Would you toss an item due to excessive pilling? - YouLookFab Forum

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Would you toss an item due to excessive pilling?

yublocka

(website)

Veteran

I have a merino ezibuy tunic that I bought last winter that is giving me the heebie-jeebies. I am seriously considering donating it just due to its pilling. I still like the style, colour and comfy coziness of the tunic, however everytime I wear it I have to constantly pull off the little bits that collect under my arms. Then when I take it off the tops of my jeans that I've been wearing underneath are covered in lint and need to be washed again before I can wear them.

The top itself isn't showing signs of wear despite this loss of fabric, however the pilling seems to be getting worse with every wear. With summer looming, is it time to say goodbye? Or is there anything I can do to stop this vicious cycle?

Yay = donate away
No = persist with it

tam

Dressing

23 replies

Latest reply was from yublocka

April

Veteran

Yes, I would get rid of it. Pilling is one sign of wear that I find inutterably depressing.

HeleenH

Veteran

Actually I own a dress that is that kind of pilling and I am keeping it. But from a sensible point of view it is not flattering anymore because of all the pills. When it gets cold enough to wear it, I will de-pill it once and see how it goes. If the pills return I will throw it away. No good sending it to goodwill and let it annoy someone else!

ButterflyLady

(website)

Veteran

I voted yay = donate! I find this so irritating ....

Lisa

Veteran

I am not a fan of piling. If comb doesn't get the pills out (a sweater comb) then off to the donate pile it goes.

Laura

(website)

Veteran

Yes. And don't buy knitwear from that brand again!

Anonymous

Broom it to the curb!

Honestly I might toss rather than donate. Who is going to want that pilly sweater?

Freckles

Veteran

Donate, this item definately doesn't boost your confidence so out it goes.

mrseccentric

(website)

Veteran

hi yublocka! "I still like the style, colour and comfy coziness of the tunic..."

for me it depends on how much you depend on this tunic and how likely you are to find an adequate replacement. if you really like it, wear it a lot, and have a hard time finding this type of item.......try this trick. my husband got this great little acid green shaggy fleecy throw in a christmas gift exchange at work. fabulous color, warm, great size - shed ALL OVER!!! i ended up washing and drying it on it's own (because the shed fibers infected everything else in the tub with it) every time i thought about it - and within a couple of weeks 90% of the shedding/pilling had resolved.

worth a try if this is an item you like that would be hard to replace. good luck! steph

Queen Mum

Veteran

can you shave it?

yellowgirl

I, too, hate pilling; I generally toss items when they get pilling.

celia

Veteran

I voted nay because you seem to like everything about the tunic except her social skills
Honestly, just give it another try.

Tessera

I would try a sweater stone or sweater shaver first, to remove the pills. Some people have sweaters that they de-pill with every wearing, as the softer the wooler or acrylic, the more it can have a tendency to pill. But if de-pilling doesn't work, I'd get rid of the sweater. Pills are just not attractive.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I think it depends on how badly and where it's pilled. While I find all pilling annoying, if it's under the arm mostly where folks aren't likely to see it, I'd keep it. If the pills are very obvious, I'd demote it to loungewear to curl up on the couch in. (I've done just such a thing with a ridiculously soft, yet very pilled sweater)

modgrl

(website)

Veteran

How annoying! I try to avoid acrylic because it pills so fast. The texture is always so nice in the store but I know I"m only going to get one wear out of it.

ironkurtin

Veteran

Chuck. Unless it's cashmere. Cashmere pills, and you just keep a sweater depiller on hand and shave it gently after every wearing. Just the way it is, alas.

elpgal

Veteran

I find that some garments pill a lot in the beginning and then they are just fine. My current comfy lounge pants (cotton/spandex) blend used to do this and I am glad I kept them. However, if the dress is acrylic, I would toss.

MNsara

Veteran

Pilling and shedding are two of my pet peeves

If you tried cold water washing/flat drying and the SHEDDING quit, I'd be tempted to demote it to winter lounge wear.

If it kept shedding, I'd let it go. . .it will always be irritating . . .

Vildy

Veteran

I never thought merino was all it was cracked up to be in terms of
long-wearing and your top is a good example of that. Even if you
were willing to keep shaving or de-pilling it, it would just wear out
under the arms.

Mellllls

Veteran

is it only pilling under the arms?

nicoleb

(website)

Veteran

I donate if it's excessive. I don't worry about under the arms too much. I really need to invest in our of those sweater shaver thingys though.

yublocka

(website)

Veteran

Well ylf wisdom has spoken - its going in the donate pile!!

The only visible pilling is under the arms, so that doesn't bug mug excessively. What irks me most is the pilling residue that is left behind on the waist of my jeans underneath - I have to wash my jeans immediately afterwards to remove it. I have a merino dress with the same issue, but washing the tights underneath irks me less than having to wash jeans. This item is over a year old, and the pilling seems to get worse, not better with time so I don't see much point in persisting!

I would demote it from workwear to loungewear, but I don't want teal pilling all over my red lounge!! And since my closet is in need of a serious edit, this is the first victim. And I did buy a black tunic shirt in Dubai so by the "one in, one out" policy it's definitely time to say goodbye to something!!

mrseccentric

(website)

Veteran

so, yublocka - care to divulge the brand to save fellow ylf'ers possible pilling pain?

hooray new tunic shirt!!! steph

yublocka

(website)

Veteran

Steph it was an ezibuy purchase. I made a couple of purchases from there last year but haven't been thrilled with the quality overall and find their sizing very inconsistent. I do find their catalogues appealing but don't puchase as often as I'd be tempted to if they had a B&M store where I could try things on beforehand. Have you had any experience with them?