How long do you generally keep clothing you wear?

[Ginevra]

So, for jeans, skirts, tops, sweaters, etc. that are your normal, every-day wear, how long do you keep them before getting rid of them? This is assuming your body size/shape has not changed drastically. Also, what would you say is your most likely reason for no longer wearing an item, out of my list?

 

Poll to follow. :001_smile:

[TranquilMind]

So, for jeans, skirts, tops, sweaters, etc. that are your normal, every-day wear, how long do you keep them before getting rid of them? This is assuming your body size/shape has not changed drastically. Also, what would you say is your most likely reason for no longer wearing an item, out of my list?

 

Poll to follow. :001_smile:

You don't even want to know. I have clothing items older than some of the moms on this forum.

 

Laughing at the 100% score on the answer I chose.

[regentrude]

If I still like them: until they are no longer serviceable. Meaning: jeans that get holes - I keep one pair for dirty work, the rest gets tossed. T-shirts with holes, etc.

I do not follow fashion, I wear what I like. If quality clothes hold up ten years, I see no need to discard them before they have lived out their lives.

I will, however, go through my closet and donate clothes that I have not worn in a long time if I no longer *like* them. That happens, rarely. Some things were just not the perfect buy.

[frugalmama]

I wear things until they wear out - but I buy classic items that don't show age.

[nono]

Is 25 years too long? I have some sports gear that old...like shorts and such.

[radiobrain]

LOL! I have some clothes from high school....

 

AND....

 

gasp...

 

They were vintage clothes THEN!

[Heidi]

I am discovering the joys of shopping at thrift stores. I can find nice looking clothing at a good thrift store that is reasonably priced and already PRE-SHRUNK so it will fit me tomorrow too. Oh, the money that is wasted on clothes that shrink!

 

I keep my clothes forever, until now. I have decided I will never buy new again (unless absolutely necessary) and I'm not going to hold onto a shirt or pants that no longer fit because I will have only paid a couple of bucks for it in the first place. I just bought the perfect jeans for $5 yesterday!

[elegantlion]

It depends. Some items I've had over 10 years, some I know I won't keep anywhere near that long.

 

I'm 44, I have a style I like. I'm not a big wearer of jeans

 

I tend to get rid of things because they wear out. Some may not look it, but they are just ugly looking. They get too baggy, too holey, too whatever.

 

I drip dry all my clothes so they last longer.

[Guest]

LOL! I have some clothes from high school....

 

AND....

 

gasp...

 

They were vintage clothes THEN!

 

 

Hee, hee. That's my dh! I'm pretty frugal with clothing, too, but clothing is not even on dh's radar screen.

[edelweiss]

I voted 2-4 years, but I might keep some pieces for a shorter time and some for a longer period than that. Obviously, if it is stained or torn, I get rid of it right away. If it is a classic basic, I might keep it much longer. However, if something no longer fits my style (which seems to be evolving) or doesn't suit me anymore, I donate those as well no matter if I bought it last year or 3 years ago.

[Jennifer in MI]

Depends. I have a few very nice things that I will probably keep forever. But, each year, I usually buy a couple of pieces that help the classic pieces look more "with it." This year I picked up a couple chunky sweaters to wear over existing shirts. Those sweaters will probably be out of style in a couple years.

[QueenCat]

I voted 2-4 years, but I might keep some pieces for a shorter time and some for a longer period than that. Obviously, if it is stained or torn, I get rid of it right away. If it is a classic basic, I might keep it much longer. However, if something no longer fits my style (which seems to be evolving) or doesn't suit me anymore, I donate those as well no matter if I bought it last year or 3 years ago.

 

Same here! I have some classics that I don't wear often, like dresses, that I'll keep for a long time. The jewelry and shoes change though... My style has really been evolving lately... and I just won't wear what I don't like... I've lost weight too, so some of my older classics fit again :)

Edited January 26, 2012 by CathieC

[In the Rain]

Until they are falling apart, and even then it is hard to part with favorites. :tongue_smilie:

[Donna]

I keep my favorites until they are so worn out (like jeans with holes...well, too big holes in the knees because I do wear them with small, fashionable holes, shirts with too many little holes or stains, etc....). I am the worst with shoes...I'll keep wearing my favorites until they are embarrassingly falling apart and I have no choice but to buy something new.

 

There are some things that I buy that I just find aren't so comfortable once I wear them and I tend to keep them 3-4 years or until I finally give up that they might become comfortable and I haven't worn them yet.

[lailasmum]

I tend to wear it until it falls apart and sometimes beyond. I have had family members bin items of my clothing because the holes are so big yet I keep wearing them. I really need to start buying some more presentable clothes because I own very little other than the bare necessities and look a mess.

[ErinE]

I have the "going away" dress my mom wore when she got married. I wore it often in middle school and I pull it out every few years for Halloween. It is 40+ years old.

[NotAVampireLvr]

I keep things until they are pilly and show too much wash wear.

[MrsMe]

Well, I have a fall jacket that I often wear and I bought it in 1994 and just realized that I bought it in 1994.

 

I wore my high school jeans till I was in my 30's.

 

I have a sweatshirt that I washed yesterday, realizing I bought it in 1989.....

 

As you can see I'm not real clothes oriented, and it's because I'm tall, and finding things that fit is hell on wheels. I despise clothes shopping, so if I don't have to, I don't.

 

Perhaps I just need a person to pick out my wardrobe.

[Parrothead]

I have some clothes that are old. For me it is more of the last three options than a certain number of years.

[ereks mom]

You don't even want to know. I have clothing items older than some of the moms on this forum.

 

 

 

:iagree:

[BigMamaBird]

I wear my clothes to tatters! I will also donate clothing that I have grown out of or that just don't fit my style. Otherwise, I keep them till they fall apart!

[happypamama]

Usually until it's really worn out, or I really hate it. I'm not hard on clothes. I have a shirt that I bought about twelve years ago; I wear it frequently, and it's one of my favorites. It is just now starting to show a bit of fraying, so its days are limited, but I will be sad to see it go.

 

Today, I am wearing a shirt that is at least seven years old, and it may be a tiny bit faded, but not too badly. It's far from on its last legs. It's a thick Lands' End knit and has held up very well (have not noticed that about their more recent items, though).

[Sputterduck]

Generally forever.

 

But I lost a lot of weight with Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead so my mom bought me a whole new wardrobe for Christmas. :) Good thing, too, because most of my clothes had holes and I'm far too cheap to buy any clothes for myself. (I'm trying to change that.)

[SweetMissMagnolia]

depends on the item-jeans I will keep for a long time....I kept some that I was hoping to get back in once I lose the "baby weight" (my son is 9) I finally gave them away about a year or so ago...lol I hung onto a pair of too small capri pants just because I loved the pattern and I let them go to a while back....it just depends...these days if it's too small it's out of here! I usually clean the closets out 1-2 times per year.....other things I'll give rid of when I'm tired of them- being "in style" doesn't matter to me-being comfortable does (sign of aging)

[Serenade]

As long as I like an item, I'll wear it until it wears out. I try to buy classic clothes such as Lands End that don't really go out of style. LOL, they are perhaps never in style, but not too much out of style, either, if that makes sense.

[WeeBeaks]

Until they are unwearable (stains, worn out) or so hopelessly out of style I look really odd, even for a homeschooler. Since I don't do trendy, it is usually worn out first. Occasionally dressy pieces worn infrequently end up in the second category and are disposed of at Goodwill.

[justamouse]

If I still like them: until they are no longer serviceable. Meaning: jeans that get holes - I keep one pair for dirty work, the rest gets tossed. T-shirts with holes, etc.

I do not follow fashion, I wear what I like. If quality clothes hold up ten years, I see no need to discard them before they have lived out their lives.

I will, however, go through my closet and donate clothes that I have not worn in a long time if I no longer *like* them. That happens, rarely. Some things were just not the perfect buy.

:iagree:

 

I have stuff I love from when I was a sophomore in HS. Few, but classics.

[amyable]

I'm a big jeans/t-shirt kind of person, so unfortunately I wind up staining things (just how DO you get grease stains out of t-shirts?) before they are worn out. If it survives my clumsiness I wear it out before I buy more - 15-20 years isn't out of the question.

 

I was able to get new clothes when I hit middle age and nothing fit me anymore! :glare:

[Guest]

I have the "going away" dress my mom wore when she got married. I wore it often in middle school and I pull it out every few years for Halloween. It is 40+ years old.

 

Awww! That is so sweet! I have my mom's dress from her first wedding anniversary. It also have a photo of her in that dress that I keep in my wallet. I doubt I could wear it though, as my mother was far more blessed in the upper body development than I. :glare: I also have her wedding gown. :001_smile:

[ErinE]

Awww! That is so sweet! I have my mom's dress from her first wedding anniversary. It also have a photo of her in that dress that I keep in my wallet. I doubt I could wear it though, as my mother was far more blessed in the upper body development than I. :glare: I also have her wedding gown. :001_smile:

 

The dress was from a Vogue pattern and my great-aunt made it. She was a seamstress who didn't speak any English and couldn't read so she looked at the pattern pictures to make clothing. I'm usually not very sentimental but everytime I see and wear the dress, I think about my mother and aunt. It is a very pretty dress.

 

I buy well made clothes in simple colors and wear them until they are worn out. I might buy a few fashion pieces but as I've gotten older, I want my clothes to last longer than a season.

[nono]

I have some clothes that are old. For me it is more of the last three options than a certain number of years.

 

You are making me look fashionable. Owe you a coke at a Buffett CONCERT!;)

[Impish]

Til it dies.

 

I have a sweater from high school.

[angela in ohio]

I voted 2-4 years. I don't like to own a lot of stuff, so I have just the bare minimum of clothing, and I wear everything until it needs to be replaced.

[Mergath]

Until it falls apart. I've worn shoes until I wore through the soles. The shirts that are hopelessly tattered get converted to pajamas.

[Joyofsixreboot]

When the patches have holes I eventually let them go.

[DawnM]

Totally depends. I don't have any clothing from the 90s because I haven't been able to wear them since having kids and gaining so much weight. :toetap05:

 

But I probably would have some of them if I could still wear them and they weren't worn out.

 

Clothing now just isn't made to last. I can wear stuff out fairly quickly these days it seems. Those stretch type jeans with lycra in them, even at 5% just don't last.

 

I do still have my prom dresses.....no idea why.....nostalgia I guess. They are both gunne sax style dresses! :tongue_smilie::lol:

[Mommee & Baba]

I'm really into the fashion scene. BUT I'm also a realist and understand I can never possibly afford to keep up with all the fashion changes. So I tend to revamp my clothing wardrobe to suit the current fashion with what I own and add in a couple thrift store or clearance pieces. With that being said I've had a pair of jammie pants for 12 years and they are still going strong!

 

I've just recently donated 6 thirty gallon bags of clothing to Goodwill because of the style, size, and lack of time I wore them. These clothes were as old as 10 years and as new as 2 months ago. :001_huh:

 

I'm a bit of a split voter on this. I will keep it til it falls apart, some pieces I will keep until they don't fit anymore, and other pieces I will wear a time or two and realize it's not for me and get rid of it.

[edelweiss]

I'm a big jeans/t-shirt kind of person, so unfortunately I wind up staining things (just how DO you get grease stains out of t-shirts?) before they are worn out. If it survives my clumsiness I wear it out before I buy more - 15-20 years isn't out of the question.

 

I was able to get new clothes when I hit middle age and nothing fit me anymore! :glare:

 

Dishwashing soap!! I have a bottle of Ivory Dishwashing Soap that I keep in my laundry room (I chose that since it is white and not green or some weird color). Just put a few drops on the grease stain and rub it in and then wash it. One caveat: it may or may not work on old grease stains. I've had a few that have come out, but typically if it is an older stain, it is already set in. So, try to treat the grease stain at the first washing. HTH!

[Tammyla]

I wear lots of cotton and tend to wear things pretty quickly, because I wash things after every use. My dry-clean or hand-wash only items last a lot longer.

[Onceuponatime]

I do a lot of thrift store shopping. If I find something I love, I try to release something that I have fallen out of love with. :-)

 

Most things I have at least 2-4 years, as many as 10 years if I love them. If it is stained,worn out, or I haven't worn it in a year and a half, I get rid of it.

[Upward Journey]

If I still like them: until they are no longer serviceable. Meaning: jeans that get holes - I keep one pair for dirty work, the rest gets tossed. T-shirts with holes, etc.

I do not follow fashion, I wear what I like. If quality clothes hold up ten years, I see no need to discard them before they have lived out their lives.

I will, however, go through my closet and donate clothes that I have not worn in a long time if I no longer *like* them. That happens, rarely. Some things were just not the perfect buy.

 

This is what I do as well.

[swellmomma]

Until they are worn out or don't fit anymore. I very rarely buy new things for me, I have to focus on the kids clothing needs first which means there is seldom enough money left for me to get some new ones.

[Tap]

Well there are too many answers to really say an average.

 

I will keep jeans for 3 years or so, or until they are starting to look ragged.

 

Dress clothes that rarely get worn tend to last a bit longer if they are a classic style, but if they are trendy, they go out of style faster. I buy classic styles for party dresses and such, so I can hopefully wear them more than once.

 

Work clothes are completely replaced every 2 years. I buy the same style of sweater and pants and wear the same thing every day. I buy 5 outfits at Eddie Bauer. By the end of 2 years, they all need to be tosses/replaced at the same time.

 

I buy new t-shirts each year and toss the old ones. I wear a lot of t-shirts and I don't like for them to look worn out before I stop wearing them.

 

I buy a couple new micro fleece jackets each year. They last about 3 years, so I am replacing my oldest ones with new ones.

[Tigger]

It totally depends on the item.

 

Some things seem to last forever - I have sweaters that still look new that are over 20 years old now (classic, traditional styles that don't go out of style), professional clothes (classic cut suits, blouses, etc.) that are 10-20 years old now too and look great and still wearable (not dated looking), my cashmere long-dressy winter coat, that I don't wear a lot, that's now 20 years old.....other things I have are in the 2-10 year range and I still wear.

 

But some things aren't as well made, or just aren't to my liking anymore, so they'll get tossed, or if in good shape I'll donate them.

 

I don't shop for clothes all that often though....when I do, I tend toward buying things that will last because I'm just not a shopping kind of gal and don't want to have to do it again for a while!

[Kareni]

I have a few pieces of clothing that are old enough to drive and several more that are old enough to drink. (In a few years, I'll have a piece or two that will be old enough to run for president!)

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Dobela]

I have 2 skirts I wear that I bought 20 years ago. They are those long prairie style made from beautiful plaid fabrics. I didn't get rid of them because I was planning on reusing the fabric in crafts. When the style came back I started wearing them again and have had people ask to buy them. But that is the extreme. Most things I keep 5 years or so, or until worn out, which ever comes first. I am pretty tough on clothes so they don't necessarily lst long.

[djsmom]

I voted 2-4 years, but I might keep some pieces for a shorter time and some for a longer period than that. Obviously, if it is stained or torn, I get rid of it right away. If it is a classic basic, I might keep it much longer. However, if something no longer fits my style (which seems to be evolving) or doesn't suit me anymore, I donate those as well no matter if I bought it last year or 3 years ago.

 

I voted 2-4 also. And the above post describes my reasons exactly.