Bury Me in This Perfect Fabric

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If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance that you’ve already spent at least a few hours of your life trying to hunt down the perfect T-shirt. Maybe you’ve read a few impassioned essays advocating for Everlane’s $16 box-cut, or Reformation’s $28 tencel tee, or Lacausa’s $57 cropped crewneck. Maybe you’ve even considered caving to the pressures that be (read: Instagram and the many chic, braless French girls that reside there) and dropping $120 on a distressed tee from Re/Done’s Hanes collaboration.

All of these are fine options (even the last one, if you have the cash), but none of them offer the unadulterated bliss of the tees I stock up on at Aritzia every season because none of them are made of Reposa 9. The fabric is exclusive to Wilfred Free — the chiller, comfier sister to Aritzia in-house brand Wilfred — and it’s the closest thing to magic I have hanging in my closet.

I say “hanging” because while the stretch-jersey lends itself beautifully to T-shirts, it’s also the essential component to my platonic ideal of a house dress and a cardigan I rarely travel without. It’s more luxurious than standard cotton — slouchy, but not the kind of slouchy that only looks good on Alexander Wang models, and thick enough that you don’t need to buy a second shirt just to wear the one you just bought. And unlike a lot of what I seem to buy from Aritzia, it’s totally machine-washable and never, ever needs to be steamed before wearing.

The one caveat is that it’s a little pricier than your typical basics brand (my all-time favorite tee is $45, and dresses run closer to $60), but keep an eye out for sales to snag certain styles for as little as $12.99 — particularly if you aren’t afraid to venture into colors outside of black, white, or gray.

I’m usually not even the type to get overly psyched about the latest “revolutionary” fabric, especially since direct-to-consumer brands seem to be pushing a new one every week, but I do know what I like, and I’d happily trade in a good chunk of my wardrobe for the full Reposa repertoire: ribbed turtlenecks, boxy cropped tees, “slozy” tank dresses (even the tube top! Why not!). Until then, I’ll be over here, safe in my knowledge that my quest for the perfect T-shirt is over. For now, at least.