U.S. Navy T-Shirt

Product Information

The cloth differed from other fabrics in the way in which it was woven, with the manufacturing process involving the weaving of short un-dyed linen fibres. By 1910 work shirts started to become more refined and details such as triple stitching and curved yokes became popular. Milton Goodman workshirt advertisement Some brands and their customers prefer 100% authentic reproductions, while others prefer to take influences and inspiration from different vintage pieces or periods of time to create their ideal interpretation of the shirt. The following decade, the 1940s, brought the Second World War and another time of significant change in life in both America and across the rest of the world. During this time the design of work shirts remained relatively steady. It was in the military where the biggest developments in utilitarian clothing would be seen over the following years. Chambray Work Shirts and the Blue Collar Worker By the end of the 1930s the cut and details of work shirts had become relatively standardised with brands refining their models to a point where they would remain familiar when compared with work shirts of today.

Perhaps most commonly known from their use by US Navy from 1901 all the way up until the Second World War, chambray work shirts having seen somewhat of a resurgence in recent years thanks to heritage and reproduction brands as well as a renewed interest in vintage workwear.There’s a huge number of variations in chambray and even more so in denim, but typically the result is that denim is a heavier, rugged fabric, with more give and stretch than chambray. The History of the Work Shirt With the arrival of the new Heracles chambray shirt from The Rite Stuff, we thought it was a good opportunity to get in depth about the history of one of our products again. The last time we did this, we went into detail about loopwheel t-shirts, so this time, here’s the Those That Know guide to chambray work shirts and the story behind them. The coloured warp and white weft of chambray, along with its one-times-one structure give the fabric its lighter colour and softer feel. The thread count is typically 150-500, resulting in a fine but dense cloth. Weight varies, but it is typically on the lighter side, though some heavier versions do exist. USN Personnel wearing chambray work shirts Quite often chambray will be marketed as denim, and vice versa. They are, though, two different fabrics.

Chambray today is manufactured all over the world but, as with so many things, the highest quality versions originate in Japan. The Differences Between Chambray and Denim The 1930s was a time of great change in America, initially with the effects of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, and then with Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. It was also a time for new innovation in the design of work shirts. Advertisement for Reliance Mfg. Big Yank Chambray Work Shirts The phrase “blue collar” originates from the denim or chambray work shirts worn by industrial or manual workers, differing from “white collar” workers, who held jobs in business and finance. A chambray work shirt worn in the field All main seams are triple chainstitched so you an be sure that your Heracles shirt is tough enough to deal with anything you can throw at it. Garment workers tag on the Heracles If we may call professions and office positions white collar jobs, we may call the trades blue collar jobs” The Times newspaper, 1924

my guarantee to you that all The Rite Stuff items are ethically made. Bryan Shettig, The Rite Stuff The Rite Stuff Heracles Shirt at Those That Know Staying with stitching, higher quality shirts will feature double or even triple stitched seams. This, unsurprisingly, is to provide as much durability as possible, to prevent tears and to prevent any individual stitch being put under too much pressure. The nature of a work shirt means that it has to be tough enough to withstand being pulled and twisted for long periods of time, day after day, so reinforcement is critical to longevity. Although many of these workers in the 1920s and 1930s did wear denim and chambray shirts, and therefore have blue collars, it wasn’t nearly as widespread as the white shirt was in the office. Chambray Work Shirts in the US Military As with everything, the details that go into the ideal chambray work shirt are subjective and down to personal preference of both the designer and wearer. Typically, the higher quality shirts will have some details and characteristics that lesser shirts, won’t meaning there’s things a few things you can look out for when choosing the perfect shirt. Chambray was first adopted by the US Military in 1901, when the Navy workwear uniform issued would include a chambray shirt and denim trousers. The chambray shirts came in both long and short sleeve variations, would be light blue in colour and were sometimes worn with the addition of a white t-shirt. The denim trousers that completed the outfit were a darker shade of blue than the shirt.