Check Your Tag: Why We Should Pay Attention To The Make Of Our Threads
PAGE Magazine
Check your tag — the one inside the shirt you’re wearing now. But wait. Before you reach for that small piece of fabric resting against the back of your neck, let me suggest a path less traveled.
If you recall an alternate tag sewn into the lower side seam of your shirt — the one that itches, pokes, and prods while rubbing against the side of your stomach, the one you would much rather cut off and throw away than read— the finish line is in sight. Ahah! You found it.
Now that we’ve tracked down this disruptive piece of cloth, let’s zoom in on its tiny (often-times barely legible) black print. Here, we unearth a point of truth: the fiber content. This fiber content tag acts as a blueprint, showing exactly what types and percentages of fibers make up the fabric of your garment.
Your tag probably shows a blend of fibers; for example, 60% wool and 40% polyester. The cardigan that I’m wearing now reveals a combination of 85% acrylic and 15% rayon (Yikes! We will address this unfortunate pairing later on). Or, perhaps you wear a tag boasting, in all its glory, 100% cotton. Maybe you searched for a garment made with such a high-quality fiber; maybe it was a happy accident.
If the above paragraph with percentages of fibers and following judgments feels elusive to you, by the end of this article, it won’t. Here, I offer basic knowledge of the types of fibers that make up the fabric of our clothing. Which fibers are considered good quality, and which are bad? How can we know whether a garment’s fiber content is worth its price?
Through this article, I will discuss answers to all of these questions. My end goal? For you to leave here equipped with the tools to determine the quality (or lack thereof) of garments as you navigate the wild west of clothes shopping.
The cornerstone of our analysis is knowing that all fibers used to create fabrics separate into two categories: synthetic fibers and natural fibers. Natural fibers, such as cotton, linen, and cashmere, are gleaned exclusively from natural sources, such as plants and animals. Natural materials naturally break-in, increasing comfortability with wear. You buy a wool sweater, hoping that with wear it feels stretchier, softer, and looks a little more like you than when you bought it.
When the fiber sitting against our skin for hours at a time is natural, non-irritating, and breathable, our skin thanks us. Along with our personal benefit, the environment gains as well. Natural fibers renew and biodegrade, offering more environmental sustainability than their man-made counterparts. Like anything in nature, these fibers do decay over time, but they do so naturally. And, if they didn’t slowly wear away, how would you get those fades in your 100% cotton jeans?
Now acquainted with our all-natural heroine, let’s address the opposition: synthetic fibers. Many common fibers fall under this category — rayon, spandex, and polyester, to name a few. Chemical reactions using fossil fuels produce these fibers, which are essentially made out of plastic. Because of their chemical composition, when these fibers are eventually thrown away, they won’t biodegrade. Not only do these fibers hurt the environment (particularly our fishy friends), but they don’t agree with our skin, either.
When wearing a synthetic garment, our skin can absorb its chemicals and be irritated by its often scratchy, tissue-paper-esque texture. Ultimately, a garment made with synthetic fibers is designed with a glaring lack of consideration for the body wearing it.
So, if synthetic fibers are harmful to both our skin and the environment, why would fashion brands ever use a fiber so… unwearable? The most common culprit reflects the fashion industry’s main priority: affordability. The 1930s saw the advent of synthetics when the textile industry invented them as cheaper and easily mass-produced alternatives to natural fibers.
Today, the fashion industry relies on synthetics at all tiers, but fast fashion brands stand distinctly as the frontrunners. Brands like Forever 21, H&M, and Zara produce incredible masses of clothing made synthetically, which is why they’re coined for producing garments with dubious (at best) quality. Over time, this dependency radically changed the fashion industry, and now, nearly two-thirds of the garments produced globally are synthetic.
But before wrapping up my denunciation of synthetic fibers, I must fairly address the caveat to my critique. Apprehensively, I admit that scenarios do exist in which they serve a purpose beyond just their affordability. Due to the chemical makeup of synthetics, scientists tweak and engineer these fibers until primed for a very specific task. This flexibility is pointedly useful in the world of athletic wear. Let’s take, for example, the content of a biker’s outfit.
This type of garment might contain a blend of 92% wool, a natural fiber, and 8% nylon, a synthetic. While natural fibers comprise most of the garment, this minor percentage of synthetic gives the garment an elastic quality, a high level of insulation, and sweat-wicking capability. For the sake of athletic performance, we welcome a small synthetic percentage wiggling its way into the mix.
Here, the distinction between “good” fibers and “bad” gets confusing. If exceptions exist to synthetics being the lower quality fiber, then how do we decide what fiber content is acceptable during our own shopping experiences? The truth is, fiber content tags are as varying as there are garments in existence, and deciding what fiber content is acceptable can often feel like hitting a moving target.
However, I find this general rule of thumb very helpful: if a garment’s fiber content tag has a majorly synthetic percentage, you can move on. If the tag is mostly natural, the garment is sure to be of good quality.
Now, let’s do some fieldwork in exploring fashion brands that earn their price tags, and brands that take a pass. I pop into Anthropologie in my hometown of Kansas City. A tie-dye sweater catches my eye, and I begin.
I find its fiber content tag on the inner side seam of the garment, showing a completely synthetic blend of 83% acrylic and 17% polyester. With a price tag of $118.00, I know that this sweater’s poor fiber quality isn’t worth its cost.
On the other hand, we can acknowledge some brands doing things right. Levi’s produces an impressive selection of sweatshirts, many made of 100% cotton. Everlane, a rising player in the game of ethical fashion, has a range of products using natural fibers, including cashmere sweaters and cotton t-shirts.
One of my holy-grail brands, Uniqlo, hits a sweet spot of affordability and quality that positions them a tick above many of their peers they share the high street with. My current favorite from Uniqlo, a timeless turtleneck made of 100% wool and offered in a myriad of colors, has a competitive price point of under $50. Although it takes intention to find garments made with high-quality fibers, the end product makes the search well worth your time.
So, as we button up our critique, do we madly dash to our wardrobes, throwing out our synthetic garments? Not at all. I’m certainly not. We live in a world where the majority of fashion surrounding us is, by default, synthetic. Moreover, the idea of holding brands accountable for their quality (and ethics in general) is a budding movement that both consumers and the fashion industry are finding their footing in. It is, like many good things in life, a work in progress.
But, as we stride forward in our everyday lives, don’t forget about that scratchy, little tag poking at the side of your stomach. Its contents have consequences for what the fashion industry will look like in the future.
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