The Perfect Crewneck: Uniqlo
There are a lot out there and this is fairly subjective, but it’s my blog, so it’s my pick for the best crew neck sweater. I had been looking for a basic gray or black crew neck that fit well, was made well, and looked well…good. The best I’d found were from CYC, Perks and Mini, and Stussy Deluxe but those still aren’t easy to find or particularly cheap. That was until I found these Uniqlo babies. I bought one in the summer and now wish I had purchased every color. I wear it a lot, it feels and fits great, and it costs $29. That is insane, I don’t know how they are able to make such relatively great products while there are so many brands out there claiming ‘premium’ charging $150+ while they can’t even touch Uniqlo. (I do know how they do it, they make 1, 230, 400 crewnecks a year) However the point is Uniqlo crewneck sweaters are really good. A great weekly essential to have around. I am mostly sad I didn’t purchase this soft red color, I had it on in the store, I don’t know what happened.
Can’t I get an Oxford? Please.
Ok, some of you are going to say there are tons out there. From Gap to Band of Outsiders to Club Monaco, there are. But where ever I go, they don’t have my size, they don’t fit properly, they cost a lot, or any combination of those. I can’t find the right one. I just want a new white oxford and a light blue oxford, with tonal or white buttons, button down collars, casual, so I can wrinkle them up a bit and dress them down. Is that too much to ask? The best I’ve found for price and quality is Uniqlo. You’d think that they would have a size small? Nope. How the hell does Uniqlo not have size small in stock? Band of Outsiders oxfords are great, but the cut of the side of the shirt is too high and they cost $245. Now Visvim have put out a great looking oxford in a couple nice colors, good luck finding them in stores and they’re probably around $300. So I resorted to the absolute basic, Gap. The collar is too high and there is a weird white lining on the inside of the collar which has been top stitched on all over the shirt. It looks and feels really cheap. What am I to do?
Socks
I don’t wear a suit regularly so for me it’s athletic ankle socks. Black or white. Nike or Adidas. That’s just how I roll. Well at least I used to. I recently discovered the wonders of dress socks. Comfortable, thin and breathable, and so many different colours. That’s the best part. While traditional schools of thought say match them to either your shoes or pants, I prefer the ‘British’ option: Wear a third colour that matches either nothing, or your shirt/accessories. A nice mustard yellow with your vans, or a wine red and some desert boots, try it. I feel like everyone has started dressing like their grandpa anyways, why not top off that look? American Apparel, Uniqlo and The Gap all have pretty solid selections for cheap.
Button Downs I Like
Back with another round of stuff we like, this time we’re focusing on the product of the season, button downs. It’s really hard to find the right one, whether it’s the collar, the fit, the pockets, the material - it’s hard. Here are a few we’ve recently seen and liked. I’ve actually tried on four of the five in the past week, and purchased the Nom de Guerre piece today. Although this shot is actually from their spring collection, they did a slightly heavier version in gray and black which look and feel amazing. We also went with the ‘Felix’ navy bd from Unis, the elbow patched up Ralph Lauren khaki pattern, a simple Uniqlo oxford, and a flannel from Our Legacy’s spring collection. Our Legacy’s fall shirts will be even better but I couldn’t find a product shot so you will have to get the idea from this one. These are all good, the fit is good, the quality is great. They are available at Nom de Guerre, Unis, Ralph Lauren stores, Uniqlo, and Tres Bien.
