This review is a piece of our Great White T-Shirt Review series, in which we tested nearly two dozen plain white t-shirts to help you understand what’s on the market today. In it, we tested for qualities like fit, construction quality, fabric density, shrinkage, and see-through-ness, amongst many others.
We all know that Hanes and co. have sold out their days of making high-quality t-shirts that fit well. Now what Velva Sheen presupposes is…maybe they didn’t?
If you took all of the best and brightest minds at Hanes and put them in a room together to create a product that was still recognizably their brand but was of the best quality they are capable of, you would have the Velva Sheen 2-Pack t-shirt.
This tee is a short-sleeved contradiction, a garment that is at once premium and carefully constructed, but at the same time a facsimile of the dime a dozen Hanes rags it is based off of. And yet I still enjoy wearing it.
By The Numbers
- Fabric: 100% cotton
- Made in: USA
- Postwash Fabric Density: 1.80g/LI (Heavy)
- Postwash Total Weight: 190g
- Construction: Tubeknit
- Postwash Measurements (inches):
- Front Length: 25
- Pit to Pit: 20.5
- Shoulder to Shoulder: 17
- Hem Width: 20.5
- Neck Width: 6
- Sleeve Length: 7.5
- Sleeve Height: 9
- Sizing Recommendation: True to Size
- Shrinkage: 0.24%
- Weight Loss: 2.56%
- Price Per Shirt: $36
- Available for $72 at Need Supply Co.
Fit
Continuing on our theme, the Velva Sheen tee fits how you’ve always wanted a basic Hanes tee to fit. It’s snug in the arms, long enough, the shoulders sit well, and the chest doesn’t feel like you could sneak a tub of cookie dough into the movies.
I understand why. The bigger it is, the more people it can potentially fit, but it’s honestly kind of weird to have the experience of that kind of a t-shirt fit me so well.
I have no complaints on the fit of this shirt, I think they achieved what they aspired to do beautifully.
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Fabric
The gears start to grind on this presupposed fantasy on the fabric. What they’re using is well knit and heavy without feeling heavy, but it isn’t soft and it doesn’t feel comfortable. Y’know it feels like a Hanes tee.
After a day of walking around in it, I wanted to take it off. I’ve yet to reach the “break-in” point where it forgives and softens up, but for now, it’s a little rough on the skin.
On sheerness it does pretty well, you can ‘ardly even see the H!
Construction and Details
It’s the little things that add to the mystique of this tee. I’ve often caught myself admiring that wavy edge on the tag. Never mind there are like seven different fonts going on there, I like it. There’s also a very subtle grosgrain locker loop hiding behind that tag, a much more understated detail than the slapdash one on the Reigning Champ. There’s also a small care label sewn into the bottom hem, which you can just see poking out in the flat pic.
Construction is solid, it just works. They use blind stitches but it doesn’t suffer from flap effect, and even if it did the body is long enough for it to be a minor issue.
The Verdict
It’s a Hanes tee but there’s nothing wrong with it. If that’s a cultural experiment you’re as interested in experiencing as I am, it might be worth $36 a tee.
Consider if:
- You want your t-shirts to be as crunchy as your jeans
- You prefer structural literary theory because Claude Levi-Strauss reminds you of jeans
Avoid if:
- You want a premium tee to feel more flashy and “premium”
Available for $72 at Need Supply Co.
As mentioned, this was just one of many other reviews of plain white tees. Have a look at the full comprehensive review including all the other t-shirts.
