Do puffers ever wear out? - YouLookFab Forum

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Do puffers ever wear out?

Runcarla

Veteran

I love my puffers, and wear them lots!

The oldest one is 3 yo, and other than the teensy tiniest micro pilling on the binding along the edge - it shows no signs of wear. Running it through a wash and dry restores it’s lustre and loft. It, and it’s cream twin, along with a warmer navy cousin are back in rotation. Soon I will bring up my warmest burgundy coat. It looks like new despite near constant wear 5 months of the year for the past two years.

I don’t believe I’ve had a cloth topper, sweater, or coat look as good - comparatively - as the puffers look - after the number or years and ‘wears’.

Has anyone experienced a puffer wearing out?

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40 replies

Latest reply was from Ginger

Sally

Veteran

Yes I had a Kathmandu puffer I wore practically every day for a year at least and it thinned out with stuffing coming out being compressed? I did get a lot of wear from it though because I wore it to work as well as out in the weekend.

Joy

Veteran

I have never had even an extensively used puffer wear out although they may start shedding feathers. Those get donated quickly.

Star

Veteran

Yes, they get less warm. Not sure why, maybe washing?

slim cat

Veteran

A little bit - some seams are needed strengthening and the pockets needed some fixing.

Cee

Veteran

Depends... How hard are you training them ?

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

My blue one is from the 90s, but was set aside for a decade.

I’ve had to re-sew one of the pockets in the red one I got four years ago. It probably was poorly sewn to begin with. I consider small maintenance like that to be part of taking care of things, as opposed to them wearing out.

Once in a while, a feather pokes out of one of them. I suppose that over years that would add up, and have heard that losing a lot of feathers is a mark of low quality, but so far it doesn’t seem to be a big deal with mine.

by Stagiaire Fash

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by Stagiaire Fash

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Jessikams

(website)

Veteran

I’ve had some where the stuffing starts to poke out the seams. And when I used to smoke, some of them would get burn scars !

kkards

Veteran

I had a silver/light grey North Face puffer that I wore for about 8 or 9 years, eventually the outer fabric just got too stained, especially around the bottom of the sleeves, that it just looked to tired. The jacket was still keeping me warm though

bella

(website)

Veteran

What Joy said! One of mine started shedding feathers.
And the zipper broke on another one. The tailor told me that it would be impossible to fix.

Sal

Veteran

We have had them get very tired, with feathers poking through seams and losing their shape and puff. It’s taken a while though and a lot of wear.

Dee

Veteran

You're right, my puffers do seem to last a long time. I only had to get rid of one due to a zipper breaking, the rest all still looking good.

LaPed

Veteran

So many factors! In general, down will last a lot longer than synthetic fill. Down retains its loft for years if not decades if cared for properly, while synthetic fibers compress over time, becoming less insulative because they trap less air. In some poorly constructed jackets, feather loss is a problem--it usually comes up in online reviews if it is an issue! The quality of the shells and stitching can vary pretty widely too. I wear my outerwear pretty hard, and when I've retired puffers it's been due to loose stitching, holes/stains in the shell, and zippers failing, rather than a problem with the down itself.

Olive Green

Veteran

I snag thigh length puffers on barbed wire and bushes, use duct tape to close up the stuffing again. Then they came out with little patches for mending that you can buy at a sports store. Hearts, lightning bolts. Kiddish, but cuter than tape!
My ankle length puffer does not go through the woods so lasts literally forever. Ten years? And still warm.

RobinF

Veteran

I have an 8 year old knee length down puffer that is getting worn around the sleeves. Other than that it still looks surprisingly good, especially since it is my main coat for winter weather. It probably helps that it is black so stains don't show. I am keeping my eyes open for a replacement but meanwhile it does OK.

Sisi

Veteran

No, all my puffers hold on well, I wear them a lot and wash them in the washing machine. My 1996 Moncler black short puffer has been worn for many years and retired a few years ago, and still looks brand new.
The 1997 black long one has been worn almost every Winter since then. Only recently it has begun to loose some feathers through the seams.

Jorja

Just an FYI - Landsend replaced a puffer that was shedding feathers with a credit for the price I paid. It would have been replaced but it was 3 years old. I don’t know if this is still offered or what their guarantee is anymore.

Jenn

(website)

Veteran

I'm feeling like I need to replace mine after nearly a decade and hundreds of wears. I snagged it on something and tore a hole in the arm the FIRST WEEK I had it, but patched it up and went my merry way. Over time, it developed pinprick holes, probably from branches, and has been slowly but surely losing feathers.It's just now starting to feel a bit flat.

Irina

Veteran

Yes, I experienced that but with cheap puffers. Ones from Joe Fresh last about 3 seasons with a heavy use. It starts losing feathers, fabric becomes dull. I had one Joe Fresh puffer for 9 years, 5 of them as a jacket for outdoor house chores and smoking. I finally put in a garbage, the zipper was broken and it lost it’s color. And I don’t smoke anymore

I think that better quality puffers might lasts years with proper care.

Lesley

Veteran

I had a cute Soya & Kyo short puffer with a dramatic puffy collar. Eventually the collar de-puffed and it no longer looked right, although the rest of the jacket was still warm. I suppose I could have possibly looked into re-stuffing the collar (is that even a thing?) but it was already about 12 years old when I was moving from Italy back to the States and it seemed a good thing to jettison, although I still think about that jacket from time to time (it was so darn cute and warm). My long puffer (also Soya & Kyo) is still going strong, and that one is about 10 years old! Every year I take it to the tailor to have them close up some seams in the lining and reinforce buttons and it is still looking amazing.

I will have to contrast this with a short puffer I bought probably 4 years ago when I moved back from Italy and suddenly needed a short puffer! I got what seemed like a good deal from Nordstrom (probably around $150) and it looked aged within its first year. It got staining and water marks that just never came out. I just chucked it this year. I think it's possible to get a good deal (in fact that original short S&K I got on sale for $100) but you probably have to know what brands to rely on when the price is low, if you want your puffer to go the distance!

Aquamarine

Veteran

I have a down-filled North Face puffer that is *at least* a decade old and it looks fine. I wash it once or twice a season, paying particular attention to the sleeve ends which can get dirty. I dry it in the dryer with a tennis ball so it refluffs perfectly, and it has never shed more than a feather or two, very very occasionally. It’s lightweight, has a hood, covers my hips and rear so it’s warm yet not cumbersome for outdoor activities. It’s also very lightweight, which is important to me since my shoulders are getting sensitive to weight. It’s always the jacket I reach for and is the warmest one too. It fits my body type perfectly, even the sleeve length.

I LOVE this puffer and would’ve duplicated it in another color if I could’ve looked into the future. I did try at one point, but North Face changed the cut and it wasn’t as comfortable. Since it doesn’t seem to be replaceable, I try not to wear it anyplace it can get ripped by a stray branch or exuberant dog.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

None of my puffers are showing wear, and apart from the very heavy weight one (Find #1) - they are worn a LOT! They are indestructible.

The citron puffer is my new fave. LOVE IT SOOOO MUCH!

The red puffer is my yoga puffer......way back when I used to walk to yoga class before the pandemic. I don't do that anymore. Yoga at home is where it's at with my app. I wear it to the beach with the doggies from time to time though.

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Roberta

Veteran

The last real down jacket I bought (about ten years ago) began to shed tiny tiny bits of fluff, so I donated it. I couldn't wear anything dark under it. But also I was just tired of it.

JAileen

Veteran

I have a Frostline kit down jacket I made from about 1975 or so. I wore it a lot for several years, then my son started wearing it. It still looks new!

doggeh lover

I have a black mid-thigh down coat by Shelly Segall (sp?) Laundry line that I used near daily for 8 years during our long, brutal Minnesota winters, and probably weekly for 2 more, still looks and feels great. It was pricey (for me) about $500, but CPW has gotta be less than $1. Plan to keep using it as my main winter coat for at least another season or 2

cat2

Veteran

Yes, of course. I had a beige puffer get odd stains I could not remove and a blue puffer where the cuffs lost their elasticity.

celia

Veteran

I find that puffers sometimes loose insulation with time but usually have long life spans of a good 8 to 10 years .

Star

Veteran

Celia yes I had this experience with a thrifted puffer (Kipling - so good quality). Who knows how old it is.

Helena

Veteran

I have - but mind you I tend to have one at a time that gets heavy active usage all winter! My Columbia one lasted several years but eventually got friction damage in several spots that looked really sloppy (it was still warm as toast though), and my latest one (don't remember the brand, it was from Mark's) really pilled and then the stuffing starting coming out, almost like it found little pinholes to escape through haha .. that wasn't too impressive; I'll go back to Columbia I think!

Chiara

I find the thread used for the seams can fray or discolour so it no longer matches the colour of the fabric.
And cheaper puffers seem to get « puff settle » where the insulation drops quickly to the bottom of the quilted pocket. Briefly fluffs up with a shake, but then settles again…

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