We all know that Apple has a keen eye for good design. Apparently, it extends to the wardrobe for the company’s ubiquitous Mac vs. PC commercials. The Apple character in the commercials (Justin Long) has been wearing some of menswear’s most stylish woven shirts. I spotted him in multiple Band of Outsiders and more recently in Steven Alan button downs. I first caught on to the trend while looking through the Band of Outsiders website a while back. Then recently, I noticed the bunched-up top button (calling card of the Reverse Seam Steven Alan shirts) in one of the new commercials. That got me thinking –woven shirt smackdown? I tend to wear both of these brands, with more emphasis on Steven Alan, mainly because my body type is much closer to Steven’s then Scott Sternberg’s and I think that designers like to base their patterns on themselves. Anyway, what say you? Which do you prefer? Band or Mister Alan?
Steven Alan Reverse Seam cotton shirt $168
Steven Alan Reverse Seam cotton shirt $168
Band of Outsiders cotton shirt $238
Band of Outsiders cotton shirt $238
Steven Alan shirts are regularly on sale for $60-80 and Band of Outsiders are three to four times that — so I have a closet full of Steven Alan shirts. And the arms are long enough, even on the smaller sizes.
great post… haha
great eye as well!
Justin’s been googling himself again.
Band of Outsiders, especially the darker hue. Great eyes for spotting that as well!
Too funny. It all depends on your body type. A friend of mine looks fantastic in Band of Outsiders and H&M, not so good in Steven Alan. The former are cut very slim. The quality of the fabric and construction in Band of Outsiders is superior. I, on the other hand, wear Steven Alan. I wish Steven Alan would bring back the button-down and get rid of those hippie-peasant styles they introduced for women’s S/S 2008.
It’s legal for basic shirts to cost more than $200 dollar? Huh. I need to call my senator about this…
Dear David,
The shirts are $200+ but at least they (Steven Alan and Band of Outsiders) are made in the United States.
Regards,
A Continuous Lean
Steven Alan shirts start at $165 but if you know where to look, you can get them as low as $70.
There are well-designed American shirts available for less than $200.
Regards,
Jasper
Some advice, for $200 you can visit a tailor in NYC and have a shirt custom made. Unless, of course, you wanna dress like Justin. Please.
To the Justin who commented: You’ve got a great blog.
j crew has been quietly offering well made slim cut shirts in very cool patterns and fabrics for a while now–a one third the cost of either brand. in one case, they used the exact same fabric as a steven alan shirt–and the cut was better. the menswear designers at crew know who to steal from, then do it cheaper.
wow! can any of u guys tell me where to get Steven alan’s shirts for 70 bucks?!
Sadly, I think most Steven Alan shirts are no longer made in the USA. They’ve gone up in price, too.
Band of Outsiders shirts, as far as I’ve seen, are still made in the USA. There are a few shirts in every season that aren’t as fitted. Even fat-asses like me can wear Band of Outsiders.
There’s a great series of Q&A ‘s with both Steven Alan and Scott Sternberg on Valet magazine.
Check them out.
– http://www.valetmag.com/style/profiles-features/2008/behind_the_seams_steven_alan.php
– http://www.valetmag.com/style/profiles-features/2008/scott_sternberg_of_band_of_outsiders.php
Any of you guys here have tried on the new label by steven alan lark and wolff? how is the fit like?
just to let you know steven alan manufactures over 90% of his shirts in nyc. starting next season they will only be made in nyc.
Even while both shirt makers make their shirts in America, it remains to be seen why Band of Outsiders has such high price points. Both Steven Alan and A.P.C. make high-quality, well-tailored shirts at justifiable price points.
In my opinion Band of Outsiders exploits its brand-aware followers by asking absurd prices for their clothes with sub-par design; truly the best thing they’ve done is the Sperry collaboration.
Steven Alan seems built to last (clothes & brand), where as Band of Outsiders is merely a trend.
Crooked Clef is, quite simply, wrong.
Band of Outsiders can charge more because a) all the shirts are hand made in Los Angeles, not on some machine in China b) the fabric is pretty damn great and most importantly c) because they fit scrawny little fuckers like me.
Steven Alan and J. Crew don’t make a single shirt that fits me; as much as I’d like to spend 60 or 70 bucks on an oxford, it will look like I’m wearing a gown.
To clarify
Steven Alan shirts are made in the USA; a couple of seasons ago we experimented with other countries but for this current season and moving forward they are all made in USA – and our garment dyed shirts are still made in peru – the only exception.
All the regular button downs are under $200 as well.
And there are a bunch on sale right now for $89-$129 on the website too!
I prefer the fit on BoO, but can much more easily afford SA. A BoO large fits me perfectly, while a SA medium fits me perfectly minus the neck button. If I size up, it’s way too big. I have a similar problem with Shipley and Halmos.