My kingdom for this exact shirt
April 11, 2021 5:06 PM Subscribe
I have a t-shirt that fits perfectly. It is on its last legs and, since it came from a fast fashion store that specializes in ephemera, they're no longer made. I'm getting desperate. Any last-ditch ideas to find more of this discontinued shirt?
This is a cheapy Old Navy black v-neck women's t-shirt, the "fitted" line. I bought three of them between 5-10 years ago and I should have bought 30 because it's PERFECT on me. Like, on a scale of 1-10, not only is this shirt a 10, it wrecked the curve so that all other shirts have been demoted to a 1-2. Two of the tees succumbed to everyday life, leaving the lone survivor. I have other black v-neck tees but this one is the best.
I've been trying to find more of these tees for years and am having zero luck. Over the last few years I've gone to Old Navy and tried on every black shirt they have, but they're not the same fit at all. I've searched for Old Navy "fitted" black tee -luxe -slub -perfect (to whittle out other styles) and have found just a few of them on ebay/mercari/poshmark: in the wrong size and in the wrong color. I can tell that they're the right shirt by the label - it's very specifically "fitted". I feel like a big dork because this shirt probably cost no more than $5 and it's from a store that I no longer patronize, but I have a hard time finding shirts that fit me well, so it's precious to me.
I feel like I'm at the end of the line in my search for this ephemeral shirt. Does anybody have any suggestions? Is there an Old Navy Deadstock Shop somewhere? Do they sell to overseas markets at a five year style delay so that I could buy online and have them ship it back to me? Do they do special orders? Anything?
Any help on this ridiculous quest is greatly appreciated.
This is a cheapy Old Navy black v-neck women's t-shirt, the "fitted" line. I bought three of them between 5-10 years ago and I should have bought 30 because it's PERFECT on me. Like, on a scale of 1-10, not only is this shirt a 10, it wrecked the curve so that all other shirts have been demoted to a 1-2. Two of the tees succumbed to everyday life, leaving the lone survivor. I have other black v-neck tees but this one is the best.
I've been trying to find more of these tees for years and am having zero luck. Over the last few years I've gone to Old Navy and tried on every black shirt they have, but they're not the same fit at all. I've searched for Old Navy "fitted" black tee -luxe -slub -perfect (to whittle out other styles) and have found just a few of them on ebay/mercari/poshmark: in the wrong size and in the wrong color. I can tell that they're the right shirt by the label - it's very specifically "fitted". I feel like a big dork because this shirt probably cost no more than $5 and it's from a store that I no longer patronize, but I have a hard time finding shirts that fit me well, so it's precious to me.
I feel like I'm at the end of the line in my search for this ephemeral shirt. Does anybody have any suggestions? Is there an Old Navy Deadstock Shop somewhere? Do they sell to overseas markets at a five year style delay so that I could buy online and have them ship it back to me? Do they do special orders? Anything?
Any help on this ridiculous quest is greatly appreciated.
If you can find the right fabric, you could hire someone to make them using the old shirt for a pattern. I’m not sure how much that would cost.
I’ve had some luck finding a discontinued skirt I like in good condition on eBay. I’ve set up a permanent search and get emails when someone is selling it.
posted by FencingGal at 5:41 PM on April 11, 2021 [4 favorites]
I’ve had some luck finding a discontinued skirt I like in good condition on eBay. I’ve set up a permanent search and get emails when someone is selling it.
posted by FencingGal at 5:41 PM on April 11, 2021 [4 favorites]
Old Navy can be inconsistent from one batch to another so even if you found the exact shirt its no guarantee it would be the same anyway. I cant count how many times Ive bought copies of the exact same thing and it wasn’t.
If i was trying to do this I’d take the shirt to your nearest fabric store and get employee help to replicate the fabric. Then id go find a tailor who would be willing to try and recreate the shirt with your existing shirt and new fabric.
This will certainly all cost more than the original ON shirt.
Oh, also make sure you also check The Gap and Banana Republic as well, just in case. All 3 are the same company, just slightly “better” quality products (ie price point) at Gap/BR.
posted by cgg at 7:43 PM on April 11, 2021
If i was trying to do this I’d take the shirt to your nearest fabric store and get employee help to replicate the fabric. Then id go find a tailor who would be willing to try and recreate the shirt with your existing shirt and new fabric.
This will certainly all cost more than the original ON shirt.
Oh, also make sure you also check The Gap and Banana Republic as well, just in case. All 3 are the same company, just slightly “better” quality products (ie price point) at Gap/BR.
posted by cgg at 7:43 PM on April 11, 2021
"Fitted" is one of those retail words that doesn't really mean anything except "not normal". I think on men's wear they are called "athletic cut" or "slim cut" to present a slimmer waist and broader shoulders.
One *may* be able to adjust a regular fit t-shirt to "fitted".
I'd try to find proper black v-necks that doesn't quite fit, then take your good one and ask how much to make the others like it, and see how the tailor look for the differences.
If regular tailors are a bit expensive, see if there are tailors in local Chinatowns and such. They often work for quite a bit less, esp. for simpler jobs.
posted by kschang at 2:45 AM on April 12, 2021
One *may* be able to adjust a regular fit t-shirt to "fitted".
I'd try to find proper black v-necks that doesn't quite fit, then take your good one and ask how much to make the others like it, and see how the tailor look for the differences.
If regular tailors are a bit expensive, see if there are tailors in local Chinatowns and such. They often work for quite a bit less, esp. for simpler jobs.
posted by kschang at 2:45 AM on April 12, 2021
If you are new to the idea of altering clothes or having a pattern copied I'd suggest the following rule of thumb.
If you can find a t-shirt that has the desired fit through the shoulders and has the desired neckline it is easy enough to make sleeves shorter/tighter and to make it more fitted through the torso. It is also still fairly easy to make it shorter. So here an alteration may be the answer.
If you can't find anything that is a close enough match in the shoulders and neckline, altering would basically mean taking the t-shirt apart, resizing every aspect of it and then sewing it all back together. The fabric of a moderately priced commercially produced t-shirt is not designed to withstand that. It will stretch and look awful. It will also take much longer and cost more. So in that case, get a better quality fabric and have somebody copy the pattern and do it from scratch. It'll cost you more but you will have an item that should last you and a pattern that can be re-used.
posted by koahiatamadl at 7:38 AM on April 12, 2021 [1 favorite]
If you can find a t-shirt that has the desired fit through the shoulders and has the desired neckline it is easy enough to make sleeves shorter/tighter and to make it more fitted through the torso. It is also still fairly easy to make it shorter. So here an alteration may be the answer.
If you can't find anything that is a close enough match in the shoulders and neckline, altering would basically mean taking the t-shirt apart, resizing every aspect of it and then sewing it all back together. The fabric of a moderately priced commercially produced t-shirt is not designed to withstand that. It will stretch and look awful. It will also take much longer and cost more. So in that case, get a better quality fabric and have somebody copy the pattern and do it from scratch. It'll cost you more but you will have an item that should last you and a pattern that can be re-used.
posted by koahiatamadl at 7:38 AM on April 12, 2021 [1 favorite]
LL bean has an option for fitted or slightly fitted tees. Boxy seems to be in style right now, so finding fitted t shirts is harder. Also, you might try the shirts at Target.
posted by annsunny at 2:08 PM on April 12, 2021
posted by annsunny at 2:08 PM on April 12, 2021
If it's the right size but the wrong colour, dye it black.
Metafilter is good at hunting down things online, but you'd have to mention what the actual size you want is, or a picture of the current tee.
If you want something similar, explaining where it differs significantly in fit from other t-shirts you've tried might help.
posted by Elysum at 11:11 AM on April 13, 2021
Metafilter is good at hunting down things online, but you'd have to mention what the actual size you want is, or a picture of the current tee.
If you want something similar, explaining where it differs significantly in fit from other t-shirts you've tried might help.
posted by Elysum at 11:11 AM on April 13, 2021
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Mizu at 5:27 PM on April 11, 2021 [5 favorites]