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https://edition.cnn.com/2025/12/29/style/luxury-fa...

The article chronicles people who buy $2,000 sweaters whose buttons fall off and so on. For those who buy sweaters for two grand this is a trauma - but for the rest of us, it is also an object lesson. Over the years, many (most?) premium consumer brands (Tumi, North Face, Hartman, Henkel, Cole Haan shoes and so on) have joined in the fight for the bottom consumer tranche with nearly indistinguishable product from "the pack", but sold at higher prices presumably because their brand indicates their quality.

When I buy a product, I try to ignore the brand and look at the quality of material the product is made from, its suitability to the task and its quality of manufacturing. Over the years, while some of the manufacturers of products I've bought over the years are still on my "go to" list, some are not and some unknowns I've bought at "fire-sale" price have turned out to have been every bit as good as the best in their class. This has been especially obvious in cooking pots. Basically a pot tends to be a metal vessel with a handle of some sort. The heat transfer properties of any particular metal thickness and composition won't care whose name is on the bottom of the pot. Under those circumstances, more has to do with the handle and how it is attached, the deburring of edges, the non-stick finish properties, and features like a pouring pout, interior measuring markers and their ilk than anything else.

This has led to purchases of a number 0of brands of clothing, at deep discounts, who were unsuccessful when they tried to break into the US market (Rab, Mont-Bell and Royal Robbins come to mind) and my German kitchen knives are in a drawer somewhere and have been replaced by an accumulation of Japanese blades (selected for their particular steels) of indeterminate manufacturers.

Each to their own.

Jeff

I once bought a designer dress in the Serenity Thrift Store for $8. It was a wrap-style dress, fully lined and good quality. When I got it home I found that the inside button which secured the wrap had detached. It wasn't lost. It was stuck in the opposite button hole.

It took me 5 minutes to sew it back on.

I honestly wonder about people.

Wendy (rolling eyes)

I've mentioned Avery Trufleman's "Articles of Interest" podcast* before. It is about the articles that are closest to all of us, our clothing. The latest series was about outdoor wear and how it changed from what a few wore in the military or exploring, hunting, fishing, camping and became fashion. I was wearing a Patagonia fleece pull over today that is about 45 years old. I wonder how many pieces of clothing made today will be around in half a decade let alone half a century.

* https://www.articlesofinterest.co/podcast The series is titled Gear.

PucksFool wrote, "I wonder how many pieces of clothing made today will be around in half a decade let alone half a century."

I wonder how many people bother to take care of their clothes to prolong their life. For example, turning a garment inside out before washing it will prolong its life because the agitation of the washing abrades the outside surface. This is particularly harmful to fabrics with long fibers that can be detached or entangle and pill, like fleece.

My closets are stuffed because I do take care of my clothes. I wash with cool water and dry with low heat. If a garment has a stress point I will reinforce the spot with strong polyester-cotton thread. I sometimes sew in an extra piece of fabric for reinforcement. (Yes, I do have a sewing machine.)

Wendy

On a side note, I have been occasionally acquiring Indonesian batik shirts since the 1990's, and now own quite a few. I like them because the patterns are not only interesting (some might call them exotic), but extent across the front button separation and the pocket(s) without a hint of a mismatch or break. (I find it fascinating that this feat is taken for granted on shirts which can cost an order of magnitude less than a western-style shirt found in a high-end department store which tend to be grossly mis-matched). Some of those shirts have been washed dozens of times and I have yet to find one that still doesn't appear new.

Jeff

< Some of those shirts have been washed dozens of times and I have yet to find one that still doesn't appear new.>

They sound beautiful. Are they silk or cotton?

Wendy

Those are all cotton.

Jeff

"turning a garment inside out before washing it will prolong its life because the agitation of the washing abrades the outside surface"

Pretty sure that's not true for front-loading washers. No agitator, just tumbling. Uses less water and higher spin leading to shorter drying times and less energy.
Easier to load and unload rather than trying to reach over the top (especially if a small item is at the bottom).

But if the garment is poorly made, nothing really extends its life.

Wonder about people

My parents were selling their home last June. They moved up to Arlington, MA.

During one open house, something was lifted.

My grandfather had been a woman's tailor. He did two or three furs per year. Grandma left a fur for my mother. For one of my sister's weddings, the fur was made into three larger teddy bears and four smaller teddy bears.

During that open house, someone felt they could simply take one of the teddy bears off a bed among the pillows and go home with it.

"turning a garment inside out before washing it will prolong its life because the agitation of the washing abrades the outside surface"

Wearing clothes wears them from the inside. Most of the suits I had, when I worked at RS, gave out in the seat of the pants. The clothing store always altered them, for a nice fit, on my tush. Working in the store, I was on my feet, walking around for 8-10 hours/day. When I took yet another pair in to have the seat patched, the tailor pointed out to me that the threads were broken on the inside of the seat, apparently from friction with my tush as I walked.

My jeans are nice and baggy. So my two mile daily walks in the summer don't wear them out.

Flashback department: when I was a boot at Great Lakes, we washed our clothes by hand, in a metal trough, with a scrub brush. We turned the clothes inside out, for washing. This was explained to us with "if the outside is dirtier than the inside, you're a scrounge".

Steve

When I buy a product, I try to ignore the brand and look at the quality of material the product is made from, its suitability to the task and its quality of manufacturing.

I do the same! Sometimes annoys some of my family members when I do it.

premium consumer brands (Tumi, North Face, Hartman, Henkel, Cole Haan shoes and so on) have joined in the fight for the bottom consumer tranche with nearly indistinguishable product from "the pack"

Yep. And they have other tricks, like Henckels says "made with German steel", but it's still manufactured [cheaply] in China. Whenever I buy Henckels, I make sure the item says "made in Germany" on it. They make some of the best knives. My grandfather had a very old one from when he lived in Germany, he left in the mid 1930s and the knife was already "old" then. When he died, my dad took the knife, and it is still in regular use today by my dad. About 30 or 40 years ago, I bought a set of Henckels (I think they are called "Professional S" model) and they still look like new despite regular use over all those decades. And, more recently, maybe 15 or 20 years ago, I bought a set of Henckels steak knives that perform admirably (though only used relatively rarely).

and have been replaced by an accumulation of Japanese blades (selected for their particular steels) of indeterminate manufacturers.

I've used Shun knives at a friend's house, and while they are excellent, I don't think they are worth the very high price they command compared to nearly-as-good German knives. Certainly not worth the price to simply swap out my Henckels knives. I also bought a pair of Chicago Cutlery knives as a gift a decade or two ago, and reportedly they also are performing very well (especially for the relatively low price they sell for).

As far as cookware goes, it's really been hit or miss with us. Some of the higher end brands just don't work well for us, so we now have a large assortment of all brands. For my daily eggs, I really like the ceramic coated pans, they just work so well. And amazingly, they are among the least expensive ones out there on the market today!

I started to write a reply, but Google's AI did just as complete an answer that I would have in a fraction of the time. I had asked for a comparison between Shun knives and traditional Japanese high-carbon steel knives (I own one Shun knife, three Global knives and a couple of MAC's - other mass-produced, but highly respected Japanese brands and a motely collection of other Japanese kitchen knives - most from indeterminate parentage in Seki City. As a general rule, Japanese knives are crafted with the blade at a more extreme angle than Western knives and their high-carbon steel blends tend to combine both extreme hardness (which holds their razor-sharp edge for extended periods between requiring sharpening) as well as toughness (which tends to prevent chipping). As the piece (below) points out, the tradeoff is that they have to be hand-dried immediately after use to prevent corrosion and, despite all efforts, they will develop a patina which, while technically protective to the blade, will tend to upset those who are used to mirror-finished stainless steel blades.

Gemini:

Shun knives offer a great blend of traditional Japanese sharpness with easier maintenance (being stainless clad), but "as good as" traditional high-carbon steel (HCS) knives is debatable; HCS offers superior edge retention and ease of sharpening but requires much more care (patina/rust), while Shun's harder steel (VG-MAX/VG-10) is sharp but can be brittle and chip if abused, making them excellent entry points to Japanese knives but sometimes less robust than authentic, full-HCS blades.

Shun Knives (Generally VG-MAX/VG-10 Stainless Steel Core):
Pros: Razor-sharp edges, excellent edge retention (due to hardness ~60-61 HRC), beautiful Damascus cladding, durable Pakkawood handles, easier care than full carbon steel (less rust risk).
Cons: Can be brittle and chip if used for aggressive rock chopping or on hard surfaces; some users find them overpriced for the quality compared to smaller makers; not true full HCS.

Traditional High-Carbon Steel (HCS) Knives (e.g., Blue #2, White #3):
Pros: Incredible sharpness, easier to sharpen to a razor edge, develops a protective patina (if cared for), often preferred by traditionalists for pure performance.
Cons: Prone to rust and corrosion (requires immediate cleaning/drying), can be very brittle (especially harder steels like Aogami Super), more maintenance.

Verdict:
For Most Home Cooks: Shun knives are fantastic, offering a significant upgrade in sharpness and performance over Western knives with manageable care.
For Enthusiasts Seeking Peak Performance & Willing to Maintain: A true, hand-forged, full-carbon steel knife from a smaller Japanese maker will often outperform Shun in edge sharpness and ease of sharpening but demands meticulous care.
In short, Shun is a high-quality, accessible bridge between Western and traditional Japanese knives, but a dedicated HCS knife offers a different, more intense, but higher-maintenance experience.

Jeff

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