
Patagonia: With Ventura-based Patagonia, you
get what you pay for. What you pay is a
lot. What you get is exactly what you
want. Patagonia’s gear and clothing
looks great, it works perfectly, and it is manufactured as ethically and
sustainably as reasonably possible. I do not yet own a Patagonia tank
top. But I do own a broad cross-section
Patagonia clothing and gear, all of which may very well last me forever.
American Giant: San Francisco-based American Giant
claims to make The Perfect Hoodie. I
bought one. It is. They also make muscle shirts.
Mountain Hardwear: Richmond-based Mountain Hardware
has been my go-to supplier for camping-and-backpacking clothing and gear for
more than a decade. They also make some
athletic tank tops, which probably are of high quality, and which look nice, in
a a-backpacking-company-made-this sort of way.
Chubbies: San Francisco-based Chubbies makes pool/beach clothes with
anti-fashion prints for the Weekend At
Bernie’s crowd, including some tank tops.
Personally, I’ve never seen a Chubbies shirt that I can imagine myself
wearing. But their Weekend Love
exuberance keeps me returning to their site.
Body Glove: Redondo Beach-based Body Glove claims that its founders used insulation from the back of a refrigerator to invent "the first practical wetsuit." I have no idea whether that's true. But I have worn enough of Body Glove's offerings over the years to trust them to provide me with solid surfing-related apparel at a fair price.
Body Glove: Redondo Beach-based Body Glove claims that its founders used insulation from the back of a refrigerator to invent "the first practical wetsuit." I have no idea whether that's true. But I have worn enough of Body Glove's offerings over the years to trust them to provide me with solid surfing-related apparel at a fair price.
Runyon Canyon Apparel: Los Angeles-based
Runyon designs and manufactures USA-milled, USA-cut, and USA-sewn clothes that
are great for running around outdoors.
Their tank tops also would work for streetwear. One thing: their
shirts run a bit big -- I recommend buying a size down.
American Apparel: So here's the thing about Los Angeles-based AA: It's well made, and it looks great on the people who it looks great on. For everyone else, AA seems designed specifically to highlight the ways in which it does not look great on them. Don't know which category you fall into? Well, the folks around you do. Ask someone you trust if you're one of the people who AA designs its clothes to fit. If the answer is yes, then lucky you -- you have a one-stop shop for relatively inexpensive, ethically manufactured, long-lasting basics. If the answer is no, walk away from this brand forever.
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