Men's Shirts - a Minor Whinge

jonnyburgo

Well I have made by the tailor to the Sultan of Brunei. I wear them once and then just throw them away.

Philly_Q

jonnyburgo said:

Well I have made by the tailor to the Sultan of Brunei. I wear them once and then just throw them away.

I met a bloke who actually was a tailor for the Sultan of Brunei.  He said he believed he was "the only white man who'd been alone in a room with the Sultan".  Which sounded a bit weird.

thecolourbox

stonevibe said:

I get my shirts made at the tailor when I order my suits. That way they fit perfectly and I know I won't have to trawl through men shirt section in shops, which I abhor. 

Tailoring isn't exactly expensive and you can get a good quality shirt for around £100 or so.

I still can't get to grips with £100 per shirt, however good they may be. There are much better things to spend a grand on for me.

The minimum number of shirts I can get away with is 10, so I can't be happy with the idea of paying £1000 just to enable me to go to work. Plus you wouldn't wear a £40 suit with a £100 shirt, so there's another grand getting a few nice suits, plus shoes. 

I don't mind my job but I'm not paying £2500 per year just to clothe myself for it!

Sporky

So use Tailorstore or similar - made to measure from £49.

Though I think it's a total non-sequitur that you'd need to change your suits and shoes every year just because you've got shirts that fit. All of this stuff will last several/many years, and you can get a made-to-measure suit for £400 and decent shoes for under a ton. If your suits fit and look fine then why change them at all? 

There's a "30% off your first order offer" at the mo, so you could try one for not much cash. 

https://www.tailorstore.co.uk/getstarted

I certainly didn't spend two grand in one hit; I replaced my tent-with-a-collar Tyrwhitt shirts one or two at a time, mostly when there were offers.  

thecolourbox

Yes that place does look decent I must admit. I change shirts after a year because they get marks under the arms which look terrible. I tried the vinegar soaking trick but it didn't really work and whether it was psychological or not I'm not sure, but I felt the vinegar smell lingered!

Bridgehouse

Surely in this weather it’s shirts off, tats supporting Engerlund out and lobster effect burns whenever possible?

You might find your access to Wetherspoons limited tho

thecolourbox

Bridgehouse said:

Surely in this weather it’s shirts off, tats supporting Engerlund out and lobster effect burns whenever possible?

You might find your access to Wetherspoons limited tho

In that attire surely Wetherspoons is the only place you could go other than the park with a bottle of White Lightning?

Bridgehouse

thecolourbox said:

Bridgehouse said:

Surely in this weather it’s shirts off, tats supporting Engerlund out and lobster effect burns whenever possible?

You might find your access to Wetherspoons limited tho

In that attire surely Wetherspoons is the only place you could go other than the park with a bottle of White Lightning?

I thought they have a “no shirt no beer” policy

Sporky

thecolourbox said:

I change shirts after a year because they get marks under the arms which look terrible. I tried the vinegar soaking trick but it didn't really work and whether it was psychological or not I'm not sure, but I felt the vinegar smell lingered!

Ah - that explains it. No need to change shoes and suits that regularly though? 

I've been very happy with Tailorstore, subject to the comment about cuff size and watches. They're not generous on the trousers though so add a little to your measurements if you order any. 

Philly_Q

thecolourbox said:

Yes that place does look decent I must admit. I change shirts after a year because they get marks under the arms which look terrible. I tried the vinegar soaking trick but it didn't really work and whether it was psychological or not I'm not sure, but I felt the vinegar smell lingered!

Some alternatives for removing underarm stains are, apparently, salt, bicarbonate of soda or aspirin, dissolved in water and/or made into a paste.  I haven't tried any of them, but none would smell as bad as vinegar...

I always wear a white v-neck T-shirt under my work shirts.  Which I suppose is only one step away from a string vest, but it does stop those underarn stains ever appearing on shirts.

thecolourbox

Sporky said:

thecolourbox said:

I change shirts after a year because they get marks under the arms which look terrible. I tried the vinegar soaking trick but it didn't really work and whether it was psychological or not I'm not sure, but I felt the vinegar smell lingered!

Ah - that explains it. No need to change shoes and suits that regularly though? 

I've been very happy with Tailorstore, subject to the comment about cuff size and watches. They're not generous on the trousers though so add a little to your measurements if you order any. 

Am grateful for the recommendation of that site actually as it does seem a good service, may try a couple to use for "client meeting shirts" perhaps and see how it goes.

Re the suits I'm not really sure I've done very well on that front so have had to throw out and replace fairly frequently. The "nice" suits seem too fancy for the office so never seem to get worn, but im guilty of buying cheap (ie M&S level) on the majority of the ones I wear on a daily basis so I hold my hands up on that. I do find the jackets get quite "unfresh" rather regularly though which also gets annoying enough for dry cleaning bills on the cheap ones, but I suppose buying better/expensive ones may not necessarily require the same expense if the material is better. Also I've never come to terms with not being able to machine wash trousers, it would get expensive exhortative dry cleaning trousers after a week of wear

thecolourbox

Philly_Q said:

thecolourbox said:

Yes that place does look decent I must admit. I change shirts after a year because they get marks under the arms which look terrible. I tried the vinegar soaking trick but it didn't really work and whether it was psychological or not I'm not sure, but I felt the vinegar smell lingered!

Some alternatives for removing underarm stains are, apparently, salt, bicarbonate of soda or aspirin, dissolved in water and/or made into a paste.  I haven't tried any of them, but none would smell as bad as vinegar...

I always wear a white v-neck T-shirt under my work shirts.  Which I suppose is only one step away from a string vest, but it does stop those underarn stains ever appearing on shirts.

The T-shirt thing didn't work for me, and just made me sweatier to be honest

Sporky

Nothing wrong with an M&S suit.

Worth having them altered to fit really well though. 

Philly_Q

I'm almost ashamed, in the context of this thread, to admit I buy bog-standard M&S shirts and Next (washable!!) suits.  But it's only for work, in my mind effectively they're overalls, I'm not interested in spending a lot of money on them.

I've never seen the point of getting things perfectly tailored to fit my less-than-Adonis-like contours.  Loads of the (mostly younger) blokes in work wear slim/tailored-fit shirts and all they're really doing is showcasing their love handles.  I don't get it.

Sporky

If off the peg fits you, or you don't care, then off the peg is fine.

I found that Tyrwhitt were like tents with a collar on me;  the made-to-measure ones aren't at all tight, they just follow the shape of me so they don't bag anywhere and they stay tucked in. They're comfier, there's more choice, and they're not much more money. To me they're worth it. 

Modellista

Philly_Q said:

But it's only for work, in my mind effectively they're overalls, I'm not interested in spending a lot of money on them.

I've never seen the point of getting things perfectly tailored to fit my less-than-Adonis-like contours.  Loads of the (mostly younger) blokes in work wear slim/tailored-fit shirts and all they're really doing is showcasing their love handles.  I don't get it.

^ This.  Unless there's a business case for it, there's no way I'm ploughing my hard-earned back into posh work attire, particularly since it's not tax-deductible.

Some people clearly disagree (the sort of chaps that spend half an hour with a hairdryer and hairspray in the mirror every morning and whose dream in life is to end up on The Apprentice) - but I'd rather spend my money and time on something else.

Sporky

modellista said:

Some people clearly disagree (the sort of chaps that spend half an hour with a hairdryer and hairspray in the mirror every morning and whose dream in life is to end up on The Apprentice)

Why are you insulting and belittling people for having a different opinion and outlook from yours?

Philly_Q

Sporky said:

modellista said:

Some people clearly disagree (the sort of chaps that spend half an hour with a hairdryer and hairspray in the mirror every morning and whose dream in life is to end up on The Apprentice)

Why are you insulting and belittling people for having a different opinion and outlook from yours?

That's this forum over and done with then.

Modellista

Sporky said:

modellista said:

Some people clearly disagree (the sort of chaps that spend half an hour with a hairdryer and hairspray in the mirror every morning and whose dream in life is to end up on The Apprentice)

Why are you insulting and belittling people for having a different opinion and outlook from yours?

Please explain how I have insulted and belittled them?  They exist.  I have described them.  That's it.

Edit - unless you somehow think I'm describing you?  I don't know you.  If you by chance fit the description, feel free to coiffe away!

Edit 2 - when I said "some people" I meant "some specific people I have come across in real life" who plough a large amount of their salary back into posh work clothes and are constantly doing their hair.  I do not mean anyone in this thread, who to the best of my knowledge I've never met or even seen their hair.  The power of the internet for misunderstandings, eh?

Sporky

You really need me to explain what you wrote? You can't just remember, or maybe read it? That's concerning.

Here's a clue; you stereotyped everyone who doesn't share your view.