CLOTHING

he clothing we sell is primarily women's clothing. It is manufactured under the "Go Fish Clothing & Jewelry Co." label in Bali, Indonesia.

Q. Who selects the colors, styles, and prints?
A. We personally pick the colors, the styles, and the prints of every garment carrying our label.

Q. What fabrics do you use in your clothing?
A. We use a variety of fabrics, including linens, polyesters, and cottons, but currently we are using primarily rayon.

Q. Can you wash these fabrics at home, and if so, do they shrink?
A. Yes, you can wash our fabrics at home. Rayon is basically a synthetic silk. It is not like the rayon of years past. It is made with wood which is a natural fiber. It is a  breathable fabric and can be treated similarly to cotton. For best results wash our  garments in cold water and hang to dry. Shrinkage should be minimal if proper  washing instructions are followed. We do not recommend using a dryer or dry cleaner, as this will cause the fabrics to shrink. At times we use a rayon crepe fabric which will draw up (not shrink) about 1" to 2" from side to side after being washed, however, these fabrics will return to their original size after being ironed or steamed.

Q. How are the designs put on the fabrics?
A. For the most part, our fabrics are hand-dyed by an Indonesian process called batik. This is where each design is "stamped" with a metal "dye." A dye is a metal shape that creates the different designs you see in the fabrics. This dye is first dipped in hot wax and then "stamped" onto the raw cloth. This process is done several times to create the different and unique patterns and colors that batik is known for. Occasionally, small spots of wax residue may be found on some of the batik clothing. This will come off during the first washing of the garment.

Q. Are the garments color fast?
A. Overall, yes. The process of creating the colors is so meticulous and time consuming  (it takes 30 days to make 1000 yards of fabric) that the fabrics would seem to be color  fast. Over the years we have heard of one or two of our designs that have tended to  fade after a few washings. Although this isn't the rule, it can happen and we would suggest that if it is a concern, the garment should be washed in woolite or a similar  product during the first cleaning.

Q. Do you have other colors or patterns?
A. We generally ship twice a year from Indonesia, so we try to bring in several different colors and patterns that will carry us forward for 5-6 months.

Q. Who creates the designs?
A. Although we pick the fabrics, the designs are originally created in Indonesia by the  Balinese. The people from Bali are known as some of the finest artists in the world.  They have wonderful imaginations and can create some of the most beautiful designs.  In our country we use machines for just about everything. In Bali, they still do it by hand!

Q. Have you visited the sewing factory?
A. Yes, on each trip to Indonesia we visit the sewing factory to obtain fabric samples and discuss new styles of clothing that we would like to manufacture.

Q. What are the conditions in the sewing factory?
A. The factory is actually much smaller than you would imagine. The conditions are very good and the factory is clean. The workers are primarily adult and young adult women.

T-SHIRTS

or the most part we design our own T-shirts. The T-shirts on the market seemed to be everywhere and we wanted something that would be a unique "Pensacola Beach" shirt. In addition, we have our own line of inspirational T-shirts that sell extremely well.

Q. What are your T-shirts made of?
A. All adult T-shirts are made of 100% heavy weight cotton. A standard weight cotton  T-shirt is generally 4.9 ounces in weight, ours are at least 5.5 ounces.

Q. Do they shrink?
A. No, all of our cotton T's, cover-ups, tank tops, etc., are pre shrunk. This means they  will not shrink.

Q. What about the children's T's?
A. Our children's T's are 50% cotton and 50% polyester. This is a standard children's  weight T-shirt. They can shrink up to 2-3% which is minimal.

Q. Who designs the T-shirts?
A. Almost all designs are originals of Go Fish. Occasionally we might print a Christian  T-shirt from another company, but 99% of what we offer is ours.

Q. Do the colors of the prints fade?
A. Not really. We always recommend a cold water wash and they should last indefinitely.

JEWELRY

ewelry is some of our best-selling merchandise. We carry earrings, necklaces, rings, bracelets, etc. We import our jewelry directly from Mexico, Thailand, and Indonesia.

Q. Is your jewelry sterling silver?
A. Most of the jewelry we carry is made of sterling silver. This means that 92.5% of the  metal is a precious metal. But we also carry jewelry that is not sterling. It is called Alpaca or "Mexican silver." This metal is made up of nickel, brass, copper, and/or tin  as well as a small percentage of silver. It is actually dipped or "plated" in silver.

Q. Does the Alpaca silver turn?
A. No more than sterling does. We recommend periodic polishing with a standard  polishing cloth.

HOME FURNISHINGS AND GIFT ITEMS

Q. Are the wood, iron, and clay home furnishing products also imported?
A. Yes, this merchandise is also imported by us primarily from Indonesia and Mexico.

Q. How do you select the home furnishing and gift items you sell?
A. Basically, we shop for them. On each trip to Indonesia and Mexico, we shop for items that we believe are unusual and interesting enough to sell in our shops. Over the years we have found that our customers usually agree with our selections.