So which clothing brands ARE good quality?

[wellwisher]

We have had a couple of threads recently bewailing the decline in quality of many clothing and shoe brands - e.g. M&S, Zara, Hobbs shoes... personally, I am starting to feel that EVERYTHING is Not What It Used To Be.

But I still need clothes.

Style-wise, my favourite high-street shops are Zara and H&M, but their clothes are now such poor quality that they aren't worth buying any more. The fabrics they use are cheap, thin, shiny and generally horrid, and the finishing is rubbish - I'm sick of having to resew loose buttons and wonky seams before I can wear things. I want clothes that are natural fabrics (cotton, not weird synthetic things), and made nicely so that they last well and survive washing (tops that go twisty in the wash are a particular issue for me). I would also like some flat ballet pumps that are made of leather and have proper soles and some sort of structure to them so that they are comfy to wear and support my feet.

Can anyone suggest some brands? I also like the style of Whistles and Reiss, but only shop there at sale time as I don't trust that the quality is superior enough to Zara etc to warrant the high prices... thoughts?

I've had success with quality in terms of washing/wearing well from the following shops ...

Hobbs for dresses
M&S for pants
Oasis for tops
Primary for socks
Clarks for shoes
Sainsburys is very good quality for casual clothing (have a top on this evening which I've had a year and no sign of wear)
I also rate Primark for basic Lycra vests/t shirts. Better quality than elsewhere despite the ridiculously low prices

I really struggle with cardigans. I find they bobble, shrink, go misshapen

Have been fairly disappointed with trousers from John Lewis, wearing at the knees after 11 months of wear!

I recommend woolovers for jumpers and cardis. I have a couple of their merino and wool (?) mix jumpers and cardis and they're going strong after 2 years. They're very basic styles but sometimes that's what you want. I machine handwash them on a 20c wash and they're fine for it. They also often do discounts if you're signed up to their mail list so don't buy full price!

My DD must have about eight woolovers woolies now, lived in them through sixth form. Most high street jumpers are weird in some way at the moment, she was looking for more to take to uni so she has enough not to need to wash any all term, found only one in H&M that she liked at all, so ended up with another woolovers.

Oliver Bonas is excellent quality. Tiny bit more expensive than Next, M&S etc but very much worth it.

@lurkingfromhome you need a cashmere brush to remove the bobbling from knitwear, keeps them looking new for much longer. Has kept all my jumpers perfect until a moth infestation ruined the majority. Keep them in plastic bags when not in use is my other tip for longevity.

You can get reasonable stuff in the high street shops but I almost exclusively buy from the 'premium' collections from H&M, Zara and Mango. Natural fibres for the most part and better styled and cut clothes. But more expensive than standard high street things but I have noticed the difference in quality between them and the basic or trendy stuff.

Landsend is good for decent knitwear and cotton basics without the 3 figure price tag.

Everything I have had from Jigsaw lasts and lasts.

I volunteer in a charity shop so see the other end of this - the donations which people have worn and worn and then come to us. 95% of things from fast fashion brands like H&M, supermarkets and Primark are only fit for the rag bag, although some things like winter coats seem to stand up better to wear.

I have found that the things which look best are the premium brands like Hobbs, Cos, Toast, White Company. I have a gorgeous top from Cos bought second hand for £6 and it still looks amazing after wearing it once a week for almost a year.

Just gave my 9 year old Gabor patent flats a good clean....as new.

WhyteKnyght I'm normally size 8-10 and quite a petite build. I sent for extra small and small. XS was a good fit and, in another style, that's what I'd have gone for but I wanted that uber-relaxed, nicked-your-husband's-jumper kind of look so I've kept small.

Just to add, the care label is similar to cashmere i.e. hand wash or dry clean. I like it so much, I'll probably hand wash the old fashioned way rather than stick it on a delicate cycle.

Re Brora and their £300 jumpers. I have one which I bought second hand and it's very lovely and very hard working. I read a bit about how the demand for cheap cashmere is causing real environmental problems in Mongolia due to overgrazing of land and it put me right off. It made me realise that cashmere is a luxury product and it ought to be expensive. Brora also manufacture in Scotland (at least they used to and, as far as I'm aware, they still do). I can't afford them but I like them.

Pure Collection also talk about sustainable cashmere on their website.

Agree on Celtic and Co. I have 2 pairs of their boots and this jumper in a previous season colour of black and white. It's the warmest thing I own.

Seasalt and Weird Fish make good quality clothing.

Jigsaw. I find their tops and dresses frumpy but tailoring good and lasts and lasts. Celtic & Co good and lots of it made in England. Brora quality marvellous but yes it's £££ as woven and made in their own factory in Scotland. Some Uniqlo stuff is good, ditto Cos. Look at the labels in Zara - often stuff made in Spain is better quality (tends to be tailoring). APC used to be excellent but last two items bought from them developed tiny holes probably from washing. My & Other Stories silk shirts have stood up well to repeated machine washing.

On the subject of clothes lasting, in my experience they will hold up much better if not tumbled dried but hung up to dry. I do not tumble dry any of my clothes any more as I am convinced that it shortens the life span of a garment. I also put shirts and even some t-shirts in laundry bags and wash all knitwear on cold using baby shampoo in a dosing ball. I usually sell my old clothes on ebay so I try to keep my stuff in good nick.

As well as topshop :
Fat face
Banana republic
Dune

For kids :
Jojo Maman , John Lewis , mothercare

Don't toast buybin from other suppliers, like
Plump?

I don't understand it when people say it's good quality because it lasted 2 years. For me stuff needs to last 5 years to be acceptable and 10 to be good! And I'm not a scrimper when it comes to clothes. I buy new stuff most seasons

Cos - excellent quality and basics
Hush - I know it gets bad press but I find the long vest tops, joggers, hated and sweatshirts to be hard wearing
M and s - yes but yawnnn and sometimes the material looks a bit shiny cheap
Toms boots - I've got a pair into year 4 and worn to death but others need replacing each year

Ahh no toast is real!

Jaeger (not mrs Thatcher Jaeger but proper beautifully cut edgy Jaeger) takes some beating for quality

I have a couple of really good quality tops from Monsoon, which I don’t think has been mentioned, and some dresses although I only buy in the sale

I love Uniqlo, cheap but excellent basics. Shirts are a joy to iron. Joules and Fatface not my style but good quality.
Jaeger, Hobbs, Jigsaw, Phase 8, Autograph excellent.
Boden - great, I don't suit all their stuff though.
Toast - love their stuff. Not all of it but what I bought (sent some stuff back) is joyous.

Agree I expect a minimum of 5 years wear from anything.

Toast is a funny one. They talk loftily about their 'philosophy' and give out this tree hugger vibe (literally on the latest catalogue) but whenever I check the label it's always made in China. But they must control their suppliers well cos I've never, ever had a dud, quality wise. (And their trousers are the best.)