Softest T-Shirt
I post things like this NOT because I have any fashion or shopping sense but because I happen once in a while to stumble on something I really like. I personally hate shopping and just want someone to tell me "buy this one, it is the best", sort of like going to Toms Hardware and finding which graphics card is currently the best value.
When I am working out, I wear Drifit type wicking fabrics, but for other casual times around the house I want a soft t-shirt for lounging around. Until recently my choice was a Kit and Ace T-shirt that I think had some cashmere in it (maybe this one?). I can't be sure because there is absolutely no size or sku information in the shirt. By the way, a note to clothing companies: I buy clothing in physical stores, but I often want to re-buy the same sku onlie either as replacements or for additional colors and that is impossible if you don' somehow print size and sku information in the item. Also, and I am told by the women in my family that this is a typically male rant, I am constantly exhausted to find that the item I loved and want to buy again over and over does not exist and has morphed into some other style or sku. I am happy to keep re-buying the same shorts and shirts and running shoes forever if someone will sell them to me.
Anyway, my new favorite T-shirt and the current leader in my closet for softness is the Cloudknit tee from Outdoor Voices. Outdoor Voices is a small company in startup mode and can be a little spotty on its inventory availability. I found it on a vacation weekend in Aspen where they had a pop-up store we happened to walk into. I love this shirt and bought a pile of them to sleep in (I don't really prefer to sleep in a lot of clothing but my wife is at that special age when she needs to keep the bedroom somewhere around freezing). The Cloudknit hoodie is also amazing for lounging about the house. Their "Doing Things" fabric is more for workouts and it is fine but not as spectacularly soft as their cloudknit fabric.
As a reminder, my one other shirt recommendation was for Hawaiian shirts from Tori Richard. Great concept -- Hawaiian shirt patterns printed on fabrics that actually feel like quality fabrics. I also like the orange label products because it is a more attractive fit -- most Hawaiian shirts are not very tailored. If you want to try something different, try their crinkle fabric which I really like but is not loved by everyone. I just throw them in the washing machine and hang them slightly damp until they dry and they are great. I used to do the same thing for my Tommy Bahama shirts but if you hang them to dry they become really stiff for some reason. Tommy Bahama shirts can be quite nice, especially as they age, but you have to tumble them dry to keep them soft, not sure why. Fortunately neither shirt needs to be ironed (any shirt that requires ironing in my closet -- except for a few dress shirts and my beloved Robert Graham shirts -- immediately goes to Goodwill).
