Like many designers before her, Althea Simons created her brand, Grammar, out of a desperate need: to own the "perfect" button-down shirt. It's one of the most frequently cited basic "wardrobe essentials," and yet it's incredibly difficult to find one that fits just right—one that's designed with women in mind, versus one that's simply borrowed from the men's section (and made smaller and weirdly fitted at the rib cage).
Simons had amassed a collection of shirts over the years, but suddenly lost them in a fire. She was back at square one—and frustrated by the lack of options. "I was faced with the challenge of rebuilding my wardrobe from scratch," she says. "It’s one of the items I looked to replace immediately because it is such a critical piece of my—and any—wardrobe."
When it comes to button-downs, the most common complaint you hear are of buttons that gape with cleavage or shirts that come untucked easily and require constant readjusting. The look is by no means new—women from Marilyn Monroe to Meghan Markle have been making it work (and have looked incredibly chic) for decades. Still, why must we resort to "borrowing" from men instead of simply having a button-down shirt that's better?
That's exactly what Simons' trying to do with Grammar. And she's not the only one. In fact, there's a new class of by-and-for-women brands all working to make a better button-down shirt.
"Though shirts are among the most popular categories in women’s apparel," says Jessica Joffe, cofounder of Même-Chose, "they're often thrown into a collection as an afterthought, thoughtlessly designed with too many darts, seams, and never enough consideration for what really matters, like bust size. This is the phenomenon known as ‘pinking and shrinking’: Take a men’s shirt, cut it down, give it a three-quarter-length sleeve, and offer it in fuchsia. It’s not surprising that they don’t fit."
These brands are dead set on correcting this practice because they're intimately familiar with how frustrating a poorly fitted shirt can be. Même-Chose created its own size range, from 0 to 6 (equivalent to U.S. 0 to 22). Careste, a direct-to-consumer brand that launched last fall, gives shoppers the option of made-to-measure pieces. (These are a little pricier, beginning at $295.) They'll connect with a brand specialist over Google Hangouts, and then a customized shirt arrives in the mail less than two weeks later.
"There are affordable luxury tops, and then there are blouses made of fabrics from the best Italian mills and exquisitely crafted to each woman’s unique body," founder and CEO Celeste Markey says. "We call it couture and luxury without the intimidation, which fosters a body-positive, empowering community and defies traditional luxury apparel establishment."
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This women-first approach starts with the design, but it extends to every other part of the business—including the branding. Grayson, a new line of linen shirts from Audrey McLoghlin, isn't described as a shirting brand, rather as a "love letter for a new generation of women who are conquering the world, every day." Their core shirt offering is called the "Hero." Même-Chose name-checks the women's liberation movement on its website, as an homage to the role shirts played in the women's liberation movement.
Buying into one of these brands isn't just about investing in a wardrobe staple. "White shirts have this magical ability to make us feel powerful," Simons says. "They're incredibly versatile. There's a rich history of iconic photographs of iconic women wearing white shirts and looking their best. They're a part of the collective consciousness, one that we tap into when we wear a good white shirt."
And when you find that feeling, no other garment can replicate it.
Halie LeSavage is a writer based in New York City. Follow her @halielesavage.
