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.

The jaegar range is m&s is fabulous quality, otherwise I shop in Boden,Super dry, Barbour, Lands end and vinted.Like a previous poster, I was really surprised at the quality of some of the items in Asda recently.I've a bit of a thing about corduroy shirts in the wintertime and there's were much better quality than M&S.

Thank you! I haven’t seen the clothes but the name sort of makes me think of ‘People Tree’ back in the day. Expensive, poorly designed and the dye ran everywhere.

The lingerie brand empriente does charge more for e cups and up, fwiw. I used to sell them, could be slightly awkward sometimes but people didn't protest much.

How? What are they like? Sounds lovely

I agree. I used to be able to buy lovely cotton summer tops from Tesco - one I still have and it's about 15 years old. Now it's cheap polyester which I don't like.

I make most of my clothes now and run sewing courses to teach other people. However, fabric is expensive so it does cost more but at least the clothes fit well, are mostly made of decent fabrics and last longer.

I have a couple of patterns that are so easy to make and yet look so smart for work (a dress and short unlined jacket). Anyone could make them!

Don't be so priggish.

Where do you get your fabric?

Loads of places, depending on what you fancy. I mostly shop with small businesses as they all offer smething different.

Northern Monkey Makes are great for cheap and cheerful. Mostly Jersey.
Clarabelle Fabrics do lovely stuff, but mostly for kids. Mostly Jersey.
Little Legs are really consistent and stock the widest range of stuff.

It is also well worth joining the UK Jersey, Knits and Destash facebook page if you like sewing with stretch. It's a market place for people wanting to sell off their fabric e.g. because kids tastes have changed as they have grown up. Very safe and not scammy, just make sure to follow follow rules and use PayPal. Lots of bargains to be had there!

I buy from vinted now. I took my daughter to primark and the quality is not bad for the price but mainly I get both our stuff from vinted

Many online fabric shops or eBay. I used to sew but I lost patience

One thing that annoys me is that very few summer tops are 100% cotton. Polyester and vicose are sweaty pools

16% of the world's insecticide use is accounted for by the cotton crop. It also takes 2,700 litres of water to make one cotton T-shirt, with the cotton mostly grown in countries where water is a rare resource and is diverted from other important uses into profitable cotton production. People should be cautious about how many cotton garments they buy, as they contribute greatly to environmental destruction.

Meanwhile, polyester releases microfibres into the water while being washed. This is plastic pollution of the oceans. It's also also unpleasant on the skin for many.

I agree about the quantity point. Buying lots of things when you already have an adequate supply of clothing of the relevant type is rampant consumerism. Unfortunately, looking at comments on S&B about fashion, I think this is something lots of people do, because they don't think previous clothes of theirs are 'in style' anymore (read: worn by lots of other people). We're not currently winning with fast fashion.

Online fabric shops. They range from very affordable (Fabric Galore is great) to expensive but worth it (Merchant and Mills).

I’ve got a really lovely broderie cotton top from tu at Sainsburys that’s just seen its 5th and last summer. I had a look the other day but could only see poly blends, even in white shirts. I don’t wear synthetics and its definitely got harder recently.

Sustainability and the environment are issues whether you buy clothes or fabric. Linen and tencel are very environmentally friendly fabrics, although our local fabric shop doesn't stock much tencel.

Whilst I appreciate that cotton isn't great, it's better than using manmade fibres. Bamboo can be OK but it depends on the process they use to make it and you can't really know how they made it when you buy it.

Saying that I have never seen reductions on petite sizes. They use less much less fabric.
Or ssme for my size 3 shoes compared with a size 6 or 7.

I was remonded today of how clothes were better when I gotmout a summer blouse to wear to work.

I bought it from French Connection 16 years ago. It is a good quality, soft indian cotton print blouse with a neck tie. Still good 16 years later, not see though, good seams and a nice thickness.

I remember hesitating as it was £65 and I wasn't sure I would get that much wear out of it but I loved the print.

By contrast I tried on a puff sleeved cream blouse in French Connection last week as I was looking for a smart cream top to go with a skirt and it was terrible - elasticated puff sleeves, key hole back that was too deep so it showed the top of my bra band,
despite being lined it was transluscent and a slippery viscose type material.

I agree about m&s pyjamas. I like cotton jersey jacket and trousers style ones and m&s ones have worn dreadfully. They are literally in shreds and the fabric is so poor the elastic waistband is cutting through. I will be cutting them up gor dusters.
i tried Sainsbury’s and the fabric is better but they shrink on washing.

Rather an unhelpful response, I feel. Making your own clothes, if you haven’t before, is not an easy thing to do. Also, you will need to buy a sewing machine, dressmaking scissors, measuring tape and a host of other stuff. So, ‘make your own’ is a LOT easier said than done!

Re sewing patterns - check out Cashmerette patterns. (Not an ad, not affiliated!) They do all sizes "for curves", and their trousers are helpfully already sized for "pear" or "apple" shapes. Their patterns generally also have cup sizes.

The instructions are very good, there is often a sew-along video, and many patterns are suitable for beginners.

I completely agree with this!!! Clothing accessibility and quality is a structural issue, and to say "oh just make your own" is SUCH a high bar to meet.

Maybe we can compare this to food - if one is avoiding ultra-processed food, one can just "make all your own bread." OKAY?? But its actually not that easy or cheap!

(I make quite a lot of my own clothes, I have tried making bread (even in a bread maker) and it was inedible!)

It's really not, as someone who taught myself.