The sad ballad of my sassy jeans.

[Gizmo]

If faulty - and it doesn't look like your washing them was the direct and only cause - then they should be returnable. I've returned stuff before after a few washes where its clearly fallen apart and was faulty without too many issues.

[PepperElf]

it kinda depends.

although some stores say "well you wore them and washed them" ... if the product is falling apart within 30 days there's something wrong with it.

i know the Navy Exchange tries to hold to the "you washed it, too bad" line ... except they cave for senior enlisted. the chief telling us this, said he had some words with them about that. (He'd gone to bat for his subordinate who had a uniform fall apart after being washed... they told him "no return" but told the chief "sure!")

[Jay 2K Winger]

I always wash clothes before wearing.

I read an article in Reader's Digest probly 20 years ago about a little boy who went to the emergency room for something or another. The hospital couldn't figure it out and sent him home. The boy ended up in the er again the next day and the nurse noticed that he had the same pants on and asked the parents if they had washed them. Turns out there was some kind of chemical on the pants from processing.

Anyone else ever hear of this?

I recall something similar, though probably not the same story.

The jeans in the story I remember reading (it was in a book about a number of diseases/outbreaks and included a story about the original Legionnaire's Disease outbreak) were contaminated by something pretty nasty. The boy who got sick I THINK recovered.

[PepperElf]

I recall something similar, though probably not the same story.

The jeans in the story I remember reading (it was in a book about a number of diseases/outbreaks and included a story about the original Legionnaire's Disease outbreak) were contaminated by something pretty nasty. The boy who got sick I THINK recovered.

I heard of one such story involving a bra.. and a really gross photo of a breast with bugs growing out of it. the claim being that someone diseased had tried the bra on and put it back.

except that.. it was a photoshop... the "bug thing" was actually a plant that someone had had superimposed on a human chest and blended really well. all to cause panic and fear. and the sad thing is... people really fell for it!

[Hawaiian Eskimo]

I think I've seen that image before. I've seen a lot of nasty pictures on the internet, but that one freaked me out the most. Nice to know it was a 'shop (after all these years, lol)

[RayvenQ]

I think I've seen that image before. I've seen a lot of nasty pictures on the internet, but that one freaked me out the most. Nice to know it was a 'shop (after all these years, lol)

If it's the one I think it is, yeah, thats a lotus seed pod photoshopped onto a breast

[bainsidhe]

Some people like to "rent" merchandise, and they'll wear & wash clothing and then return juuuuust before the end of the return period, claiming it's defective. Some stores may have such a policy to prevent abuse. Still, I'd expect them to do something for a legitimate complaint.

I'd also suggest emailing a complaint to the jeans company. Not to get anything out of it of course, but so that they have a heads-up for quality control. I doubt you're the first or last person who will have this issue. A company can't fix a defect unless they first know about it.

[Shalom]

I like to wear Hanes cotton A-shirts, but I always wash them first, or they make me itch.

Gotta be careful how long you leave 'em in the dryer, though, or they get about 4 inches shorter.

[Seshat]

I once returned a defective garment because I washed it.

It had red sections and white sections. I washed it on its own, and it then had red sections, and sections which were a graduated pink.


In Australia, an item must be "fit for purpose". If it's not fit for the purpose for which it is sold - such as jeans which fray on the first wear, a garment with multiple colours where the dye runs and ruins the garment, or (as happened to my brother) a chair which collapses when you sit on it - the store MUST accept the return.
The store then takes the hit if it's their fault, or is responsible for taking it up with the manufacturer, shipping company, or whomever is actually responsible for the defect.

My parents actually had to go to small claims about the chair (mentioned in the above paragraph); but small claims court upheld their claim. That's when I learned about the 'fit for purpose' rule.

This does, of course, only apply if the item is defective; and the defect is the fault of the store, the manufacturer, the shipping, or some other form of pre-sale handling. My parents had to go to small claims because the store was trying to claim the defect was caused after sale.

[PepperElf]

I like to wear Hanes cotton A-shirts, but I always wash them first, or they make me itch.

Gotta be careful how long you leave 'em in the dryer, though, or they get about 4 inches shorter.

this however can be a bonus. back when I was Navy... we had to have those things high on our necks.


and yeah, something that falls apart or color-runs on the first wash... needs to be taken back.

[Pagan]

I like to wear Hanes cotton A-shirts, but I always wash them first, or they make me itch.

Gotta be careful how long you leave 'em in the dryer, though, or they get about 4 inches shorter.

/puts on textile science hat/
Wash them and dry them in a cooler, or cold, water temperature. The whole reason shirts like that shrink on the first wash is because the fabric isn't pre-shrunk before cutting and sewing.
/textile science hat off/