Any decent guide on judging clothes quality?
I've seen some of the MFAD recommended brands and pretty much none of them are available in my country, so is there a way to appraise the quality of the garment without the reliability of a brand?
15 Replies
Hi @Mayman! For better answers, include:
- Reference pictures
- Budget in numbers
- Specific measurements
- Openness to buying secondhand and/or online
- Location: country/continent is fine
- Timing/urgency
No, not really. Quality really means different things to different people
And honestly, once you go up a price level from Shein / Temu / Amazon basics, it will really be diminishing returns on fabric and construction quality, especially if the brand doesn't have a sustained reputation for a particular type of garment.
Price can sometimes be an general indicator (whether they are cutting costs in terms of material or quality control) but a lot of brands are marked-up because of desirability or for their unique designs, so often doesn't correspond to "better quality" in any tangible sense.
https://discord.com/channels/1116793467654381685/1154446945511813210/1154447831000690749
Lots more discussion on that theme here though ↑
Also quality depends on the context. There's little point in prescriptive guidelines when the context differs between a boot, a t-shirt and a coat which can be worn in different countries and climates.
It's like the old adage of "thick fabric = better" which intuitively seems ok. But can basically lead to getting thick wrinkly low quality leather.
How you define and measure quality is highly contextual. Rather than asking for a broad guide on Everything Fashion, just ask specific questions on whatever garment or footwear you're looking at
Some of the telltale signs of quality I've heard are not necessarily the fabric density but rather focus on the stitching, the stitch size, the tightness of the stitching when you pull on it, etc..
For me I don't run into problems with the fabric itself, but clothes with stitching that falls apart really quickly is super problematic and that's what I'm trying to learn to judge better
As a proxy I just buy more expensive brands lol
I CBA to look at individual stitching
Problem for me is that i live in a third world country so "expensive" imported brands here are usually garbage
I'm relying on locally produced stuff but I don't have a frame of reference for quality
Like levi's jeans which are in the cheapest category for MFAD recs cost a monthly wage here lol
I ain't buying that
I think you just gotta go off local reviews & maybe word of mouth for that then
I've got some recs ready and gonna shopping soon
yeah I don't buy Levi's either cause they are expensive in the UK too, and there are better cheaper options
Most brand recs are gonna be region specific like that (obviously most often with a US focus)
Gotta contribute my own regional brand recs to mfad then lol
I just wish I had a uniqlo white tee as a frame of reference
Yeah that'd be cool! More regional knowledge always appreciated here imo
whats the country?
if it's Brazil Eyes
Egypt
I mean yeah lol at base this is a must when i buy stuff
but the idea is past a certain price point it just becomes paying for a design/techique/etc.
as long as stitching doesn't come apart or look haphazard and the fabric isn't just shredding when you yank at it it's all about the same