The Perfect White Shirt

Part 1

When I started writing about the perfect white shirt, I thought I would exhaust the topic in fewer than 500 words. Not so. I have a feeling this will take 3-4 posts. Hee!

So, what is it about the white shirt and why do we seek its perfection? Why do we desire it? Lust after it?

We have a relationship with the clothes we choose. It is one of the ways we express ourselves, let the world in on a part of who we are. It is an element of our personal style.

The perfect white shirt is iconic. It’s white, it’s bright, it demands to be looked at. Bright colors attract attention and scream, “look at me” but the white shirt does so without saying so.



















For me, it was Audrey Hepburn, in her “boyfriend” white shirt or the timeless crisp short sleeve from “Roman Holiday” and Katharine Hepburn, in her tailored version, who turned my attention to the perfect white shirt (there aren’t a ton of Katharine pics, but we do remember her in the PWS)










But it was Carolina Herrera who got me thinking that I might be able to have one for myself. It was something that existed in the marketplace and not just in the stylist’s cache. I loved the apparently simple design paired with a formal skirt or jodhpurs. Very fitted with cuffs and collar keeping their shape. Also very white.



Still, why? Ms Herrera, who has made that shirt the mainstay of her personal style, said that “fashion is to please your eye.” What pleases the eye makes us feel good. The perfect white shirt elevates every skirt or pant. A well-made garment makes us feel a little richer, a little better looking, a little more confident. The perfect white shirt definitely pleases the eye.

The perfect fit, the right fabric, the correct sleeve length, the cuff and collar, the design elements, the strength and shape of the button, the various price points, the intention (whether or not it is meant to be formal or casual) it all goes into the perfect white shirt.

The designer, Anne Fontaine, appears to be on the quest for many perfect white shirts. According to Wallpaper magazine she conceives of 500 white shirts per season, 1000 per year. That is 17,500 to date. Really? Really! Another source, however, sites that her production is a bit lower: 300 designs per year. Regardless 5,100 variations on the white shirt are still impressive.

































As evidenced in the spring/summer 2010 collection she has ventured into other colors. But to me she is the leading force in the pursuit of the perfect white shirt. For more Anne Fontaine click here.