Friends,
I have received a batch of T&A shirts I have ordered from their website some days ago. No, not the weird stuff from Sales. The real thing, conservative but excellent. And some with their House style 3 button cuff (!), as I am usually only wearing double cuffs.
Pink/white bengals, pink/white ginghams, royal blue/white fine bengals. Stuff like that. Simple OTR classic fit shirts. And you know what? They are great. While N&L's shirts are paper-thin and H&Hs are like made from cardboard, these feel right and wear right. Cuffs and collars have a solid construction, but not too stiff. Everything as it should be.
Will now order some more, lilac small checks, red/white/black mini tattersall etc. And some buttons cuffs.
Thoughts?
Once you make the jump into T&A hyper-shirt-space one cannot return to the realm of mere ordinary shirts!
The weird stuff in the sales, well, some of it is, but a lot is quite a subtle take on the peacock shirt look and a lot is quite conservative in the flesh. I had on today a light blue shirt with green and darker blue stripes (from the sales), coupled with a silk green and minute houndstooth in yellow tie from the King's tailor here, a very conservative look, and everything was spot-on for business with a New Zealand wool with green and a mere hint of orange Prince of Wales check jacket. It looked that good, I almost took a photo of it to post on here.
The King's tailor here has some Thomas Mason shirt clothed RTW, €130 a go, but the fit isn't on par with T&A. But they're the closest quality wise to the T&A experience which are shirts that fit like a second skin. The scene from the 1974 Great Gatsby film sums it up. Like C&J's, IMCO T&A represent the biggest bang for the buck, although T&A's price for a shirt, although worth it, stretches the affordability and cost effectiveness for many.
iGent issues:
T&A is far too well known, too expensive for thrifting addicts, too boring because RTW.
I love their shirts now and will not go back to H&K unless a good reason comes up.
Still, I only go for their "classic" range because the other stuff clashes with my ties. I might try a candy striped one but only if it is two colours only.
Like this one:
http://turnbullandasser.eu/shirt-whbl-poplin-cand-classic-fit-classic-t-a-collar-double-cuff-13
Any additional colours or overchecks make it too fussy.
Update: yesterday a new batch came
I bought 5 shirts, of which 3 were actually in sale (god knows why: 3 two-fold 120 ones, plain blue and white, for 155EUR). Just love them.