Smoked Shirts

I heard a great story about the Borrelli company in Italy. They make some of the best men’s shirts in the world, ergo they cost a lot too. All of the buttonholes on the shirts are hand sewn by a bunch of old women in a small town near the Borrelli factory. They do such a good job that they’re the only ones hired by the company to do the work. The problem is when the shirts are returned after the work is done, there’s always tobacco ash stains on them because the women smoke like crazy while sewing. So the company has long since factored into the production schedule a few days extra so the shirts can be laundered after they’re returned — and then sold.