What's the oldest item of (adult) clothing you own?

[Pellice]

And is there a story behind it? And do you ever still wear it?

I'm counting accessories like hats, scarves and ties, but not shoes, and not children's clothes. These are something hanging in your closets.

My oldest item is a wrap cotton skirt sewed by my mother, a gifted seamstress, in 1968. It was from a print line marketed then as "caviar prints," that were popular in 1968 during a craze (maybe too strong a word) for things Russian that year, which was the year of the Soyuz - Apollo mission, and, I think "Dr. Zhivago" was still rattling around in music and on television at that time.

I was a teenager then , and have and can still wear the skirt, since it's a wrap, lol! I have a number of other items made by my mother, but none that old.

 

[scrabbler1]

When my former company dropped its dress code in 1998, several items of clothing began gathering dust in my closet. The oldest of them is an overcoat I bought in 1989 after the one I bought a few years earlier got stolen after I left it in my office's cafeteria.


My latest clothing purge/donation back in late 2017 got rid of a lot of old clothes, some of which go back to the 1980s. I still have some sweaters which go back to the 1990s, and a few ties from the 1980s on my tie rack.

 

[COcheesehead]

I have my Dad’s WWII Army uniform with all his medals/patches attached that he earned. Still have the hat too. Circa 1942-45.

 

[LOL!]

I have some ties dating from the 1950s that I inherited. They are classic. I might wear one once per year or so. My son wants them in the future.

I have a Harris tweed sport coat that I bought for myself about 40 years ago on my first trip to London. Still fits me perfectly. I have a pair of Gore-tex rain pants that I made for myself in the 1970s that I use still.

 

[Pellice]

I have some ties dating from the 1950s that I inherited. They are classic. I might wear one once per year or so. My son wants them in the future.

If you have an opportunity, post a photograph of a couple of your most classic ties. As a female (though I should probably speak only for myself), I have no idea of what makes one tie more classic than another, barring the more cartoonish models. I could see a thread on photos of classic ties!

 

[pjigar]

A silk shirt my sister gifted me 22 years ago. I still wear it on special occasions.

 

[braumeister]

A hat I bought in 1969, and another I bought in 1976. Still wear both occasionally in the winter.

 

[Ready-4-ER-at-14]

I have a black leather ww2 style aviator type jacket that was "mature" when I got it. It has heavy duty zippers and a lining. I often wear it in the winter as my heavy coat or in the rain. It looks good, well broken in, and I feel great in it, even a little "bad ass" when wearing sunglasses. It garners some respect just walking on the street.

Heck I even ran it though the wash machine a time or two. Daughter bought me a modern black (split leather/pleather?) jacket but not the same so I wear that only if she goes with us to a movie or something like that.

I had a brown one for riding my motorcycles but finally wore that out.

 

[candrew]

I have a game-worn jersey from former U.S. men's national team midfielder Pablo Mastroeni. He wore it in a World Cup qualifying match vs Jamaica in 2005. It was given to me in 2006 by Pablo's younger brother Diego, a former colleague of mine. Diego was surprised that I recognized the last name when I asked if he might be somehow related to Pablo. We talked football for a while that day and much to my surprise, a few days later, Diego showed up with the jersey - one of many that his brother had gifted to him over the years. I've only worn it a couple of times as a sort of good luck charm when the USMNT plays a World Cup match. I also take a bit of pride in that I've maintained my own personal fitness well enough that the jersey still fits me perfectly!

 

[starry night]

Also 1968

And is there a story behind it? And do you ever still wear it?

My oldest item is a wrap cotton skirt sewed by my mother, a gifted seamstress, in 1968.

I was a teenager then , and have and can still wear the skirt, since it's a wrap, lol! I have a number of other items made by my mother, but none that old.

I can match your 1968 item.
I still have the black wool cloak I bought in 1968 at Saks 5th Ave NY, at age 14. Spent my whole clothing allowance for most of the year to buy it, having seen it in Seventeen Magazine.
Have used it many times over the years for Halloween outfit, and it is still a very lovely garment.
Can’t part with it for sentimental reasons.

 

[Nemo2]

Have a couple Saudi T-shirts from the 1980s (never wear them, they're for memories only), and somewhere (likewise) a T-shirt from a 'Clam Festival' in Salter Path, NC. date unknown.

 

[athena53]

Some of you make me look like an amateur!

Classic Brooks Brothers camel-hair coat bought in late 1982. They still sell them but I doubt the current one has a union label. I don't need a dress winter coat that often so it's still in beautiful shape. No need to buy another.

I also have a McGeorge cashmere sweater with an argyle ("Intarsia") pattern I bought London in 1983. I'd never heard of the brand- it was just a beautiful, substantial sweater. I still wear that, too.

 

[Chuckanut]

I think it's my down parka from my backpacking days. It's wonderfully warm.

 

[Scratchy]

3 bespoke suits 25 years old. Almost never wear suits now and I have newer off the rack ones when I do but I can't bring myself to throw them away.

 

[jfn111]

I have a lot of shirts and jackets with the Marlboro logo from my years with Philip Morris. I still have a Marlboro Team Penske racing jacket from the CART days.

 

[KCGeezer]

DW cut up all my old t shirts for a quilt. They are from concerts mostly in the 70’s. They’re still on her unfinished object (UFO) list. Guess they don’t count until the quilt is completed ‘eh?

 

[RunningBum]

I am right now wearing a Levi's polo shirt I know I bought in the mid to late 80s.

I still have my high school baseball jersey from 1980. It still fits.

I know I have a T shirt or two from college. I can't think of one from before that.

 

[erkevin]

I have my father's navy uniform from the Korean conflict 1951/52

 

[ncbill]

Old pair of boat shoes I have had re-soled 3x now...bought new in 1989.

 

[RAE]

I still have a really nice down vest I bought back in about 1977. It still fits, and I still wear it occasionally. I also still have maybe 3-4 old t-shirts from my college days (mid-late 70s). They still fit also. They all have some meaning to me, so I don't wear them very often at all.....just keeping them for the memories, I guess(?). I just got rid of a fall jacket that I got back in about 1987. I wore that one all the time for years. I loved that jacket, but it had a few small rips in it, and then the zipper finally broke so I reluctantly retired it. DW is happy it is gone.......

 

[pb4uski]

Does it have to still fit?

 

[ER Eddie]

I still have a jacket from my college days. It's a little frayed, and I've had to replace the zipper, but I like the way it looks and fits. It's probably 35 years old.

 

[Amethyst]

This was the topic of one of my earliest forum posts, ten years ago:

http://www.early-retirement.org/for...till-wear-where-people-can-see-you-43267.html

When I retired I got rid of the 1980's and 1990's skirted suits, but still have the 1976 Indian top, and am currently wearing a pair of Sportif shorts from 1989. In fact I have, and wear, quite a few pairs of shorts from the late 1980s. The Sportifs wore like iron. It's worth noting that their label shows size 10, whereas I would now buy a size 6 or even 4. That's not due to weight loss, but to "size inflation" in the garment industry in the past 30 years.

 

[aja8888]

I have a Yale sweatshirt with a hand painted bulldog on the front. Bought it at the Yale bookstore in 1973.

 

[Pellice]

Does it have to still fit?

Nope. It can be aspirational!