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Had the most beautiful wardrobe of fine fabric clothing you can imagine (purchased at Macy's and Emporium, J. Magnin, I. Magnin, and boutiques).
Even though many of the pieces (dresses, shifts, skirts, blouses, coats) were purchased in the department stores listed above, they were seemingly one-of-a-kind (I know they weren't really, but you could not find more than one piece of the same style in any store - so much different than the mass production today, with racks and racks of the same style).
I became spoiled by these beautiful pieces of clothing.
I didn't know that design would go out-the-window, and that fine natural fabrics would become all but extinct.
I will only wear 100% cotton, light wools, linen, and bamboo fabrics, but sources are so difficult to find. Some designers who used to produce 100% cotton garments, now produce blends - and I can see the difference in catalogs - detest polyester blends.
Note: I just realized I don't know what "linen" really is . . . (ha ha).
Anyway: What are YOUR favorite sources for natural fabrics? (Designers, stores, etc.)
Thank you.
P.S. I understand most cotton fabrics are coming from India right now. Is that the only source? What happened to American cotton production? And do you think non-organic cotton is toxic?
Had the most beautiful wardrobe of fine fabric clothing you can imagine (purchased at Macy's and Emporium, J. Magnin, I. Magnin, and boutiques).
Even though many of the pieces (dresses, shifts, skirts, blouses, coats) were purchased in the department stores listed above, they were seemingly one-of-a-kind (I know they weren't really, but you could not find more than one piece of the same style in any store - so much different than the mass production today, with racks and racks of the same style).
I became spoiled by these beautiful pieces of clothing.
I didn't know that design would go out-the-window, and that fine natural fabrics would become all but extinct.
I will only wear 100% cotton, light wools, linen, and bamboo fabrics, but sources are so difficult to find. Some designers who used to produce 100% cotton garments, now produce blends - and I can see the difference in catalogs - detest polyester blends.
Note: I just realized I don't know what "linen" really is . . . (ha ha).
Anyway: What are YOUR favorite sources for natural fabrics? (Designers, stores, etc.)
Thank you.
P.S. I understand most cotton fabrics are coming from India right now. Is that the only source? What happened to American cotton production? And do you think non-organic cotton is toxic?
Linen is made from the flax plant...love it, even have linen sheets.
I also only wear natural fabrics...it is getting harder to find 100% cotton items. Love wool. Haven't tried much bamboo. When I order clothes I use jjill.com who sell a lot of these fabrics. They have stores around the country too.
Catalog retailers carry natural cottons and wools. You have to read the descriptions carefully. I am buying 100% Pima cotton from Lands End and LL Bean. Have a look at Garnet Hill and Eileen Fisher for more upscale things.
Pendleton makes woolens, and they have stores and outlets all over the country. I think you can also order online.
For fine lawn, you might spring for a dressmaker to sew up some Liberty of London into a shirt or dress. This will be a major splurge.
I do think you will have a hard time finding many items made totally of wool though. Apart from pricey wool sweaters, much wool is now mixed with another fiber.
Vermont Country Store sells cotton sleepwear. But I like Lands End pima cotton nightgowns. Heavenly comfort.
It has become EXTREMELY difficult to find natural fabrics. I am also a fan of good rayon. I don't mind if cotton or rayon is mixed with a very small amount of poly or spandex, but I am talking 5% or less here. I mistakenly bought several sundresses a couple years ago (I live in Florida) of that poly-spandex and the stuff is horrid - it doesn't breathe and causes rashes on my body, throwing them out.
Having a small percent of synthetic blended into the cotton gives it more longevity. But many catalogs sell 100% pima cotton items (Peruvian cotton, grown in California), which is softer then conventional cotton. I have no trouble finding wool garments, and there are a variety of wools available now: alpaca and cashmere, in addition to lambswool. Take a look at the Peruvian Connection catalogs for all-cotton and alpaca items. Pendleton is great for wool, if you don't mind their focus on plaid. They also have cotton for summer.
There are new companies coming out with catalogs of all-cotton fashion, specializing in organically-grown cotton, which some of them refer to as "green" cotton.
After working at a historic site and smelling visitors sweating in artificial fibers, I've sworn to only wear natural fibers next to my body, too. I smell better sweating in my all cotton or even wool long sleeved dresses than people who wear shorts and t-shirts made of artificial fibers. And you've never lived until you've smelled a group of Amish people in heavy cheap polyester on a hot summer day! Wowza!
I usually order my summer informal wardrobe from this company: Marketplace India https://www.marketplaceindia.com/ and for somewhat nicer things buy from Soft Surroundings https://www.softsurroundings.com/ I'm sure there are more options for people who don't wear plus sizes.
I also sew. It is SO hard to find decent fabric at most local fabric stores - they usually only sell cheap bridal stuff and cottons made specifically for quilting rather than clothing. So I order fabric from www.fabric.com and https://www.moodfabrics.com/ and https://bandjfabrics.com/.
I've found that much of the nicest fabric is milled in Italy. Portugal, Egypt and India produce nice cotton dress goods. Sadly, American fine fabric production seems to be a thing of the past.
And no, I don't think organic matters much when it comes to cotton clothing. When you consider the various dyes and sizing added to the fabric during production I think it makes much difference whether or not chemicals are used to grow the cotton.
Bamboo fabric feels nice next to the skin, but I've read that production of the fabric is chemical heavy and somewhat questionable. Here's an article about it: https://goodonyou.eco/bamboo-fabric-sustainable/ In brief, the article says that "About 50% of hazardous waste from rayon production (including the bamboo variety) cannot be recaptured and reused and goes directly into the environment."
nobodysbusiness, your post went straight to my heart. I remember those days of well-made clothes, right off the department store rack!
My two sources of clothing now are Eileen Fisher and Gudrun Sjoden. Both make an effort to be transparent about where their fabrics are sourced, and almost all Sjoden cottons are organic.
The best Sea Island cottons are wasted on men's dress shirts, more's the pity. And yes, I think non-organic cotton are toxic, as well as water and resources-intensive.
There's another way to combat this: stop shopping. Get a high cost-per-wear from your existing wardrobe. Wear them until worn-out! Retailers aren't counting on such behavior from us "consumers" and it will slow down the needless consumption of apparel. Oh, I could go on about this topic, but why be a bore...check out the above links.
Oh, and don't set foot in a mall! There's nothing there for enlightened citizen/consumers. Also, any catalogs that come to the house? Toss straight into the recycle bin. That's how you break the see-want-buy cycle.
I'm not understanding these huge, shapeless short tops, and the general baggy look. I haven't noticed this, as a new thing, but maybe it's a Bay Area thing? Is it kind of a spin-off from the unconstructed Eileen Fisher look, for the youth market? Please help me understand.
After working at a historic site and smelling visitors sweating in artificial fibers, I've sworn to only wear natural fibers next to my body, too. I smell better sweating in my all cotton or even wool long sleeved dresses than people who wear shorts and t-shirts made of artificial fibers. And you've never lived until you've smelled a group of Amish people in heavy cheap polyester on a hot summer day! Wowza!
I usually order my summer informal wardrobe from this company: Marketplace India https://www.marketplaceindia.com/ and for somewhat nicer things buy from Soft Surroundings https://www.softsurroundings.com/ I'm sure there are more options for people who don't wear plus sizes.
I also sew. It is SO hard to find decent fabric at most local fabric stores - they usually only sell cheap bridal stuff and cottons made specifically for quilting rather than clothing. So I order fabric from www.fabric.com and https://www.moodfabrics.com/ and https://bandjfabrics.com/.
I've found that much of the nicest fabric is milled in Italy. Portugal, Egypt and India produce nice cotton dress goods. Sadly, American fine fabric production seems to be a thing of the past.
And no, I don't think organic matters much when it comes to cotton clothing. When you consider the various dyes and sizing added to the fabric during production I think it makes much difference whether or not chemicals are used to grow the cotton.
Bamboo fabric feels nice next to the skin, but I've read that production of the fabric is chemical heavy and somewhat questionable. Here's an article about it: https://goodonyou.eco/bamboo-fabric-sustainable/ In brief, the article says that "About 50% of hazardous waste from rayon production (including the bamboo variety) cannot be recaptured and reused and goes directly into the environment."
I have also read articles by environmentalists that bamboo production is not only not natural, but very harmful to the environment. Years ago, men's socks were either all cotton or had a high cotton content. In recent years, the cotton content has been reduced drastically in the brands found in the major department stores. They seem to be pushing bamboo as an alternative; it must be cheaper than cotton.
A lot of the cotton in fine men's shirts (custom made) comes from Egypt.
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