Avoiding the polyester invasion

[shuffleofftobuffalo]

I've always avoided synthetics like the plague and it's getting harder and harder. I was having a little shop the other day and there's so much expensive polyester out there and polyester/natural mixes. I got awfully cross the other day realising a beautiful viscose dress from Hobbs had a polyester lining (didn't do my usual label inspection diligence 😬).

I'm sure I'm not the only natural fibre lover - where do you shop, especially on the high street?

I have had success recently:

Seasalt - lots of lovely, quality natural fabrics, but has a certain "look" which might not be everyone's taste

M&S, but more and more polyester creeping in so you have to be diligent about checking fibre content

Next - but same as M&S. I got some lovely linen clothes from there this summer though.

I find the filter by material is very unreliable, you still have to check labels as people will list faux leather as leather or satin as silk

I find filter by material is unreliable too, and more and more I see eg "cotton dress" and when you look it's actually polycotton mix. They never say "polyester dress" when they mean polycotton - it's a deliberate ploy to cover up the synthetic fabric contents. M&S are bad for that.

In another thread there was a link to a Topshop coat on the ASOS website advertised as 'wool coat' when it was actually only 2% wool. Looks like they've changed it to wool-blend now.

I've bought a couple of wool jumpers on Vinted but I wouldn't do it again. In both cases they were misshapen from not being dried flat. I also see a lot of shrunken jumpers advertised.

Debenhams (and others!! has a pathetic search and filter function. Most times I give up as I don’t have time to go through 20 pages of crap.

That's all very well, but what are people supposed to buy when all the decent secondhand stuff has worn out and you're just left with crappy manmade second hand stuff?

I find that the brands that do use lots of natural fibres and are affordable (just about) seem to be aimed at a particularly look - Seasalt, white stuff, etc.

So I end up buying things from lots of different brands but it sometimes feels like a lot of hard work!

Superdry tend to have a nice feeling cotton. Unfortunately, they also tend to logos and a lot of their stuff is too short on me. I have some casual tank tops for the summer from them and a long sleeved top from the men's section where I had the sleeves shortened.

I mostly buy things online, of which a large part is second-hand. But I've never cared about fashion, keep things until they no longer work, and don't buy things that often.

Yes, lots of very colourful and patterned things when all I want is a simple black jumper.

La Redoute and Esprit have a decent selection of natural fibre basics.

There's going to be more and more of this as companies come under pressure to use recycled materials and generally be more eco-friendly.

Part of me thinks we just have to suck it up because cotton uses a huge amount of water and we have to do something to balance out the cheapo fast-fashion prevalence.

Having said all that I don't like it either and try to buy fewer better quality things.

I refresh my wardrobe infrequently so I've not really shopped for about 3 yrs properly, it's a definite change I've seen. I worry about all this plastic clothing that's going to sit in landfill for years!

@NoMoreCheddar totally hear you. Can’t abide anything non natural now. Can’t do viscose either…

The concern isn't only environmental, but also about the feeling of the fabric.

I'm fine with polyester in swimming costumes (I'm not wishing to learn what wool swimming costumes felt like), but I once bought a polyester sports top and I couldn't stand to wear it. A PP described 100% cotton as feeling like ants crawling over you - I felt something like that with that sports top. I also used to have some viscose/polyester trousers which were okay when first put on (if not a fabric that's actively nice), but after a few hours of wear started to feel uncomfortable on the thighs - they were bootcut so they weren't touching the calves as much.

Uniqlo, gap, la redoute , community clothing for jumpers and cardis which are wool. Tshirts are easier to find but these places plus h&m are my go-to again. Jeans are easier to find in 100% cotton now wider styles are back in. I am on the lookout for a higher wool count coat though. Got one from John Lewis a few years ago but haven't looked recently.

I know what you mean. I just admired from afar the lovely Christmas jumper designs in Sainsbury's but once touched them it was game over as they were all thin horrible feeling acrylic.

I shop at H&M, M&S & very occasionally Primark. I also buy Cashmere from Tk Maxx & recently a boiled wool jacket. For H&M I shop there mainly in the summer, as they sell a lot of cotton items. I never buy the knitwear as it's normally a synthetic mix. M&S is particularly bad for ' Cotton Rich ' items though some pure cotton t shirts are creeping in for sale now.
I also really dislike Wool Mix coats which are sold at nearly shops now. Even at Cos.
Anything mixed with Polyamide means that the coat attracts masses of fluff. I must be highly electrostatically charged or something.
Strangely I love the feel of fleece & the Brora thermal tops which are manufactured from Polyester & Viscose.

The most expensive dresses are likely to be polyester. Other fabrics crease badly, so for special occasions it’s no surprise that they’re likely to be made of polyester or polyester/ viscose. Are there any natural fibres that don’t crease?

We are a long long long long long way away from that point! Ask me in a few hundred years.

I also avoid man made fibres. I especially can't stand the feeling of acrylic.

This Autumn, I've bought pieces from Toast, Part Two, Poetry, The White Company and Celtic and Co. Plus a never worn cashmere hat and snood on Vinted. I just need a pair of boots and plan to get a Barbour waxed utility coat, them I'm done for the year.

I understand buying brand new, cotton and wool perhaps isn't the greenest option. But I'm sure buying a few, quality goods and wearing them for years is infinitely better than buying lots of cheap man made fabrics and consigning them to the bin after a year or so, which I know is quite common now.

Celtic and co, House of Bruar, Woolovers, Hobbs, Crew Clothing, Boden, Nearly New Cashmere, Rapauni, Thought, Kite