Care & Repair
Most shrinkage happens in the dryer and heat is only half the reason
Garments contract for three quite different reasons, and only one of them is permanent, which is why some…
· 4 min read
Nikhil Bose
Contributing editor, The Outfit Files
Nikhil has written about fit, fabric, care & repair for most of the last decade and is happiest when a piece answers the question completely.
7 articles
Fit
Shoe size is a length, and most fitting problems are width
The number on the box describes one dimension of a three-dimensional object, which is why two pairs marked…
· 4 min read
Fabric
Polyester and nylon are plastics and they fail like plastics
The two synthetics in most wardrobes are strong, cheap and stable, and the specific ways they let you down…
· 3 min read
Style History
Clothing sizes began as a manufacturing convenience and never became more
The numbers on labels were invented so that garments could be made before anyone had ordered them, and…
· 4 min read
Fabric
A blend inherits the worst of each fibre as readily as the best
Mixing two fibres in one yarn is done for cost as often as for performance, and the resulting cloth does…
· 4 min read
Fabric
Tanning is what turns a skin into leather, and it decides everything after
Leather is a preserved animal hide, and the chemistry used to preserve it determines how the material…
· 4 min read
Wardrobe
Renting clothes changes the economics of the garments you rarely wear
Access rather than ownership makes obvious sense for a small category of clothing and very little sense for…
· 3 min read