Thoughts on Thomas Pink shirts?

[adamgottschalk]

My ma bought me 3 Thomas Pink shirts a while back. Don't know what happened...I think they got tossed somewhere in a fit of divorce loathing :cry: They were the nicest shirts (formal type) I've had the privilege of wearing. Clearly, they catch a pretty penny in a "shoppe", but one can find them on the cheap. There's a lot of four right now on an auction site I won't mention, french cuffs (me likes), just my size (15.5, 34/35). One's looks plain blue from a distance, but, in Thomas-Pink fashion, up close it shows a very fine grid pattern. The other three are all stripes, pretty sublime ones. I've got a couple of plain white (Brooks Brothers) and tan shirts, so I'm looking for something more colorful. What would you be willing to pay, at max, for 4 brand new with tags Thoms Pink shirts (assuming of course you liked the colors and they were just the right size)? What do you think of the quality of TP shirts in general, as compared to other makers and for the price? Faddishly ostentatious or worth the cost due to stand-out design and quality manufacture? What other shirt makers would you recommend, say, for a more reasonable price but equally high quality? If you happen to look at the shirts in the auction mentioned above, what do you think of them? Too heavy handed?

 

[PADDY]

Thom. Pink shirts.

I wear Thomas Pink shirts a lot. Great for work with a tie, but also when just out and about and you want to cut a dash. Quite right, that if you keep an eye on the internet auctions, they do come up. But I'm never quite sure when buying like that, if they are the real thing or a far east knock off. Guess it's a risk you take.
I do know a little thrift/charity shop in the UK that is an outlet for Thomas Pink shirts (But don't advertise it, I just stumbled over it) that have been used 'once only' at charity do's and cat-walks and therefore cannot be sold at full price. So, I manage to stock up every so often paying a third of the price of a new one. Love the nice thick french cuffs too.

(I've maybe read this wrong, so forgive me if I have, but if you are selling some dandy well-made shirts yourself or eluding to ones on The Bay that are currently live, then you'd be better posting 'that bit' on the classifieds buy & sell room as not only is it the right place to pop it into, but you'll increase your chance of a sale ).

 

[adamgottschalk]

Legal posts?

(I've maybe read this wrong, so forgive me if I have, but if you are selling some dandy well-made shirts yourself or eluding to ones on The Bay that are currently live, then you'd be better posting 'that bit' on the classifieds buy & sell room as not only is it the right place to pop it into, but you'll increase your chance of a sale ).

Not to do with an advert, just with my own indecision. Even at the age of 36, I find I still have trouble making decisions sometimes. I was looking for opinions on TP shirts in general (thanks for yours), and possibly some opinions on shirts in an auction active on "The Bay" right now. I saw something about no posting of live auctions. Is it legal to post about an auction asking simply for opinions on the garment being auctioned?

Sometimes I find something I think looks cool and I worry that maybe others will hate it. In the end, I have good taste and I know it, so I shouldn't be so shiy. I guess we all go through that.

 

[GateXC]

I for one don't care for Thomas Pink shirts whatsoever. I have one that I got as a gift 5 yrs ago and haven't worn it in ages. The quality of their shirts isn't as good as say a T.M. Lewin or esp Turnbull. Also, while I've heard that they do have a slimmer cut shirt nowadays, the shirt that I have is big enough through the body for 3 of me - absolutely enormous - so bear that in mind as well. I'm a pretty skinny guy so their stuff ends up looking ridiculous on me.

My 2 cents.

 

[adamgottschalk]

How better?

I for one don't care for Thomas Pink shirts whatsoever. I have one that I got as a gift 5 yrs ago and haven't worn it in ages. The quality of their shirts isn't as good as say a T.M. Lewin or esp Turnbull. Also, while I've heard that they do have a slimmer cut shirt nowadays, the shirt that I have is big enough through the body for 3 of me - absolutely enormous - so bear that in mind as well. I'm a pretty skinny guy so their stuff ends up looking ridiculous on me.

My 2 cents.

Thanks for the change. I don't doubt you at all--I'm just trying to learn more about fine threads, understand. In what ways would you say that shirts from the two makers you mention are higher quality than Pink? Better fit? Finer stitching? Better material?

 

[GateXC]

As a personal preference, right off the bat, is the fit. I can't stand baggy shirts so that killed it for me pretty quick. Other than that, yeah, things like stitching and general overall quality of fabrics I find to be better elsewhere. Pink got to be a pretty big company in the past 5 or so years and as a result their quality suffered compared to the other Jermyn St. shops. That said, T.M. Lewin has fallen into a similar problem as of late, but then they are still only over in the U.K. and haven't expanded into the US market (which means they are still a smaller operation). Also, a Pink shirt runs about $125 or more retail - which to me was a bit steep for what it was (ill-fitting, etc). I have no problem paying for quality, but their shirts don't measure up in my mind. If you have the opportunity where you live, go into a Pink store and immediatly follow it up by walking into Turnbull & Asser and compare their shirts - you'll get a good sense of the differences. (I live in NYC so we have both shops, I assume LA does as well, but not sure about the rest of the country).