Skims underwear ain’t the one identify within the recreation. For extra elite skivvies intel, begin right here.
For years now, one pair of underwear has sat atop GQ’s annual rating of the class: Calvin Klein’s signature briefs, a quiet revolution in branding wrapped in stretchy cotton-spandex. When the American label launched them within the early ‘80s, they made designer underwear a factor, ushering within the period of the celeb marketing campaign within the course of.
However these legendary campaigns are only one issue of the equation. Many years after their debut, the briefs are nonetheless good—nice, even—and properly price each honorific we’ve awarded them. A lot so, in reality, that after some time, CK’s dominance began to really feel inevitable, a truth of life on par with dying, taxes, and summer season swamp-ass.
After which a little-known mogul named Kim Kardashian entered the elastic waistband fold. Late final 12 months, Kardashian launched the inaugural Skims males’s assortment, a brand new assortment of lingerie, PJs, and sweats with speedy ramifications on your skivvies drawer. They have been slinky, they have been skimming, they have been each bit as horny as Calvin Klein’s genre-defining briefs—and now, nearly a 12 months later, the precise nature of these ramifications is obvious.
As a result of after months of in depth wear-testing adopted by a wonderful come-to-Jesus (or, uh, Jeremy Allen White) second, the GQ Recommends braintrust arrived at a single, unassailable conclusion: these Skims briefs are the most effective underwear for males in the marketplace proper now. Right here’s how we acquired there.
Material that deserves the equal of an EGOT
Before everything: while you’re tasked with the noble job of junk administration, nailing the material is crucial. Underwear ought to have sufficient stretch so that you can transfer with out restriction. It also needs to be breathable and moisture-wicking, lest your nether areas flip into what we are able to solely describe as Shrek’s subsequent real-estate alternative. Maybe most significantly, although, the material must be mushy. If you happen to’re fortunate, it ought to really feel like silk. If you happen to’re blessed, it ought to really feel like nothing in any respect. The Skims briefs tick all of these containers—stretchiness, moisture-wicking, softness—like an EGOT winner.
Their do-it-yourself recipe is a mix of cotton, modal, and elastane, every of which offers an essential attribute. The midweight cotton is mushy and breathable, with a pure, non-synthetic hand really feel. The modal wicks away moisture. And that wholesome sprint of elastane retains every little thing comfortable with out reducing off circulation.
Rock-solid building and a bespoke-like match
As praiseworthy as the material is, it would as properly be scraps if the development was shoddy. Fortunately, the development is nice: The Skims briefs use flatlock stitches, which reduces bulk and makes for extra flush and comfy seams. Chafing? By no means heard of it. The material panels are lower in a method that avoids bunching, hugs the curves in all the precise methods, and provides form and room the place you want it.
