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Fabrics for button down shirts (whats stylish/unstylish)

post #1 of 24
1/22/11 at 7:47pm
Thread Starter 
Button down shirts. I've started wearing a lot of cotton shirts.

Today a couple of nicely colored oxford shirts caught my eye, but one was sateen and the other was a blend of poly-something and cotton. I froze and refrained from buying either of them.

Cotton of course is classic and safe. How about sateen and blends? Are they corny or a fashion error?

Thanks for your insight. I'm a guy learning about the fashion dos and donts.
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post #2 of 24
1/22/11 at 10:43pm
Personally, I'm not a fan of the sheen of satin for a man. More so for a classic button down. But that's just my opinion. As you say, you're entering a difficult territory, they may work in certain circumstances but not in all.

Other types of blends need not be a problem, in the sense that, usually, they don't look any different. The difference is for you on the skin. Certain synthetic fabrics don't let the skin breathe as well as cotton, so you risk sweating more. Cotton is definitely worth the cost here.

Sometimes, certain blends are used to make the shirt iron-free (so they actually cost more than plain cotton), which is a plus if you wash the shirt yourself and a minus if you go to a cleaner.

cacio
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post #3 of 24
1/22/11 at 11:59pm
I don't have any sateen shirts, at least that I know of. I'd urge anyone to stay away from poly-cotton blends. I think they start to pill up and look dirty where they rub things--especially around the collar. Also and more important, they just feel terrible to the touch. Yuck.

I go for cotton button-downs for nine months of the year and linen button downs the other three.

In pure cotton you can get different degrees of softness and different degrees of warmth from picking between oxford cloth, pinpoint oxford cloth, and broadcloth.
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post #4 of 24
1/23/11 at 1:57am
Well, button down and stylish don't go in the same sentence anyway.

But cotton is king.
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post #5 of 24
1/23/11 at 5:59am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by warlord View Post

Well, button down and stylish don't go in the same sentence anyway.

But cotton is king.

That's interesting. I think they look good with jeans/khakis and a nice pair of shoes. I'll try to think on your opinion though.

Do you find it looks stodgy or something? Cheers.
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post #6 of 24
1/23/11 at 8:05am
Stodgy - yes, maybe that hits the nail. But maybe we just have a different understanding of "stylish". (Or maybe it's just a trans-atlantic thing. ) Cos I agree with this:

Quote:
Originally Posted by Xephon23 View Post

I think they look good with jeans/khakis ...

Button downs may be great for a casual look with jeans, khakis, cargos, chinos and the like. That may look attractive. But I'd not call it stylish. Not necessarily white-bread (but with an inherent risk to be so). But not stylish. (Or only stylish if "applied" by a real maestro. That you maybe are...)
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post #7 of 24
1/23/11 at 8:57am
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Quote:
Originally Posted by warlord View Post

Well, button down and stylish don't go in the same sentence anyway.

Interesting take.

One definition of stylish is "conforming to the current fashion; modish". Another is "having elegance or taste or refinement in manners or dress".

These two definitions can be interpreted as complementary with or at odds to each other. Many fashon 'experts' agree that a button down collar shirt is not appropriate for a suit/tie but perfect with tie and sports coat and OK with suit and no tie.

for example: http://www.examiner.com/men-s-style-...on-down-collar


You are correct about cotton being the King. The old TV ad sang: "The touch....the feel...of cotton."

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post #8 of 24
1/23/11 at 12:52pm
I find button-downs perfectly ok, and use them a lot. I agree that they're not probably appropriate with very formal styles (like evening dark suits), but I find them perfectly good with a suit in a business-like environment.

Button-downs (especially Brooks Brothers ) were made very fashionable for Italian businessmen a couple of decades ago, when businessman and style-icon Gianni Agnelli was frequently seen wearing them. But I have not lived in Italy for a while, so I don't know if the wind has changed.

cacio
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post #9 of 24
1/24/11 at 2:47am
Cotton or linen, only to be worn casually - not with a suit/tie.
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post #10 of 24
1/24/11 at 4:23am
Guys, I've been try figure this out with no hope.

Whats the difference between a button-down shirt and a button-up shirt ? Is there any other kind of (dress) shirt?

Photos would make more sense to me ^.^

Thanks.
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post #11 of 24
1/24/11 at 6:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ohhmygod View Post

Guys, I've been try figure this out with no hope.

Whats the difference between a button-down shirt and a button-up shirt ? Is there any other kind of (dress) shirt?

Photos would make more sense to me ^.^

Thanks.

To me, "button-down shirt" means the collars button down.
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post #12 of 24
1/24/11 at 2:02pm
I've thought a button down shirt regards the opening running the length of the front, not the collar. In my post above I was just talking about standard business shirts without reference to whether the collar buttoned down.
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post #13 of 24
1/24/11 at 2:28pm
Cotton always ( oxford, poplin, etc ). I never wear a tie with button down shirt
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post #14 of 24
1/24/11 at 7:13pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by petruccijc View Post

To me, "button-down shirt" means the collars button down.

Yes.

Quote:
"Button-down" is sometimes used incorrectly to describe the front buttoning of a shirt; a "button-down" shirt refers to a shirt with an American "button-down" collar introduced by Brooks Brothers in 1896, discussed below....

Button-down collars have points fastened down by buttons on the front of the shirt. Introduced by Brooks Brothers in 1896, they were patterned after the shirts of polo players and were used exclusively on sports shirts until the 1950s in America. It is still considered a more sporting style, and, particularly outside America, traditionally dressed men still do not wear suits with this style of collar.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dress_shirt
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post #15 of 24
1/25/11 at 12:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by A. Homme View Post

It is still considered a more sporting style, and, particularly outside America, traditionally dressed men still do not wear suits with this style of collar

Exactly!
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post #16 of 24
1/25/11 at 3:11am
Joe, A. homme please correct me if im right. Taking two examples from Prada.

Buttondown



What is this one called ?
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post #17 of 24
1/25/11 at 3:40am
First example: button-down shirt
Second example: shirt (dress shirt in US English)
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post #18 of 24
1/25/11 at 4:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tott View Post

First example: button-down shirt
Second example: shirt (dress shirt in US English)

Isnt there a special name for each kind of collar ? Is the 2nd one a buttonup shirt
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post #19 of 24
1/25/11 at 4:48am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ohhmygod View Post

Isnt there a special name for each kind of collar ? Is the 2nd one a buttonup shirt

Yes, different kinds of collars have names. I'd suggest you start by reading through the Wiki article A. Homme links to, it's an excellent start.
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post #20 of 24
1/25/11 at 5:01am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tott View Post

Yes, different kinds of collars have names. I'd suggest you start by reading through the Wiki article A. Homme links to, it's an excellent start.

I did read actually, before this thread was started. But im more of a visual learner
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post #21 of 24
1/25/11 at 11:32am
I'd say the second one is an English Spread or Kent.
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post #22 of 24
12/15/11 at 5:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cacio View Post

The difference is for you on the skin. Certain synthetic fabrics don't let the skin breathe as well as cotton, so you risk sweating more. Cotton is definitely worth the cost here.

This is the exact reason why I will not buy blends.
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post #23 of 24
12/21/11 at 9:02am
Quote:
Originally Posted by warlord View Post

Well, button down and stylish don't go in the same sentence anyway.

But cotton is king.

I agree.
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post #24 of 24
12/24/11 at 9:08am
Well, not sure about fashionable but what I like to see on men in terms of dress shirts:

Cotton or linen
Long sleeves. Cufflinks are good, but button cuffs fine.
Neat but not too-too crisply pressed
Most important: Good fit! Cannot overstate this. You can get away with a lot if the fit is very good and flattering.

I am not a fan of the nonwrinkle shirts, I had a couple and they got stinky over time. I am not a very stinky person, either. It was like they held the smell and it got worse and worse. Yuck.
Also, gave up ironing years back but find that regular cotton shirts made with a touch of stretch fiber get less wrinkly as they get washed, so the first time I wash one it comes out all wrinkled but over time I can pretty much just take them out of the dryer, smooth and shake and hang them up, no complaints and nobody really knows I don't iron. Well, y'all do now.
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Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › General Discussion › Fashion and Style › Fabrics for button down shirts (whats stylish/unstylish)