Skylar black BJJ gi

The Skylar black BJJ gi is the one people buy second. Rarely first, almost always next: once training has settled into a habit, once one gi no longer covers the week, and once white has stopped being the only thing you want to wear on the mats.

Why a black gi

The common reason is practical. Black forgives what white displays: mat dust, finger marks, the blood from a nose caught during a guard pass. It comes out of the bag looking presentable after three sessions, which matters when you train four times a week.

The second reason is less respectable and just as valid: a black gi looks like nothing else in a changing room. It is a piece you choose rather than a piece you put up with.

The fabric

The jacket is 380 GSM pearl weave, the small-grain weave that has dominated jiu-jitsu for fifteen years because it holds the compromise people actually want: dense enough to last, supple enough to move in, thin enough to dry between sessions. The trousers are ripstop, a light cloth whose grid stops a tear before it runs.

That pairing, dense on top and light below, ages better than either extreme. The jacket takes the grips, which is where wear happens, and the trousers stay light where nobody is really pulling.

The cut

The Skylar is pre-shrunk. That does not mean it will never move again, cotton always moves a little, but the bulk of the shrinkage has been done at the factory. So you buy the size you will wear, rather than a size up in the hope that it tightens.

The A1L and A2L long cuts exist for one specific person: tall and lean, otherwise stuck between a size too short in the sleeve and a size too wide in the body. If you have met that problem before, start there.

Competing in it

Black is one of the three colours the IBJJF rules allow, alongside white and royal blue. The gi is sold as a set, jacket and trousers in the same colour, which happens to be one of the inspection conditions: a mismatched top and bottom is turned away even when each piece is legal on its own.

The other points that get checked, collar thickness and width, sleeve and trouser length, patch zones, are set out in our IBJJF rules guide.

Looking after a black gi

Black has one enemy: heat. A 60 degree wash and two trips through the tumble dryer are enough to turn it grey-brown, and that shade never comes back. Wash cold, dry in the open air, turn the jacket inside out if you want to protect the patches.

The first washes may bleed a little, as any dark textile does. Wash it on its own the first two times, or with dark clothing, and it stops being an issue.