LanceMcGrath.com | Chicago gone Swiss

Let me tell you about me.

I was always a chubby little boy, never much of an athlete, and that’s remained true over the last 35 years. Oh, I’ve had my moments – a bit of Tae Kwon Do and rollerblading in high school, some lifting / running in university, a marathon during my MBA, some Freeletics 2 years ago – when I was able to bring my weight down to an almost-healthy or just-barely-under-25-BMI level, but it was always short-term. I never held it, and anyway I never got to a point where I thought I was anything less than “overweight”, though I was closest just after the marathon. I was so proud that I managed to drop below 88kg…

Then life kicked in again, I went back to work, and my weight climbed. I dieted, I ran, I yo-yoed (can I make that a past tense verb?). My scale readings looked like something out of the Roller Coaster Tycoon video game. Continue reading Being fat is a choice; I finally chose something else →

Let’s talk about dress shirts for a minute. Yeah, I know, it’s the first (and probably last) time I’ve ever discussed fashion on my blog, but this is worth it.

Traditionally, these are cotton button-downs, and while you can get a variety of colors, there’s nothing particularly innovative about them. Some look better than others, but they’re all about the same. For years, I’ve ordered mine from Charles Tyrwhitt in the UK – 100 GBP for four shirts is a pretty sweet deal.

It turns out, however, that there’s a better – if more expensive – option on the table. Coming off the back of a massive fat loss, I needed to order some new clothes. I started looking into the possibilities and was surprised to discover dress shirts made out of technical fibers – shirts that wick away sweat, don’t show stains in the armpits, feel silky smooth on the skin and (surprise, surprise!) even come in my size. Welcome to Mizzen and Main.

The shirts themselves look great – from a meter or two away you’d never notice that they’re not a standard dress shirt. But they have four-way stretch built in so that they’re always comfortable, they’re incredibly wrinkle resistant, and don’t need to be dry cleaned or ironed (I know, you’ve purchased iron-free shirts in the past, but this is the real deal). They are by far the most comfortable dress shirts I have ever worn, and unlike all my other work shirts, they stay good-looking all day long.

Of course, the ultimate criteria is fit. At 192cm (6′ 3″) it’s hard to believe, but I’m actually a size small, or medium at most. Try finding one of those with 37″ sleeves! But M&M has a “tall trim” option in all their sizes that’s absolutely perfect for me.

As an honorable mention, I have to say that what started me down this path was an advertisement for Ministry of Supply shirts (I really want one of their suits!). Unfortunately, they don’t make anything for tall people, and a lot of online reviews commented on the baggy, loose cut of their clothes. Mizzen and Main is their closest competitor (a few others exist if you google them) and had excellent reviews, so I gave them a try. Do the same and you’ll thank me later. I’m paying four times what I would for a Charles Tyrwhitt shirt, but believe me, it’s worth it!

Use the links I’ve posted above to make your purchase and we’ll both receive discounts on our shirts.

Oh, and as a side note, I just received some new undershirts and underwear from Tommy John. I’m not quite as excited about it as I am about the dress shirts, but it’s still pretty good stuff – very comfy, and not badly priced. The undershirts in particular are worth consideration. Again, use the link and I’ll get some points on my account (don’t know if that one gets you a benefit, though).