 My most recent jawn purchase is perhaps my wildest yet. the jawn in question is this rebuild by needles flannel pictured above. yes, that exact one; i took this picture from August, the store i managed before quarantine, and where i bought it. (btw They're still open for e-com and by-appointment sales so go check them out). the craziest thing about this shirt, however, is not the bold, mismatching plaid patterns. the craziest thing has to be the price tag. each 7-cuts flannel comes with a hefty retail price of $295. what justifies such a price for a shirt made from upcycled flannels? well, i am here to answer that, and why i believe it is worth shelling out for.
so why does this flannel cost almost $300 before tax? the first step of determining the price of a garment is to determine cost of materials. fabric generally makes up the bulk of material costs, and in this case, needles has a very unique way of sourcing fabric. i don't know their exact process, but i know that someone had to spend a lot of time gathering high-quality vintage flannels. whether they have someone do this in-house, or buy their flannels from a vintage wholesaler, someone is doing that work, and that work has to be paid for. sourcing the flannels is just the first step in this costly process. next, they must be sorted into sizes. while the sizes of each flannel clearly varies a bit, needles offers these in a full size run, meaning at least the bulk of the flannels used for each shirt must be about the same size. this is even more important for the flannels that make up each sleeve, and the main body. so now needles has 7 flannels that are roughly the same size and ready to be made into one. someone now has to carefully cut them into strips, likely pre-patterned, that can be sewn together. this is probably the most difficult part of the process. remember, they aren't dealing with flat fabric, they are cutting a strip from the front to the back of each flannel. one slightly off cut here can lead to problems with the balance when sewn together. i can attest that needles had no such issue with mine, meaning they probably have very little issues with this, a testament to their mastery of this unique process. finally, traditional finishing processes are used to make this a complete garment ready for sale, including carefully serging all 6 seams to ensure the garments longevity. the last touch is perhaps the best. underneath the bias-cut pocket from an 8th flannel lies a small pen pocket made from a small bit of one of the base flannels. it is this detail that to me highlights their great attention to detail, arguably one small detail that justifies the whole price tag. so now that we have a bit of an idea regarding why this shirt costs $300, what makes this shirt something someone should actually ~spend~ $300 on. i already mentioned the small pocket detail that really satisfied me, but it took more than a cleverly hidden pen pocket for me to get my wallet out and actually cop. the main reason i think this flannel is worth the money is the variation of flannel patterns. finding a pattern i really like has many times stopped me from buying much more affordable flannels. it is a very rare pattern that i would want to wear regularly and keep in rotation for years. something like a red and black buffalo is a pattern i would definitely wear, but it leans a bit too lumber-sexual for me to wear more than a few times a year. other patterns may not have the same lumberjack undertones, but i've yet to find one flannel i could see myself wearing year in and year out without tiring of. this rebuild flannel goes completely off the deep end when it comes to pattern, mixing all sorts of colors and pattern weights, making it so loud it reads as quiet. no one pattern overwhelms the eye. finally, what i believe is the most important reason to buy this flannel is to support a business that is doing something great to reduce fabric waste. sure, anyone with a careful hand and the slightest familiarity of how to use a sewing machine could go to their local thrift store, purchase 7 flannels for a total of $10, and make one on their own. however, that requires a lot of individual effort and will hardly make a dent on the surplus of vintage clothes. needles has scaled this operation, recycling thousands of flannels a year. they deserve support so they can continue this operation. so there you have it. that's why i just spent an exorbitant amount of money on a single flannel. but don't tell my parents - i told them i copied needles and did it myself. even though i don't want to justify the purchase to them, it is more than justified to myself. this flannel will be in rotation for years to come. I plan wear it heavily until it falls apart at the seams or until i die. whichever comes first.
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