Non-iron cotton is the death of dress shirts. Any semi-serious sartorialist who appreciates real soft cotton that breathes would have nothing to do with these formaldehyde-soaked (and potentially toxic) Frankenshirts. The wash/dry/wear convenience of non-iron shirts has made them extremely popular and very profitable for shirt makers. These days, it seems you have to go on a black-ops covert mission to find a handsome, affordable and well-made white dress shirt made with real cotton. Even trusted brands like our stalwart Brooks Brothers have gone as far as making regular cotton shirts unavailable entirely, at least for any reasonable cost.
For years, British shirt maker Charles Tyrwhitt was one of my favorite options for great shirts at an incredible price (4 for $199) until they defected to the wasteland behind the Non-Iron Curtain. Well… I’m thrilled and relieved to see that they’ve back in the business of serving the discerning with regular cotton poplin white dress shirts.
Tyrwhitt’s shirts come in several configurations to accommodate most preferences and fits, and the selection of other colors, patterns and weaves is impressive. The fits come in classic, slim and extra-slim; collars are classic (really a semi-spread) or spread; cuffs come in barrel (button) or French cuff. My go-to is the extra-slim fit with a classic collar and French cuffs. I just ordered three in white poplin and one in light blue end-on-end. I’m all set for a while.
So to Charles Tyrwhitt and its founder and owner Nick Wheeler, I say ‘Thank You’ for bringing back the real cotton poplin white dress shirts. You’ve got a happy customer again.
8 Comments
Finally! I stopped buying CT for that very reason.
Me, too!
Thank goodness that they’ve gone back to proper cotton, but thank goodness, too, for their fallen years: it has given the chance to say “behind the non-Iron curtain”, and for that and for seeing the light again I give them thanks.
I love CT shirts. The irony is that so called no iron shirts still require ironing. A shirt out of the dryer will never look as crisp as a pressed shirt.
just beware. they changed their extra slim fit, and made it even slimmer. if you look in the description you will see it says” improved extra slim fit” or something along those lines. just ordered myself some new shirts and was awfully surprised when they arrived and were too tight.
Whilst fit obviously is all about personal preferences – I still find that the extra slim fit leaves a lot of extra fabric in the midsection for me. Chest, shoulders and collar is alright though, so I just have the waist tailored and then I’m good to go.
I walked right past there the other day and say the 4 for $199 sign but I was in a hurry. Tomorrow I will go slower 🙂
Personally I’ve never had any faith in supposedly”non-iron” shirts. In my opinion nothing will beat a crisply ironed real cotton dress shirt. Thankfully all my preferred brands offer just what I’m looking for (T.M.Lewin, Charles Tyrwhitt, Turnbull&Asser. ) No doubt plenty of others offer great quality shirts, but, as yet, I’ve never gone wrong with these brands.