Eileen Fisher organic linen handkerchief top (gift from EF last year) | 100% linen
Ulla Johnson denim overalls (year old) | 100% cotton
Everlane form sandals (gift from Everlane to review)
James Perse mini canvas tote | has a small amount of polyurethane in it
I finally listened to Elizabeth Suzann’s talk on EconTalk yesterday and am thinking a lot about much of what she said, but I particularly loved what she said in response to how long she wants her clothing to last: 3-7 years, NOT forever. (she was speaking both in terms of “trends” and in terms of the actual fabrics)
That sounds about right. With regard to “trends” I seem to cycle styles every 3-5 years, unless they’re things that I consider to be “timeless.” Things change, and I love to play around with whatever is “new” in the moment, so I appreciate that Elizabeth does as well.
Now to fabric. Clothing that lasts “forever” will not degrade in a landfill; Polyester, nylon, spandex, etc., will literally last FOREVER, so she chooses to use natural fabrics. But she also made the point that natural fabrics like cotton, linen, silk, wool, hemp, etc. will develop holes and succumb to abrasion over time from rubbing against things (or thighs rubbing together…), and just being WORN. Of course, items can be patched and repaired to last longer, but ultimately, natural fabrics will wear out faster than fabrics with some synthetics added for stretch, etc.
As I thought about it, in general, I believe that to be true. I don’t have a lot of items that have completely worn out, but some of my favorite things that have, were 100% cotton (James Perse sweatpants…I miss those…), or 100% cotton t-shirts that develop holes. I don’t have a lot of experience with silk, or linen, so I can’t speak to how long those fabrics “last.”
I do have a lot of exercise clothes with spandex or nylon in them, and they have a lifespan of about 2-3 years (sports bras seem to last forever, which is fine by me), but they lose their shape over time, shrink, pill, and wear thin. My leggings wear out at the knees and develop holes in the heels. You can’t patch those, and they can’t be passed on to someone else, so the only option for synthetics is the landfill, or recycling.
I take all my linens, clothing, etc. that can’t be donated (is no longer fit to wear/use) to H&M for recycling instead of throwing them away.
But aside from exercise clothes, which I can’t avoid needing to replace, and also can’t avoid synthetics, I am aiming to buy clothing that is made from 100% natural fabrics lately. That means I probably shouldn’t add any more JP dresses, but I have quite a few of those anyway, that I can do without adding any more. Ya’ll KNOW I can!! haha
There are all sorts of environmental problems with using synthetics for clothing anyway, aside from the production of them, there’s that washing them releases micro-plastics into the water, and then there’s the fact that they will never degrade when they’ve reached the end of their life. They basically have no end of life, even when they have surpassed their utility.
Natural fabrics aren’t perfect though, in terms of environmental impact: cotton and silk specifically take SO MUCH WATER to grow/produce/process – water that many parts of the world could actually use for drinking & food production. But they are better than synthetics overall, I think, and I choose to buy natural over polyester, etc. when I can, and as often as I can.
Anyway, I just thought her statement was interesting, and thought-provoking. The whole discussion was interesting, and worth a listen. The comments are good too, insightful. On her blog a few days ago she also addressed the longer lead times for the WWC pieces. Of course it all makes sense, but that’s a big reason I am choosing not to order anything right now; I know I’ll still love whatever I get whenever I get it, but 10 weeks is an awful long time to wait…
What are you thoughts on the longevity (in terms of wear) of natural fabrics vs synthetics? do you notice a big difference?
Hmm, I have a lot of natural fibre clothing that’s older than seven years. I mean, I wear vintage denim… I have pants from the 90s. Obviously they weren’t heavily worn before I got my hands on them, but still… With a good broken-in pair of 100% cotton thrifted jeans, it usually takes me several years to start to develop holes in the knees, butt, etc — though of course there are many variables. I got rid of several cotton jersey dresses last year that dated back to 2003/4 — that’s more than a decade. Granted, cotton jersey dresses only get a few months of wear in my New England climate (it was living in the desert Southwest for several years that finally did them in!). Today I’m wearing Levi’s 501s of unknown vintage (probably early-mid 90s), an EF linen blazer I bought at a thrift store in 2014 that could be anywhere from 5 – 15 years old, and an Everlane tee bought last year. I imagine the tee will bite the dust before the older garments — it’s so much thinner than the jersey I’m used to (I’ll stick to Uniqlo for cotton tees, or maybe try the Everlane men’s tees in XS). If I bought an ES garment and it didn’t last me at least a decade, I don’t know that I’d feel I’d gotten my money’s worth. Maybe in a very small wardrobe with everything in very heavy rotation, but the amount of maintenance/upkeep that degree of minimalism would require is prohibitive for me right now…
I find that it’s hard to compare synthetics to natural fibres categorically, because they’re not all created equal. Certain synthetics (like Patagonia Baggies shorts) last forever, while others (cheap no-name fleeces) start to pill and shed and go threadbare almost immediately. And for every thick sturdy cotton shirt that wears like iron, there’s a thin flimsy one (or six) that gets a hole after one season…
One consideration in the wear of natural fibers vs synthetics is also how something looks once worn. A pair of ancient, worn out jeans look great if they are mostly cotton. Or an old canvas jacket has “character.” A pair of worn out leggings, not so much. Just for that reason, natural fibers might be considered to have a longer lifespan? Of course for more formal clothing you don’t want a “worn” look, but for most casual clothing it’s rather in right now!
I would hope my ES pieces would last me longer than 7 years, to be quite honest! They’re priced so high (and I’m willing to pay for them), that I’d love to get at least 10 years of wear. I didn’t get to listen to Elizabeth’s entire talk yet but from the snippets I’ve read online, I’m enlightened by what she has to say. I used to think that “good quality” clothes “should” last forever(!), not even thinking about the impact of non-biodegradable materials to our environment.
I agree with Kate and Henny: 3-7 years of wear at those prices? I would expect 3-7 years out of a fast fashion t-shirt. In fact, I have fast fashion Ts from decades ago that I still make work somehow (no, I am not wearing them to formal occasions!) I remember an interview with Stella McCartney in which she said she didn’t want her clients to have to stop wearing any pieces purchased from her “ever, ever, ever.” Yes, I can see putting things away for a time, or temporarily relegating to one mile wear, as silhouettes go back and forth, but the fabric wearing out?
I think the weight of natural fibers has a lot to with longevity. I have two pair of heavier weight linen pants that I bought at Anthroplogie 12 years ago. The color has faded some over time, but aside from that there is very little wear. I have a Perry Ellis wool/mohair sweater that is 25 years old and looks like new, etc… Perhaps demand is so high now that not much ends up in the marketplace that is really good quality? Meaning, a limited number of long, quality fibers are available for designers. At any rate, I don’t expect clothes to last forever but if I’m paying a premium price, I’d expect good quality fibers and sound construction. I get so frustrated hearing people justify the price and extolling the virtues of Kamm pants by saying they will last forever–they are just cotton and not even organic cotton at that! I want to be ethical and sustainable in my choices, but I also don’t want to be over charged because ethical/sustainable is the new buzzword . Being a woman with a conscience is so damn expensive!!!!!
A Pyne and Smith dress or two are on my wishlist, and I heavily perused their site yesterday and I think it’s very valid:
https://www.pyneandsmith.com/faq/
Linen in particular is kind of a miracle fabric (well, the woven stuff, the knit stuff … meh.) – and according to them should last 30-50 years. This seems right. I bought West Elm linen sheets nearly a year ago now, have a dog about the size and shape of Dagny that sleeps on the bed with us so they see some WEAR, and they’re holding up beautifully.
Fabrics that bugs go after (silk and wool) always concern me though they’re beautiful. I keep them as best I can with laundering and storage, but inevitably I think they will last less long than I wish them to. Well, that and the amount I sweat since I don’t wear anti-perspirant and there’s only so much you can do to get stains out of silk/wool.
Cotton tees? Oh please. I get belly holes in all of them (even my beloved Everlane v-necks in colors they no longer make and will never make again), and eventually they’re relegated to the pile of clothes I wouldn’t wear outside of the house/yard.
Also, all of the big manufacturers switched to blends – Gap, Banana, Boden, etc. You can tell me it’s environmentally friendly, etc. all you want, but tencel/lyocell is NOT as breathable as cotton/linen, nor as durable or colorfast.
I guess what I’m saying is, I should switch my entire wardrobe to linen.
Thank you for letting me know that H&M will recycle clothing, i had no idea! I really enjoyed reading ES blog about the turn time and her business. It makes sense and I appreciate how thought out her process is, not just on her clothing, but how her company runs and her employees.
Agreed! Jeans only get better with time as does heavyweight linen.
you’re welcome 🙂 they’ll actually take any fabrics, not just clothing. i have in my latest bag a duvet that dagny’s ripped to shreds…
UGH!!! i was just at “the mall” and forgot to take the bag of stuff i’ve had in my trunk FOREVER in to H&M for recycling. man…sometimes i don’t know where my head is.
yes. i would be happy to live in linen. i love it. although i have to get over my seasonal fabric disorder LOL – linen is very much a summer fabric to me.
i bought us a linen duvet a month ago and i love it. fingers crossed dagny doesn’t rip holes in it like she did the other cotton one (she runs and jumps on the bed, sliding as she goes, so her nails dig in!!), but i went with linen precisely because i thought it would hold up better to that.
agree on tencel/lyocell. i don’t love it.
don’t even get me started on the kamm pants LOL
i’ve learned for myself that i really don’t want or expect things to last “forever” anymore – some things i think i do, things i really love right now, but the more i get to know myself, the more i realize that my taste and style is changing every 3-5 years, or even more frequently, and i don’t want to wear the same things/styles i did before. i’m okay with that now (i have a pretty good system for re-selling things i no longer want 😉 ), but i used to try and buy in terms of longevity, and no longer do.
yes, i want my pieces to last while i want to wear them, not developing holes or wearing out too fast, and in my experience so far, i think linen is the best for that. my heavier weight emerson fry caftan and ES tunic will probably last ten years or more, which i would be happy with.
Thank you for sharing, I’d definitely like to have a listen as well. I’m curious if she spoke about hemp at all. I love similar oversized draping styles as you do and am a huge fan of Garmentory now. I do prefer to support small batch handmade lines however I had to rebuild my whole work wardrobe and couldn’t afford to do all $200/$300+ pieces. I found some wonderful hemp oversized tops (but made overseas) that look like linen and look similar and as good as ES or a number of other lines found at Garmentory for ~ $100 in local shops in Hawaii. These shops cater to senior oba-sans (grandmas) – carry handmade natural fabrics in loose modest styles and include touches like vintage kimono fabric, that kind of thing. I normally feel too young at 48 to shop there but it kind of occurred to me I could find similar styles as I was browsing online and I was right! The tops I buy are one size and I suspect the plus size and taller customers wear them as regular tops but for my 5’1″ self it is an oversized tunic with wonderful drape.
I definitely buy to keep for years now and try to buy pieces that even if I get back to my happy weight, I will still wear (I don’t plan to depart from oversized even if I lose my weight gain). In regards to synthetics, I found Lululemon has a longer life than any other brands I’ve had and they don’t retain the stink if you know what I mean. So I just buy less pieces and wash more, I’ve had some pieces for years whereas the mass brands last a year top before it just gets gross.
You look so good in this outfit. I can see recently how toned and fit you are! But I’m jealous, I want that romper and can’t justify it. If you ever get tired of it and put it on Slowre, feel free to give me a shoutout because I’ll be there, card in hand.
man!! i bet elizabeth didn’t expect that little snippet to be analyzed this deeply LOL –
i think she was just making her argument for using natural fabrics, and also that she doesn’t necessarily produce “classic” styles, like straight black pants, or simple white tees, or button-downs, you know? her styles have become “classics” and re-appear every year for the last several years because people love them, but she doesn’t try to make styles or silhouettes that are “classic” in the traditional sense of the word.
and maybe she was not entirely correct about fabric wearing out. i’ve never experienced linen wearing out, but i know that some people have mentioned that the clyde pants wear holes at the thighs where they may rub together. i haven’t worn mine enough for that to happen, but it has definitely happened with 100% cotton jeans/sweatpants/etc. for me before and not with blended fabrics.
yes. that is a very good point.
yes, you’re right about higher quality synthetics, and lower quality natural fabrics. and she wasn’t making a blanket statement, or whatever, i just took her little blurb and ran with it 😉 trying to determine if i thought there was any validity to it. certainly i would prefer my clothing not last forever in a landfill – to degrade at some point – but i wondered if over the years items wore out faster depending on what they were made of…
i don’t have a lot of experience with 100% cotton denim yet, since i’ve only had my two pairs for less than a year, but i can’t wait for them to “wear in” – on the other hand, i find that some jeans with stretch look horrible after a few years of wear, the “stretch” doesn’t bounce back eventually and creates unsightly wrinkles and puckers in the fabric…
she didn’t mention hemp at all. she didn’t talk a lot about her fabrics, mostly about the production and why she’s chosen the model she has. which was pretty fascinating.
there’s a brand on garmentory that’s in australia i think that sells hemp pajamas, sheets, clothing, etc. that i’ve been tempted by, but haven’t ordered anything yet. i love the idea of hemp, but i’m still not entirely sold on it for clothing i guess? i don’t know why. i just have the one t-shirt, and honestly i don’t wear it that much…
agree on lululemon – their stuff seems to last quite well. i don’t have a lot of it, because i prefer to buy similar pieces produced in the US. on that note though my very favorite alo leggings have a random hole in them that just appeared. right on the top of the thigh of all places, where there’s certainly not any friction, etc. i’m really bummed. i think i’ll just stitch it up, like i did with my older pair of JP leggings, and keep wearing them.
thanks 🙂
There is an Etsy retailer that makes dresses for fall/winter in a linen/wool woven blend which sounds delightful. I hope to invest in one this fall.
Seven years is a long time! I think that’s an incredible lifespan for a piece of clothing made in 2017 (well made vintage clothing is something else entirely.) I wear my ES clothing a lot, several times a week. I know it won’t last forever and even if the pieces only last three or five years they will still have gotten way more use than any other article of clothing in my closet so ultimately I’m not that concerned. I could also spill something or tear them and have to replace them much sooner, that’s the risk you take with the investment. Yes I buy these items with the intention that they will be workhorses, but they are also luxuries for me, so I guess I don’t really have the expectation that they owe me anything if that make sense.
yes, that sounds intriguing…
absolutely – that’s a great way to say it…
I have one Alo and it is so comfy and flattering. I did note since it is so soft and not as thick it pills etc that Lulus don’t do. But I love them sobI still wear mine too.
No more JP??? Oh NO. Will you still put private sale info on Grechen’s codes?? Having access a few days early via this website really helped me expand my small wardrobe, and because you give info on fit of items in the sale, in hindsight everything I bought so far in final sale turned out to be a hit. I find most of these ethically made items too loose and billowy to layer under lab coats, where fitted long sleeve tees, full length washable pants/jeans work best. I was in Old Navy and Gap for years before I finally cared about finding flattering basics and started spending more money on t-shirts. I find that if I ignore JP items made just for outlets (usually made in other countries with inferior fabrics), they are long-lasting wash and wear… I will be so sad if you really never buy JP ruched things again, they look so good on you too.
Oh I’ll definitely post sale info ( and early access!!) and will more than likely add a dress here and there. Who am I kidding?? I love those dresses 🙂 they are amazing for layering…
So the Kamm pant always bring two things to mind (at the risk of TMI): being slowly sawed in half by my pants all day via my crotch, and trapped gas. Those things look TIGHT. They certainly flatter some people but I’ve never seen a picture of anyone sitting down in them so I’m not sure it’s possible…
oh… what an image!!! 😉
agreed though, those things look TIGHT
The benefit of a largish wardrobe is that items don’t get enough wear to wear out quickly. I have had pieces that were perfectly nice, that I just got disinterested in a few years down the road. These have found happy homes no doubt after donating at my local Salvation Army.
Other items have been in such heavy rotation that I bought multiples of (EF slim heavy weight ponte pants x 3) and their cost per wear has to be in pennies at this point as I’ve worn them heavily for years.
I have practiced one in and two out for enough years now that my wardrobe is at a manageable number for me. ES linen is such a luxurious heavy weight, that I see it lasting for many years, and is in heavy rotation currently for me. This is a newer brand for me, and I am wondering what items I can add for work clothes in the winter time…very cold and long here in South Dakota.
I don’t like synthetic fabrics in general, and find they get rub marks where my car seat belt rubs. I am an outside sales rep, and am in my car for at least 8 hours a day so this matters a lot.
I think 3-7 years wear, with an appropriately sized wardrobe, sounds reasonable. My wardrobe is largely Eileen Fisher and, now, Elizabeth Suzann, and the styles really are timeless to me. Especially now that the area where I live and work is largely Business Casual.