You don’t have to spend the world on clothing to avoid sweatshop-made men’s clothing, in fact, there are lots of reasonably priced pieces of clothing out there that have been made through quality craftsmanship. If you take a look at some designer brands and find out their history, you’ll see that many of them keep their materials locally-sourced, making them eco-friendly and ethical fashion companies.

As well helping the environment’s natural resources, you’ll also be saving your wallet. Even though you may initially spend a bit more on a quality garment, it will last ten times longer than a sweatshop product that has been haphazardly sewn together.

Quality Brands

Barbour is a brand that is so popular because it is consistently producing quality clothing. Although the company now sources products from around the world, their classic wax Barbour jackets are still manufactured by hand in a factory in South Shields.

Universal Works is a brand that produces quality menswear made locally-sourced and honest fabrics. They often use dead stock fabric that would otherwise be wasted.

Another brand that focuses on craftsmanship over fashion fads is Folk Clothing. A lot of their wool garments are made from an Italian mill dating back to 1795.

Signs of Quality Clothing

Stitching

It is fairly easy to spot bad stitching once you know the signs to look out for, and especially if you are able to place a badly stitched garment next to a quality one. The first and most obvious sign to look out for is the quality of the stitching, if it has frayed edges or loops, it can’t be brilliant quality. There should be no loose strands and all stitching should be neat, even and clean. The best way to check the stitching is to turn the garment inside out and check for any fraying or loose ends.

Buttons

Buttons or any other types of fastener should be sewn on securely, you should give them a little pull to make sure they are properly fastened. If they feel quite loose and easy to pull away, it’s probably a sign the fasteners have been badly stitched in a sweatshop and in mass-production.

Linings

Quality garments will always have a lining – linings are important because they help keep the the shape of the garment and reduce the strain on the seams. The lining should also be made from good quality material as well as the outer of the garment, a lot of cheaper linings aren’t anti-static, which is a sign of cheaply made clothing.

As previously mentioned, you don’t have to spend a lot on quality clothing, and even if you do spend a bit more than in a high street store, you’ll making an economical choice as the clothing will last you a lot longer – you’ll be getting more bang for your buck. It’s better to spend money on craftsmanship and quality, help the environment, and get a product that lasts you longer, than impulse buying on the high street.

Clair O\’Hara is writing on behalf of The Shed Community, specialists in carefully crafted men\’s fashion including Folk Clothing and Barbour Jackets.

Clair O\’Hara is writing on behalf of The Shed Community (http://www.theshedcommunity.com), specialists in carefully crafted men\’s fashion including Folk Clothing and Barbour Jackets.

Author Bio: Clair O\’Hara is writing on behalf of The Shed Community, specialists in carefully crafted men\’s fashion including Folk Clothing and Barbour Jackets.

Category: Advice
Keywords: Folk clothing, folk jackets, barbour jackets, barbour clothing, Shed menswear