Big Shirt
A summer staple
We’re finally, slowly getting into real summer, and I’m excited for all of the good things: margaritas, going to the pool, my BOOK coming out. I’m also glad that this year I no longer need to send out my dreaded summer text message to friends every time I’m meeting up with someone: “uuuggghhh I don’t know what to wear.”
I mean, I will absolutely still feel that way and text whoever I’m about to hang out with that same text many times this summer, all while lamenting how much I sweat the second I get outside. I don’t know why I still text like that as if I don’t wear one of the same four things every season. For years I struggled through summer dressing until I finally realized the perfect item of clothing that I already own and love is ideal for summer: the button down.
This isn’t groundbreaking. It’s the kind of brilliant idea you could get from just being in the vicinity of a J.Crew. But still, after years of struggling with tank tops and t-shirts, I realized the button down is my summer hero. I always thought wearing “long sleeves” bordered on some kind of psychosis in a New York summer, but I was so wrong.
I’m not the biggest fan of summer, but mostly from a clothing perspective. I’m a very sweaty person, I have long thick hair that feels like wearing a cat as a literal headpiece, and I prefer jeans to almost any other item of clothing. Living on the east coast in the summer is my sartorial hell. At least now, versus in my 20s, looser jeans and pants are in style and readily available, so I’m not schvitzing in skinny jeans on the N train platform that I’ll have to actively peel off of me whenever I get home. I remember wearing them with a scoop neck tank top and thinking this is the best I can do.
But now, a giant loose button down with loose light jeans or linen pants or--gasp--shorts is my go-to summer outfit and I couldn’t be happier with it. I arrived here via many paths. For starters, I’m in my 40s now and while I’ve made peace with my body for the most part, I’m not in love with my arms and short of some targeted liposuction, I’m not sure I ever will. Also, big and loose is in, thank fucking god. And I realized I barely dress up for anything, and if I want to, I can do it via button down, though more often than not I’m keeping things super casual because I don’t go anywhere anymore (at least not that requires looking nice).
I like a big button down in the summer because you can control the shape of it depending on how you wear it, creating different lines and silhouettes. A t-shirt is basically always a t-shirt, at least the ones I wear (Jungmaven, duh). A button down is customizable: short or long, loose or tight, whatever you want. Remember that dress they used to sell that was like, a stretch jersey and you could wear it like, technically 100 different ways, but most of them required an engineering degree to get on and off? Button downs are the better version of that.
The other night I had a classic Friday night out with some gal pals. We were meeting at Natasha’s friend’s new spot, Bar Susanne, in South Williamsburg (it is VERY good). It’s chic seafood on the water, so I wanted to wear something that matched the vibe but also that existed in my closet and didn’t make me miserable. I had a journey of walking to Dumbo, then having a beer at my favorite spot High Tide, then hopping on the ferry, then dinner. Walking across two neighborhoods to take a boat was genuinely faster than me trying to take the subway to get to South Williamsburg from where I live. Incredible stuff, MTA.
I wanted to look kind of nice or like, I dunno, hot? But also I was walking and boating and sitting and eating and needed to still be comfortable. So I threw on my favorite vintage Levi’s that are almost a touch too loose, a lacy black bra, and one of my go to oversized button down shirts and just had one button done in the middle. It’s still some skin, but it’s also like, still a whole shirt. While temperatures bounced around from warm in the sun to chilly in the dark with the breeze, I was totally comfy.
Last night I popped by a party before watching the Knicks, and it was warm on the walk over, but cooler at night. I didn’t really want to wear a t-shirt thanks to a weird mystery bruise on my arm that’s a strange color (but seems fine!!!!!). I went with my trusty giant denim button down tucked into (ONCE AGAIN) my fav loose vintage Levi’s. Even though I was doing denim on denim on a 78 degree day, I was comfy and cool and got a lot of compliments from very cool ladies at this party.
I have broad shoulders and not small boobs (they ARE low when not managed properly though). Sometimes a t-shirt or something with a high neck can make me feel like a linebacker. As I said before I don’t love my arms, so a short sleeve or a tank can feel a little exposed. And I sweat...a lot. I’m a sweaty person and summer is kind of my own personal hell. I want clothes that don’t touch me. A giant button down does that. And it does it even cooler (temp wise) than a big tshirt because you can just leave most of it unbuttoned, not revealing but letting air move around.
One of my favorite things about big button downs for summer is you can get them cheap. There are lots of items of clothing I insist on spending real money on (jeans, loafers, coats, honestly...t-shirts). But button downs can be cheap and do their job better than an expensive version. An old men’s button down from a thrift store usually looks more chic than anything new. Lived in and comfortable is the name of the game. I have an old men’s J.Crew one I love, a vintage butter yellow linen one from Jones New York I got at my favorite store in Toronto, Penny Arcade. If I’m in a thrift store the men’s button downs are my first stop always.
But if you want to get something new because hunting for old clothes isn’t your favorite thing, I get it. There is one button down that reigns supreme above them all, in my eyes. Don’t throw all your money at the Frankie Shop or settle for a synthetic blend at a larger chain.
You need THE BIG SHIRT.
It’s from Gap and it’s perfect. I have it in white and I have two denim ones--one that’s several years old and been through at least a few hundred wash cycles and has softened and shrunk and faded, and one newer one I got this season. It’s the perfect oversized shirt. You can roll up the sleeves to be practically mid bicep. It’s loose and slouchy without looking sloppy. You can tuck it in, leave it out, button it up, wear it open. It’s perfect.
Plus, a big button down doubles as a beach cover up. It’s really a two for one. Get a big shirt!!!!!!!
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And every week until July 7, a reminder to pre-order my debut book of essays, I’m A Lot wherever you get your books!