My Favorite Summer Shirting (Fabric)

What’s the best shirting fabric to withstand the heat of high summer? Is it linen? Madras? Cotton-linen blends?

I don’t know whether science could provide an objective answer to that question, but my favorite shirting fabric is Giro Inglese. 

It goes by different names depending on who makes it—sometimes called Cellulare (Italian pronunciation: chel-yoo-larr-ay), or Airtex.

What makes it special is the highly open weave, which allows a lot of airflow in between the fibers. Yet it’s still 100% cotton.

Check out the Instagram video I did to see my shirt up close:

Here are a few shops that have shirts made from Giro Inglese / Cellulare / Airtex fabric right now:

Sid Mashburn Cellulare white and light blue shirts (they have both dress shirts and sport shirts)

SuitSupply light blue Giro Inglese extra-slim fit shirt

Besnard La Haye white Giro Inglese camp collar shirt

Emmanuel Berg white Giro Inglese button-down shirt at Nordstrom

Cordone 1956 Girlo Inglese shirts in medium blue, white or navy at Finaest.com

Cremieux (!) white Giro Inglese shirt or it comes in blue bengal stripe (though it’s hard for me to recommend a $295 shirt that comes in alpha sizing)

Principe di Firenze blue or white Giro Inglese shirt

(Help support this site! If you buy stuff through my links, your clicks and purchases earn me a commission from many of the retailers I feature, and it helps me sustain this site—as well as my menswear habit ;-)  Thanks!)

Shop my clothing from this post and every other post on the Shop My Closet page. If you’re just getting into tailored menswear and want a single helpful guide to building a trend-proof wardrobe, buy my eBook. It doesn’t cost that much and covers wardrobe essentials for any guy who wants to look cool, feel cool and make a good impression. Formatted for your phone or computer/iPad so it’s not annoying to read, and it’s full of pretty pictures, not just boring prose. Buy it here.