Reading Wear on Clothing Before You Buy It

This is less a set of instructions about assessing wear in used clothing than an argument, and it is worth saying so at the start.

Where garments actually fail

Clothing wears out at predictable points: underarms, inner thighs, cuffs, collars, elbows and the seat, all places where fabric moves against itself or a surface. Checking those six areas first tells you more than a general impression, because the rest of a garment usually looks fine long after those points have gone.

Hold the fabric up to the light at each point, since thinning appears as translucency well before it appears as a hole. Underarm areas also carry residue from antiperspirants that stiffens fibres permanently and does not wash out. A garment that is sound at these points will usually outlast one that merely looks cleaner.

Pilling and what it means

Pilling is loose fibre ends tangling into balls, and it indicates that short staple fibres are working their way out of the yarn. Light pilling can be shaved off and the garment will look new, but it will pill again because the underlying cause has not changed. Heavy pilling accompanied by thinning means the yarn has already lost a significant fraction of its fibre and the garment is near the end.

From the receiving end, natural fibres of long staple length pill considerably less, which is part of what distinguishes an expensive knit from a cheap one. A merino or lambswool jumper with light pilling and full thickness is one of the best purchases available in any charity shop.

Seams, zips and fastenings

Turn the garment inside out, since seam allowances reveal both the original construction quality and any previous alteration. Wide seam allowances and finished edges indicate a garment built to be altered and to survive laundering, which correlates with everything else. Broken zips are cheap to replace on a good garment and are the single most common reason a decent item is priced low.

Missing buttons are trivial; missing proprietary fastenings on outerwear frequently are not. Puckering along seams that has not been ironed out usually indicates the fabric has shrunk unevenly and will continue to.

Sizing has moved

Labelled sizes have drifted substantially over the decades in many markets, so a vintage size is not comparable to a current one. Sizes also vary widely between manufacturers in the same market and the same year, which makes the number close to meaningless. Measuring a garment that fits you and carrying those figures on your phone is more reliable than trying anything on.

Sorting the donation bags, the critical measurements are chest or bust, shoulder width, sleeve length and the waist, in roughly that order for most garments.

Shoulder width is the one measurement that is expensive to alter, so it is the one to be strict about.

Fabric composition and its consequences

The composition label predicts how a garment will behave in washing, how warm it will be, and how it will age far better than appearance does. Blends containing elastic fibres degrade over time regardless of use, which is why older stretch garments lose their recovery permanently. Pure natural fibres generally age better and can be repaired, while heavily blended fabrics tend to fail in ways that cannot be mended invisibly.

A missing composition label is not fatal but does mean you are guessing about laundering, which is how good used garments get ruined. Lining is worth inspecting separately, since a worn lining in a good coat is a straightforward repair and a common cause of a low price.

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Cleaning what you buy

Assume everything needs washing before wearing, and factor dry-cleaning cost into the price for anything that requires it. Persistent odours in natural fibres usually respond to airing and washing, while odours in synthetics frequently do not. Stains that have been through a hot wash and dryer are generally set permanently, whereas fresh unset stains often lift.

Moth damage appears as small irregular holes in wool and indicates the garment should be frozen or treated before joining your wardrobe. The cost of restoration is part of the price, and factoring it in changes which items are actually good value.

The takeaway

Check the six wear points and the shoulder measurement, and let the label say whatever it likes.

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