Holy Light Colored Merino Wool!

I mentioned recently that I made a trip to Portland, and for me no trip to Portland would be complete without a visit to the icebreaker store on Burnside.  Since being introduced to merino wool shirts a few years back, I have worn one for every single bike commute.  The one thing that bummed me out was that the only merino wool t-shirts offered seemed to be dark colors.  This meant that I had to change into white cotton t-shirts when I got to work because a dark colored t-shirt will most often look awkward underneath a dress shirt.

When I walked into the icebreaker store last month I almost shouted "Yessss!" when I saw what I had been hoping for, a white t-shirt.  While the shirt was not shout out loud white-white, I was confident that it would do the job of meshing with a work shirt so I bought several of them.  I have been very pleased.  They definitely serve the same purpose as a white cotton t-shirt for work purposes.  The color is called ivory and the picture below shows a side-by-side comparison with a traditional white cotton shirt on the left and the ivory merino wool shirt on the right. 

As I covered in an earlier post, I definitely believe merino wool shirts are worth the money.  It costs more up front, but as far as performance is concerned they blow all other shirts I have worn away.  I can wear them a number of days before they need washing and they are not itchy at all.

I used to have a closet full of cotton and cotton blended t-shirts and I now only keep a few around for when I engage in dirty or greasy tasks and I don't care what happens to the shirt.  With the lighter color option, I can now wear merino wool all the time, on my commute and throughout the day.

 

 

Comments

[Bryan Lewis]

What's it called? I couldn't find it on the Icebreaker site. Thanks.

[Matt]

Bryan,

Check out the Mens SS Apollo Crewe:

http://us.icebreaker.com/SS-Apollo-Crewe/IBAA61,en,pd.html?dwvar_IBAA61_color=E30&start=3&cgid=mens-tops-short-sleeve

They have three colors, including ivory. The 150 weight sold by icebreaker is the most versatile in my opinion.

[jdmitch]

Apollo's could be ordered from Amazon, FYI. Cedarcycling makes a light colored USA made / sewn shirt that I've been considering. They make a t-shirt cut and a base layer (slimmer fitting) cut.

[A New Bike]

I have a lightweight wool tee that is nice for traveling, but my favorite shirt is a medium weight I got from them that I can use as a jacket or a heavy shirt in a pinch. Plus, because it's rarely a base layer I can use it as long as I want without any stink.