研究發現 便宜衣服比名牌衣服更耐穿

If you've been shelling out for designer clothing in the hopes that it will be more durable than cheaper options, you might want to reconsider.

如果你花大把錢買名牌衣服，期望它們比平價衣服更耐穿，你可能需要重新考慮一下了。

A new study from The University of Leeds suggests that low-cost clothing might actually outlast pricier pieces.

利茲大學的一項新研究指出，廉價的衣服事實上可能比昂貴的衣服更耐穿。

The study was led by Dr. Mark Sumner, a lecturer in fashion and sustainability. Using samples of T-shirts and jeans from a variety of brands and price points, researchers measured factors such as seam strength, colorfastness, and how long it took for the fabric of each piece to develop rips or tears.

帶頭開展這項研究的馬克·薩姆納博士是時尚和可持續性專業的講師。研究人員採用了多個品牌和價位的T恤和牛仔褲作爲樣本，衡量了接縫強力、色牢度等因素，以及面料多長時間會發生撕裂。

Despite the popular notion that designer clothes are more sturdily constructed than off-the-rack items, the study found that fast-fashion shirts and jeans usually out-performed their luxury counterparts.

儘管大衆普遍認爲，名牌衣服比平價衣服制作得更結實，但是研究發現，快時尚品牌的T恤和牛仔褲通常都比名牌衣服更耐穿。

"Some of the garments performed very well across a wide range of tests -- more often than not, the best products were 'fast-fashion' products," Dr. Sumner told The Telegraph.

薩姆納博士告訴《每日電訊報》說：“其中一些衣服在大範圍測試中表現很出色--這些衣服多半是快時尚產品。”

"Jeans from one fashion brand lasted twice as long as a designer label jeans, but cost one-tenth of the price of the designer jeans," he said.

薩姆納說：“快時尚品牌牛仔褲的壽命是名牌牛仔褲的兩倍，但是價格卻只有名牌牛仔褲的十分之一。”

According to Dr. Sumner's interview with The Telegraph, designer label T-shirts were "the worst performing" in all of the tests. Surprisingly, T-shirts from an online fast-fashion brand held up the best.

薩姆納在接受《每日電訊報》的採訪時說，名牌T恤在所有測試中的“表現是最差的”。令人驚訝的是，質量最好的T恤來自一家線上快時尚品牌。

Of course, price isn't the only thing to consider when shopping for new threads. The fashion industry is a huge source of environmental pollution, with low-cost clothing contributing heavily to landfill waste and carbon gas emissions.

當然，在購置新衣服時，價格並不是唯一要考慮的因素。時裝行業是造成環境污染的一大源頭，低成本服裝嚴重加劇了垃圾填埋和二氧化碳排放。

According to the EPA Office of Solid Waste, Americans throw away more than 68 pounds of clothing and textiles per person per year. With trends appearing and vanishing in the blink of an eye, the average number of times a garment is worn before it is disposed of has decreased 36% over the past 15 years, according to a 2017 report.

根據美國環保局固體廢物辦公室的數據，美國人每人每年扔掉超68磅的衣服和紡織品。服裝潮流瞬息萬變，根據2017年的報告，一件衣服在被丟棄前的平均穿着次數在過去15年間下降了36%。

Although some clothing items are estimated to be trashed after just seven wears, less than 1% of clothing is recycled to create new clothing. Plus, fast-fashion can come with ethical concerns depending on the company.

儘管有些衣服只穿了7次就被丟棄，但被回收用來製作新衣服的卻不到1%。此外，快時尚產業的一些公司還伴隨着道德爭議。

But it's not just fast-fashion brands that are guilty of wasteful practices. Earlier this year, high-end design label Burberry acknowledged burning almost $40 million of unsold clothes, accessories, and perfume. According to the BBC, the company opted to destroy the items rather than sell them more cheaply in order to protect the brand's value.

不過，造成浪費的不只有快時尚品牌。今年早些時候，高端時尚品牌巴寶莉承認將未售出的價值近4000萬美元的衣服、飾品和香水燒燬。據英國廣播公司報道，該公司選擇燒燬貨物而不是降價出售是爲了保護品牌價值。

All in all, there's a lot to consider when purchasing new clothing. But, keeping those bargain jeans in your wardrobe rotation could be good for your budget and the environment -- and chances are they can last just as long as the designer pair you've been eyeing.

總而言之，在買新衣服之前要考慮的東西很多。但是，繼續穿你的廉價牛仔褲對你的財政狀況和環境都有好處，而且，它們很可能和你看中的那條名牌牛仔褲一樣耐穿。