Polo ralph lauren

Figured I would chime in since over half the stuff I own, from shirts to sheets to towels, is made by Mr. Lauren.  Much like you I like Polo clothes because it is the best quality and style that I can find to fit my budget.  I can usually go to Ross or hit a good sale at Dillard's and get a smoking deal on some nice shirts that I can wear to work with jeans (I'm a photojournalist so my dress is pretty casual).   Though I have to admit that I am somewhat of a conspicuous consumer, I think the Polo player can add a small touch of class to a shirt.  I own an all white button up, and without the blue Polo player logo I think the shirt would look too plain.  Is the symbol sometimes overused?  Sure.  But Ralph is the biggest American designer and the Polo logo is known around the world, so it's not going anywhere soon (just like the Nike swoosh).  I have noticed these days that more stuff comes without the logo, but it's still a staple of his design (I actually read an interesting article in the New York Times a couple of months back that talked about a lot of big designers getting away from large or gaudy logos.  Not sure if anybody else saw it). Kevin

I'm the exact opposite. I avoid Polo by Ralph Lauren like the plague because of the polo player insignia. To me, it is dated and worn. But even more so, I avoid Polo items because I believe them to be cheaply made of cheap materials, usually in some Southeast Asian country to the benefit of Ralph Lauren's profits, not to my long-term wearing of a well-made shirt. His Purple Label line, which is largely manufactured in Italy, I have looked at and it seems to be far better quality. It is, of course, also more expensive. Even on eBay it is not inexpensive. But, it probably lasts longer from quality and style perspectives.

The quality of Purple Label is terrific - at the level of a Paul Stuart. Paul Stuart is in the same area, and it's less expensive - but at times the clothes aren't as interesting. Anyways, I won't wear anything with a logo - Lacoste, maybe, but that's about it. I'm kind of tired of that alligator too.

Purple Label clothing: Shirts: Lorenzini (An excellent machine made shirt--Italian, but with the two piece construction in the back like the English) Suits: Saint Andrews (used to be Chester Barrie). An excellent Italian suit maker, used to (and I think still does) make suits under the Barbera label. Shoes: Edward Green. Arguably the finest English shoe out there. Ties: ?? The quality of the Purple label line as seen here is quite high. For suits and shirts, I'd personally look elsewhere, but the shoes are really fantastic.

Polo suits under the "blue" label were made by Corneliani.

Nothing a good seam ripper (available for a couple of bucks from any sewing store) won't fix.

I'm indifferent on the polo player. I buy some RLPolo stuff because I like the colors and stripes he uses in his polo shirts, and you can pick them up for less than $25. It's a real bargain for summer wear when you need stuff to just hang out in. I find the quality pretty high compared to other short sleeve polos at that price point you might find at Marshalls and other discounters. Of course, that's considering retail, and not what you might find on Ebay.

I also avoid Polo because of the polo player logo. There are a few pieces I have considered and they have a polo player in the same color as the fabric so as to be as inconspicuous as possible. I think it detracts from the shirt and I feel that a good shirt should be able to look nice on its own. I agree with others' observations on the quality of Polo products. They aren't all that great, but they are likely the best when discounted ($30 usually) at their price point. I also agree with 'Stone' that perhaps one or two Lacoste shirts with the logo might be the only shirts with a logo that I might buy at this point.

Mr Lifshitz's good clothing all comes devoid of the logo. Not just RLPL, but also all of the decent blue-label shirts. A question for our resident virtuoso: are all RLPL shirts made by Lorinzini or just the cotton ones? My wife bought a beautiful teal silk RLPL shirt made in Italy with a one-piece shoulder in London last month. (It's a men's shirt, and she wears it as a night-gown.) Also, anyone know who makes their bathing suits? I love the cotton used in RLPL bathing suits. Mine are all marked "Made in Italy". Peace, JG

The new Luciano Barbera suits are made in the same factories as the Attolini "Sartorio" line - Attolini's lowest quality line. (They are still very well made suits.) Likely this is an Attolini factory although there is of course the possibility that Attolini is subcontracting the work out. Personally I prefer the old Saint Andrews-made suits.

To the best of my knowledge the RLPL shirts are made by Lorenzini, but my information could be outdated. Lorenzini is one of the only Italian shirting companies that I've come across that does a split yoke, like the English.

I've recently heard the same thing, which is quite puzzling to me. Attolini has one of the smallest production for the big name companies.

hm009:i exactly know what you mean: i also have the same prob: i like the cut-the sporty elegance of RL but i dont want to run around as an ad banner:with lacoste you can take the crocodile off-but here its sewn on-i over-painted the bright-red mark on my burberry polo shirt and it came out bordeaux so quite ok-unfortunately w RL it didnt work it just turned out black...(though i have a tattersall check shirt by RL(.)that doesnt have the polo player on it(top priced though)