My T-shirts lose shape at the neckline before they get holes. (I can't actually remember the last time I got a fray or hole in a T-shirt.) Or --- TMI alert! --- they get stinky if they are summer workhorses. So depending on the cause of retirement, they become lounge/sleepwear or rags for cleaning countertops and mirrors (vinegar sorts out stink, but isn't kind to the colour or my skin). My SO has the holes in weird places problem however --- typically on his back and tummy! I don't get it... ::smh::
So I buy a couple of new T-shirts every year. I think I have about 5-7 in rotation at a time. Life: About 6 months for the 2-3 I depend on most summer, but the rest last anything from 2-6 years, even whites (with help from the sun on the drying rack, though our hard water is hard on them still).
Underwear --- I buy relatively cheap M&S cotton knickers, and again, there's usually about 7-10 in rotation at a time. I buy about 5-7 each year in a bunch. Life: 6 months to a year, depending on the quality this year (I keep noticing place of manufacture changes to all over the map of late --- they've been from Egypt to Sri Lanka to Thailand to...) These DO get holey, I fear
My bras are more expensive and more sturdily constructed. I can usually go 2-3 years without needing a new one, and cotton sports bras are the first to go usually (they stink up irreversibly by the time summer's done). Underwires hold up best, possibly because I handwash those. But a given bra typically last 5-7 years for me. It helps that I have lots --- about 10 again --- in rotation at a time.
Socks last years and years. Except my woollen handknit winter socks, which I wear into the ground every other year at best --- just a couple of pairs in rotation at a time. Some need annual replacement. I get them from individual crafters or my mom, so quality differs.
Jeans last ages. They're dated or I've shifted sizes long before they're done, for me! I've *never* had to throw out a pair because they wore out. My oldest pair that still fit are frayed at the edge on one foot, but not grievously. They are Benettons, um, about 7-8 years old? I have between 4 to 10 in use at a time, depending... My SO, who has about 7 in rotation, goes through a couple each hour --- I have no idea how! And this though I wash mine every couple of wears and wear them almost all day when I do (he goes much longer between washes, which I thought was supposed to be better for denim?).
