Post: #1

Hi all,

Serious question here. I have learnt a lot from this great forum when It comes to dressing well and definitely notice that women take notice when you have a well put together wardrobe.

I think it might be of use to know how individuals on here manage their clothing rotation.

For example. How often do you purchase new clothes, how often do you wear an item before it is no longer "new" and fresh.
How often do you dry-clean.
Do you rely on a few nice pieces that you layer with classic's or go all out and spend large on a wardrobe every year.

I am asking because genuinely curious about what members on here do to stay looking current.

I notice my clothes tend to wear out quickly and am wondering if the best (and most cost effective way) to fix this is less wear through a larger wardrobe, more attention to dry-cleaning and general maintaining of newness. Looking current is becoming quite expensive where I am from and I notice more and more that clothing quality is declining and costs are going up.

Do you shop for quality or make quantity work? Any other appearance hacks are welcome as well.

Post: #2

Higher-quality fabrics do last longer, but they're also more expensive. So, unless you've got a fairly good income, you might need to strike a balance between quality and quantity. Dry cleaning is generally easier on most fabrics than laundering, but it also costs more. Cheaper stores are like Old Navy, Uniqlo, American Eagle, H&M, and Zara. One step up in quality is J.Crew, Express, Banana Republic (BR), Polo Ralph Lauren, Nordstrom, and Bonobos. If you go up a step from that you might as well get your shirts and pants custom-made.

For summer, I have about five button-up linen/cotton casual shirts, mostly from J.Crew. They should each last about 3-4 years if I wear each about twice a month. I have about eight polo shirts from Express, J.Crew, and BR which are fairly good quality and I expect to last 2-3 years because they get worn more and I don't dry clean them. I have six pairs of cotton shorts in various colors and they should last about the same length of time as the polos. Also, I have five pairs of lightweight cotton slacks/chinos which should last about three years each. Pants take more of a beating than shirts, in my experience, and therefore wear-out more quickly.

For the cooler half of the year I have four flannel button-ups and a 3-4 OCBDs. They should last about the same length of time as the summer shirts, or perhaps an additional year since they're made out of heavier material. I have two pairs of Three/Sixteen jeans that should last 20 years, if not more. High-end denim is a good investment as it should last almost forever if you treat it right.

For work I have about 30 shirts in light to medium weight cotton that I've gradually collected over the years. So, since each shirt gets worn about once a month, I expect each to last about 3-4 years. My work pants are a combination of cotton and light wool slacks and should last 2-3 years.

When it appears that one of my items is starting to wear out, I start watching the sales, usually the ones posted on Dappered.com. When I see a similar item in a good sale, I go ahead and pick it up.

Post: #3

(06-13-2016 07:52 PM)eggnoodle Wrote:  For example. How often do you purchase new clothes, how often do you wear an item before it is no longer "new" and fresh.
How often do you dry-clean.
Do you rely on a few nice pieces that you layer with classic's or go all out and spend large on a wardrobe every year.

I always wear an undershirt and I never wear the same piece two days in a row.
This allows me to wear shirts, sweaters,... multiple times before they need laundry.
I never dry-clean, always washing machine (or hand wash - and brushing for the suit).

I aim with all of my purchases for a timeless look that can be combined with most of my other clothes.

(06-13-2016 07:52 PM)eggnoodle Wrote:  I notice my clothes tend to wear out quickly and am wondering if the best (and most cost effective way) to fix this is less wear through a larger wardrobe, more attention to dry-cleaning and general maintaining of newness. Looking current is becoming quite expensive where I am from and I notice more and more that clothing quality is declining and costs are going up.

Do you shop for quality or make quantity work? Any other appearance hacks are welcome as well.

Some stuff like T-shirts will wear quickly, no matter how high the quality is. Because it takes up a lot of sweat, it needs to be washed often and the color starts to fade quickly. So I never spend a lot of money on those.

Sweaters, dress shirts and suit pants last longer.
Jeans, shoes, jackets and suit jackets can last a very long time so you want to spend more on those to obtain good quality.

Whatever you do, don't spend any money on snob brands (Hugo Boss, Calvin Klein, Armani and the likes), they are terribly expensive and fairly poor quality.
Buy cheap or buy quality (if everyone knows the brand, it's probably not high quality).

Post: #4

Don't machine dry your better clothes - dress shirts, sweaters, and pants - hang them or lay them flat to dry. They won't shrink, will wrinkle less, and last longer this way

You can also dry clean them of course

Post: #5

(06-14-2016 11:46 AM)getdownonit Wrote:  Don't machine dry your better clothes - dress shirts, sweaters, and pants - hang them or lay them flat to dry. They won't shrink, will wrinkle less, and last longer this way

You can also dry clean them of course

And, as PhDre mentioned, you can use a clothes brush for your high-end fabrics. I bought a boar's hair clothes brush off of Amazon and use it on my suits, jeans, and wool coats and jackets. By doing so, I only have to get those items dry cleaned about once a year.

So, it may seem expensive to drop $1500-3000 on a custom-made suit. But, one at that price should be using a premium weave of wool. If you brush it after each use, hang it up in the sun for a few minutes to sterilize it (not too long or the colors will fade), and get it dry cleaned about once a year, it should last for 10-20 years. Do the same with all your items made out of premium materials- your peacoat, jeans, etc.

Post: #6

I'm surprised at how long those fruit-of-the-chinese-loom shirts from walmart last (about a year). Lots of bright colors, great for pea-cocking.

Post: #7

Thanks for all the info, Definitely going to look into some comfortable undershirts.

(06-14-2016 01:23 PM)C-Note Wrote:  And, as PhDre mentioned, you can use a clothes brush for your high-end fabrics. I bought a boar's hair clothes brush off of Amazon and use it on my suits, jeans, and wool coats and jackets. By doing so, I only have to get those items dry cleaned about once a year.

So, it may seem expensive to drop $1500-3000 on a custom-made suit. But, one at that price should be using a premium weave of wool. If you brush it after each use, hang it up in the sun for a few minutes to sterilize it (not too long or the colors will fade), and get it dry cleaned about once a year, it should last for 10-20 years. Do the same with all your items made out of premium materials- your peacoat, jeans, etc.

Right so brushing is kind of a low wear way to clean between cleaning. I didn't think there was such a thing apart from removing lint.

Also how would you identify a premium weave of wool? If you have any examples that would be great.

Post: #8

This is the boar's hair brush I bought. $72 may seem steep, but this is a professional-quality brush I expect to last the rest of my life. Brushing a dense weave of wool or cotton obviously removes the loose dirt and dust from the material, but it also can remove dry stains. Just brushes them right off. Prevents you from having to launder or clean the material and thus saves wear and tear. Brushing also moves the threads back into place, which helps prevent the micro-tears which eventually wears out a fabric.

We probably should start a separate discussion on quality fabrics, because it's an important part of upgrading your wardrobe. Until recently, I wasn't aware of the premium fabric market because I had bought cheap clothes for most of my life. Once you start wearing the good stuff, you'll wonder why you waited so long.