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What If You Wore Just One Denim Shirt for a Full Year?
On comfort, commitment, and choosing the right one
Thomas Stege Bojer
December 19, 2025
This is the last Denimhunters newsletter of the year—and a good moment to zoom out for a second.
2025 has been a big one for me. Most notably, I finally launched my brand, Weirloom. Seeing it go from idea to actual product—that people buy and praise—has been a dream come true. The plan for next year is simple: grow the collection, open more doors, and keep building the brand the right way.
Denimhunters has had a strong year too. A lot of work has gone into the site behind the scenes, including a major technical rebuild that went live this week. (You won’t see much change on the surface, but the engine is basically brand new.) The site is funded through affiliate links and—thanks to you clicking and buying—that part of the business has grown far beyond what I set out to achieve this year. Thank you!
I’ll be taking a short break over Christmas and New Year’s to be with my family, and I’ll be back in your inbox in January. The next newsletter will come from a new provider, and I’m planning to move the newsletter onto the Denimhunters site.
Shipping’s Too Late? Support Your Local Store
With online shopping growing every year, it’s easy to forget how valuable good local denim and menswear stores really are. If you have one nearby, shop your last-minute gifts there.
On that note, I’m currently working on retailer and brand lists for Denimhunters—building on what’s worked well with the Sales Guide.
New Guides Published This Week
Right after pushing the new site live yesterday, I also hit publish on two new guides I’d had sitting ready for a few days.
Brooklyn Clothing Co. has been doing things right in Calgary since 1989, and it stands shoulder to shoulder with the best denim and heritage retailers in North America.
The guide looks at what makes the shop special, what they do particularly well, and where to start if you’re browsing online—from Japanese heavyweights like Iron Heart and Samurai to some of the strongest boot brands in the game.
There’s also a more personal reason this one matters to me. Brooklyn is the first retailer to stock Weirloom. In the photos Brad Tien had shot specifically for this guide, you’ll see Weirloom jeans sitting prominently in the shop—right where they belong.
This is a new Swedish brand, and one that immediately resonated with me because of its thinking. A small, tightly edited range. No seasonal clutter. Just jeans, shirts, jackets, and a few complementary pieces built around a clear philosophy.
If you’re drawn to denim essentialism, this one is well worth a closer look.
Looking for a Denim Shirt You Can Wear for Years
Compared to jackets and even jeans, a denim shirt sits closer to the body, so comfort, weight, and fit matter even more. Get those right, and wearing it a lot feels natural. Get them wrong, and it never really earns its place.
If I were looking for one denim shirt I could realistically live in for a long stretch, maybe in the Redline Rally, these are the three I’d start with.
This is one I actually own and have worn for several years. Not obsessively, not as part of a competition—but enough to know how it behaves and how it wears.
The 12 oz. denim is on the heavier side compared to what most people think of as a “normal” denim shirt, but it’s not excessive. Once broken in, it’s surprisingly easy to live with, and the one-wash treatment means there are no sizing surprises along the way.
It’s also worth noting that this model has been out of stock for quite a while—both directly from Iron Heart and at most retailers. It’s finally available again, so if this has been on your list, now’s a good moment to move on it.
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At 10 oz., this is clearly denim, but without the constant physical presence of a heavier shirt. It works worn on its own, under a jacket, and indoors without feeling like something you need to take off as soon as you sit down. That makes it a shirt you can realistically wear often, rather than just when conditions are right.
Flat Head’s denim starts out clean and compact, then slowly softens and opens up with wear. It doesn’t announce itself early on, but it responds well to repetition, picking up creases and texture in a very natural, understated way over time.
Like the others here, it’s been washed once, so sizing and shrinkage aren’t something you need to manage. You just wear it and let it do its thing.
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This is firmly in heavyweight territory for a shirt. You feel it when you put it on, and you’re aware of it throughout the day. That’s not a downside, but it does mean this is a piece you choose deliberately, not one you throw on without thinking.
The upside is what Studio D’Artisan does so well: denim that rewards commitment. The fabric is built for contrast, and if you wear this regularly, it will show. It’s one-washed, so shrinkage isn’t something you need to worry about, but the break-in still takes time.
If you want a denim shirt that behaves almost like a light jacket—and you’re prepared to wear it enough to justify that—this one will give you the most back in the long run.
Still Looking for the Right Shirt?
If the idea of committing to a single denim shirt appeals to you, we’ve already gone further on the site.
The denim shirt guide on Denimhunters pulls together the shirts that are genuinely worth wearing hard over time—across different weights, styles, and approaches. Some are light and easygoing, others heavier and more demanding, but all of them share one thing: they reward consistency.
If you’re trying to figure out what kind of denim shirt actually makes sense for how you dress—and how much you’ll realistically wear it—that guide is a good place to start. Read the guide here.
That’s all from me for now. I’m signing off for the holidays and looking forward to what’s coming next year. See you in 2026.
/Thomas
Oh—and one more thing: There’s a big milestone coming up for Denimhunters toward the end of January, so stay tuned for that.