Newcomer's Shirt Hunting Experience

[jaidog]

After reading various posts during the past few weeks, I became inspired to update my wardrobe, specifically long-sleeve dress/sport shirts. For the most part, I wear jeans and slacks, with the sleeves of my shirts mostly folded up. I wear a suit & tie a few times a year (weddings, etc).

I have some shirts in my closet that are close to 20 years old and still wear them, although infrequently. These include Polo oxford button downs, some J Crew button downs, and other random shirts, most in the $20 range. In my opinion, some of these shirts are pretty decent -- they fit well, are made of comfortable material.

But, my wardrobe could use a few new shirts so I began the search, trying to stay below $35/shirt. I started by picking up a few Calvin Klein shirts from Nordstrom Rack for $15 each. They fit extremely well, have spread collars, no placket, and no pocket (all positives for me). I enjoy wearing them, but the material is slightly on the thin side and not very soft.

Based on decent reviews on SF, I ordered a couple Tyrwhitt shirts during their recent sale, each about $35. I immediately noticed that the fabric was more substantial and softer than my other shirts. And, the pattern is one I have not seen elsewhere. On the downside, I found the collar points a bit large and the cuffs and cuff opening much too large. The fit is not as good as the CK shirts, but I can't pinpoint exactly why. Perhaps I need to get accustomed to the Tyrwhitt slim fit.

Moving on, I came across Hart Schaffner Marx and ordered a few more shirts during their sale, each about $30. I was surprised to find very little information on HSM on SF or elsewhere, but since their clothing was once manufactured in my hometown, I decided to give them a shot. Once again, I noticed the fabric quality was very good. The medimum-sized sport shirts I ordered are slightly large for me, but I'm more comfortable in them than the Tyrwhitt slim fit. Ive always worn slightly "baggy" shirts so it may take some time to adjust to the slimmer ones. I also ordered a dress shirt (15/33) which fits extremely well and is made of nice cloth. It has an English spread collar with shorter points than Tyrwhitt, and the cuffs are the right size for me.

To summarize, I would say that the CK shirts fit me the best, followed by HSM, then Tyrwhitt. Material-wise, HSM and Tyrwhitt easily beat out CK. So, ideally, I would like a CK fit with HSM/Tyrwhitt material. If anyone knows of such a shirt, please advise. Any other comments would be greatly appreciated.