Shirts & Sweaters – The $1500 Wardrobe Part III
Creating a versatile, sharp wardrobe doesn’t happen overnight. By far, the best course of action is to go slow. But for argument’s sake, let’s say you have to start from scratch. Today. Over the next 5 days we’ll see how far a strict budget of $1500 can go. It won’t be easy, some corners will have to be cut, and not every last stitch of clothing (like underwear) will be covered. But the goal is finish with a setup of clothes that can have someone looking great in most situations. Remember, we’re playing with a total of $1500 here. So the focus will be on real affordable goods which can last with reasonable care. Also, remember that 90% of looking good is fit, and tailoring costs can vary wildly. So those haven’t been added to the final cost.
The Blue 100% Cotton Dress Shirt: Claiborne Slim Fit – $24.99 ($50)
Half off in many stores, and wait until they drop to $25 (since they almost certainly will… soon) if you need to shop online. 100% cotton, a fantastic collar for going tieless if you so choose, and a nice light-blue shade. The fabric isn’t the thickest, but the all-cotton makeup means it won’t scratch like most thin, poly-blend dress shirts. Really nice fit off the rack. No tailoring need for most.
The Crisp White Dress Shirt: Merona Ultimate Dress Shirt – $24.99
Yes, these will need some tailoring if you want them right up on your torso, but they’ll do fine without under a blazer or suit jacket. The 60% cotton / 40% poly blend is surprisingly soft and smooth on the all-white option. It’s oddly smooth. Almost slick. Collar is outstanding, and man they’re durable. Bought one of these something like 4 years ago and it’s still going strong. Part of the white dress shirt hierarchy.
A couple of logo-free polos: Two Mossimo Mercerized Polos – $16.99 x 2 = $33.98
When executing a wardrobe refresh, spongy, bulky, pique golf gear or brand logo’d up polos should probably be one of the first things to hit the donation pile. You want something that’ll fit close (without being tight), is smooth, and looks dressed up enough that you could wear it with chinos or even a pair of suit pants on a warm day. And again, no logos. Now, could these be the return of the well loved Mossimo Athletic fit polos? They might be even better. With a mercerized finish (read: smoother with a bit of sheen… hopefully not too much) they can play dressed up or dressed down, since they’re all solid with no marling. 100% cotton.
Two Slim Merino Vs: J. Crew Factory Merino V Neck – $38.15 x 2 = $76.30
Color choice can be up to you, but blues and greys are awfully versatile. And versatility makes for a good foundation. These sweaters from Factory have gone for cheaper in the past, but under $40 for a slim at the sides, warm but not bulky, perfect-dip v-neck is more than fair. Wear the white shirt from target, with this medium blue V-neck, under the Charcoal suit from Claiborne and you’ll have a just-enough color poor-man’s three piece suit thing going on. By the way, you’ll need the code BIGSALE for the 30% off. Ships free if you buy two since free shipping kicks in at $75 right now.
TOTAL COST: $160.26
CASH REMAINING: $211.59
I prefer the Merona Slim fit from Target- it is a much slimmer fit than the Ultimate Dress Shirt (which fit more like a tent on me pre-tailoring). The Slim Fit didn’t require any tailoring. It also is the closest shirt I have found to the Express 1MX and it can typically be found for $18-20 on sale. It’s a great shirt to stock up on at that price.
It also has stretch, I.e, spandex, which means it looses it’s
shape if you wash it. Dry clean only, my man.
J crew merino sweaters shrink like crazy in the dryer. Accidentally dried 2 of mine. Mens small to childrens size. They now fit my tiny girlfriend perfectly.
This is why they are marked “Dry Clean Only”
Big fan of those Target polos, especially the C9-branded Golf ones; I have *every* color.
How do they hold up after dry cleaning? Had a Merino V-Neck from Banana Republic a few years ago that after a few washes (only hung dry), it shrunk up a lot. Now I will have to look and see if that was dry clean only as well.
Hey Joe, I think you meant to say “Mercerized” for those Merona polos. (Looks like you made a portmanteau of “mercantile” and “mercerized,” which is certainly fitting!)
DERP. Yes. Thank you.
Mine have held up incredibly well. And yes, don’t machine wash or dry. Unless you sweat like a hog in them (and if you are, might be best to strip a layer off) you shouldn’t need to have them dry cleaned all that often.
Thanks for the heads up Joe. May have to give these a shot. Anyone have some suggestions for slim crew neck sweaters?
I know it sounds strange when you are first starting out, but you really rarely (read: RARELY) need to clean sweaters. Particularly if you have layers underneath. I always wear a dress shirt underneath sweaters and really do not clean them unless they are dirty. When I do clean them, you don’t need to dry-clean. Small amount of gentle detergent (woolite) in a sink or tub with cool water. Let soak for awhile swishing around now and then. Rinse until the soap is out. Gently squish the bulk of the water out (don’t ring). Lay a towel flat on the floor, lay the sweater on top, and roll it up in the towel. Kneel, step, or do whatever you need to do to get the water mostly out. Lay flat to dry. Reshape as it is drying. A lot easer/faster than it sounds.
I just don’t love those Factory merino sweaters — the shoulder seams have a tendency to go all funny on me. It’s probably the borderline abusive way I remove them sometimes (removing sweaters gracefully is not my thing), but it’s not an issue I really have with other sweaters. I’ve got (or have had) lambswool and cotton-cashmere options from both Factory and mainline J. Crew, but those Factory merinos… I just can’t do them anymore.
And, as others have noted, DEFINITELY NEVER MACHINE WASH THEM. I knew better, but still managed to let one slip into my laundry. Now my sister is the proud owner of a felted merino sweater.
I have only dry cleaned each of mine once since I rarely feel the need to have any of my sweaters cleaned. They look and feel exactly like they did beforehand, though.
Can also hit it with some gentle steam to reshape as well. Wool = hair. So even gentle shampoo (baby shampoo, or half strength regular shampoo) works with hand washing.
This may be a dumb question, but do Merona dress shirts have slots for collar stays? I’ve been mostly going to Frank and Oak for my buttonups because their Medium fits me perfectly off-the-rack, but their collars don’t have a collar stay slot and start to curl after a few washes.
I am thinking that I might stick with F&O for OCBDs and start to look elsewhere for true dress shirts.
I guess this just comes down to opinion, but if I could only have two casual shirts, I would be more inclined to do like one chambray and one oxford or plaid or something like that as opposed to two polos. But regardless, I love this post series.
Yep, they do have collar stay slots.
Thanks!
Agreed. But then, if money is a factor, you’re going to be hard-pressed to find a decent OCBD for as cheap as you can find a decent polo, especially considering that a decent polo is likely to fit pretty well off-the-rack whereas, like most buttonups, an OCBD is usually going to need some tailoring.
I got a couple of house-brand JCP polos off the clearance rack recently for three bucks apiece. They appear to be of roughly equal quality to what Target’s offering, so low end of the spectrum but totally wearable. Good luck finding a deal like that on an OCBD.
So I’m a complete newbie to this site and style in general. For that reason these posts have been VERY helpful.
One thing I noticed though, and would love some feedback. You suggested 4 pair of shoes and only 4 shirts? That ratio seems off to me. I can wear one pair of shoes for just about an entire season and not feel bored with them. But if I had to wear 1 of 2 shirts all winter (or summer)?…
Thoughts or comments?
Express merino sweaters are a good choice too. Usually buy-1-get-1-half-off, or some other great deal.
Their merino ones usually hold up really well. The J Crew lambswool sweaters are hit and miss. I have a couple that have worn like iron over the years. I have one that pilled like crazy, and another that kind of stretched out despite proper care and handling. Also, even “dry clean only” wool sweaters can be hand-washed. I use Eucalan, which has lanolin – the natural oil found in wool – and is no rinse. Skipping the rinse makes hand washing much less of a chore.
You can certainly argue what ratio of clothing is right for you – 2 shirts, 2 suits and 4 pairs of shoes may be a little out sync with your priorities (as it is with mine). It could also work for some.
I think the purpose here is defining a wardrobe that could get you by in most situations – not the end all wardrobe of a man.
Random question Joe, but what size of the Suit Supply London cut did you purchase?
I thought it went without saying that wool + heat = shrink. Knit woolens do not belong in the dryer.
I wash my sweaters in cold water, gentle cycle, in a mesh sweater bag, with a gentle soap like Dr. Bronner’s. Then I reshape and lay flat to dry. The sweater fibers will tighten up a little (like cotton pants tightening back to their original shape after you’ve stretched them out slightly from wear) but they won’t shrink.
As others have mentioned, you don’t need to clean them very often. Maybe after a half dozen wears or so.
I went with my normal 38. We’ll see how it goes though. At least returns are free.
Also running out of money at this point 🙂
One thing to think about is that chances are very good that we wouldn’t be totally scrapping someone’s wardrobe during a $1500 refresh. Lots of shirts would probably stay, be salvageable, or look plenty fine layered under a sweater or blazer. For casual button ups, there’s always thrifting too. But yes, I totally hear you.
J Crew Merinos also stretch out like crazy after only a handful of wears. I’m 100% Club Monaco for sweaters now
Second this. I got all my merino v-necks from Express when they were on sale. ranging from 17-29 apiece. Great fit, great thick material, great price, no other brands can beat! I bought two same merino v-necks from H&M too, which have substantially thinner material.
Gap Modern Oxfords are my favorite. They are almost always on sale online and can be had for a little over $30. They are soft and seem to get softer with time.
Could not agree with you more. RIP the Express Signature polo.
Hey Joe, how would you compare the Stafford button ups to both of these, particularly the Claiborne? Seems the 100% cotton and 60/40 blend are almost always available for under $20 with a nice range of sizes. I have a couple that I really like, but have never picked up a Claiborne.
Bingo. For the price, Gap’s OCBD selection and fit is wonderful. Just picked up two myself..
If you miss the Express Polo, Banana’s “Luxe Touch” is a close second choice. While slightly more expensive (~$30 on sale), the fit is superb.
Their sweaters are good and their 1MX dress shirts are good quality for the price. If you’re going with Express, make sure to join their email list because they have weekly coupons that you can use along with the buy 1 get 1 half off. The savings can add up.
Good point. I guess I’m mostly trying to get a sense of what I should get next. I’m not starting totally from scratch, but it’s pretty close! (Haven’t bought real clothes in about 7-10 years). This series has been really helpful for that.
For what it’s worth, once you’re done, a post on the ratios/numbers in your closet would also be helpful for those of us who are new!
There’s going to be a lot of variation in who owns what depending on location, occupation… even age. It’s not about copying as much as developing your own sense of style. I think you’ll get there Jonathan. Good luck!
Not the case for me. I’ve got a few of them and have washed them at least 10 times each and they still fit nice and slim, with the stretch intact. Cold wash, hang to dry, and they are fine. Maybe over time they will wear out, but given the cost it seems preferable to the tailoring cost of the Ultimate.
They do tend to crease a lot more during the day though, but that’s kind of expected with the higher cotton percentage.
I looked at em’, but couldn’t find any stafford button ups in slim in my size. So, couldn’t really tell. Claiborne looked to fit closer though.
I think you should do a variation of this without the suit. Or with only a single “interview/wedding” suit. I work on the West Coast and used to travel full-time for work. I’ve never run into a formal office for non-management level employees. So I think a third of the budget is more or less wasted for most people in the US.
It might be a bit different on the East Coast.
Yep. Motherboard on the primary machine died last night. Throwing a wrench in things. That… and there’s NO DAMN MONEY LEFT FOR PANTS!!!@!@$ ! G
Can’t find the Merona slim fit on Target’s site. Do they still carry these? In store only?
I just checked- it is actually listed as the Merona Men’s Tailored Fit Stretch Dress Shirt. $19.99 online. It does not have a pocket on the front, much like the 1MX.
Awesome. Didn’t make that connection and needed some new shirts. Thanks!