Buttoning up one of the best flannel shirts of the season isn’t merely a nod to trading in your work week tailoring: It’s a return to form, a welcome nod to the finest season for menswear roaring back to life. With its often sturdy and warm construction, the right flannel shirt feels like a stylish embrace, one well-suited for fall strolls through the park, crisp autumn beers by a fire or seasonal leaf-peeping at an alpine cabin.
There’s a reason your father and grandfather trusted the flannel shirt to get the job done. Now, it’s as much of a fashion move as any, all the while retaining its classically durable appeal. Look for rich colors and patterns, the likes of which Jack Kerouac, Steve McQueen or the fictional Jack Torrance might have worn. Think of the past, and its distinct array of dependable style options, and think of the autumnal future in which you can wear your new favorite flannel shirt: Options abound from your favorite designers and retailers.
Flint and Tinder Cabin Flannel Overshirt
A hefty yet supple, textured blend of cotton with stretch poly gives the flannel shirt some cache as a layering piece or a statement-minded shirt all its own. Heritage details like chest pockets, plus a rich array of fresh plaid color combinations, help it live up to its namesake: Wear this one on a cabin getaway, and you’ll feel right at home. $178
Relwen Flyweight Flannel Shirt
The best flannel shirts have an air of reliability about them: Relwen based this one off old-school models, then gave it a touch of class with a super-soft brushed finish and a flattering, Oxford shirt-esque buttondown collar. Consider this the kind of crisp take on the flannel shirt you can wear underneath a charcoal wool blazer. $178
Filson Vintage Flannel Workshirt
If it feels like the Filson Vintage Flannel Workshirt has been part of the famed Pacific Northwest outfitter’s lineup for longer than a decade, that’s by the design. The timeless workshirt takes its rugged cues from the American Northwest, boasting thick cotton flannel construction, soft brushed fabric and a pleated back design that Filson says delivers mobility for days in the shop or mornings fly fishing on the river. $169
Poncho Buffalo Shirt
The classic black-and-red flannel shirt is a tried-and-true menswear staple deserving of its day in the sun (or beneath the fall foliage). Poncho freshens up the timeless look with ultra-soft performance stretch flannel fabric and a bundle of welcome details, including a hidden zippered chest pocket, a sunglasses pocket, a built-in lens cloth at the shirt hem, and easy-on, easy-off magnetic buttons. It’s also anti-wrinkle, and built with a face-flattering collar and tailored yet layering-ready fit. Ryan Gosling, lover of Buffalo plaid, would be proud. Is it one of the best flannel shirts this writer has tried as of late? Assuredly, and Poncho’s signature shirting design comes in a vast array of colors and patterns. $94.95
Line of Trade Summit Flannel Shirt
Line of Trade is the best possible vision of what Bespoke Post, the razor-sharp subscription service constantly on the lookout for the market’s coolest gear, can be. Designed with the man at ease in both the city and strolling alongside an upstate river beneath fall foliage, the Summit Flannel boasts soft brushed cotton fabrication, a handsome point collar and a reliable fit that wears well on its own beneath a shawl cardigan or layered up over a thermal shirt. $70
Warren Six Season Flannel Shirt
It’s increasingly difficult, perhaps downright impossible, to find companies in the American Northeast committed to the lost art of textile production. Warren wants to change that reality, as founder Peter Holoien is on a mission to work with New England mills and factories on a thoughtfully designed and curated series of Americana classics. That leads to the Six Season Flannel, its name a playful nod to Vermont’s shifting weather. In its own right, the handsome textured organic cotton fabric reinvents an icon, and it’s worth every penny. $295
Wythe New York Washed Flannel Shirt
Wythe New York might just be one of the coolest under-the-radar brands for guys out there right now, with the eye-catching looks in this stylish flannel shirt to prove it. Western-style pockets draw from vintage store finds, as do the pearl snap buttons, with a hefty dash of 1920s American West inspiration coursing through this one-of-a-kind, investment-level flannel shirt. $188
Taylor Stitch Yosemite Shirt
The best flannel shirts now bridge the gap between the rugged days of old and the modern style these times require. The Yosemite Shirt is at once a sturdy overshirt with prime layering potential (atop a contrasting chambray shirt or beneath a waxed field coat) and a statement all its own, especially in an outdoor-minded shade of Summit Orange. The soft organic cotton chamois and helpful chest sizing are details beloved by Taylor Stitch fans, and you might find yourself becoming one quite quickly this season. $138
Beringia Farallon Wool Plaid Shirt
There’s an almost dizzying amount to love about this elevated, technical take on the flannel shirt from Beringia, which might quietly be one of the most distinctive adventure-meets-style brands out there (it’s so named for the historical stretch of land between Alaska and Siberia). Shirting-wise, Beringia takes an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach, in the best way possible. That means this made-in-Japan shirt uses regenerative wool, further enhanced by reinforced abrasion elbow patches, a series of angular and zippered chest pockets for exceptional utility, and a design that works particularly well as an overshirt. $350
Todd Snyder Portuguese Flannel Shirt
Some of the world’s finest flannel fabric makes up this refined spin on the normally outdoor-minded flannel shirt. With its retro camp collar design and a cropped straight hem, the kind you might usually find in a summer-ready linen shirt, this flannel shirt is assuredly speakeasy-approved, with an utter sense of easygoing cool. $178
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