February 2025 – Created Curated by Sara Brown

I saved an article from the Guardian about cost-cutting in the manufacturing process in the fashion industry which is leading to clothing which is less comfortable and durable This is a subject matter very close to my heart and I have written about this before.

“Fast fashion has normalised cheaper methods and fabrics. As we enter a third decade of ultra-fast production where cost-cutting is favoured over dressmaking and tailoring, we are at risk of losing these skills altogether”

Clare Press- Host of the Wardrobe Crisis podcast

The article talks about mass production and synthetic materials been so pervasive it’s increasingly difficult to buy well-made clothes, no matter how much you are willing to spend. Having sold clothes all my life, I fully agree that even at the higher- end of the market, the quality of both the fabric and construction has declined noticeably in the last few decades.

“I could geek out all day long about what you can’t find any more, quality pieces do exist but their markers are so rare, you have to know what you’re looking for. It starts with the cloth, of course. From the weave to the yarn to the dyeing process. It’s the real technical aspects of cloth that make it look and feel good. Quality materials should have an even finish and substantive weight. They should also bounce back when rubbed between your fingers or stretched apart”

Susan Dimasi, founder and designer of Material by Product

Dimasi prefers fibres like wool and silk. She says they have a “natural intelligence” that makes them better to wear because they thermoregulate and don’t need to be washed frequently. I have always personally been an advocate of natural fibres rather than man-made ones. (Even before we realised, these are made of plastic and the dreadful consequences this causes) Just the feel and handle of a piece of woollen or silk cloth is so much better than the cheaper alternative.

In 1975, fabrics derived from fossil fuels like Polyester, Nylon and Acrylic represented only 30% of the global fibre market. In 2021 this figure was 64%. Whereas wool was just 1% of the market. The British Wool Board Champions British wool and the farmers who produce this natural fibre, whilst promoting every aspect of wool production and usage. They do a terrific job and have the royal seal of approval as King Charles has always been a strong advocate. But there is a long way to go.

I have always loved vintage fashion and you can’t beat a nice frock; Silk crepe and chiffon tea dresses and silk satin evening dress make me go weak at the knees. (And don’t go there with internal binding and French seams, as beautiful inside as outside) These garments are still wonderful decades on and many well-dressed celebrities go Vintage for Red carpet dressing. The way the fabric moves is stunning, just look at classic movies and footage of couture shows.

Today, even some very expensive designer collections are been produced in inferior fabrics as well being more poorly constructed. There has a large increase in the cost of natural fibres but surely the price tag does cover this? Perhaps if Fashion Houses used less money on their shows and advertising budgets and spent more on the actual clothing itself?

As a design student, I was trained to pattern- cut, so I do understand the principals of how something should fit. When cutting patterns an ease of movement should be added so clothes move with our bodies rather that restricting our movement. There should be extra fabric in the seams so they can be let out if required. In order to save money these have been reduced to the bare minimal, so garments can’t be adjusted if required.

I was watching on Instagram a video of someone buying an expensive classic tweed jacket. The fit at the back was just dreadful, the sale-person used the old retailing trick of adding a belt, to make the jacket fit better. In the past tailored garments actually fitted without the need of a belt. Why don’t they today?

Another one of my pet hates is poor quality linings or a lack of linings! Traditionally, a lining in a garment serves several purposes. The first was to reinforce. A lined garment is stronger and holds its shape and gives a better silhouette. The second is to prevent the outer material from showing signs of wear. And finally, it keeps the outer garment clean and so you don’t have to clean it as often. All very good reasons for adding a lining.

“Lining is really important in the back of the skirt because if you sit down, it helps the skirt not crease, it also helps you slip your arm through the sleeve of a jacket and makes the garment hang better on the body.”

Susan Dimasi, founder and designer of Material by Product

And why does nothing have a pocket! Again, it’s about reducing costs. What could be nicer than having a skirt or dress with pockets and trousers with deep pockets that don’t develop holes due to using unsuitable fabrics. I bought a lovely dress last year from Community Clothing which has really deep pockets as well as been well-made. So it can be done.

As for pattern- matching a print or stripe this takes more time and requires more fabric. But does look so much better on the eye. I don’t sew that much at the moment, but I always match up a print when I do as it’s totally worth the extra effort.

I think our ancestors, who could sew beautifully in many cases, would be shocked at how poor modern garment construction is today. Clothes used to be sold second and third-hand and lasted for years. Some companies sell clothes that often do not survive the first wash and will be thrown away after only a few wears. It’s hardly progress!

Our disposable view of clothing has to change, we need to have clothing which lasts longer. If it also fits better and is more comfortable to wear that’s a win-win situation.

There’s a growing amount of people who believe in washing clothes less or not at all, even some well-known celebrities have announced that they don’t wash their clothes that frequently. Others are re-thinking their washing habits due to concerns for the environment when washing man-made fibres like polyester and the rising costs of energy bills.

I found this article (By Matilda Welin) last year which was very interesting and would like to share it with you. My mother has always said that people wash their clothes far too much and it shortens their life span. We had to change from our uniform when we came home from School so some items could be re-worn the next day. I still to a certain extent do this now. I always change my work clothes straightaway on coming home.

Wearing something for a few hours then washing it is a fairly modern concept. I remember when my teenage nieces wore 3 vests together with skinny jeans then would put them in the wash basket after one wear, my brother- in- law used to then take them out and put them back in the drawer. (Unbeknown to them) I suspect this is a familiar tale.

“One of the worst things that you can do to a garment, in terms of its durability, is wash it. During a wash garments can tear, shrink and lose colour”

Mark Sumner, a lecturer in sustainable fashion at the University of Leeds.

Sumner studies how microfibres from household laundry end up in marine animals. While he says reducing the frequency of our clothes washing is the right choice for the environment, he doesn’t advocate a complete washing machine ban. We don’t want people to think that they can’t wash stuff because they’re destroying the planet. It’s about trying to get the balance right. Washing clothes is important for medical and hygiene reasons, for example for people suffering from eczema who are trying to avoid irritation caused when our natural skin bacteria multiply inside our clothing. It’s also important for people’s self-esteem to not feel embarrassed about their clothes because they’re dirty or smelly”.

Not washing your clothes can be seen as poor hygiene. Certainly underwear, socks, tights and items worn close to the body would require more frequent washing than jeans or knitwear. But have we become too clean?

Designer Stella McCartney caused headlines in 2019 by detailing her low-clothes-cleaning habits. “Basically, in life, rule of thumb, if you don’t absolutely have to clean anything, don’t clean it. I wouldn’t change my bra every day and I don’t just chuck stuff into a washing machine because it’s been worn. I am incredibly hygienic myself, but I’m not a fan of dry cleaning or any cleaning, really.”

The Indigo Invitational invites people from across the world to wear the same pair of raw denim jeans for a year. This is the world’s largest and most-inclusive raw denim fading competition and has been going since 2019. Giving you the chance to connect with and compete against the world’s best denim faders. Since denim becomes softer when it’s soapy and wet, one of the keys to achieving high-contrast patterns is to avoid washing them. More than nine out of 10 participants delay the first wash of their trousers until they have been worn 150 or 200 times. A few of the raw denim wearers go even further, adopting a never-wash philosophy. Instead of using a washing machine, raw denim wearers learnt other ways to care for their garments, like exposing them to UV sun rays or just airing them overnight.

For Bryan Szabo, the organizer, the low-wash habit began when he bought his first pair of raw denim jeans in 2010. Travelling from his native Canada to Europe on a six-month trip. In part due to the lack of facilities, he never washed his jeans. ( Although he assures us he now does wash his jeans occasionally)

“It was a quirk about me that I had these stinky jeans, they smelled awful. My jeans would, be in, like, a pile on the floor at the end of the bed. You walked into the room and you could smell them”

Mac Bishop, founder of clothes company Wool & Prince when he started promoting his women’s brand, Wool &. He felt that centuries of sexist laundry advertising meant women would be less responsive to the idea of not washing their clothes and research backed him up, showing that, with women, environmentalism was a more effective reason to give for washing clothes less. The Wool& brand sells merino wool dresses with the help of a “challenge” where customers wear the same dress every day for 100 days. I am not too sure what I think about that, but I do know that pure wool garments particularly cashmere shouldn’t be washed too much. (The rails in Charity shops of over-washed knitwear backs this up) I always wear a washable layer under my sweaters and air the garment overnight. So far no one has commented on the smell!

This subject will always divide people. Some people will choose to wash clothes more than others and it is a personal choice. However, by all making some small changes in our washing patterns this could have a huge impact on the environment as well as clothing lasting longer.

So, it must be worth trying to make a small change!