Need Clothing You Can Wear When It’s Hot and When You Have to be Able to Move?

Need Clothing You Can Wear When It’s Hot and When You Have to be Able to Move?
Then we've got just the thing.
A man standing on a boat We've teamed up with Mizzen+Main for this post, the innovative brand making moisture wicking, machine washable, four-way stretching, wrinkle resistant American-made menswear. Click here to see their line!

What is this?

We’re in that period just before the change of the seasons – a liminal, anticipatory moment – when your brain can sense spring is about to drop. With spring comes renewed energy for adventure, fitness, dating, and long days hanging with friends.

And, of course, style.

Whether you need to refresh your basics by picking up a new pair of shorts, or up your work-casual game with a couple new button-ups, get a new piece for an upcoming adventure in a new city, spring is a chance to inject some color and boldness in to your wardrobe.

The problem is:

Traditional clothing is not optimized for sweat and range of motion. Beyond that, by the time you've got your shirt tucked in and your shoes tied, you're already covered with wrinkles.

It's time our clothing started working with us.

Mizzen+Main is a menswear company updating the classics with performance fabrics and a focus on design-forward, athletic fit. The question is, what does “performance” mean?  Let’s break it down.

Moisture Wicking

Outdoorsmen say “cotton kills” because it soaks up moisture and retains it; not good if you’re on a windy mountainside in the rain. Also not good if you need to perform at your job and don’t have the bandwidth to worry about soaking through your shirt on a July day or during an important presentation.

Why highlight this? A confession: I’ve traditionally had a moisture-management issue at work.

If you’re in any kind of collaborative, demanding career you know: the most stressful part of your day isn’t getting to work, getting to the gym, or your personal relationships – it is work. Whether it was dealing with an (ahem) challenging personality, performing in a meeting, or burning the midnight oil to meet a deadline I’ve often found myself sweating in a perfectly climate-controlled office.

Kennedy button up / Deputy chinoSweat. It’s a natural physiological response to stress, but it wreaks havoc with feeling fresh, odor-free, and confident.

This is where Mizzen+Main’s moisture wicking fabric comes in to play. It's a blend of synthetic fabrics, which convey moisture away from the skin – something traditional cotton fabrics don’t do well.

Check out the Kennedy button-up. It’s a classic dark-blue window pane pattern whose wicking fabric removes the concern about moisture management once and for all. Work sweat-ers, rejoice.

Movement-Friendly Stretch

Traditional cotton is soft and drapes well but offers virtually no give for movement-intensive applications such as climbing stairs or wending your way through a foreign city on your way to dinner.

Mizzen+Main addresses the movement issue with four-way stretch fabric that makes their line far more functional than traditional menswear.

The Deputy chino benefits enormously from this innovation. They’re stretchy in all the right places (knees, rear-end, hips) while still retaining the supportive drape of cotton chinos. Also noteworthy is the appealing slate blue – distinctive and fun without being showy.

Workaday Convenience

Here at Primer we’ve sung the praises of custom-fit menswear many times. We undoubtedly will again. But bespoke menswear comes with a singular drawback: much of it is dry clean only.

Adhering to their function-first design philosophy, Mizzen+Main clothing is machine washable and wrinkle resistant. This is particularly helpful for spring adventures and getaway workcations, where you need to both pack light and look good out of your suitcase.

The workhorse of the casual wardrobe is the short sleeve shirt, and it’s not something you want to worry about being wrinkly or needing to dry clean. Mizzen+Main excel in this category, with the Denali shirt being a stand-out. The cut is athletic, simple, and understated. Form, meet function.

Flexible Sizing

Mizzen+Main uses the standard S/M/L/XL, but make this traditional template more flexible with four options: Standard vs Tall length and Trim vs Standard fit. So whether you're tall and thin like me, shorter and broader like Andrew shown here, wear your shirts tucked or untucked, you’ll be able to tweak the options for a sound fit.

All things considered, Mizzen+Main makes it easy to travel, move, and stay dry and fresh, all without sacrificing style.

American-Made Style

On the style front, it’s worth pointing out that Mizzen+Main offers more bold colors & fashion-forward patterns than many of their technologically-comparable competitors. Just take a look at the range of button-ups available.

We also like the slightly preppy, New England vibe the brand conveys. It speaks to an understated quality that pairs well with the tech-heavy features of each piece.

Another thing to note is that Mizzen+Main is 100% American-cut and sewn, a rarity in these times of globe-spanning manufacturing chains.

Click here to check out the full line from Mizzen+Main!

Do you have experience with Mizzen+Main? Share it below!

Stillman Brown

Stillman Brown is a writer and TV producer who has created prime time content for National Geographic, Discovery, Travel Channel and many others. His interests span science & the natural world, personal growth, and food. He lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma.