort of waffleish weave--more room for air to move around, while still being opaque. Polo shirts are often made of this fabric.
Doubled knits: As in sweatshirts, that have a smooth exterior and fluff inside, the fabric is one unit, but has two sides to it.
Special knits: manufacturers will experiment with different patterns in the knits, producing classics like cables, herringbone, ribbed effects, or stripes. Others use colored thread to make plaid knits (different than knit fabric that has been *printed* with a plaid) or other visual effects.
Specific things to pay attention to in sweaters:
Whatever special effect is done on the front of a shirt or sweater, you will look much better if it is also carried around to the back of the shirt. I have seen a lot of "cable" sweaters that are nicely cabled in the front (that's a rope-twist pattern, btw) and have a plain knit on the back. It makes you look half-finished.
One of the hazards of poor sweater construction is "floaters." If you have a sweater with multiple colors in the design, there are areas in the fabric where one or more color won't be needed to enhance the design. In these cases, that thread is carried along on the wrong side (inside) of the knit, to be picked up again when the color is needed. If the manufacturer is not careful, you will get loose loops of thread running along the inside of the garment, waiting to snag on your glasses or fingers when you put the shirt on.
If the manufacturer is careful, they will arrange the design of the sweater so that these unused thereads are picked up by others in the matrix of the sweater so that they won't have a chance to get caught on your fingers. (Sometimes this same problem happens with woven shirts as well.) A floater run of one inch is about the maximum that should ever happen, but optimum would be less than half an inch.
As a final caution, some of the knit terms I have illustrated may be
used differently by different manufacturers, and also my knowledge of knit
manufacture is less thorough than in the wovens. Caveat emptor!
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