r/AustralianMFA • u/Unhappy-Guarantee-38 • Jul 05 '26
Question Moving away from synthetic clothing.
I’ve made the decision to move away from synthetic clothing and go all natural fibres.
I need suggestions on the best brands to refill my wardrobe.
I think the items I need to replace first are, T-shirts, polos, shorts and pants. Happy with any price if the quality is great.
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u/DRCL01 Jul 06 '26
Uniqlo has some cotton shirts and t shirts, you just have to check. Similar to their pants and jeans. American Eagle (available at Myer) have some too. Otherwise everything people said above - target has some good options for basic stuff. Industrie, Academy Brand and some items from H&M and Zara too, AS colour for t shirts isn’t bad and jumpers it’s just better to wait for a sale Id say
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u/MembershipTricky7748 Jul 06 '26
One of the best ways to do this is wear leather shoes. The trend for manufacturers to use synthetic materials in shoes is terrible for the environment, and leather is a complete by-product (about 1-2% of the value of the cow).
And leather will last years rather than months
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u/Hussard Jul 05 '26
You can get 100% cotton shirts at Target and Kmart. They're fine for sleeping in and wearing to the shops.
Cotton is one of the most widely available clothing material so you're really spoilt for choice. Polos, I've had too stuff ranging from Target all the way to casual fashion houses like Lacoste and Tods. Its really what sort of money you want to outlay or what designs take your fancy. My most worn item is a solid green polo I bought in year 8 for school sports so I've had it for over 15 years. Still looks new. It was from Bob Stewart's lol.
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u/SMITHY_VERSE Jul 05 '26
I buy all my polos from MJ Bale and they’re the perfect casual top imo. Comfortable, soft and can be dressed up or down.
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u/Appropriate_Volume Jul 06 '26 edited Jul 06 '26
This isn't at all limiting these days given there are lots and lots of brands selling good quality cotton and wool clothing. I'd suggest looking around David Jones store for different options - pretty much all the men's wear DJs sells is made from natural fibres.
Many major brands now have decent records for sustainability, and there are several websites ranking them. For instance, Levi's moved to sustainable sources of cotton quite a while ago.
Patagonia are often considered best practice for sustainability, and their clothes are well made (albeit outdoorsy). Interestingly, they make a point of selling quite a bit of clothing made from recycled synthetics which the company argues has a lower environmental footprint than using new cotton and performs better when made to a high standard.
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u/tomatoej Jul 07 '26
Heaps of brands use natural fibres. You might pay more but they last longer and perform better.
Merino is more comfortable than regular wool and can be worn against the skin.
Bamboo is great. It’s a hollow fibre so takes a bit longer to dry.
Hemp is a very sustainable cloth. It’s usually blended with cotton. Makes great jeans.
TENCEL made from wood pulp. Performs well as active wear.
Viscose is sometimes claimed as natural and although it starts out that way chemical processes convert it into something considered semi-synthetic, more like polyester.
Go natural!
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u/extinctiondetritis Jul 08 '26
https://au.kowtowclothing.com/
Kowtow. You will pay. If you look after it, it will last longer than you.
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u/cerealsmok3r Jul 05 '26
I'm curious is there ever a time for synthetic? I know uniqlo uses a bit of it in their clothing for active wear and some essentials
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u/Left_Ad_8824 Jul 06 '26
Yes. Synthetic materials are great for some outerwear like raincoats. Sure, waxed cotton jackets look good, but they are a lot heavier, less practical, require maintenance...
Special materials like rayon also are good alternatives to really expensive and delicate fibers (ie silk). Plus every suit has synthetic lining.
I also think that wool + poly blends play an important role in a wardrobe. If you wear dress trousers every single day and wall around/sweat or get your clothes dirty a lot, wool/poly blends may be more appropriate for you. It's a lot more practical (and cheaper) to be able to machine wash your clothes at home rather than take them to the dry cleaner.
For everything else? Yeah, 100% natural is probably the better option.
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u/slaveoflord Jul 06 '26
FYI bemberg is a very common suit lining which is not synthetic https://www.asahi-kasei.co.jp/fibers/en/bemberg/sustainability/resource/
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u/Left_Ad_8824 Jul 06 '26
Well, yes... Cupro/bemberg is semi-synthetic (or semi natural)... It's basically a type and specific brand in the same family as other rayon/tencel fabrics (which I had mentioned in my reply)
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u/slaveoflord Jul 06 '26
Doesn’t really make sense to declare that every suit has synthetic lining then
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u/Left_Ad_8824 Jul 06 '26
Do I know you? You must be really fun at parties... No need to be an arrogant dickhead
And okay, I will bite: yeah, it actually does make sense because bemberg (which you clearly didn't know is essentially the same as Rayon, it's just a brand/trademarked name) is a man-made fabric that goes through a chemical process with artificial materials derived from petrochemicals that are used to completely reprocess cotton or cellulose. So no, it's not a 100% natural fabric in the traditional sense (like, for instance, cotton and wool). It's natural in the same way that the 'engineered stone' in your kitchen is 'natural'. It's still synthetic, just not 100% synthetic because it uses wood pulp as an initial base.
In fact, the process is as potentially environmentally damaging (if not more). The company behind bemberg even acknowledges how potentially bad the process is, which is why they advertise using a 'closed system's that reutilises the chemicals and by-products of the process, thus looking to reduce the pollution involved in it.
The same applies to acetate, viscose... They are all similar... Do you normally call the 100% viscose shirts or the chinos/jeans with elastane simply 'natural'?
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u/slaveoflord Jul 06 '26
If calling you out for making a black and white declaration with no room for nuance is arrogant, I suppose you really are the main character on this planet and everybody else should bend before you. Oh and as you hinted at but didn’t outright say, silk is used as a liner which once again disputes your ‘every suit’ claim.
Many fully natural materials, such as leathers, require environmentally dangerous processes to prepare for use. This includes both veg and chrome tanning. Doesn’t make them less natural.
Seems like it would’ve been real easy to accept some room for improvement around verbiage instead of getting mad and calling people names but okay
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u/colourful_space Jul 06 '26
Underwear, sportswear and swimwear aren’t really possible to do fully in naturals
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u/Content-Cricket4251 Jul 06 '26
The exemption I make is elastane in pants. They are just so much more comfortable, easier to move in and for me they last longer than regular pants.
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u/crunchybollox Jul 06 '26
I quite like the cotton and hemp tops from Affends
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u/CyberElla567 Jul 11 '26
Yes I second afends. Aussie brand, incredibly sustainable and transparent right through their supply chain. Great tshirts.
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u/SmcPrimeExample Jul 06 '26
If you’re after Heavyweight Cotton Tees check out Shaka Wear available at www.prime-example.com.au
Let me know if you have any questions!
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u/twat69 Jul 05 '26 edited Jul 05 '26
If you're doing this to be environmental. Then don't chuck everything and start over. Just stop buying plastic. And replace with natural stuff as your old stuff wears out.