Tee Talk
Nick Pears, of Sheffield coffee institution Steam Yard Coffee, gives his two cents on the finer points of the humble tee shirt
words by Nick PEARS
It seems like a bad time of year to be talking about T-shirts whilst we all start to wish we could be hugged by a pre-warmed alpaca for the next six months, but underneath all those layers each day, many of us put on the basics.
As is the case with most of today’s classic style items, the tee shirt started out as little more than standard issue sportswear (or underwear) for the military. Always in white – except for the odd off green number as the Second World War began – the humble tee took Marines and the Navy to some pretty hot climates.
Veterans soon returned home and adopted them as casual clothing. I’m sure pops didn’t approve when – in the 50s – Marlon Brando rocked up atop motorised steed in a torso-hugging little white number, making their wives, daughters (and sons) go weak at the knees. Before long, a host of others joined the list of white tee poster boys. You know the names: James Dean, Steve McQueen, Elvis, John Lennon and co., each one cooler than a snow storm in an igloo.
Fast forward to present day and a small handful of menswear obsessives have gone full circle, making plain white tees to those famous original fits, by the original means of the 50s and 60s.
Ask anyone with a real eye for detail and they’ll all tell you the same thing: The way something is made really, really matters. Yes, the more work that goes into a tee shirt, the more money you’re likely to have to part with. But you’re less likely to have to replace it, and that’s the difference. The move towards better made, longer lasting goods leads to a more sustainable way of living. Not just for the wearer, but the whole blue spec we happen to live on.
Excuse the list of personal favourites here, but Merz B Schwanen, National Athletic Goods, Lady White Co, Velva Sheen and the very solid Revolver Sportswear are all brands you should have your eye on. They all do things in a way that makes their tees a worthy investment. Ultimately, they want you to wear the hell out of their garments, and they’ve gone to great lengths to source uniquely stunning fabrics and turn them into exceptionally wearable, friends-for-life-threads by way of truly traditional techniques.
These techniques are a far cry from fast fashion: they can be incredibly time consuming processes that often rely on vintage looms and tubular knitting processes (tubular knitting creates a garment that has no side seams, real comfy). It can take hours to make just one piece, a piece that doesn’t then go on to become a crop top when your other half just slings it on a boil wash.
They come at a higher price than your average tee, but that’s because they’re far from average. These tees age with you. They stay in shape like the day you bought them. They have the soul of the maker in every thread and stitch. In short, they are basics that are far from basic. If you fancy feeling the difference for yourself, then brick and mortar stores like Arnold & Co. (Sheffield) and Rivet & Hide (London and Manchester) and Son of a Stag (London) have got you covered. EJ
