Clothes gone crazy!

[WeirderandWeirder]

Everything is as thin as a piece of tissue paper. Huge floppy proportions and saggy crotches. See through tops and tshirts and elasticated everything...

I haven't been shopping for a long time. A couple of years. I loved clothes but something has really changed. Even spending more guarantees nothing. I can't be arsed with the touted, trending eco brands either, as I have witnessed their corner cutting and cheapening over time, too. I used to have a ton of fave shops and now there isn't even one.

I have just gone back to wearing outdoor stuff. Like a man, kind of. They never seem to have to deal with this crap. I spent a good while searching for a decent tshirt that didn't have a choking high neckline and actually covered my arse. Spent £40 on two organic cotton tees from Seasalt and both produced holes in two washes.

It can go the hell for me, now. It used to be exciting, and I do love the re-emergence of 90's styles. But the cargo's ain't what they were back then. They're floppy, thin and formless with randomly placed pockets and gussets as long as the Gaza Strip. I just can't anymore. Fuck em all. Greed got the better of them I guess.

I ain't paying for a £400 fancy sheep wool, artisanal brick shaped jumper this winter. And I won't be paying £200 to avoid polyester this summer either. I'm just going with what I already have and hoping to god it lasts.

I agree but I think it’s due to costs going up. Retailers are trying to avoid making huge price increases (although prices have definitely gone up a lot) so they are cutting on quality instead. I have noticed the same with children’s clothing (3DC so I buy more kids than adults clothes at the moment), the places I used to regard as being ok quality have become awful.

I now buy almost exclusively from Vinted, I do have issues sometimes but generally speaking it has saved me a lot of money and it’s less of an issue if something doesn’t last well.

yes, i have had more success buying used.

There have been several threads about this recently. It's very sad. As a previous poster said, its due to increasing costs.

I bought some Levis jeans recently as i thought they were decent but I noticed some very shonky stitching on the waist closure and the button hole wasnt even finished - just raw on the inside.

£140 shirts/blouses from Reiss are polyester and I've noticed that M&S jersey creases like mad now when it used to be great.

Up until about 2008, clothes were great even at the lower end of the high street.

I don't often buy new clothes but I haven't noticed this at all. Had to have a bit of a splurge recently to get a few things that were suitable for smart work events in a hot country. Got some bits in Sainsbury's and Bon Marche. All fine. The Sainsbury's trousers have had a few compliments.

Nothing feels particularly thin or has lost its shape in the wash.

I watched as my favourite PJ's went to hell, yet the price increased. PJ's from M&S are now the exact same quality as Primark, yet a good bit more expensive. Scratchy exposed elastic on the waistbands and too much volume in the crotch.
I watched White Co go to hell, Seasalt, Fat Face, etc. All incredibly inferior cotton products. They simply don't reflect their original standards. Most have caved in to thinned out trend pieces, as the staples and quality decreased.

But I think this is happening at every price point, apart from perhaps Johnston's of Elgin and such. I do notice a dumbed down trend approach across the board though. Brora is laughable at this point. It's like gaslighting tbh.

I would rather they had been honest and raised prices. We all shop where we can afford. I am not well off but at least I would have had the choice.

"As long as the Gaza Strip"?! That's in really poor taste.

that simile is a bit older than the war for god's sake.

I mostly make my own now. Especially pyjama bottoms. So easy and a joy to wear and wash.

I think women's clothing has been getting worse and worse over recent years. I look how a lot of women- not all- dress and I don't like what I see. Its not flattering in any sense and not good quality.
On the other hand a lot of men's clothing looks really good. Stylish and good looking and comfortable. Sort of effortless. So much easier to look good if you are a guy.
Women are still being made fools of by the fashion industry.

Quality has dropped drastically. Sifting high street offerings for something that will last more than a month can be a full time job. And don't expect anything to fit. The high street now assumes no-one has a waist so most things are sack shaped.

You either need to go up a price bracket or two, or buy second hand. Our charity ran a second hand clothes show last weekend and made £1,100. It was packed.

is it really the cost going up? Cotton price went up in 2010ish, but it's now back to the 1990s level. Manufacturing has been moving to cheaper and cheaper countries. It's the corporate greed that has increased - Zara profits just last year were up 30% from year before, they could afford better quality.

Zara sh

Yeah I buy from vinted for this reason, as much as cost. I have a handful of makes that I know will work for me and were decent quality, and when I see something I like from them, snap it up. There is something lovely about finding something that you know will last and be worn for years.

I have never heard it before

I went in an outlet Ralph Lauren at a shopping village- not really my style and obviously more expensive than some of the high street. But it really struck me how markedly better the quality was in the weight and the drape of the fabrics etc. It was like stuff in the UK 20 years ago.

Can confirm.

I have PJs which are older than the Supreme Court, yet some M&S things bought last year are already on their last legs.

Sizing has also become very inconsistent nowadays, I.e. two of the same thing from the same brand fitting differently.

I have always had strong views on fabric quality and finishing but these days I find myself checking seams and button holes - tutting like a maiden aunt at a 1920s nightclub.

Totally agree. I like the look of clothes from places like The White Company when I see them online but then I go and visit the shop and the quality is so poor for what you're getting. Plus the cuts of clothing are all wrong. Boat neck thin jumpers where your bra straps are on full display for example? No thanks!

I pretty much only buy second hand at this point. And I get things altered to fit me properly by a seamstress. I'm mostly getting rid of excess clothes a year now anyway as I want to go more minimalist, but I do wish there were a shop I could go to that would fill the gaps in my wardrobe with long-lasting basics.

Learn to sew. Making that dream t shirt is easy, a beginner could do it. There are loads of free patterns and help online in Facebook groups.

I hate that everything is cropped

I bought three pairs of trousers from M&S recently. Hem down on the first pair, pocket stitching faulty on second - this was after wearing each pair once. The chinos have to be washed after each wear as there's no weight to the fabric.

I've just ironed a ten year old linen shirt and it's so thick in comparison to their current stuff.

Yup, me too. I have even resorted to hauling out my sewing machine.

Good quality, reasonable (for the quality & origin) https://communityclothing.co.uk/

No me neither

As for the clothes, just buy second hand. I get most of my clothes from Vinted these days

Agreed.

I get most of my stuff from charity shops now and I am learning to sew so I can make and mend my own.

Everything I seen mainstream shops is: unflattering, badly cut and finished, shapeless or too short/clingy, too expensive for the quality.

And it looks awful after just a couple of washes.

I also I realise I don't need that many clothes (as I mostly work from home) and no longer want to get involved in rampant consumerism...