That one time a vintage jacket taught me about fabric weight

I was at a flea market in Portland last summer digging through a bin of old coats. This lady next to me picked up a 1970s wool blazer and said, 'Feel how heavy this is - they don't make them like this anymore.' She was right, it weighed like 3 pounds easy. I asked her why that mattered, and she explained how heavier fabrics drape better and last decades longer. Now I check weight tags on everything before I buy fabric for my own designs. Has anyone else noticed modern jackets feeling flimsy compared to ones from back then?

2 comments

2 Comments

taylor92912d ago

Wait, isn't gsm printed on most modern tags too?

the_dylan12d ago

Actually I gotta push back a little on one thing. The drape doesn't really come from the weight alone, its more about the weave and the fiber content. I've handled vintage jackets that were heavy but felt stiff as cardboard because they had a tight plain weave and maybe some synthetic blend. On the flip side I've got a 1960s Pendleton blanket shirt that weighs about the same as a modern hoodie but drapes like a dream because its a looser twill weave with that soft wool feel. The real trick is checking the grams per square meter or the thread count if you can find it. That lady was right about durability though, heavier fabrics just hold up better over time because there's more material to wear down before you hit holes.