As men in a civilized society, we are conditioned to behave in certain ways and maintain certain beliefs. One of these beliefs is that to own a quality dress shirt, we need to not only overpay for it, but we also need to overpay for its maintenance.
When I opened the package containing the dress shirt from Mizzen + Main, I did it on a Sunday night, intentionally, because every Monday morning I go to the dry cleaner. Surely a dress shirt straight out of the mail needs to be labored over for optimal performance.
Imagine my surprise when I read the associated document which indicated NO dry cleaning and ironing would ever be needed to maintain the look and feel of the shirt.
A quality dress shirt that looks good, feels great and doesn’t cripple your wallet? Excuse me while I laugh my face off. I threw the shirt in the dryer for 15 minutes to freshen it up, and kept my expectations low, which is exactly how I’ve started numerous dates throughout the years.
Once I pulled the shirt out of the dryer, wrinkle free and feeling as though it had been pressed, I noticed it had a feel to it like no other dress shirt I’ve encountered. It felt stretchy, yet supple. Relaxed, yet ample and up to the task. Again, very similar to numerous dates I’ve “enjoyed.”
I pulled the shirt over my torso and was befuddled at how the shirt fit me so well, as I had casually requested a “large” sample. There were no previously exchanged measurements, or painstaking trips to the Men’s Warehouse to act like I was buying a dress shirt in order to acquire my exact dimensions. And yet, the shirt fit my torso perfectly, with perfect sleeve length to match. It even made my biceps look outstanding thanks to the superior fit.
In a lot of ways, the shirts from Mizzen + Main are like the anti-Brian Weeden, sometimes Cleveland Browns quarterback. Weeden has the makings of a top notch QB, possesses the measurables, looks good in practice, but when the lights come on and you throw him onto the field, he won’t perform optimally and will definitely wrinkle under the press of an opposing defense. That creates even more pressure for the rest of the offense, including running back Chris Ogbonnaya, who so far this season is on pace for a career year.
But Chris doesn’t fold, which is why Mizzen + Main has employed him as a celebrity spokesperson. And even if he did fold, you could just throw him in the dryer for 15 minutes, and he’d be crisp, clean and ready to roll, just like my shirt.
So how do they accomplish this? There are four specific reasons, working together in concert, similar to the way Ogbonnaya worked with his offensive line to score the game winning touchdown in week four (coincidence?) versus the arch-rival Cincinnati Bengals:
1) Moisture Wicking Fabric
Moisture is pulled away and evaporates, heat is pulled away from your body and cool air seeps through.
2) Superior Fit
The shirt fits right off the rack, guaranteed.
3) Four Way STRETCH
Mizzen + Main has devised a fabric that is smart as you are.
4) Low Maintenance
No ironing or dry cleaning. Machine wash, hang dry and you’re ready to roll in 16 minutes. Does Mizzen + Main make women? They should.
This is a dress shirt you never have to iron or take to the dry cleaner, and it will cost you roughly $50. Tradition. Evolved. Indeed.
For more information on quality dress shirts from Mizzen + Main, follow this link.
