Those mysterious teeny tiny holes in the front of T shirts…

[imaginethemdragons]

Has anyone EVER worked out how they come about?

No it’s not the washing machine.
No it’s not moths.
No it’s not a belt buckle.

So…where do they come from?

Does anyone using powder still get holes? I wondered if it happens when I put clothes in the wm overnight to come on early in the morning, and the undiluted washing liquid, or pod, touches the fabric and "burns" it? I am never organised enough to find out though!

Only use powder, still have holes.

I'm convinced I get those tiny holes due to a few extra pounds round the middle, the jeans button and the seatbelt in the car squeezing it all together.

Moths do eat fine/thin cotton: they go for the ‘sweaty’ bits (collar, underboob etc…)

My Shower-Gel Ate My T-Shirt - Could be chemical. Bear in mind liquid soap can eat your stainless steel sink. All sorts of toiletries ( even soap),cosmetics and generally harmless household products could damage fabric and cause holes to appear when you launder. The longer you go without washing them out the t-shirt the likelier it is to be damaged. If holes are waist level,it could be because it is where the fabric tends to nestle/cling,particularly when sitting down,and it's picking up more of whatever residues of shower gel,moisturiser etc are on your body. It's then left sitting there long enough to weaken the fibre. Modern cottons tend to be fairly fragile as they have short fibre lengths. That means if there is any damage to a teensy bit ,the teensy thread pulls out leaving a little hole. If you buy expensive Extra Long Staple (ELS) cotton,it won't damage so easily.

Zips? Coats or hoodies catching overhang bellies?

holebuttoncover.com/

It’s your jeans button rubbing through when you’re leaning against worktops. I bought these (link above). They’re silicone button covers and I haven’t had any holes since then! They are genius!

@ineedaholidaynow

Only use powder, still have holes.

Oh well, that's my theory blown out of the water. I'm glad in a way though as I like my wm's delay function!

Smoking cannabis

It from jeans buttons, zips and the hard seams rubbing. DH and I realised they lined up perfectly with them. The material is also thinner there. We don't have granite worktops.

I can confirm that you can get them near the top of tops too. I think thus rules out kitchen counters as the culprit.

I always get them near my left shoulder. It’s not the seatbelt, as I usually drive.

I get these - i thought it was because mine are exactly where everything rubs - worksurfaces, seatbelts etc. Im only 5’3”.

I do NOT do the following;

Wash up
Have a granite worktop
Smoke cannabis
Wear buttons, or belts

DH is 6” 4’ and gets them too but on the shoulder. Mysterious?

All these theories. Someone need to do a proper PhD research into this and finally crack it.
Same issues- only in last 10 years though…and in my case:
No granite
Don’t smoke cannabis
Different sorts of washing powders/gel
Elastic and fastening trousers
Tuck in and leave out
Drive- but during lockdown didn’t drive much and still got them

I get these too! Thought it was just me. Only ever at the front around the belly button area. If it was sweat attracting moths wouldn’t the underarms be more of a target for them? I’m 5’3” which seems to have been mentioned a few time’s.
If it was the washing machine wouldn’t it be in random places on the tops? I’ve been wearing leggings and maternity wear for ages and still get them so no buttons to rub against fabric. Don’t think I have moths. Worktops are some kind of composite material. I have no idea what’s doing it. No one else in the house gets them.

We get those but only on my husbands tee shirts not mine and he definitely does not spend time by the worktops . Although ours are granite

I get them in sheets, too.

I get these but DH’s tips are all unscathed.

I have ruled out:

Washing machine - I get them on unwashed jumpers

Belt/buttons - I get them on tops I’ve only ever work with jersey bottoms

Seat belt - I get them on tops I’ve never worn in the car

Granite worktop - we have laminate

Washing liquid - I use powder

No idea if my height is relevant. I am 5 foot 1.

Seat belt rubbing might be responsible for wear on tops in that area.

I wear leggings so no buttons or zips and have this problem. I know OP said not the washing machine but I read it could be to do with certain materials and fast spin cycles.

I never got them until we redid our kitchen and got a quartz worktop. The holes are exactly where I tend to lean against it.

Unless you're getting holes in random positions, it's almost certainly down to some sort of repeated localised friction. Ones on the shoulder might be the buckle of a bag for instance.

I have the answer.

From personal experience, it is from when you carry a supermarket wire basket.

There has been research and the conclusion is always friction.

This will alter person by person, so for some it’s a bag strap but for a large proportion it’s waist level and it is friction on the edge of a counter top (doesn’t have to be granite) or desk edge. The fabric is also key - finer jersey is more susceptible.

If you wear trousers with anything on the front (buttons, studs, or a protruding drawstring knot, this increases the chance but even jeggings with no fastenings will cause the issue if friction with a fine jersey is there.

The technical name for them is fabric pinholes.

A quick fix if you don’t want to bin the top is to iron a tiny piece of iron-on hemming tape to the reverse of the hole. It’ll stop the hole increasing in size.

I think it’s where you rub against the sink/worktops etc.
Next T-shirt’s are terrible for this. I bought a pure cotton one recently and it had 2 teeny holes after one wear and wash.