Wonder what makes us prefer one shirt above all others among our flannel collection. Over the years I have reached for that particular shirt even though my family has added a half dozen newer ones in the same period. Strange.
I like none of those things. Except flannel shirts, but I haven’t even had one of those since grunge was popular. I’ve always hated the cold and Raynaud’s hasn’t improved my view of winter. Fortunately, it’s back into the high 70’s today.
Just this past week, an online columnist for Outside magazine went on a rant about all the “flannel” shirts out there made of cotton; his thesis was that flannel was wool, by God, or a wool blend. Not from any other fiber, no matter how plaid.
Or how soft and comfortable, I suppose.
I’m a huge fan of wool — there’s always a strong chance I’m wearing something made of it — but for the most part it was always merino wool in more or less jersey form. My first cycling jerseys (and shorts!) were wool, though that gave way to Lycra and Spandex for a few years. Then some manufacturers started making retro wool jerseys, and then companies like Smartwool, Ibex and Icebreaker started making everything out of wool again, and I was a happy, or at least really comfortable, guy. But I never equated wool with flannel until that columnist’s rant. And then I got to thinking:
I’ve had any number of “flannel” shirts made out of cotton. They were soft and comfortable and utterly forgettable. But I had one wool shirt that was as he described. I saved and splurged big-time and bought it from the long-gone Traverse Bay Woolen Mills. It was a classic buffalo plaid only with the red replaced by deep blue, and it was appropriate for just about any weather condition. It was my single favorite item of clothing, from my senior year of high school until it went missing during a drama rehearsal my freshman year in college. And I miss it to this day. Outside magazine may be betraying its Mariah roots with all the Rolex ads and SUV reviews, but damned if that flannel-rant columnist didn’t absolutely nail it.
Frazz by Jef Mallett for October 15, 2018 | GoComics.comView the daily comic strip for Frazz by cartoonist Jef Mallett created…
Nachikethass over 5 years ago
Yep – like normal!
Yakety Sax over 5 years ago
Sun washed canvas is nice as is chamois cloth.
Bilan over 5 years ago
But the main reason God created winter was for skiing.
Michael Thorton over 5 years ago
For me it’s always leather jackets. I plan on raising my collection from six to ten.
sandpiper over 5 years ago
Wonder what makes us prefer one shirt above all others among our flannel collection. Over the years I have reached for that particular shirt even though my family has added a half dozen newer ones in the same period. Strange.
The Brooklyn Accent over 5 years ago
“Do you have a shirt that you really like,
One that you feel so groovy in?
You don’t even mind if it starts to fade;
That only makes it nicer still.
I love my shirt. I love my shirt.
My shirt is so comfortably love-ly…"
—Donovan Leitch
MaxWelle Premium Member over 5 years ago
How did you forget grunge fan (Cobainians?)
Indycar over 5 years ago
I look forward to wearing my leather jacket
posse1 Premium Member over 5 years ago
“or tough,” HA! Great stuff
Richard S Russell Premium Member over 5 years ago
I look forward to winter because I just love hearing from global-warming deniers.
Flatlander, purveyor of fine covfefe over 5 years ago
So during winter in the northern hemisphere we are actually closer to the sun?
ellisaana Premium Member over 5 years ago
Not just flannel shirts, but crackling fires in fire grates, marshmallows, mulled cider.
Seed_drill over 5 years ago
I like none of those things. Except flannel shirts, but I haven’t even had one of those since grunge was popular. I’ve always hated the cold and Raynaud’s hasn’t improved my view of winter. Fortunately, it’s back into the high 70’s today.
Night-Gaunt49[Bozo is Boffo] over 5 years ago
Frazz17 hrs ·
Just this past week, an online columnist for Outside magazine went on a rant about all the “flannel” shirts out there made of cotton; his thesis was that flannel was wool, by God, or a wool blend. Not from any other fiber, no matter how plaid.
Or how soft and comfortable, I suppose.
I’m a huge fan of wool — there’s always a strong chance I’m wearing something made of it — but for the most part it was always merino wool in more or less jersey form. My first cycling jerseys (and shorts!) were wool, though that gave way to Lycra and Spandex for a few years. Then some manufacturers started making retro wool jerseys, and then companies like Smartwool, Ibex and Icebreaker started making everything out of wool again, and I was a happy, or at least really comfortable, guy. But I never equated wool with flannel until that columnist’s rant. And then I got to thinking:
I’ve had any number of “flannel” shirts made out of cotton. They were soft and comfortable and utterly forgettable. But I had one wool shirt that was as he described. I saved and splurged big-time and bought it from the long-gone Traverse Bay Woolen Mills. It was a classic buffalo plaid only with the red replaced by deep blue, and it was appropriate for just about any weather condition. It was my single favorite item of clothing, from my senior year of high school until it went missing during a drama rehearsal my freshman year in college. And I miss it to this day. Outside magazine may be betraying its Mariah roots with all the Rolex ads and SUV reviews, but damned if that flannel-rant columnist didn’t absolutely nail it.
Frazz by Jef Mallett for October 15, 2018 | GoComics.comView the daily comic strip for Frazz by cartoonist Jef Mallett created…