How often do you throw out old, worn out clothes?

[Frumpiness]

How often do you throw out clothes in bad enough condition that they can’t even be given to charity shops? Does it happen more often now that there’s so many bad quality clothes around?

I’m feeling frustrated as I have a whole load of tops and t-shirts that are so worn and starting to go see-through. I don’t even know how old they are.

Part of problem is that I find it very hard to find clothes that fit me as I’m not a standard size, even basic tops are a nightmare to find, and I’m reluctant to get rid of things when they’re so hard to replace.

I’d love to be one of those people with a small wardrobe full of just a few high quality things, but realistically that’s hard to achieve as the quality just isn’t there any more.

Not often, but not because I need to and can't prioritise it. Yesterday I tried on two white tee shirts that have both suddenly come to the end of their time. One had already been mended once. They haven't left the house yet because I need to have a look at my gardening, dirty jobs, clothes. This time next year I'll be retired and knee deep in big projects and these might be good for that task! Everything else is in great condition.

I find clothing bobbles faster than it used to, and shows wear at a much earlier stage. I also find cotton tops very prone to getting holes in them, at a speed they just wouldn’t have done pre-Covid (not to say this is a post-Covid thing but as an example). I do expect to be able to wear a tshirt or top for more than one season before it has holes in. This is not brand dependent either - it’s the actual material.

And don’t get me started on trainers. I have had two pairs of New Balance trainers that have developed symmetrical holes in them after just months of wear. I expect to get a few years out of trainers and to consign them to the gardening pile due to appearance rather than have holes in them after 12 months. All I’ve done is walk in them, not even every day.

Not often, I use worn out stuff as under layers in the winter and for outdoor activities. Also I work from home, so it doesn’t matter if my clothes aren’t immaculate.

We tend to wear things until they are worn out. We wash them one last time and then store in a charity bag in the bottom of dh's wardrobe. We go to the recycling centre about twice a year and usually have two bags of fabrics to take each time we go. I never ever put fabric in the bin, there's no excuse for it.

I actually find cheap clothes wear out less quickly than some more expensive stuff. My Primark sweatshirts are pretty much indestructible whereas my M&S ones bobbled and my Hush ones, well I need another story.

There are clothing banks in most towns.

I have regular clear outs as with 3 kids I have too!!!
If stuff is old and tatty it goes in the bin
decent stuff - vinted
ok stuff but probably not sell-able - charity

if it’s not for to wear then get rid and search vinted to see if you can replace any favourites. When you say not standard size do you mean very petite/plus size/ long length????

I don't remember the last time I threw something out for being worn out. Alot of stuff went to the charity shop a few years ago due to a big change in weight.
Also a few cheaper bits that weren't worth taking to the chazza went into a beanbag chair to fluff it up abit!

Chazza! I love it 🤣

I'm inclined to think that eco washing machines do clothes no favours. Years ago, you would put a load of washing on, and the maching drum would be half full of water and all the bubbles, and the clothes would go round suspended in the water until the end when the machine went into its rinse cycle. These days, the clothes smack around in the drum in a twisted lump with barely no water in there to cushion them. The equivalent of repeatedly slapping them on a rock. For decades I had no issues with clothes going bobbly or mis-shapen, but they do now.

I don't think anything has ever worn out to be honest. I do tend to buy good quality clothing and have certainly lost and gained weight and had to give things away, but no disposed of anything

Mine do. Not forever, but I have stuff that's more than 10 years old. When clothes start looking very tired I do get shot of them. I've a grey Whistles Jacket (the soft blazery one - unlined) that I've worn once a week at least for about five years. It will be going out this winter.at the end of every spring and winter I go through things and anything tired, with a stain or a hole goes. Those things are usually old. I've a Jigsaw top, worn weekly in winter since 2012/13 and a Laura Ashley blouse of the same era that are indestructible.

If its t shirt material i use them as dusters.

If not I'll put them in the clothes bank labelled asxrags.

Mine don't usually get to the really worn stage before I take them to a charity shop. I don't have a lot of storage space so if I want something new I need to ditch an older item. It will have had quite a lot of wear but not enough to be ragged.

Not very often mine, but a lot of DD’s gets trashed. I do charity shop as much as I can but she is the rolling in mud type and anything light coloured rarely makes it to charity.

I always have a few favorite things that I love and wear until they are ragged. But the majority of things have plenty of wear when passed on.

Is that true about the quality of clothes being worse now? I hadn’t noticed that. Maybe it’s a greater availability of throwaway fashion. Or a change in laundry habits.

I only throw away things that actually have holes in. Things that are just well-worn and sloppy, I wear at home. They’re often more comfortable.

I put clothes I no longer wear in Salvation Army bag and do ate. I keep a few very old things for working in the garden or painting. If if it's broken I throw it out but I do keep old bedsheets and cut up into window cleaning rags which is something my Mum always did.

I rarely find that clothes ‘wear out’ tbh. When I get rid of clothes it’s usually because they no longer fit, are no longer my style, or they have a stain that I can’t remove.

Occasionally very old jeans (10 years+) may develop a hole in the crotch. Pjs and underwear may wear out, but not much else really.

I think this is a serious issue. We had no problems until several years back when our washing machine packed up and we got a more modern one. Due to the lack of water we actually have to use the allergy setting most of the time, otherwise it causes health problems when things don’t wash out, but I’m sure the allergy setting itself puts clothes through more stress and exacerbates the problem. I have read endless amounts of advice online and never been able to solve the problem.

...and this is why I tell my old washing machine how loved he is! He's 16 this year & I DREAD having to replace him. I will definitely get him repaired if he can be. Touch wood he's not had a single problem since I bought him.

LG Direct Drive 2010.

Old clothes used for gardening and then into the bag of rags that I have on the go. Anything half decent before that goes to the charity shop

I've found the wool wash on ours tends to use more water in the drum.

I normally have one bag on the go and if that's full then we take it to the supermarket car park where the council has bins. They corporate with charity who checks between usable/resale items and rags.
I got fed up with checking and having separate bags for charity shops and the bins so everything now goes in the bin.

They may be a couple of old trousers and T-shirts we keep for gardening and the DIY job but in generally everything which is ripped or has large holes with is definitely going.

Other than pants, never. Most of the charity shops around me will accept clothes or material that they then sell on to the rag trade. Our local scout group also does an annual rag collection. So I take even the shabby stuff to the charity shops or save them for the scout collection. Seems to be better than landfill.

@Sgtmajormummy

I think I originally read the "take it on holiday" tip here on MN.

We did a long haul, beach-type holiday last year and I took a few t-shirts, a couple of dresses and some 'comfy but at the end of their life' old trainers with me. Didn't matter if they got trashed by seawater/suncream etc and I had room to bring stuff back. We always travel with hand-luggage only so this was a game-changer for me.