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.
Let me guess, Carmy brought you here? I wrote a review of the Whitesville 2-Pack T-shirt shirt a full three years before the Chicago sandwich saga brought the entire internet out of the woodwork in search of The One Tee to rule them all. The way it was made back then is the same as it is now, solid. But like the Norwegian arcade game of Ballbreaker, you can’t just waltz up to this Japanese tee and expect it to behave in the same way as its American counterparts.
Read on for our full review of the Whitesville T-Shirt, including how to size it, how it wears, how to care for it, and most importantly these days, where to find it (spoiler: buy it from Japan at Hinoya for half the price of western retailers).
By The Numbers
- Fabric: 100% cotton
- Made in: Japan
- Postwash Fabric Density: 1.54g/LI (Midweight)
- Postwash Total Weight: 161g
- Construction: Tubeknit
- Size Large Postwash Measurements (inches):
- Front Length: 23
- Pit to Pit: 21
- Shoulder to Shoulder: 18
- Hem Width: 20.5
- Neck Width: 6.25
- Sleeve Length: 7.5
- Sleeve Height: 8.5
- Sizing Recommendation: Size Up
- Shrinkage: 1.64%
- Weight Loss: 3.59%
- Price Per Shirt: $25
- Available for $50 (2 pack) at Hinoya
Fit
The Whitesville fit is tighter, shorter, and distinctly 60s. The collar rides up higher than every other tee in an old-school way that’s fun but takes some getting used to. If you’re a person who chafes at turtlenecks, maybe reconsider because this one is definitely a neck-hugger.
Otherwise, it fits small, to the point where I didn’t wear this tee out too much because it felt restrictive and revealing. Sized up, I imagine it would be great, but not in its current state. If you wear a medium, try the large. This tee harkens back to a bygone age of smaller people than we are today…or it’s just sized for the Japanese market, which is explicitly one letter size down from North America.
Fabric
The Whitesville fabric is near perfection.
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It’s light and soft, and has a satisfying amount of give and resilience to the knit. It also feels heavier than it is. It’s advertised as “Heavyweight” but its fabric density is just off the mark by the standards of our test. I’m not complaining though, it’s a close second to Merz B. Schwanen (oddly enough, the other niche t-shirt Carmy wears on The Bear) for my favorite fabric of the test.
The sheerness test is passable but nothing to get excited about. Your nipples and tattoos will preserve their modesty.
Construction and Details
The construction is excellent, which is no surprise for a product made by Japanese parent company Toyo Enterprises (Sugar Cane, Buzz Rickson’s). The tee is tube knit and the stitching is in this slightly off-white grey/tan color that contrasts nicely with the brilliant white of the shirt.
The one notable feature, at least the one the packaging wants to point out, is an extra layer of cotton tape to solidify the collar in place. Collar stitching is often the first point of failure in t-shirts, so this development speaks well for the longevity of this tee.
If I had any gripes, it’s that the overlocking didn’t catch all of the extra fabric on the sleeve hems and that the collar ribbing is sewn together in a big stiff plug of fabric on the left-hand side, which can make for kind of an annoyance if you’re wearing this as an undershirt.
The Verdict
I really liked this shirt and was kinda bummed the sizing is small to the point that I couldn’t wear it regularly. If you’re looking for a shirt with that real 60s prep character that might have fallen off the pages of Take Ivy (or the back of a brow-beaten chef), Whitesville is your brand, just make sure you size up.
Consider if:
- There are pennies in your loafers
Avoid if:
- Even an extra layer of reinforcement tape can’t keep your collar in place
Available for $50 at Hinoya or $80 at Blue in Green.
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.
