Your favorite men's casual button downs
September 1, 2015 10:55 PM

Boyfriend ripped his favorite shirt. 1) What are your softest, most favorite men's casual cotton long sleeved button downs? 2) Is this rip beyond repair? (Probably duh, but maybe you have a magic solution?)

He's lucked in the last few years because he got his button downs passed down from a friend who happens to be identical in sizing and style (why can't all clothing acquisition be this easy?). Where do you shop for lightweight cotton button downs with tasteful (maybe fun?) colors?

His shirts are mostly madras and gingham, so this relatively colorful giant gingham pattern was different and looked really good on.

Most importantly, this shirt was really soft and thin, almost gauzy as you can see in this totally not creepy photo. It seems this brand is an Urban Outfitters thing but their All-Son selection doesn't carry anything similar right now.

Online or brick and mortar shops in the Bay Area (CA). Bonus points for East Bay, but will make the trek to SF if the store is amazeballs.

Also... this rip is completely unrepairable right?


Thanks!!!
posted by blueberrypuffin to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (11 answers total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
If you're willing to sacrifice the long sleeves (just from the elbow down), you might be able to get a patch that matches well enough to be inconspicuous at a casual social distance.

In my experience, that kind of rip means the garment is used up, and will just tear again somewhere else if patched. Better to mourn and move on.
posted by Bruce H. at 12:27 AM on September 2, 2015


Uniqlo make a very nice casual shirt for the money. They'll be a bit more flaky quality-wise, but H&M and Topman might also be worth a look. I can't quite see any massive plaid patterns right now though, and it's not really a look I've seen around much for the last couple of years.

If you're willing to go upmarket, there are lots of nice men's clothing retailers in the Bay Area who might have something like what you're after:
posted by Magnakai at 2:17 AM on September 2, 2015


All-Son shirt on ebay now, one color (not madras) but looks lightweight, and there's a plaid one at $5 plus $5 shipping--bidding ending today.

How about setting up a "followed search," or whatever eBay calls it, with your All-Son plaid or madras keywords and size?
posted by xaryts at 5:19 AM on September 2, 2015


You can't fix this properly without a really good tailor who is willing to weave in between each of those threads to make a patch by hand.

You might check out J Crew for lightweight plaid options?
posted by oceanjesse at 6:04 AM on September 2, 2015


Ok shirt will be mourned, cremated, and ashes spread over the mountains.

Thanks for the suggestions so far, store recs still welcome!
posted by blueberrypuffin at 7:46 AM on September 2, 2015


If he's wearing a shirt that plaid he might be hip enough to pull off some visible mending on it!
posted by Iteki at 9:18 AM on September 2, 2015


Scotch and Soda makes some nice men's casual shirts -- their attention to detail is great, and I think it might be a good fit stylistically.

(Mending-wise I agree with Bruce H.)
posted by kmennie at 10:47 AM on September 2, 2015


Ok shirt will be mourned, cremated, and ashes spread over the mountains.

Or make (or get someone to make) it into handkerchiefs. I have several beloved shirts that at the end of their lives will totally become new hankies. Or napkins? Or you could go all Joseph Had a Little Overcoat on it.

And for the recommendation, I've gotten two of my favorite soft shirts from Old Navy, though I'd recommend going in person to find out exactly which ones are soft (they should really have a soft vs starchy selector).
posted by carrioncomfort at 12:13 PM on September 2, 2015


Something like this from Rodd and Gunn maybe?

or something from Bonobos?
posted by garlic at 2:57 PM on September 2, 2015


nthing uniqlo.

I have one that looks just like that (except thinner material, probably) that I got off Zappos. You might want to browse what they have there, though be prepared to send 1/2 of the clothing back for IRL fit/color issues. The shirt was from Element.
posted by lalunamel at 9:27 PM on September 2, 2015


Thanks all - great suggestions! Love the recycling ideas. And visible mending?? That looks so awesome, I will have to try that on some of my own clothes...
posted by blueberrypuffin at 8:17 AM on September 3, 2015


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