Men, you should be wearing Flint and Tinder underwear. I would know, I'm an underwear expert. Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours to master a skill and I have thirty five years of underwear-wearing experience! So listen to me and try on a pair.
I've been spending time thinking about my purchases in general. I want my acquisitions to expand the world with which I'm pleased, whenever possible. That sentence was awkward. What I mean is, I prefer home-cooking and local restaurants to fast food. I want neighborhoods to be walkable. I drink filtered tap water instead of getting it shipped in from Fiji. I listen to KPBS, therefore I donate to them as well. William Gibson once said, "the future is already here - it's just not evenly distributed." I think the seeds of the world I want are already here and I need to invest in them to keep things growing. With that in mind, I've been trying to make better spending choices.
So back to underwear. Flint and Tinder started as a Kickstarter darling, one that has actually worked. American Apparel used to be the only company that sold Made in America men's underwear. Everyone else has been shipping in our skivvies from far, far away. Thanks to the generous outpouring of Kickstarter backers, there are now two companies selling patriotic underpants. I'm not against international trade. Actually I think it can be great. However, overseas trade is often about chasing lower costs, not better products. If someone wants to make my products closer to home and up the quality, I will pay for that. F&T products aren't as inexpensive as a 3-6 pack from Target, but every dollar you pay is returned in quality. I'd rather buy one item made with care than three items cheaply constructed.
F&T really does improve on quality. They use very nice cotton. It ends up that the type of cotton matters. The texture of the fabric is leaps and bounds more comfortable than Haines, Fruit of the Loom, or whatever. Also, the stitching stays stitched. F&T claims that the care they put into picking materials and constructing the garments will translate into a longer lasting product. It will be a while before I can speak to that. What I know is, I own their boxer-briefs and they are the best undergarments I've ever worn. F&T made me ask, "why haven't I cared about underwear before?"
Buy Flint and Tinder products. The holidays are coming up. Surprise someone you love with a stocking full of underwear. I guarantee the look of surprise will be genuine. The thanks will be as well, at least, after he's worn them a while.
