Rick Owens Basic LS T – Milk

The sleeves are the design. They are cut long past the wrist, far enough that they gather at the hand rather than ending at it, which is one of the two or three proportions this designer is recognised for and is the whole reason a plain round-necked shirt from this house does not look like a plain round-necked shirt from anywhere else. The cloth is what lets it work. Viscose and silk jersey is denser and cooler in the hand than cotton, carries a faint lustre rather than a matte finish, and has almost no spring, so the excess falls and gathers softly instead of standing in rings at the wrist. Semi-sheer at this weight, and cut long enough through the body to be worn untucked. There is nothing else on it at all.

Why we selected it

We bought this once and took all three colours, which is unusual for us and was decided by the sleeve rather than by the palette. An extra-long sleeve changes the proportion of whoever is wearing it, and it does that differently against a pale colour, a dark one, and a warm one, so three colourways of this shirt are three different effects rather than three stock options. It is also the least demanding way into a proportion this designer has been working on for decades.

The extra-long sleeve is one of the proportions this house is identified by, and this is the plainest garment it puts on.

The colour

Milk is the house’s off-white, warm rather than optical, with no blue brightening in it. It is the version where the semi-transparency is something you can see rather than something you are told about, and where the gather of cloth at the wrist reads as a separate mass of fabric instead of disappearing into the arm.

Materials and construction

Eighty-eight percent viscose and twelve percent silk, made in Italy. Semi-sheer jersey with a rounded neckline, an elongated body, and extra-long sleeves.

Fit notes

The sleeve length is intentional and sizing down to correct it will shorten the body instead. Semi-sheer at this weight, so it reads as a layer even worn alone, which is more obvious in a pale colour than in a dark one. Viscose and silk jersey has limited recovery and follows the body, relaxing across a day and settling back with care. Take your usual size; the length is in the pattern rather than in the sizing.

Styling

With black trousers, where the pale body is the only light in the outfit. Under either leather jacket with the sleeves pulled through the cuff. Alone in summer.

Care

Viscose is markedly weaker wet than dry, so hand wash cool, never wring it, and dry it flat rather than on a hanger, where the weight of the wet cloth will lengthen it. Our care guidance covers viscose in more detail.

Related pieces

The same shirt in black is the Basic LS T in black and in brown the Basic LS T in brown. In milk with short sleeves, the T-Shirt Level T in milk and the V Neck SS T. Everything we currently hold from Rick Owens is listed together.