Honest SeamsFriendly Review: Quality + Sustainability

Me posing against the railing of the platform in the rainforest section of the NYBG Conservatory. I'm wearing a yellow green set and a teal fanny pack.

SeamsFriendly is an Indian brand with made-to-order pieces from natural fabrics, and in custom sizing at no extra cost.

If you’re wondering whether it’s worth ordering from them, here’s my honest review after trying a matching set and two other pieces for a couple months.

I was gifted these items from SeamsFriendly with no obligation to post. I am an affiliate, so I do earn a small commission on any purchases through the links or codes in this post, at no extra cost to you. I only become an affiliate with brands I’ve personally vetted.

Table of Contents

Overview of SeamsFriendly

SeamsFriendly is a conscious clothing brand based in India. Its main draws include its:

Relative affordability (almost all pieces under $100)
Wide selection of styles
Natural fabrics and dyes
Local production
Size-inclusivity

They’re serious about size inclusivity, with bust measurements ranging from 26”-70” (66-178cm) and waist measurements from 19”- 63” (48-160cm); this is about the equivalent of a US XS-6X, but if you have other measurements, they’ll take those too. They also account for your height with their petite, regular, and tall options.

Tailor-made clothing is true to the South Asian tradition, and it’s also cool to see a more conscious brand that is Indian-owned and not just produced in India.

Is SeamsFriendly Ethical or Sustainable?

SeamsFriendly uses only natural and plant-based fabrics. Even their buttons are natural! They also use natural dyes whenever possible.

While they offer over 2,000 styles, they have zero inventory since everything is made-to-order. All the clothing is sewn locally in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India, where workers are paid a living wage. They’re also given social security, work in safe conditions, and have law-abiding hours.

It would be great to learn more about the full supply chain, such as where the raw materials are grown and if that’s done sustainably and ethically (especially the conventional cotton, which can be a more resource-intensive material).

For a small business though, SeamsFriendly is off to a good start, especially with their size-inclusivity. If they become larger, I’d like to eventually see certifications such as Fair Trade, Oeko-Tex, and Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS).

My Experience with SeamsFriendly

I picked out a matching set, a pair of wide-leg pants, and a t-shirt.

Me posing in the glasshouse of the NYBG. I have my hands in my pockets of my yellow-green set. The room is full of hanging plants

Me walking through the lush green plants of the NYBG

The matching set is breezy and comfortable, with the fabric feeling like a lightweight linen/cotton blend, though it’s actually 100% cotton. The pants fit extremely well, and they cut off just above the ankles. The top is definitely boxy and cropped, making it easy to wear with high-waisted pants.

Overall, the silhouette is very modern and I’ve also enjoyed wearing the pieces separately since they’re so versatile.

Me wearing a light green top and terracotta pants in the Magic Gardens in Philly

That said, the fabric doesn’t seem very durable since it’s pretty thin. I already see a few places where it’s started to tear after just a couple months (I saw one small hole in the shoulder of the top after just a few wears; it’s possible it came like that as well. I also see small tears in the corners of the pockets despite not being rough with them).

Slight tear in fabric on SeamsFriendly pants — Small tear near the pocket

Some other things to note are that the fabric is slightly textured and has small imperfections. I also felt that the workmanship on the set could’ve been improved since some of the decorative white stitches were crooked, and some of them didn’t seem to be secured properly.

The crooked seams aren’t a huge deal since you can’t really notice from afar (it also makes it feel kind of quirky and more real), but the loose stitches are more of a problem.

uneven decorative stitches on SeamsFriendly pants

SeamsFriendly loose stitching on the light green pants

I really wish I could recommend the set since I love the way it looks, but the fabric and stitching quality issues make me hesitant to. If you want to give it a shot anyways, the set is no longer available, but here’s a similar set with a long-sleeve top and the same pants. You can also buy the pants separately.

Me wearing burgundy wide leg pants with a cream tee and turquoise fanny pack worn side-body

The pair of pants I got (called the barn red cotton waffle relaxed culottes—whew, that’s a mouthful!), fit well and were slightly cropped and high-waisted. The fabric is weightier since it’s thicker and has the waffle/thermal texture.

The fabric isn’t as soft, so I don’t wear these pants as often as the pants from the matching set. The quality of the fabric is higher though, and I didn’t see any issues with stitching.

SeamsFriendly barn red waffle pants up close

I also appreciated how both pairs of pants have hanger loops inside, so you can hang them up on traditional hangers.

The t-shirt (barn red cotton waffle woven t-shirt) was made of the same material as the barn red pants. It was slightly cropped, so it also goes well with high-waisted pants.

Since the fabric is totally natural though, it doesn’t stretch much, so it sometimes feels a little tight in the shoulders. That’s definitely something to keep in mind as you’re ordering; you may want to size up a bit and enter a bust size that’s slightly larger for closer-fitting pieces made from this specific material.

I don’t have any photos wearing this piece yet, but I’ll add them when I do take some!

One other important note is that the natural dyes do bleed when washed. The lighter green color doesn’t bleed as much, but it would probably still stain any light fabrics it was washed with. The barn red color bleeds a lot, so I would only wash it separately or with like colors.

I actually have handwashed all the pieces since I don’t want to accidentally dye my other clothes. If you don’t have the time to handwash, I’d recommend going with the undyed pieces or lighter colored pieces.

Dye bleeding from the barn red pants — Handwashing the burgundy pants

You also should absolutely air dry your SeamsFriendly clothing since they’re made from natural materials and would likely shrink a lot in the dryer. I’ve only air dried these pieces and they’ve held their shape well.

Shipping-wise, the order confirmation email says that it takes 18-20 business days for your clothing to arrive. My pieces took one week after the order was made to ship, and then 6 days for it to arrive from India (so 13 days total). I’m not sure if this was expedited since my pieces were gifted though.

The clothing does come in a plastic mailer (likely for customs), but the box inside is cardboard, and the pieces come in a cotton drawstring bag made from leftover fabric. In the future, I’d love to see the plastic mailer be made from recycled plastic or a compostable material.

The Bottom Line

While I definitely have some critiques, I overall am happy with the quality and fit of the pieces. I would just avoid the lightweight cotton material that looks like linen and any deep-colored pieces if you can’t handwash your garments.

The styles are lovely and versatile, and I know I’ll be wearing them for as long as I can. I also appreciate being able to support a woman-owned and Indian-owned business with such a wide selection of size-inclusive, consciously-made pieces.

If this review helped you and you’ve decided to buy from SeamsFriendly, it would mean a lot if you used my affiliate link and code. Shop SeamsFriendly here and use code IMPERFECTIDEALIST for 15% off.

Feel free to leave any questions in the comments, and check out my ethical + sustainable brand directory for more brand recommendations. You may also like my Sustainable or Not? series where I review the sustainability and ethics claims of major brands.