GSM is a term used to describe towel weight. As a rule, the higher the GSM of a towel, the heavier weight and the more absorbent your towel will be.

Fabric fibres are made into thread or yarn and then twisted together – the direction of the spin is called a twist. The important thing to remember is: the lower the twist in a yarn, the more plush, soft and highly absorbent the towel will be. However a higher twist will create a tight and stronger weave which will result in a more durable towel.

A ply is a layer of two yarns woven together. When two or three yarns are woven together in production; this results in a thicker feeling pile.

There are different types of technical weaves on the market: Air Rich or Hygro are one of them; they usually refer to an action during spinning where air is pumped into the yarns to create a lofty and plump finish to the pile.

Two or more colours are woven together in production to form a pattern. The main difference between the jacquard and the plain dye is that jacquards are made from two or more coloured yarns on the loom, whereas a plain dye is made from the yarns in their natural form and then dyed later (piece dyed).

Grown from the Gossypium barbadense plant, this type of cotton tends to have long, thin fibres and is usually soft to the touch. Highly absorbent and long lasting, Egyptian cotton is the most popular towel quality in the UK.

Cotton is combed during production to remove excess fibres and therefore help to reduce any shedding that can occur.

Strong, soft and durable, Supima has a silky yarn, with long fibres and a tactile feel.

Modal is a semi synthetic fibre made by spinning cellulose from beech trees. Often combined with cotton in production, these towels are 50% more absorbent than regular cotton and are silky to the touch.

Made from wood pulp from sustainable tree farms, tencel is a natural man made fibre which when combined with cotton creates a highly absorbent, soft and anti bacterial product.

The shiny or velvety feel is created by shaving the loops on one side of the towel.

1. Tumble drying your towels is great for keeping them fluffy, but alternate between this and air drying for best results

2. Sparingly use fabric softener when washing your towels, as this can reduce the absorbency over time

3. Always wash your towels after purchase; this will remove any finishing product that was used in the factory and excess fibres.