Black wool pants turning brown

[Snowbear]

I've been looking a lot of places for this, but I can't find anything anywhere on the net, for some reason. Anyways, I love wool. All of my suits are wool, and I wear wool pants when I'm not wearing a suit.

I noticed with one pair of my black wool pants a few years ago that the front of the legs had developed a brown colour. I assumed that my housekeeper had left them out in the sun for an afternoon and the sun baked them. She did try to wash some wool pants in a washing machine (don't ask) and I couldn't think of anything else.

Well, it's happening again with 2 other pairs of black wool pants. I've had them about 2-3 years, and the front of the legs nearly from waist to ankle, especially the thigh area, is turning a brown colour and it's clearly obvious when you line it up with something that is still black. I never wear my suit pants without their jacket, hence why I have these stand-alone pants. The back of the pants is still black all the way through. It's only the front part of the legs this happens to.

The pants are not tailored, but they do stitch them when they fit them for in the store. I usually pay about $60 USD per pair. Are these just cheap pants with bad quality, or does this happen with black wool, or what's going on? They are 100% wool and not any sort of blend. I'm about to go out and buy about 4 more pair of the same pants, so I want to check first and see if there is a way to prevent this in the future because I love the pants and it's pretty frustrating.

 

[Martin Stall]

Sounds like the dye is fading because of daylight. I'm thinking that since it's only on the front, where there is most exposure to UV light. Probably to do with the quality, yes.

 

[arvidg]

So *this* is why black shouldn't be worn in daylight?

;-)