A great shirt

I tend to veer to the classic in many style arenas, so it’s not surprising that I have a particular weakness for a great crisp shirt. A clever and charming man in a lovely fitted dress shirt with elegant cufflinks, with or without a tie, is a man I’d likely want to chat with. Ditto a woman in a crisp tailored shirt. She looks like she’s got her house in order. I have a few terrific shirts in my closet, but I’ve recently fallen for the imaginative interpretations of the iconic guy-style item by the Ben Sherman label.

Ben Sherman is a British brand begun in 1963, in the heyday of the Beatles and The Kinks, and its shirts have a quirky British essence to them. There are men’s and women’s styles in the line’s repertoire, with countless multi-coloured striped ones, tuxedo-inspired styles and floral or geometric-print options to choose from. Priced between $88–$128, they’ll dress up your jeans or give a custom-tailored twist to your simple black pants or pencil skirt. And they’re available at tons of stores across the country.

Check out www.bensherman.com for a list of stores where the snazzy shirts are sold. (The site is a bit confusing: I guess the company considers Canada part of the States, so go to the USA site on the homepage to find shops on this side of the border.)

–Deborah Fulsang