Monday Missive: 2024-05-13
A bit of follow up and some collected ephemera
Monday is rapidly headed toward a close, but there’s still time. Monday Missives are shorter dispatches covering things that I’ve been into over the past few weeks, both clothing and culture.
Onward.
What about the shirts?
After the last dispatch on warm weather blazers, I got a question from Fidel in the comments that I want to address.
Any thoughts on the shirt? I already have a Ghost Blazer and that really does breathe but my shirts are your traditional oxfords that don’t seem to breathe as well.
It’s true that oxfords don’t breathe as well, but that doesn’t mean cotton is out. Poplin is thin and light against the skin, which makes it a good contender, and probably one you might already have in your closet. But there are so many more exciting warm weather fabrics to enjoy!
You might think of chambray shirts as the more traditional blue washed, almost western looking shirt (though without the pearl snaps and curved western yoke). But there are many other kinds of chambray in great, warm weather colors that don’t have the heavier weight of chambray workwear shirts. I have a pink awning strip chambray that I did MTM with Mashburn earlier this year that I love. Mashburn in particular has many other chambray swatches in their book that are quite fun.
For something that gives you a similar vibe to your oxfords, cotolino is a great choice. It’s blends of linen and cotton at varying ratios, and often has a bit of slub (small lumps or imperfections that give the fabric an uneven texture). The slub texture can help give a shirt a more casual feel, perfect to go with casual jackets. Above is a great cotolino from Mashburn, but you can find cotton/linen blends many places.
From the coto to the lino, some of my favorite warm weather shirts are linen. Linen is made from the fibers of the flax plant, and I like it for shirts almost as much as I like it for suits. It is breathable and has a dry hand, and it helps pull moisture away from you quickly, while of course, looking great slightly rumpled. I often throw a linen long sleeve on over swim trunks or shorts in the evenings or on the weekends. Proper Cloth (images above) has some excellent linens that you can build yourself, and Buck Mason’s got some cool camp collar linens in the spring/summer collection now.
Seersucker is also a viable option, especially in tone on tone white or sky blue. I have a classic blue and white striped seersucker shirt, which can sometimes have a Kentucky Derby Spectator vibe. Nothing wrong with that, but not always the shape I want to throw. Much like my advice with the sport coats, maybe don’t make this your first, or only, warm weather shirt.
There’s one other warm weather fabric that I’m a big fan of that is a bit tougher to find. Giro Inglese, Airtex, or as Sid Mashburn calls it, the Italian-inflected cellulare (chel-yoo-larr-ay). The very open weave allows for a lot of airflow, but because it’s two layers of cells, it doesn’t have the show through issues. This pale pink micro cellulare (above) is an excellent shirt if you’re looking for something a little different.
Don’t overlook a well cut tee shirt under a jacket as well. This is not something I do that often, but the gents at The Armoury make a knit Ice Tea (not the saccharine sweet southern variety), and it holds up well under tailoring.
Patinations
Collected Ephemera
Clothing conundrum? Sticky sartorial situation? Comment? Email me at bruce@awwdispat.ch or drop a comment below.
Bruce, once again, proving that Monday should be afraid for its life. Great work.