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Comment by ogre_codes | Hacker News Reader

The average age of my clothing[1] is probably 5-10 years with some items well over 10 years old. Some of my clothes are legal to drink.

The idea of buying clothes then donate them after 6-12 months has always been broken. With growing kids (or if you gain/ lose a bunch of weight) you don't have a ton of choice. For most adults, the only way you can really ensure you have an environmentally friendly wardrobe is by purchasing carefully and keeping clothes until they genuinely wear out. For jeans and good quality jackets, that can be decades.

When you donate clothes to St Vinny's (Goodwill/ Salvation Army/ whatever), they keep the best/ resealable clothes and dispose of the rest. A bunch gets dumpstered. The only reason they accept used clothing is because of the small percentage they can actually resell.

[1] Excluding underwear and socks!

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I have a Lick Observatory 100th Anniversary (1988) t-shirt my wife would very much like to get rid of. Not happening.

I have old concert t-shirts that I'll never wear, but still want to keep even if they are taking up space. A friend of mine suggested having them made into a quilt. This would get them out of the closet/drawer/box, and actually visible.

I love this idea! I've kept around a lot of old sentimental value shirts with a similar, albeit more vague, idea of putting them together in some form that makes them visible. Keeps the memories and lets you actually look at/revisit them.

"Have them made into a quilt"

Usually this means getting them all together, calling around to find how much it costs to actually make a quilt, then putting them back in storage.

Takes a lot more time and effort to make a quilt than people think.

Right, I think the alternatives are “I have made a quilt before and I’ll do it myself,” or “I’m just going to throw these away or keep them in storage.”

Could always make the quilt yourself, it's not that hard to make a simple one with big blocks from the shirts.

The long-arm sewing machines to do the actual quilting (where the top gets sewed to the backing over the whole face of the quilt) are pretty expensive and not really the domain of typical hobbyist, though. You'd have to find someone in your area who's willing to quilt it for you for a fee, which can be hard if you're a newcomer and not in any classes or forums. Or, you could hand quilt it, but that takes forever, especially for a beginner.

Let me introduce you to the needle and thread. People have been making quilts for a lot longer than this long-arm sewing machine you speak of. I mean, I guess my grandmother's arms were long, and she could reach all the way to the other side of the table she quilted from. Don't think she'd take too kindly to being referred to as the sewing machine though.

T-shirts already have a front and back. You just need some long running stitches to join two shirts together. Shove them with the amount of batting you want, and then another running stitch to seal them up.

People just want to turn a bag full of old concert Tees into a nice wall hanging. Few are interested in picking up a new hobby to do it.

Hand sewing a quilt is a big effort. If you love doing it, it's awesome. If you don't, it's just massively frustrating and time consuming.

A tied quilt (in some vernaculars a comforter) is vastly less effort.

I say this as somebody who hates all parts of sewing except old machines.

This place takes mailed-in orders. Currently $155 for 6'x6'.

https://www.missouriquiltco.com/shop/machinequilting

I have a bag full of "quilt t-shirts." One of the problems is that I don't actually want a t-shirt I like and is comfortable to wear and in reasonable condition to be converted like that. It's on my project list and should probably revisit this winter. (There are companies that do this but they aren't cheap.)

>> Takes a lot more time and effort to make a quilt than people think.

I think you found the next YC business idea

My wife had a professional put together a T-shirt quilt. It is awesome.

It was made before we met, so I don't have a sense for the cost. As a functional swaddle of memories, it is worth far more than a blanket from the store.

One thought for those considering it -- the shirts can't be completely worn out. A threadbare shirt will make a threadbare quilt.

It's doable: https://youtu.be/F_Uiy40vEj8?t=412

I find it's much easier to part with such shirts if I take a photo of each of them. The main reason for keeping them (after they're worn out, shrunk too much, stained, etc.) is really just to remind myself of the event or band. A photo takes no real space.

there's kits for framing them so you can hang them on the wall, too

Just like with sports jerseys. The fun part is deciding do you show the front or the back? Maybe cut the shirt down the length of one side and display it in a butterfly cut? Get a frame that is glass encased on both sides, and then flip it over every week? I have seen actual framed butterflies with this kind of case so you can see both sides of the butterfly's markings.

I quilt and have made one t-shirt quilt. It's the last I will ever make. Not hard, but you need the proper tools. And not just a sewing machine. You need stabilizer for the t-shirts since they stretch.

If you want one made, there are companies and quilters everywhere that make them.

As for cost, the idea that they are expensive depends on how you view the work. I love quilting but understand that what I sell them for keeps me in fabric. I'm not earning a living from it.

You don't have to wear shirts to enjoy them. You can frame them like a poster.

I know you probably have no interest in selling them but if anyone else has old band/concert shirts you should look them up on ebay first before getting rid of them. Some can be worth quite a lot.

Did you hug it during the fires?

Should have! Kept refreshing the video feeds.

I've found synthetic workout clothes last pretty much forever. I have a pair of 15 year old basketball shorts that look about the same as they did brand new whereas the cotton stuff I've bought all would have holes and have faded in color by now.

Same. I have a workout shirt from when I was 15 (I'm in my 30s now) that has seen literally hundreds, even a thousand+ workouts.

However the cotton fabric used in most off the shelf clothing is also not what it used to be. My dad, who doesn't like to throw things away, still has his old clothes from when he was in his 30s (he is in his late 70s now). They've retained their shape far better than my 3 year old clothes.

Most modern clothes take all the possible shortcuts from material to assembly they possibly can to deliver a $30 sweater that holds up until you pay at the checkout. If you want a long lasting one, they’re available from specialty manufacturers but the price will be over $200

Or you buy a nice vintage item, used. They are better made and more affordable.

Manufacturers that cater to EMS and Military produce some very durable clothes. Propper's emt pants are currently my go-to.

Work clothes in general tend to be higher quality and last much longer than fast fashion. A pair of chinos or cotton twill pants from a respected workwear manufacturer is what I would recommend for daily wear.

Only problem is, if you sweat heavily in them, the funk can gradually become unbearable despite all the vinegar and soap in the world.

Doesn't matter how much you sweat, it matters what you do with them after the workout. If you wash them or even just let them air out after use, it's not a problem. I have 15+ year old synthetic shirts which have been on dozens of 5+ hour mountain bike rides in 80-90 degree weather and they don't have any scent at all.

That's exactly what I do. Hang them up after riding (on a hanger in the garage) so they dry, then wash with normal detergent and sometimes maybe a bit of powdered OxyClean (sodium percarbonate).

I've had phenomenally gross post-ride jerseys (literally crusted with sweat), but doing this they don't get stinky. I agree that the key is to not let them stay wet and let bacteria grow in it. Get them dry fast, all is good.

Wash them with just soda crystals.

For maximum odor removal, soak in sodum percarbonate (most clothing seems to do fine with this, one or two that I've tried don't)

Aka: Oxiclean (TM) in North America.

I've got a pair of Under Armor shirts I've had going on 14 years now. The branding has long since faded away but otherwise they're basically indistinguishable from the day I got them.

These are shirts I've worn for a week straight trekking through Central American rainforests.

It's amazing how the branding on those falls apart after a handful of washes but the rest of the shirt lasts forever.

Possibly because you have bugs eating your clothes and they can't eat the plastic stuff.

In my experience, the charities usually don't throw those away.

Over here in the UK and much of Europe, the charities sell them by the ton to traders that ship them to Africa or other developing countries.

Some charities don't even handle them, they enter into a contract with a third party that specialises in the trade that collects the clothes and then pays the charity a fixed amount of money per ton. The whole service is branded, so you would think that you're donating to the charity directly when in fact they are paid by the trader by weight.

Usually clothes don't get shipped to developing countries to be used as clothes. They get shredded and used as a source of cotton and other fibres after sorting, e.g. to create stuffing, insulation or paper.

Donated stuff is treated the same way, and just the proceeds used as a donation to help the third world. Read the fine print on the used-clothes-bin.

My partner is the manager of a red cross shop here in the UK, and it's exactly this - anything not of resale quality (or just too 'personal', like used underwear) goes for 'rag' and they get paid by weight by the rag company. The rag clothes are shredded, IIRC, not sure what for.

They also have a book company who have a similar arrangement, they pay a few pence per book, though IIRC they do make use of the books as-is rather than shredding.

Rags can be used to make paper or some forms of packaging.

alot of workshops (metal, wood) buy rags for finishing work, etc. At $2/lb it adds up pretty fast.

This article is basically about how that entire part of the recycling chain is shutting down because it's cheaper to just manufacture new.

Regardless, even when they were shipping them out, the environmental cost of shipping and repurposing was always higher than the cost of just using what you had.

Fun exercise - we look thru old photos (5yrs, 10yrs, 20yrs) and see if we can find any of the same clothing, then, do a new family photo. Same clothes, same pose, similar setting, different year.

This is good for adults, but kids grow out of stuff - we use the local no-buy groups to trade, or just donate/trade/receive with friends/family.

Amused by family pics where I recognize a garment that's older than my oldest kid being worn by the new toddler.

I need to figure out where people buy jeans that last! I'm certainly hard on clothes, though jeans don't usually end up being part of cutting up trees and splitting firewood until after the knee holes form... but that still often happens within 2-3 years of purchase.

What's the secret?!

My next jeans have been fine for a decade.

https://www.nextdirect.com/CountrySelect

They do look worn, but I don’t care.

Surprised no-one has mentioned Vollebak. Their clothes are (claimed to be) pretty indestructible. Ceramic t-shirts, kevlar hoodies, dynema jackets, ...

Bonus: At $~500 for a hoodie, you're likely to make sure you stay in a shape that will fit into the hoodie.

I love my raw denim jeans, and assume they're likely better at holding up - certainly moreso than general brands.

For work (if style is less of a concern), Duluth Trading makes pants that last an order of magnitude longer than carhartt.

A word to the wise though; while my raw denim jeans are several years old now and in good condition, you sounds like you're dramatically harder on your clothes than myself.

I cannot confirm this, but I have been told Dickies last at least as long as duluth.

Sugarcane dungarees are your best bet, here.

Knee holes are a nice failure mode. My last three pairs of jeans have split open completely in the back while I was in public. (And I'm neither overweight nor particularly large in that region.)

I've had pretty good luck with ll bean jeans after I got tired of buying levi's all the time. I recommend their regular line, the premium line has weird pockets and don't seem as durable. They also offer flannel lined jeans if you live somewhere with cold.

Same here, I used to be a big Levi's guy back in the day but they've destroyed one of the great American brands. Total garbage now. You can get much better jeans these days for a comparable price.

Japanese selvedge jeans are very durable but expensive. The fabric is made on traditional looms, sometimes the actual looms from 1950s and earlier (those are mostly wooden contraptions, which can be repaired and kept in working order indefinitely) and can be incredibly dense to the point when you can actually make new jeans stand on their own (only possible because jeans are starched during production, you are supposed to soak them before wearing). But even light-weight 10-12 oz selvedge denim is still on a different level from a department store jeans.

The problem with the most department store jeans, no matter the price, is that they use fabric made on high-speed wide looms. These looms use light and smooth thread so they can weave fast. The fabric comes out very light (because of the thin thread) and does not hold together quite well (because the fabric is held together by friction, reduced by the smoothness of the thread).

Of course, it makes no sense to buy expensive jeans for durability. $400 24oz jeans probably will last for 20-30 years but so will 10 pairs of $40 jeans from Target.

I wouldn't call myself a denimhead, but I have several pairs of selvedge denim jeans from good tailors, one with Japanese denim, one with Cone denim.

Thickness counts for durability, and you have choices. I'm not sure what durability is like for cotton blends (it's rarely more than 3-4% synthetic). I have doubts that mass-produced denim of similar weight is significantly more or less durable than denim from traditional looms. The only differences I can think of that would impact this would be staple length and chemicals used in processing. Pre-faded, bleached, or distressed denim will obviously be less durable.

20 years sounds high to me. I have jeans less than a year old already showing crotch wear. Granted, this is expected, and it can be repaired before it's an issue.

Of course, if a wide loom could weave the same thread a narrow loom could then the output would be the same. It does not happen for the reasons I explained above: you cannot really weave thick, neppy thread fast - the thread will break.

Are you me? Every article of clothing that has persisted is still in pretty good shape, maybe a little faded at the worst. If anything, over the years I've started to pay more attention to what materials my clothes are made of so they do last. For example I stopped buying any kind of stretchy t-shirt as all of the necks become ribbons within a few months. I have cotton shirts that are 8 years old that look great. Everything wool looks just as good, too; if anything they're more comfortable.

Yeah, I discovered a while ago that spending more for good clothing that lasts a long time saves money over the long term versus buying cheaper clothes. I can get 10 years out of a nice Columbia or Carhart flannel, something I pick up on Amazon might be half the cost but it'll be less comfortable and last one season.

Spending a little more, maybe 2x or 3x. After that, the quality to price ratio is no longer worth it (in my opinion).

Yeah, and some brands just charge a premium for the name and the "Fashion". There is definitely more than just "Pay more".

I believe that front-loading, horizontal axis washing machines are quite a bit more gentle on clothing. When I switched 2 decades ago, the reduction in lint in the dryer catch was remarkable. They seem good for other reasons as well, but that I almost never wear out clothing is another $$ and ecological benefit.

I keep roughly the same amount of clothes and get new articles if the existing ones get worn or no longer fits. Typically I'd purchase a few tshirts, socks and underwear at the half a year or a year mark to replace ones I've gotten rid of.

Lately though this hasn't been going as well. I think partly due to Covid lock downs I've gained some weight around the middle and some jeans no longer fit. I'm resisting buying replacement jeans hoping to lose the weight instead. Not going well so far.

This amazes me every time I think about it. I have a few t-shirts with prints that are 15 years old and are still okay-ish, at least for home use, and the prints are still almost undamaged. Or winter boots that just don't break in 10 years or so, I only replace shoelaces every few years. Or a winter jacket which is also good looking at 7 or 8 years old. All that is after daily use during season. Every time I'm like "wow, it's possible to endure for so long".

I've tried repairing old clothing (usually paying professionals to do it) and they just keep falling apart eventually.

I've had good luck with shoe repair, salvaged a $120 pair of hiking boots for $25 at the shoe doctor. Often shirts and pants fare less well.

All clothes will fall apart from wear, there really isn't a way around it. Some fabrics — such as tweed — are famously long-lasting, but they still wear out eventually.

The best thing you can do is buy quality clothing, take good care of it and repair it when necessary, before it wears out completely. That can extend the life of an item significantly, but not indefinitely.

Buy good quality wool, wool blends, thick cotton twill, heavy selvedge denim and similar fabrics. They're durable and take repairs well. I've never had much luck with hemp, and linen is too fussy for me, but I'm not ruling them out.

If you don't mind synthetic fibers, you can get some very light yet durable clothing. The drawback is that a lot of it will come from outdoor brands and look like it.

> When you donate clothes to St Vinny's (Goodwill/ Salvation Army/ whatever), they keep the best/ resealable clothes and dispose of the rest

By dispose, what you mean is send them to Africa or other undeveloped regions. In virtually all of the 35 African countries I spent time in I would see clothes for sale in local markets that still had (St Vinny's/Goodwill/ Salvation Army) tags on them.

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