My Closet: Shirts
I am often asked for the perfect shirt. Well, spoiler alert, there is no ideal shirt—there just isn’t.
I am often asked for the perfect shirt. Well, spoiler alert, there is no ideal shirt—there just isn’t. I frequently find “one x to rule them all” boring. That being said, there are a lot of really good shirts out there. These are all shirts I have purchased or plan to purchase.
Heads up, all my answers are as brutally honest as possible. I love all these brands and am a fan of everything. But if something isn’t as good, I lovingly call it out. These are in no particular order, and I’m not using affiliate links because it has never sat well with me. Click and browse on your own.
Work Shirts
I wear a chambray/denim work shirt 3-4x a week. It goes with everything, and it looks better the more I wear it (a part of me died writing that sentence.) I don’t iron it. I do nothing but get annoyed when I have to wash it. And when I do, I wash it cold and hang dry because dryers kill everything.
Buck Mason Japanese Chambray Workshirt—This chambray is a bit dark for my taste, but BM manages to fit nearly every body type incredibly well. It’s a great shirt, and its designers know what they’re doing. Respect. If I had to nitpick, I’d want it to be longer.
Engineered Garments Indigo Cotton Chambray––Engineered Garments is one of the greatest brands of all time. I would put them as a close second to Ralph; I’m not kidding. But good lord, figuring out their sizing from season to season makes me think they’re trolling me. You can find these shirts everywhere (Grailed, eBay etc). DOUBLE CHECK YOUR MEASUREMENTS. I have been a medium, a large, and a small from season to season. My oldest shirt from them is from 2012, and I STILL wear it (add’l proof). I love it so much. This season’s is a darker denim, but they DEF fade - so buckle up.
3sixteen Utility Shirt––One of my favorite things is watching how brands evolve. Some brands skyrocket and explode (for worse). Some brands die out, and you forget they exist (the list is long). 3sixteen is a brand that steadily grows and just gets better. But they are still a denim brand, and man, do they do denim well. This shirt is an absolute banger and something I honestly wish they did every season - but alas, they don’t. So get it while you can.
Atempo Rubato R Shirt in New Haven Blue Oxford (pictured above)––Carl and Oliver of Rubato are geniuses. Jeez, talk about refinement. Remember when they started? I think they launched with just a couple of Shetland sweaters (I still own mine and can confirm they’re great). They’re growing quite nicely and are a bit of an IYKYK brand to me. I won’t gatekeep because they work their asses off. This work shirt/oxford is a bit of a hybrid. I think one thing I will call out is that this can only come from them. A larger brand would say, “Well, this feels a bit risky; let’s do something more conventional.” They didn’t do that. This shirt lets you fast-forward to a shirt you’ve owned for years, and you don’t lose any cool points.
Real McCoy’s Work Shirt—Real McCoy’s is a fantastic brand that produces incredible mil-spec and classic American clothing. This shirt is great, but my body is too weird to fit it well. I have purchased this shirt three times, only to resell or give it away later. I want this shirt to fit me. Maybe it will fit you, and you can flex on me. Heads-up: There are only a few sizes. Enjoy being upset!
GHIAIA Cotton Work Shirt—Run by Davide Baroncini, the easiest way to explain his brand is that it’s as if Brunello Cucinelli moved to Pasadena. Davide is an incredible, passionate storyteller who also happens to make clothes—he’s that good. GHIAIA products and prices are premium, but they feel worth it, and I’m not sure I can say that about other brands.
Button-down / Oxfords
If I’m not wearing a work shirt or a white T-shirt, I’m often in a button-down shirt. Are there any other collar types out there? Yes, but I gave up on those long ago. I have a few spread-collar shirts, but meh, I never wear them because I have button-down collar shirts. Does it make sense? It doesn’t? Well, that’s just clothes.
Berg & Berg ‘Ferdinand’ Oxford Button Down White - These tend to be a bit more on the formal side of oxford button downs– which is a bit of an oxymoron but whatever. They have a higher collar with a relatively thick interlining, which means they stand up nicely under sport coats and knitwear. I size up on these as the Berg crew tends to cut slightly on the smaller side. If you’re panicking because they don’t have your size, don’t worry; they make them every season. I have one in blue, white, and striped. My only nitpick is that they don’t look nice untucked – which maybe they do on purpose – so joke is on me.
18east Wolf Button-Down Shirt (pictured above) -- Antonio (founder and creative director) often knows you better than yourself. This shirt is for big fits. I wear mine untucked with a nice pair of baggy pants. I feel good.
Anglo-Italian Button Down - Jake Grantham and I used to work together at the Armoury. He’s an old soul with impeccable taste. He pours his heart and soul into his brand, and I admire him on so many levels. I have half a dozen of his button down, and the collar roll is NICE and BIG. It’s inspired by Liverano’s shirts, which were inspired by the late Gary Cooper’s shirts (similar to Drake’s but we’ll get to that later).
Drake’s Button-Down Oxford Shirt—Of course, I love Drake’s. I can also love the brand while simultaneously mourning the extreme price increases they’ve made over the years. The quality is always spectacular, but I feel they’re just a tad slim for my taste. I have had a dozen or so over the years. They hold up. My body does not.
Junior’s Philadelphia—founded by Glen Au, and it is probably the shirt I recommend to people the most. Glen has more or less perfected the classic Brooks Brothers shirt everyone searches for on eBay, but it’s new and made for you. My only criticism is that you have to order these MTO, but Glen gets it. He understands the vibe and doesn’t try to sell folks on some sort of exact measurement AI thing. I don’t believe shirts should be too precise.
Last thing, I didn't write about any MTM shirts. If you're really into that, you can do Proper Cloth.
But let me say this: if you try to get too specific on sizing, you'll be miserable. I boldly declare that MTM shirts are not worth it. MTO shirts? Yes. But when you start getting exact on collars, cuffs, and monogram placements, you're creating a recipe for disaster. Unless you're a cyborg, your body will change, and shirts look best when they aren't plastered on you. MTM jackets? MTM trousers? Yes to all. But shirts, don't do it. You'll thank me later. Or feel free to drop a few grand somewhere and get annoyed in a year when you re-do it all.