Which brands still make good quality clothes?

[TwoMagnificentLabradors]

We’ve heard loads on here about the decrease in quality of many brands (Boden, FatFace, Hush). Which brands (old or new) still produce decent quality clothing that lasts and lasts, and represents decent value?

The three items I’ve been most impressed with this year are my Hobbs Tilda coat (rich colour, softest wool, gorgeous lining), my Toast pyjamas ( make my feel like Anna Madrigal, if anyone gets the reference) and a Brora sweater I picked up second hand in a charity shop. DMIL buys lovely stuff at Poetry, but it’s not really my style or my price bracket for regular purchases.

Any ideas for brands worth a try?

Agree completely with Floisme.

In the mid-price range I find Arket good for less frumpy styles. I also find Jigsaw consistently reliable for quality.

I'm a big fan of Hobbs and their dresses are always good quality and look good on. I treat myself in the sale or sometimes pick up bargains on ebay. Have never been disappointed.

I agree about Hobbs. I bought six work dresses in the sale three years ago and they’ve worn so well. My new coat is lovely. Cost £219 in the sale but its ge quality is excellent.

I'd like to see more Hobbs items worked into everyday wear (photos welcome!) as it always looks so matronly; the type of choice for Ms Trunchbull from Matilda.

Just to support the pp on more everyday attainable brands, I've found some 100% cotton shirts and linen from Sainsbos, which have stood the test of time and can be dressed up or down.
Jaeger too, is dependable.

When I look into my wardrobe, I now see mainly COS and All Saints.
Still with M&S for underwear.
Lululemon or Nike for sportswear

I have a Jenelle. I wore it in freezing temperatures in Antartica and with a base layer and a wool sweater, it kept me warm and dry!

I fought shy of Seasalt coats until this winter, as they are so dull - bought one (Porth Mellin?) and I have to say that for the price they really are excellent, properly waterproof.

I find there are times for style and times for such things as wellies and waterproof coat 🙂

Agree with Cos and Uniqlo.

I’ve still got several jumpers from Uniqlo that look almost new and I’ve had them 5 or 6 years! They just wash so well and don’t bobble or fade.

I know. I'm a three times a day dog walker, I should know better really. I just like a brighter coat for miserable days, and was too fat for my Didriksons. 😆

Sorry Negroni, I didn't see your post yesterday.

From the top down, I like Margaret Howell and, for knitwear, John Smedley. I also have a couple of Max Mara and Joseph things which are a bit more formal than I normally wear but are very well made.
It's worth adding that, aside from the occasional sales find, I mostly only buy these second hand so they're at least a couple of years old by the time I get them. It's possible that even here the quality of new stuff has started to slip - I don't know this, I'm just speculating but I think this is always a problem with recommending brands for quality: by definition the stuff lasts and lasts so you might not buy it very often and the advice might be out of date.

I also still rate Toast (I know, not to everyone's taste and I'm not a fan of their dresses). But it must be 3 or 4 years since I last bought anything from there new so the above warning might apply here too.

Likewise Cos - i think I was late to the party and missed them at their prime but I still think the quality compares well to anything at a similar price point.

Celtic and Co knitwear but again I've not bought anything for 4 or 5 years.

Moving down the price chain, I've had both really good and absolute shit from Uniqlo, Zara and Marks & Spencer, but enough ok-good stuff for me to at least keep an eye on them.

I remain fond of H&M, mainly for old times sake and I cannot be arsed with the lucky dip that is their website but, if I'm ever near a big branch, I always have a look.

These have been my go-tos for quite a long time now. I'm hoping to branch out a bit more in 2023!

Oh and there are also a few brands where I like the look but don't rate the quality. I'd put & Other Stories and Whistles in that category.

Sorry I also forgot to mention Seasalt! A lot of it isn't my thing but, whenever I've been in a reasonably sized shop / concession, I've always seen a few things I like, and the quality does look decent, although I don't know how well it wears and washes.

Whistles and Jigsaw have retained their quality. Baukjen I haven’t tried but keen to.

Thought, Patagonia

If ‘quality’ means ‘oceans of polyester’ then yes, they have!

Jigsaw still do some wool, silk and cotton but much less than they did in the past. Once, you could walk into Jigsaw and find beautiful tailored well-made clothes in natural fabrics. Now you have to hunt for them.

Whistles is a completely different shop to what it was 20 years ago. It had a genuine boutique vibe then and sold genuinely good quality clothes. Now it’s indistinguishable from all the other shops churning out polyester printed crepe stuff.

Whistkes is crap. It’s full of manmade fibres.

Gosh @ArseInTheCoOpWindow and @Iamthewombat are having a good day 😂

Woolovers is great for classic pure wool jumpers. Getting a little more expensive now but still worth it for quality basics.

Ha ha! Yeah!But every time l look at stuff from Whistles it’s always polyester.

What l Don not understand is why wool/cotton and linens are so expensive. There’s millions of pigging sheep. The cotton harvest failed about 10 years ago and never seemed to recover. But cotton and linens are PLANTS. Why are they more expensive than oil!?

Cos as so many have said. Often me+em quality at less than half the price. Saying that me+em is fabulous quality and great tailoring. Expensive but buy in sales and second hand as their stuff is classic and lasts.

So many brands now are full of polyester. I've taken to buying pretty much everything vintage/second hand - but I'm very lucky and blessed with great charity shops where I live.

Massimo dutti, some Zara (but you have to be really picky) mint velvet, boura, have some good bits.

Because I charity shop so much I've got really picky about fabrics so go for pure wool/cashmere/silk and cotton. In store I've got a terrible habit of feeling material and reading the labels. Well it's a good habit really.

I'd like to see more Hobbs items worked into everyday wear (photos welcome!) as it always looks so matronly; the type of choice for Ms Trunchbull from Matilda.

It depends on your figure - I'm tall with breasts and a waist so Hobbs is no good for me. But I work with some petite women with figures that look pre pubertal, and they are who Hobbs is for.

As above, try not to take other posters’ opinions so personally. Are you offended because not everyone has the same definition of ‘quality’ as you?

I’ve got a Hugo Boss that was very expensive. It looks great and hangs beautifully and it hasn’t fallen apart despite being five years old. Despite that I still wouldn’t call it ‘quality’ because it is made of polyester.

Lol I’m not taking anything personally, but I see what you’re doing - you’ve introduced unnecessary negativity into what has been a diverting thread asking for advice. Have a cup of tea, or something.

Feed for animals is very expensive, even more so since the Ukraine was kicked off. Land is also very expensive and at a premium.