Stuff that's "good enough"

Old Navy boxer briefs are a great value.

Originally Posted by clam61

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people throw around this word "quality". quality fabric...what does that really mean?


I have some shirts that are of a lower quality, 80s cotton for example, and they are noticeably stiffer and coarser than shirts costing just a little bit more made from 100s 2 ply cotton. I recently felt some shirts made from 120s and 140s and they certainly didn't feel nice enough to me to justify the huge jump in price.

I've found the same holds true with ties. I often can't tell the difference between an 80 dollar tie and a 200 dollar tie. But that 80 dollar tie looks and feels substantially better than a 40 dollar tie.

So quality is somewhat subjective (looks better, feels better, etc) and somewhat objective (lasts longer), and is extremely prone to the law of diminishing returns.

for dress shirts there are some brand name (CK, Polo, etc) and some no-name brand dress shirts that are around 12.99-19.99 i pick up every once in a while at stores like Ross, Macys, tjmaxx, marshalls, etc. one time i got a facconable dress shirt at 15 dollars.
they do just fine for me.

nice standard belts from martin dingman, some no-name brands etc dress belts at nordstrom rack like around 15-25 dollars each once in awhile i pick up when a color i need comes up. no rush there.

suits and pants as well, i dont really care too much about superlative quality , as long as it is decent and fitting and good material: jack victor, INC, kenneth cole, calvin klein, alfred dunhill, hugo boss, facconable, are some names i have including some no-names but once in awhile you find a no-name that is good material and good cut.

but recently i had added some luxury/superlative items at good prices through this forum through Quality Seller, Chorse, EL and such.

the items i am picky enough to only get superlative (in my opinion and reachability) items are in footwear, ties, eyewear, etc.

Levi's Jeans

H&M t-shirts. You can't beat 5 bucks a pop.
Levi's. I haven't indulged in the premium denim craze yet, and I don't know if I ever will.

Originally Posted by GoSurface

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H&M t-shirts. You can't beat 5 bucks a pop.

Ditto. H&M is my guilty pleasure.

Originally Posted by odoreater

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For example, for a long time I was getting custom made shirts at +$100 a pop. Lately, I've been buying slim fit shirts from CT. While they are not the best quality in the world, and while the fit maybe isn't as perfect as custom shirts, to me - they're good enough. I'd rather pay $40 for a CT slim fit and take the cut in fabric quality and fit then pay the premium for something that marginally fits better and has better fabric quality.

Odoreater, bless you for this recommendation. I've been looking for precisely this -- "good enough" slim fit OTR shirts on the cheap. I don't want to pay custom prices for every shirt either. And it appears from your profile that your measurements are similar to mine.

C&J handgrades count as good enough for me, although I'm still planning on getting at least one pair of EG's next sale

Originally Posted by diorshoe

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the items i am picky enough to only get superlative (in my opinion and reachability) items are in footwear, ties, eyewear, etc.

Definitely agree that you can't really skimp on price for shoes. Shoes are the one thing that I'm willing to pay a good price for (including EGs from the sale) because there is just no replacement for high quality shoes (IMO of course).

I'm willing to pay a high price for suits, but even there, I think suits like Isaia and Corneliani are "good enough" and I don't see myself shelling out the extra cash for something like a Kiton.

Hanes undershirts

Omega watches.

Originally Posted by clam61

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personally when i buy clothes i don't guage quality by price.

i refuse to believe that some faconnable shirt at $300 is somehow superior to a CK shirt found at for $12 at marshalls. i wont pay 100s for a plain white designer

people throw around this word "quality". quality fabric...what does that really mean?

for ties, suits, shirts, slacks the fabric has to fall correctly. generally this means wool for suits/slacks, silk for ties, and cotton for shirts. it doesnt have to be, because i have some nice micro poly ties that fall perfectly.

my wife tries to justify spending crazy amounts on designer purses by saying "its going to last longer!". true, it might be more durable than some cheap knockoff from chinatown but come on...you think fendi has some type of magic monopoly on durable leather? no one else can make a durable purse?

lets say you buy a white or plain striped designer shirt from marshalls for $15...and lets compare that to some really expensive italian designer shirt ...same design same material. lets say the designer shirt costs $200 bucks. so thats about 13 times more expensive. is your shirt going to last 13 times as long? is this even worth it as you will most likely stain/rip that shirt before the next fashion revolution causes you to ditch it?

You're mixing several concepts. Nobody is saying that price necessarily indicates quality. But there are better quality dress shirts out there than the $12 CK from Marshall's. They may not be $300, but they're more than $12. Better fabric, better construction. Better fabric (e.g., better quality cotton) tends to drape better and feel better. Whether that's worth the price difference is a wholly personal decision, but there certainly are differences in quality out there.

American Eagle boxers (or, for that matter, most of the random boxers my wife will pick up for me from Loehmann's). AA t-shirts. Jantzen shirts. Cutting my own nails once per week. A 5 minute shave with a Gillette Fusion. Whatever random shampoo is on sale. Raincoats (I live in Southern California, after all).

Originally Posted by Jodum5

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Hanes undershirts

+1.
AE for work (and I still get compliments on them, and they're still among the nicest shoes that guys in my office wear.)
Lands' End neckties (because they don't look cheap, even though they are, so "good enough" for work.)

Originally Posted by Alias

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C&J handgrades count as good enough for me, although I'm still planning on getting at least one pair of EG's next sale

+1 on C&J handgrades.
At about ~$200 per pair I am basically building my work shoes rotation around handgrades I bought from Barneys Warehouse Sale and Polo RL equivalents from GVH and Polo sales. I am more than happy about them.

Gap ringer tees and jeans
Jockeys and Hanes underwear
Russell athletic socks
(here in Asia) Giordano linen short sleeve shirts
Levi's jeans
Zara casual trousers