Items of clothing you still mourn...

[petitdonkey]

Just doing the ironing and I have realised that my favourite ever French Connection black t-shirt looks awful - those mystery holes around the tummy and and a bit faded. I've had it for about 4 years and they don't do that style any more.

It got me thinking about clothes I have loved and lost…. they are often not the most expensive, just great staples.

• my bright pink high-waisted ankle skimming trousers circa 1992. Leant them to someone and never saw them again. they will have been in fashion at least twice since then (and I would love to know if I could still squeeze into them!!)

• a gold dress from the sixties that was given to me for a fancy dress party by a family friend. Lent it to a friend at uni and never got it back but it was fab!

My favourite blue jumper is past it's best too

I lost Frank's straight legged jeans in about 1975. I loved those jeans, lived in them, I did.
My favourite green hippy tunic was stolen in 1993.

The perfect French Connection black wool trousers - made your bum look amazing, light-weight enough for summer, warm enough for winter. Husband put them in the washing machine when naturally they were dry-clean only.

He did the same thing with a white pair of FC trousers when I think about it....

Perfect size colour, shape and size Billy Bag handbag. Bought from ebay for next to nothing, but I still mourn it, the zip broke when we were on our honeymoon and it didn't occur to me that I could have got the zip replaced.

And I still am fooled by the labels that say wool is machine washable - when will I learn that the labels lie.

My White Company dress. Twas lovely, but eventually unwearable due to holes in the fabric.

My father once went on a trip into some mountain range where there was a local weaver and he brought me back this texmex western style sweater jacket thing. It had a horse on the back. Anyway. I didn't like it as such, but it was a very special gift from him so I sometimes wore it around the house until one day I decided to pack it away with clothes I had in storage. One day I decided that the bag should go to charity, without looking as I hadn't opened it in years. It wasn't until ages later that I realised that weird sweater thing was in there. Even though it wasn't my thing I frequently mourn the loss of that thing.

Every good quality pair of house socks I buy. Eventually I put them in the wash on the wrong cycle and shrink them.

An embroidered cheesecloth shirt from Warehouse c1990. I wore it until it literally fell apart.

It was the most flattering item of clothing I've ever owned.

I had a very pale green cashmere wrap jumper with silk ties from Monsoon, it was expensive and a birthday gift from my DM. DH did the washing one day and it got put on a 40 degree wash. It came out so small it would have fit a ten year old. Loved it so much I did actually cry.

My matalan pleather jacket believe it or not - it was perfect and I bloody left it in the pub last year. If only I'd been sober enough to know which one :(

I have so many similar stories, and its nice (but not nice) to know I'm not alone!
If it is something from years ago, I try and console myself by thinking that however perfect I'm thinking something would be to wear now, in reality there is probably something about the cut or fabric that wouldn't be quite right. That is certainly the case with a few things I have kept, like a trench coat, supposedly one of those "timeless classics" but the cut from the one I have from years ago is very loose compared to the slimline styles now, and it looks dated.

A pair of Patrick Cox sandals - paid £35 for them in the sale. Cream. Went with literally everything. Worn to death. Finally died sobs

The most perfect pair of 'going out' black trousers which made me look ridiculously skinny. I do still have them, refuse to throw them out (think they're about 10 yrs old now) but thanks to 2 DC's and 3 stone of excess weight, no chance of wearing them out at the minute!

Fabulous Miss Selfridge Biker boots. Bought 1996. Worn to death then STUPIDLY GIVEN TO CHARITY one mad moment as I figured they were 5 years old and I deserved a new pair. I have never found another paid as fabulous as they were.

Amber -

I SO want a job that involves wearing a corset!!!

Nutdust - your top sounds awesome!
Apatite - I am mourning the AH clutch for you!

So we have:

• theft
• weight loss/gain
• lending things to others
• drunkenness
• just worn to death
• washing machine/ironing errors
• moths
• nightclubs
• vomit

We're not very careful are we??

never got the lumps of sick out of the holes has to be my favourite quote from the thread though!

1980s - While I was a student, my mum bought me a pair of flat leather mid-calf boots with a leather thong detail up the back. I wore them for well over 10 years till they sort of slipped sideways off their own soles & then went into holes where the leather touched the ground.

1980s student again - Benneton slightly striped blue/grey high-waisted cropped jeans with turn-ups & a green/red patterned lining - loved them & was really sad when they eventually went through at the knees. Ended their days as cut-off shorts with patches on the seat. They fitted perfectly.

also getting older.....
and mourning old fashion trends ..

I was devastated when leggings came in and out inthe early 90s ..but so pleased they came back afew years ago

Just remembered shrinking a favourite thin woollen jumper - it had been washed several times & been fine & then I tried some daft "dry-cleaning-in-your-own-tumble-dryer" method & it shrank to fit a toddler I loved it - black & grey irregular stripes in a lacy woven pattern

Red or Dead tan leather block heeled lace up ankle boots that I wore to death in the late 90s. One day the cobbler told me he could do no further repairs.... sob.

A pair of biker style boots with a heel from Nine West that were the comfiest heels I've ever worn - I wore them to work practically every day as they were like slippers. I put them in to be re heeled and the cobbler burnt down. RIP lovely boots. I've never had heels as comfy since and as a protest now live in flats (or that can be my excuse for going for comfort over style).

A pair of Asda high waisted skinny jeans bought when high waisted stuff was newly invented. I wore it until they died and I never found anything that fitted me like them.

A black slightly off the shoulder T-shirt. I had to admit defeat when it was more like dark grey.

My new fave tie waist skirt. Bleach :( Happened this week. :(

A black V-neck jumper from H&M with proper long sleaves. I think I've had that for 10y, it really ought to be binned, but they don't do the same anymore. Not in the sleeve department many at (have monkey arms)

A posh vintage silk ball gown. Killed by damp in my wardrobe.

sleeves

A grey lambswool v neck jumper with multicoloured stripes from H&m about 10 years ago. Packed away when I was pg, shredded by moths. Everything in that bag was shredded by moths, but that jumper is what I miss. Can't even remember what else was there.

An open necked white shirt from a charity shop. No modes where it originated, label was faded. It was getting on a bit and slightly greying, and I binned it when I saw something similar in Land's a End. Idiot that I am, I didn't wait for the Land's End one to arrive. It was horrible - different cut, too stiff, too formal. Charity shopped it pretty quickly. I still think of that white shirt.

Primrose yellow nubuck slingback pointed toe sandals bought in Stanley Market.

An off the shoulder cream sweatshirt, slouchy with LA Dodgers logo.

An original RAF parka. Stolen.

Tukka boots from 1981.

Galanos sequin mid thigh tunic belonging to a relative that disappeared from my student house in 1985.

how about a fave item that you just won't/can't fit into anymore? My awesome principles black leather jacket :( theres just no way it'll every fit again, makes me sad. oh well, retired but not forgotten and now residing in the back of the wardrobe.

When I moved from home for my first job, I took my 'new' wardrobe and left my other clothes in black bags to collect at a later date. My father binned them. 10 years of me as a Goth, gone. All my band t shirts, the most perfect leather jacket, fabulous skirts, everything, gone. He was not even slightly remorseful. Git.

My mother bought me a great pair of perfect knee high suede boots in 1994. A 20th birthday present. They were the right shape, heel height - SO comfortable. And last year, after 19 years of wear, they looked...shabby :( I am hoping we may celebrate our 20th anniversary together this year, though potentially not for my 40th birthday...

I think I have solved the mystery!!! I took a spoon and put it behind a section of ruined T- shirt, I then rubbed it along my granite tops in the kitchen....and there were the holes!!!!!!!, the source of which has been driving me mad, as I could not establish what the hell was causing them and ruining all my tops! over several months of living in my new house, (with new shiny granite tops in the kitchen and bathrooms, I have had to throw away many tops, as they are irreparable and totally ruined with fine sprays of tiny holes, and sometimes bigger multi holes in the same spot around my middle! I ruled out seat belts, zip, belt buckle, belt pin, washing machine, detergents, heat, etc etc etc it also occurred to me that it was NOT happening to my husbands T-shirts, so it must be something that I'm doing that he isn't, .... SO now, I think that a button or metal belt loop or metal button or buckle i.e. on your belt or jeans trimmed with metal buttons under your T-shirt is then rubbed against the granite on the outside as you work on the counter tops in the kitchen severs the threads and causes the holes. you have to wear something old when cooking washing dishes etc. remove your belt OR make it a habit not to lean your body against the granite at any time!! AT LAST I CAN RULE OUT THE SUPER NATURAL!!!

My lovely White Company dress of seven years ago ( they haven't done one as nice since). Cotton jersey not synthetic. They don't make them like that anymore.
Sadly it had so many holes in it....I don't know what caused them (I don't think they were moth holes) that I had to bin it or my friends and family would have a whip round for me