Fabrics for outdoor gear - sources

[Bogong Moth]

Hi everyone,

I am trying at best to be an ethical consumer. My basic philosophy is that I should buy good quality clothes that last a long time, repair them when possible, and wherever I can buy items where I think the worker has been paid a living wage.

This applies to all my clothing, and needless to say, I don't buy many clothes any more! What I do buy is usually very well made, and lasts very well. I have also made a large propotion of my small wardrobe, either from scratch or from modifying op shop purchases.

I can't say I am holding my breath for bushwalking clothing being made anywhere except China, Bangladesh, Vietnam etc which means I will probably need to eventually make from scratch what I can't find second hand... so where can I find fabric for these sort of endeavours? Any advice very welcome.

[Mark F]

There was a recent thread where many of the suppliers of fabrics for myo were listed but I can't find it at the moment. You could also consider gear from a manufacturer like Patagonia who have a very robust policy to ethical sourcing.

[simonm]

What type of fabrics are you after? I can possibly source them or at least point you in the right direction to overseas suppliers.

[GPSGuided]

Discriminating gears based purely on the country of manufacture is misguided. There are plenty of quality gears coming out of those developing countries these days. Time have changed, extremely rapidly.

[vanNek]

Discriminating gears based purely on the country of manufacture is misguided. There are plenty of quality gears coming out of those developing countries these days. Time have changed, extremely rapidly.

I wear alot of Oakey Causal clothing (Only buy it from DFO etc) it's made in Macau mostly and has been bullet proof kit!


"No half measures......"

[Bogong Moth]

What type of fabrics are you after? I can possibly source them or at least point you in the right direction to overseas suppliers.

Thanks heaps, I'll contact you directly at some point

[Bogong Moth]

Discriminating gears based purely on the country of manufacture is misguided. There are plenty of quality gears coming out of those developing countries these days. Time have changed, extremely rapidly.

I realise I wasn't clear in the original post. I have no issue with quality of items coming out of developing countries, but I prefer to purchase items made by people paid a fair living wage if at all possible.

[undercling-mike]

Back to the question on fabrics, what sort of fabrics are you looking for? Or what sort of items are you looking to make?

[GPSGuided]

I realise I wasn't clear in the original post. I have no issue with quality of items coming out of developing countries, but I prefer to purchase items made by people paid a fair living wage if at all possible.

On this, did you know that despite the stories of child labour and poor wages, the move from an agricultural to manufacturing economy has raised the economic and living standards of those developing countries as a whole? The solution is not a blanket boycott from those countries if those are the concerns but to pressure specific entities for improvement. Without this process, those countries will forever be stuck in a poor agricultural society with no opportunities. Think of GB being not allowed to go through its industrial revolution. The valid reason to not buy from those countries is a desire to 'help' our local manufacturing economy, but that's a lost cause.

[Bogong Moth]

Back to the question on fabrics, what sort of fabrics are you looking for? Or what sort of items are you looking to make?

I would like to make some very simple waterproof overpants for the children in my extended family, a simple mid-thigh waterproof jacket for myself, some ski leggings for myself.

[Bogong Moth]

I realise I wasn't clear in the original post. I have no issue with quality of items coming out of developing countries, but I prefer to purchase items made by people paid a fair living wage if at all possible.

On this, did you know that despite the stories of child labour and poor wages, the move from an agricultural to manufacturing economy has raised the economic and living standards of those developing countries as a whole? The solution is not a blanket boycott from those countries if those are the concerns but to pressure specific entities for improvement. Without this process, those countries will forever be stuck in a poor agricultural society with no opportunities. Think of GB being not allowed to go through its industrial revolution. The valid reason to not buy from those countries is a desire to 'help' our local manufacturing economy, but that's a lost cause.

This is not really what I wanted to discuss on this thread, but as you brought it up I'll very briefly reply. This is partially a conscience vote on my part. I do not want to purchase clothes which have been created by people that have worked forced overtime or seven days a week (par for the course in a lot of these places, particularly during peak seasons), and who usually get paid 1 or 2% of the wholesale price of the garment, which is substantially less than what it costs to feed a family. I do not want to purchase jeans that have been given that worn look by sandblasted in ways that result in silicosis (and yes, this is a genuine problem). I simply don't want to be complicit in that sort of treatment of people when I have a choice about it, much less so that the T-shirt that I might choose to buy is the cheapest (in relative terms) that it ever has been in history. My 'boycotting' (as you put it- more a preference) is not going to make a substantial difference either way because it's just me. However I want to be able to sleep at night. I could talk a lot more about the benefits and disadvantages of globalisation for the less well-off in the world, the effectiveness to date of pressuring retailers and manufacturers into improving practices, etc. but I really don't believe this is the correct forum for it. Thanks.

[GPSGuided]

It's a personal choice and that's respected, just the logic used makes no sense. The comparison will need to be based on the prior socioeconomic condition of those in said 3rd world countries. Judging with our 1st world country's work condition is a fallacy.

[Scottyk]

I realise I wasn't clear in the original post. I have no issue with quality of items coming out of developing countries, but I prefer to purchase items made by people paid a fair living wage if at all possible.

On this, did you know that despite the stories of child labour and poor wages, the move from an agricultural to manufacturing economy has raised the economic and living standards of those developing countries as a whole? The solution is not a blanket boycott from those countries if those are the concerns but to pressure specific entities for improvement. Without this process, those countries will forever be stuck in a poor agricultural society with no opportunities. Think of GB being not allowed to go through its industrial revolution. The valid reason to not buy from those countries is a desire to 'help' our local manufacturing economy, but that's a lost cause.

This is not really what I wanted to discuss on this thread, but as you brought it up I'll very briefly reply. This is partially a conscience vote on my part. I do not want to purchase clothes which have been created by people that have worked forced overtime or seven days a week (par for the course in a lot of these places, particularly during peak seasons), and who usually get paid 1 or 2% of the wholesale price of the garment, which is substantially less than what it costs to feed a family. I do not want to purchase jeans that have been given that worn look by sandblasted in ways that result in silicosis (and yes, this is a genuine problem). I simply don't want to be complicit in that sort of treatment of people when I have a choice about it, much less so that the T-shirt that I might choose to buy is the cheapest (in relative terms) that it ever has been in history. My 'boycotting' (as you put it- more a preference) is not going to make a substantial difference either way because it's just me. However I want to be able to sleep at night. I could talk a lot more about the benefits and disadvantages of globalisation for the less well-off in the world, the effectiveness to date of pressuring retailers and manufacturers into improving practices, etc. but I really don't believe this is the correct forum for it. Thanks.

There still some good local manufacturers like One Planet but they are expensive
I respect your choice by the way

[undercling-mike]

Back to the question on fabrics, what sort of fabrics are you looking for? Or what sort of items are you looking to make?

I would like to make some very simple waterproof overpants for the children in my extended family, a simple mid-thigh waterproof jacket for myself, some ski leggings for myself.

I don't have a lot of experience with the sort of fabrics you are probably looking for to be honest. You could make basic non-breathable waterproof gear out of silnylon available from Tier Gear or others, although for a jacket and ski pants you might want a waterproof breathable fabric. Some WPB fabrics are available from OWF inc (www.owfinc.com) in the USA but you'd have to ask about them as they don't provide much info on their site and it might be a bit expensive with postage in any case.

Definitely post back here if you do find any good sources or have any thoughts on fabrics that you try.

[Mittens]

If you take into account where and how a garment is sewn, you might also be considering the conditions of those who manufacture the fabric. I don't know of any local or ethically sourced synthetic manufacturers as I have yet to attempt to create any ultralight technical pieces like rainwear, but I can vouch for this shop http://www.newzealandmerinoandfabrics.com/ for wool if you are looking to whip up some base layer type leggings.
Is lightweight a necessity for you with the rain gear?
If money is no object, of course there is OnePlanet, Cactus, Earth Sea Sky, and probably a few others with rain gear that manufacture here or across the ditch.