At Fernweh, we strive to create products made to last, pieces that will have a low cost per wear, meaning you are investing in a product that will age with you.
Cost per wear is a methodology of deriving the value of an item for how often it is used. For example, many garments in the fast fashion industry begin to fall apart after an average of 7-10 wears. For a £20 T-shirt, that is worn 10 times, creates a cost per wear of around £2.00.
Taking our "Finnoch" Field bag for example, which retails at £150, if worn 3 times a day for a year, means its used 1095 times. Taking this measurement and dividing it by the cost, gives a cost per wear of £0.13p.
Here's our tips on how to care for your Fernweh bag over the years;
While waxed cotton is incredibly durable, it is still a cotton cloth fabric, and like all fabrics, will eventually show signs of wear. Although our bags are designed to be rugged and durable, taking care when you use your bag will ensure it lasts even longer.
We hope that the creases and scuffs on the waxed cotton become an inherent, unique characteristic of your bag, a unique pattern and visual memory of all the adventures the bag has been on.
However, if there are deep scuffs, if untreated, these can fray a little. The best way to combat this is to re-wax the area as soon as possible, adding more strength, stability and weatherproofing to the area.
Corners and side seams are probably the areas of a bag which see the most abrasive action, especially if it is being set on the ground/picked up continuously, the best way to avoid this is by setting your bag on the ground as little as possible, and spot re-waxing any deep scuff marks, taking care to get the wax really into the seams and corners for strength.
- When using the bag, be careful about scuffing against abrasive materials
- When not using, we recommend you hang your bag up.
- Treating your bag with care will ensure it lasts a long time.
While we offer free repairs on manufacture/material faults, we also offer a variety of wear and tear repair and re wax services at a reasonable cost, please get in touch via fernwehuk@gmail.com to discuss your requirements.
We love visible mending here at Fernweh, its a great way to personalise an item while prolonging its lifespan - plus its incredibly therapeutic. If you want to employ some visible mending on your own bag, please get in touch via email and we'd be more than happy to send some waxed cotton offcuts your way!
Re Waxing Instructions (Antique Style)
At Fernweh, we recommend treating your waxed piece 2/3 times a year for optimum performance.
For re-waxing, we use wax tins with wax straight from our fabric supplier, which you can buy on our website.
To clean, spot clean stains with cold water and a damp cloth or alternatively use a soft brush to get rid of marks before re-waxing. Do not machine wash.
To Rewax your product follow these easy steps:
Step 1: Heat wax slightly to soften
Step 2: Rub wax onto the fabric, covering the entire area with a layer of wax.
Step 3: Grab a hairdryer and heat the wax, melting it into the fabric. Repeat if necessary
Full re-wax guide coming soon.