Apparel | Monday, July 19, 2010

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SUPIMA IN THE NEWS: T-shirts in WSJ

By Nancy Boyd

NEW YORK—Want a man’s T-shirt that feels great and wears well?

Head to the Supima Collection at Bloomingdale’s.

That’s what many readers of last week’s Wall Street Journal online fashion column will be doing.

When a reader queried “Where can my husband find undershirts that have substantial weight and are opaque?” here’s what fashion journalist Teri Agins had to say:

You’re correct in your perception that many men’s undershirt brands feel thinner than they used to. Advances in knitting technology have created cotton knitwear that is very lightweight—though without being flimsy. Today’s men’s undershirts are “stress-resistant and are made of a strong cotton fabric,” says Kevin Harter, men’s fashion director and a vice president at Bloomingdale’s.

The shift reflects more men’s preference for “lighter undershirts when they put them under dress shirts,” Mr. Harter says. Indeed, most fashion fabrics, including regular T-shirts and wools, are lighter and stretchier than they used to be. Calvin Klein, one popular maker, uses light, fine-gauge cotton knits “for a modern customer who prefers a closer-to-the-body fit,” says a spokeswoman.

Likewise, Jason Scarlatti, creative director at popular fashion brand 2Xist, says, “The better-quality cottons are spun finer in comparison to those in the past.” 2Xist offers a range of undershirts in V-neck, T-shirt and tank styles in all-cotton as well as cotton and rayon blends, ranging from $14 to $28.

If your husband prefers a thicker, beefier undershirt, Mr. Harter suggests he should bypass the underwear aisles and opt for sportswear T-shirts—which are usually sold individually and are likely to cost a bit more. Among the options Mr Harter suggests is a $48 crew-neck cotton T-shirt by James Perse, as well as Bloomingdale’s own private-label V-neck and crew-neck T-shirts made of Supima cotton, which sell for $34.