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Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

norwegianscitechnews.com

21–30 of 33 posts

Re: Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

#21
As a home sewist, I'm surprised to hear the 44% figure on an industrial scale. If I made one T-shirt at home, it might result in up to 50% offcuts? With all sleeves cut out of one bolt in alternating warp direction (~tessellated) and all rectangularish body pieces cut from another and ribbons of binding from another, I wouldn't expect to see more than 10-20% offcuts. And then home home sewists often shred the offcuts and use them to stuff other projects, which should be easier to do and funnel to the right place. I didn't try very hard to access the original paper but count me a bit skeptical and confused.

Re: Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

#22

As a home sewist, I'm surprised to hear the 44% figure on an industrial scale. If I made one T-shirt at home, it might result in up to 50% offcuts? With all sleeves cut out of one bolt in alternating warp direction (~tessellated) and all rectangularish body pieces cut from another and ribbons of binding from another, I wouldn't expect to see more than 10-20% offcuts. And then home home sewists often shred the offcuts…

The article says that 44% loss is in pre-production, specifically the manufacturing of the yarn. Long before the textile is woven, let alone cut.

Re: Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

#23

As a home sewist, I'm surprised to hear the 44% figure on an industrial scale. If I made one T-shirt at home, it might result in up to 50% offcuts? With all sleeves cut out of one bolt in alternating warp direction (~tessellated) and all rectangularish body pieces cut from another and ribbons of binding from another, I wouldn't expect to see more than 10-20% offcuts. And then home home sewists often shred the offcuts…

The article says that 44% loss is in pre-production, specifically the manufacturing of the yarn. Long before the textile is woven, let alone cut.

I'k not sure about the textile industry, but I visited a sugar factory a long time ago.

They separate the fiber in the sugar cane and a part is used to make paper and another part is burned to make heat and electricity to power the factory. They don't just dump the leftovers. I expect a similar redirection of the leftovers in the textile industry.

Re: Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

#25
post #5

About a year ago, I researched the most comfortable T-shirt. There were quite a few people who mentioned this specific brand I’d never heard of so I bought about 10 shirts and was sorely disappointed—-I got had by a smart marketer I think. But a few other people mentioned the Peruvian Pima cotton shirts that are sometimes available at Costco. Generally they show up once per year, in February. So when they finally sho…

Now I'm not sure if I should believe you or if you're a smart marketer yourself. Plus, why in the world would you blindly buy ten T-Shirts you don't know twice ?

Ha! You can check my comment history, my Costco T-shirt love is genuine. :)

The second time, I was in the store and could tell these were legitimately great.

Re: Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

#26

About a year ago, I researched the most comfortable T-shirt. There were quite a few people who mentioned this specific brand I’d never heard of so I bought about 10 shirts and was sorely disappointed—-I got had by a smart marketer I think. But a few other people mentioned the Peruvian Pima cotton shirts that are sometimes available at Costco. Generally they show up once per year, in February. So when they finally sho…

Do you think a 5* rating on Amazon mean the product is good?

It’s good for the given price point. You can a six pack of Amazon basic for a low price. They are good. For sleeping.

Re: Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

#27

About a year ago, I researched the most comfortable T-shirt. There were quite a few people who mentioned this specific brand I’d never heard of so I bought about 10 shirts and was sorely disappointed—-I got had by a smart marketer I think. But a few other people mentioned the Peruvian Pima cotton shirts that are sometimes available at Costco. Generally they show up once per year, in February. So when they finally sho…

Next Level Apparel and Target's Goodfellow ones are pretty good, and average ~$10/article. A TON of fashion advice forums and subreddits swear by them as a perfect middle-ground between cost and function.

Re: Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

#28

About a year ago, I researched the most comfortable T-shirt. There were quite a few people who mentioned this specific brand I’d never heard of so I bought about 10 shirts and was sorely disappointed—-I got had by a smart marketer I think. But a few other people mentioned the Peruvian Pima cotton shirts that are sometimes available at Costco. Generally they show up once per year, in February. So when they finally sho…

What I have a struggle with: Choice. Buy a plain well-fitting/nice-material shirt, or buy a tent/schmedium that will pill, but has something cool printed on it.

It's my opinion that t-shirts with something printed on the front have never been and will never be cool, so I don't struggle with this choice at all

Re: Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

#29
post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right, privatize the profits, socialize the costs. The fast fashion industry makes billions in profit every year, what do you mean exactly by "Manufacturers may not have the money to do the research"?

Most companies in the fast fashion industry aren't manufacturers, they use contract manufacturers. And if they did figure it out, they'd keep it secret as a competitive advantage. This is what government is for. Tax everybody to provide benefits to everybody. This is infrastructure spending, just like roads.

> This is what government is for. Tax everybody to provide benefits to everybody. This is infrastructure spending, just like roads.

This is not roads, this is waste management. I pay proportional to the amount of waste my household produces to have it disposed correctly, the more waste I produce, the more I pay. That is what government is for, steering behavior through taxation, instead of letting the most morally depraved enrich themselves on the rest of society.

Re: Nearly half (44%) of every T-shirt goes to waste before you even buy it

#30
post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most companies in the fast fashion industry aren't manufacturers, they use contract manufacturers. And if they did figure it out, they'd keep it secret as a competitive advantage. This is what government is for. Tax everybody to provide benefits to everybody. This is infrastructure spending, just like roads.

> This is what government is for. Tax everybody to provide benefits to everybody. This is infrastructure spending, just like roads. This is not roads, this is waste management. I pay proportional to the amount of waste my household produces to have it disposed correctly, the more waste I produce, the more I pay. That is what government is for, steering behavior through taxation, instead of letting the most morally de…

This isn't roads, it's something much more valuable, it's public domain research.

A road can only be used by a small number of people, public domain research can be used an infinite number of times, benefiting all.

Letting a single manufacturer get a patent on the process would be harmful.

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