The Chris Black Starter Pack: 20 of Our Columnist’s Favourite Basics

There’s no need to splurge on your classic white tee, according to Chris, who loves these five-packs from Gildan because they’re ‘so simple. I wear them without concern until they need to be disposed of and I just order more.’

A ‘THICC neck’, as Chris likes to call it, gives a white tee a bit of a sturdier, more put-together look. As for how to wear white tees, he says, ‘they look good under a hooded sweatshirt, a cardigan, or even a suit’.

Chris famously loathes backpacks, writing an emphatic “hell no” when asked if an adult should ever carry one. Instead, he says, ‘the simple canvas tote bag is the answer’, and ‘no one can top the LL Bean Boat and Tote’.

‘Levi’s basically invented jeans’, says Chris, who told us these mid-rise 501s, with a button fly and straight leg, are his go-to black pair.

When he’s not wearing jeans, ‘blue Dickies are my go-to pant’, writes Chris, adding that ‘even though they are made for actual work, they can be dressed up easily with a little tailoring’.

Chris swears by these ‘simple cotton socks’ that are ‘perfect for the gym or daily wear’.

This spray-on deodorant is Chris’s ‘little secret’. He says it ‘smells incredible and mixes well with almost everything’.

The Oxford button-down shirt is another “wardrobe staple,” according to Chris, who told us he’s a longtime fan of Uniqlo’s, ‘which can’t be beat for the price.’ In addition to white, it comes in other colours like light blue, black, and navy.

Although he keeps three moisturizers in his bathroom at all times, Chris says this is the one he uses every day. ‘It is perfect for daily use after cleansing and toning’, he says.

Chris has been wearing Bostons ever since he got a free pair while ‘working at an Atlanta footwear institution called Abbadabba’s’, way back when he was ‘19, smoking Parliament Lights, and living in a house with four dudes’. Of his preferred style, he says: ‘They are comfortable and sort of ugly, in the best way possible’.

When it comes to workout clothes, Chris’s motto ‘PRO GEAR, PRO ATTITUDE’. He suggests hitting your local Nike outlet to pick up ‘well-priced simple shorts and shirts’, the latter of which Amazon sells at affordable prices, too.

Chris notes that his favorite workout shorts — and shirt — are made from ‘basic sweat-wicking materials’.

‘The iPhone, as an object, is beautiful and sleek, but when you add a bulky and unsightly case, it ruins the integrity of the design’, says Chris. That’s why Peel’s case — which is ‘so minimal that people don’t notice it but does the job well’ — is the only one he says he can possibly recommend.

‘The only all-white sneakers I genuinely stand behind’, writes Chris.

Chris’s other go-to sneakers are appropriate to wear for pretty much anything, he tells us, from date night to ‘sashaying through the Delta terminal at JFK’. [Editor’s note: Chris’s pick of all-silver 990v4 isn’t available, but we recommend the black-and-silver model.]

If an occasion calls for footwear more formal than the above, Chris says to ‘pull out the Bass Weejuns (make sure they are polished)’.

Normally a shampoo-and-conditioner-only type of guy, Chris told us his barber not long ago turned him on to salt spray, and that he ‘loves the effect it has’ on his hair. After shopping around, he started using this. ‘TBH, it doesn’t smell great, but the spray adds some volume and texture’.

Like moisturisers, Chris has a collection of rain jackets but calls this Patagonia style a ‘hard-wearing classic’.

Chris puts his affinity for Nike’s ‘super-breathable’ baseball cap this way: ‘Honestly, it’s the perfect hat for all seasons’.

For a simple Dopp kit, ‘you can’t go wrong with brown leather from Filson’, according to Chris. ‘The branding is understated, and the Dopp kit will age beautifully’.