Have you ever wondered about how to make clothing last longer? And if not, this is an important matter in order to have a sustainable wardrobe and more conscious and responsible fashion consumption. In this post, we are going to talk about why it is important to take care of your clothes and how.
Why make your clothing last longer?
Clothing should last as much as possible. Why? It’s very simple: the planet suffers the cost considering the pollution clothing creates to be produced, shipped, and maintained. And even more when it ends up discarded in a landfill. Besides, taking care of your clothes it’s a synonym to value the main garment and the money you spent on it too.
And last but not least, when you take care of your wardrobe and there are some pieces that you don’t want anymore, it’s better to sell them or giving away so they can continue their life and make people happy wearing them. So it’s a win-win to keep your garments in perfect condition.
Fashion problem
I want to take a deeper look at the fashion problem. As I told you before, it’s important to know how to make clothing last longer in order to have a more sustainable wardrobe. And why is that? All of us should have more sustainable thinking and approach to fashion. But from more than 10 years a fashion model called fast-fashion was introduced to the system and got bigger and bigger. Mostly unstoppable. But here we are! Trying to change things from our customer’s side 🙂
Fast fashion is the mass production of cheap and disposable clothing. It uses trends replication and low-quality materials in order to bring affordable and trendy styles to the public. Indeed the United Nations established fashion as an environmental and social emergency.
If you want to read more about fast fashion and the main fashion problems, then I recommend you to read:
How to make clothing last longer
Ok, so now we are going to see some tips on how to make clothing last longer. Some of them are very simple and easy and you might think “How I didn’t know it before?!”. But don’t worry, the best thing to do is to keep informing yourself and acquire more knowledge. So if you know more tips on how to make clothing last longer, I encourage you to write them in the comments! Here are mine:
Buy good quality clothing
In my opinion, this is the most important thing. Buying good-quality clothes could be a little more expensive. But actually, it benefits you because that piece will last longer. Anyway, if you can’t afford it I encourage you to buy second-hand and vintage clothes. There you will find unique pieces well done and made of good-quality materials.
So before purchasing any garment, read the label! Plant-based fibers like organic cotton, hemp, linen, ramie, or natural rubber are the best ones to wear. Not only because they last longer but also they are because it’s better for our body.
If you want to know more about which fibers are more sustainable and of better quality, I recommend you to read my post Fast Fashion vs Slow Fashion.
Don’t over-wash clothes
I used to wear clothes with only 1 wear. Yes, you read it right. Maybe you do the same, I don’t know. The thing is that this is completely wrong and not necessary. First, it is because garments start losing color or fit quality, for example. And this makes us want to stop using and get rid of them. Second, more or less 1,900 synthetic plastic microfibers per cloth are released when washed. And because of its tiny size, aren’t caught in waste water treatment and then enter the ocean.
So as long as you can skip washing your clothes frequently, the better. In the case that there’s a small stain, you can clean it up with a sponge and soap so it’s not necessary to put it in the washing machine. I have heard about stain remover pens and that they are life-savors, have you tried them?
Follow washing instructions
Every cloth has labels on the inside and some of them have their washing instructions. And they are there for something, so please read them because there is the key information on how to take care of your garments! For example, certain pieces of clothing need a specific water temperature, to be dry washed dry, or to be hanged to dry as well.
It’s better to read and follow these rules than take the garment out of the washer or dryer and realize that is faded, shrunk, or changed its quality. Am I right?
Zip & Button Up to prevent damage
Zip up your sweaters, jeans, and shirts to reduce the possibility of damage when they are in the washing machine. And the same with buttons. It’s the perfect way to minimize the chance that your clothes will get caught or tangled. So, as a consequence, your clothes will last longer 🙂
Hang to dry
Hanging your clothing to dry is one of the best ways for garments to last longer and preserve their quality. Furthermore, this little trick will help to reduce wrinkles and shrinking that could possibly happen from the dryer.
And just another little tip: when using the dryer, you can use sustainable wool dryer balls to shorten the drying time and minimize wrinkles in clothing.
Protect
This is more related to consciousness. To stop for a moment and think about what you are going to do. For example, if you are next to bake a cake, or paint, or die your hair, etc. Pay attention to the clothes you are wearing because if not, it can be too late.
I remember one day I was dying my hair and forgot to take off one of my favorite turtle neck shirts. As you can imagine, the shirt got stained and I couldn’t wear it anymore after that.
Store properly
Where and how you store your clothes is an important matter. First, should be a cool and dry environment so there’s no risk for mold. Second, it has to be far away from direct sunlight because if clothes are exposed to it for a long time, they are going to become permanently faded. And last but not least, there are specific fabrics and types of clothes that require to be hanged store. For example, long dresses, silk blouses, long skirts, etc.
Repair your clothes
My life would be much easier if I knew how to sew. I’m going to learn sometime, I’m sure about that. In the meantime, I recommend you and encourage you to learn a little bit about it. How many times do we stop wearing a pair of jeans, a shirt, or a jacket because it needs to be sewn and we are lazy to take it to someone to do it?
If you liked this post then I recommend you read Denim: what you need to know. And if you have any comments or questions, you can leave them right below. For more content, you can follow me on Instagram and TikTok.