Over the past year, I’ve noticed a growing theme in the comments section: readers who don’t want to wear clothing made from synthetic fabric or blended fabric. Sadly, few retailers are selling pure silk, cotton, or wool these days. But last week, I ordered a tee from Amazon that’s all cotton, and just plain awesome.
The long-sleeve t-shirt is from Z Supply and costs $70 for a two-pack, one black and one white. They are currently sold out of the single tees, but they will restock.
The tee is soft as a bunny. It’s also far more opaque than sheer. My one caution is that since it’s all-cotton, you need to wash it with cold water and lay it flat to dry religiously.
Looking for a short sleeve option? Z Supply also makes an all-cotton traditional v-neck tee for $29. It comes in black, heather grey, and white.
For a sizing reference, I usually buy an XS in Amazon’s in-house brands. For this tee, I needed the small. So consider sizing up if you’re on the top end of your size.
Know of other retailers selling all-cotton or all-silk or all-wool items? Leave them in the comments.
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Everlane
Their tees aren’t opaque :(. Also, I’ve hardly even worn mine, and it looks really dingy.
The dinge is what pushed me away from Everlane. Like two months of wear and everything was grey, even with Oxyclean.
Tucker NYC for silk items.
I just got off the Waitlist for For Days, and I’m so excited to try it. They are organic cotton shirts. Once you are done wearing the shirt (too worn out, simply don’t wear it anymore) you spend $8 to exchange for another For Days shirt. Then you return yours and they use it for yarn. So as well as having cotton shirts, it’s a very interesting, closed-loop business idea.
I love For Days’ business model – makes good sense! I just got on their waitlist. They mention using a referral code to gain points. Do you have a code you’re able to share?
Yup! Here you go http://fbuy.me/nkSUZ
Looks like you need a referral code? How does it work to sign up?
The access code isn’t showing up when one clicks the link. Can you post the code here?
I’ve been a for days member for a while now and it’s great. Some of the white tees can be a little thin, but it all depends on the fabric you get. Even then, in this heat I’m all for thinner, and they’re not as see-through as some of the white tees I’ve tried at j crew.
It’s a great way to get weekend tees without worrying about destroying/staining them, since you can trade them if that happens and the old ones get recycled. They ship in reusable canvas zip bags now, so even less waste.
Here’s my referral link if anybody else wants to give it a try http://fbuy.me/nk2Nk
I managed to get into For Days last year and the whole experience has been kind of meh. Since signing up they have completely changed their business model and the best tee I found there has since been redesigned. It’s great that I can trade out the two I stained for $8 each, but I suspect venture capital is footing some of the actual cost there.
Pact makes clothes with organic cotton, many 100% cotton. And I have loved my tees from Orvis, which I think I found on a CHS rec in the first place.
I love Pact tees! They aren’t see through, and wear much better than Everlane’s tshirts.
I have given up on Everlane cotton tees because of the cut, but the fabric does wear very quickly as well. I replace them every year generally. What I’ve switched to is the Gap Modern T-shirt, it’s a cotton modal blend, but feels like cotton and is thick and stretchy. Even the white one is opaque! I keep stocking up on them when they’re on sale.
They are $$$, but I have had great luck with Velvet and Joie for silk and cotton tops/dresses- I’ve bought most of my pieces via Nordstrom Rack, TJ Maxx, Poshmark, Anthropologie, and sample sales because I’m in LA. I also like shopping at Nordstrom because you can filter by fabric!
I wish I could wear viscose or other synthetic fabrics- so much more affordable, so many more options, and you have to baby the clothes way less, but something about synthetics both irritates the skin under my arms and doesn’t agree with my body chemistry… even on a cool day I feel like I smell.
i disagree with you on sizing – i have several of the z supply v-neck tees and they run large. i am solidly an 8/medium everywhere else, but a medium z supply looks huge on me (i’m also a 34c). so if you’re getting the t-shirt, i strongly suggest sizing down – i can wear a small.
the shirts hold up really well. they’re also stocked at bevello, lulu’s, and a few other places if you can snag a discount code!
Jcrew perfect fit Tee obvi
I love American Giant classic tees. They’re 100% cotton and American-made, which I feel like breaks my fast-fashion habits. They also aren’t hugely expensive, but they do last! I’ve had a couple of them for almost three years and I love them. The fabric is thin, but still pretty opaque. My only real complaint is that they don’t have a ton of color options.
Seconding the recommendation for American Giant! I bought a couple of tanks last year, have worn/washed them at least 20x each, and they still look and feel great. Just purchased some t-shirts this summer and I’m sure they’ll be going strong for a while.