A white t-shirt should be a simple part of your wardrobe, but there’s always that universal experience that you see someone wearing a t-shirt that lays perfectly on their body and then it just doesn’t look the same on you. It’s not you, it’s that it just takes a little bit if trial and error to find your perfect tee. While a t-shirt feels like a timeless classic, there’s actually a lot of trend variation that goes into the way these shirts fit. We’ve put together a comprehensive guide to men’s t-shirt trends because we know it’s not easy.
It can feel unnecessarily overwhelming. One man’s horrible fit is another man’s perfect tee. There is so much to take into account, and once you know what to look for, you’ll never have to think about it again. Things like necklines, seams, sleeve lengths, shoulders. And then there’s a matter of your own personal preferences. At the end of the day, if you want your t-shirt baggier, then maybe get that wide shoulder that some people might consider to be ill-fitting on you.
The best advice is always always always to try it on in-store. You just cannot know what your dream fit will be until you go there and you try things on and you know what things look like on you. But if you are a research-head, like so many of us are, here are some things to consider. There are a million ways to do this, but I’ve broken down the categories into shoulders, necklines, sleeve lengths, and fabric weights.
Low Shoulder Seams
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Traditional wisdom will tell you to let the shoulder seam hit you right at the point before your shoulder curves into your arm, but one of the big trends in men’s shirts is a lower shoulder seam. The fit that I see most on trend these days walking around the Lower East Side or in Brooklyn is this baggy style shoulder fit where the seam hits after the shoulder curves into the arm. Uniqlo sells a version of this that fits like a dream.
AIRism Cotton Oversized Crew Neck Half-Sleeve T-Shirt
This AIRism shirt has a perfect oversized fit that really suits slim and thick builds alike. It comes in 11 colors and goes from XXS up to 3XL.
Embroidered Logo Tee
This shirt from Found also has an oversized look with that drop shoulder seam. It’s a light-weight cotton shirt that is still fully opaque.
High Necklines
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Sooner or later, in a post about t-shirts, we were going to have to talk about The Row. You knew it was coming. The $400 plain shirts that people are more than eager to pay for. The Row’s tees are known most recognizably for the fact that they don’t have seams on the sides of the shirt, but rather one down the back. But what I really love about their shirts are their necklines. A tight neckline or a turtleneck emphasizes a strong jawline and tends to have a more athletic fit, which feels very in with all the sportswear that’s trending in general.
Leon T-Shirt in Cotton
This shirt from The Row is lightweight and drapes beautifully, and the neckline has a very thin hem.
Carhartt Work In Progress White Duster Script T-Shirt
Carhartt Work In Progress is a streetwear brand that licenses the Carhartt logo, and they are a great place to look for affordable luxury offerings of trendy basics.
Baggy Sleeves
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When it comes to men’s tees, the trends right now lean toward sleeves that are on the longer side, typically running closer to the elbow than the mid-bicep. In addition to length, a lot of trendier tees have sleeves that are very wide and not tight to the arm. It’s good to know where these variations lie so that when you’re looking at shirts, you can really pinpoint and localize the things you like and dislike about how shirts fit you.
Soft Wash T-Shirt
This tee from Kotn is a great baggy sleeved shirt.
Dustin Top in Cotton
On the flip, here’s an example of what a longer short sleeve will look like. This one is from The Row, but there are plenty at other retailers because this is quite a trendy fit right now.
Fabric Texture
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Fabric textures will be a pretty big factor in how a shirt drapes on your body. Obviously the way a shirt is constructed will affect this, but the lighter a fabric is, the more it’ll be a drapey vibe, whereas a heavier weight fabric will give a boxier and stiffer fit.
SÉFR Tolomo Oversized Textured Cotton-Blend T-Shirt
This shirt is made of a cotton blend that is very lightweight and sheer, and that’s why it’s drapey, even though the shoulders are relatively high, and the sleeves are relatively fitted.
DROP-NEEDLE RIB POCKET TEE
This ribbed pocket tee is a great basic alternative to a plain tee.