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Staying power We received many letters about your clothes that have stood the test of time

£100 letter

Less is more

Patrick Grant makes so much sense (A Design for Life, June). I help out in a charity shop and it saddens me to see how much is donated – what a waste of money and resources.

Our shop is popular and it’s wonderful to see clothes, shoes and accessories being snapped up to get a second life – children’s toys barely stay on the shelf! And we pride ourselves on providing a service to the community. But I was shocked to read just how many garments each person owns today compared with 1970 – 25 then and 118 now – yet we spend a good deal less on buying them, making them almost disposable. Probably bought during a ‘retail therapy’ spree.

I wonder just how many of these clothes are even worn, because a lot in the shop are ‘as new’, and some still have their labels attached. Patrick is right, we should go for quality rather than quantity.

So, I was delighted to learn how popular charity shops are with the younger generation when I was visited recently by my niece and her two daughters, aged 14 and 16. Schoolchildren are getting the message. Let’s hope we all get it before it’s too late, because the planet simply cannot sustain this overproduction.

Stasha Martin, West Sussex

Lasting impression

I enjoyed reading about making clothes last. I have a dressing gown that I bought in Tenerife in 1991 and is still going strong. I also bought a embroidered tablecloth there which is still in use, just a few loose threads here and there.

Ruth Dove Newark, Notts

Care and attention

I still wear a Fair Isle waistcoat I knitted when I was 17. I am now 89! My Burberry raincoat must be 30 years old and I have wide-legged trousers from the 1970s that still look good. If you care for your clothes, they will care for you.

Doris Grimsley, London

Suede with love

I have a suede jacket that I bought in the late 1980s that I love. It’s been professionally cleaned many times and still ‘fits’ me – if I don’t do it up! Recently, the dry-cleaners said that as it was real suede they wouldn’t touch it. She said if I washed it on a delicates programme and hung it in the airing cupboard, it would come up like new, adding that cows get wet and they dry OK. I tentatively tried this and, bingo, it was fine. I hope to get many more years’ wear from it.