I Wore This $24 Oversized White Button-down All Over Europe for 3 Weeks, and I Never Had to Iron It Once

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It’s machine-washable and dries without wrinkles.

As much as I aspire to be that traveler who boards the plane with a tightly edited suitcase, the truth is that I’m a chronic overpacker. Despite my best efforts, I struggle to accurately envision what I’ll need on vacations, and always end up unpacking unworn clothes at the end of a trip. But last summer before a three-week Europe vacation, I finally had a breakthrough thanks to a $24 Amazon impulse purchase — the Big Dart Women’s Loose Fit Button-down Shirt.

This was going to be a particularly long trip and I was traveling with my two young kids, so I knew I needed to pack as efficiently as possible. For the first time ever, I wrote out an actual list of outfit combinations and various situations I might wear them in — and realized, with just a few days to spare, that I could use some kind of lightweight topper for cooler nights. After searching frantically at Amazon for something that might work, I ordered the Big Dart button-down in white.

To buy: amazon.com, $24 (originally $28)

What I didn’t realize at first was that I had landed upon one of those magic “unicorn” items that somehow goes with everything and has a million uses when traveling — the kind of thing I imagine someone with a highly curated suitcase would pack.

At first glance, this is a pretty standard white button-down shirt. And quite honestly, for $24, I figured there was about an 80 percent chance I would end up returning it. But surprisingly, as soon as I slipped it on, I knew it would be a keeper. The fabric, which is 70 percent polyester and 30 percent cotton, is lightweight with a nice, crisp feel. 

I was pleasantly happy with my order, but wasn’t expecting to get as much use out of it as I did. We were visiting Portugal and France, and the temperatures ranged wildly during our trip — from mid-60s on some nights in Portugal to over 100 degrees during a heat wave while we were in France. Surprisingly, I ended up wearing my Big Dart button-down both day and night, and in all types of weather.

On cooler nights, it added just enough warmth over a dress or with linen pants. And I had it on near constantly during the day — it’s the perfect beach cover-up, but also looked great tucked into denim shorts, with the sides tied up into a knot with skirts, or with leggings and a sports bra to the gym. Because both destinations were so sunny, I loved that it provided a bit of sun coverage on my chest and arms, too. While not 100 percent cotton, I did find the material to be fairly breathable on hot days.

Even more surprising, given its price, is how durable this shirt is and how easily it washes. I was away for three weeks, so I ended up having to launder it multiple times. It’s machine-washable and looks perfectly nice after drying on a rack — I have never needed to iron it. I smooth it out a little bit before and after hanging, and it looks great. (I’m not alone in noticing this: “Crisp cotton that you can machine wash and dry without wrinkles!” raved one Amazon reviewer.)

To buy: amazon.com, $24

What’s more, the fabric is shockingly stain-resistant given how lightweight it is. I wore this shirt constantly around two kids under the age of three, which meant that it encountered dirt, ketchup, baby food purée, and melted chocolate ice cream. It was even involved in an unfortunate red wine incident. But you would never know from looking at it — everything seems to just wash out of this fabric pretty easily, and the only stain I ever needed to treat was the red wine.

The Big Dart button-down has just under 3,000 five-star ratings, and many other Amazon buyers agree that it’s a great value. “I especially loved wearing it while traveling; not too heavy or light...just right for any seasons,” one happy reviewer said. “It's of much better quality than expected,” another buyer chimed in. “It’s a nice light shirt and fits really well,” said another, adding that “it’s thin but not see-through.”

Although I purchased it in white, it’s available in 25 different colors — the dark green shade in particular has a lot of rave reviews — and in women’s sizes XS to XXL.

To buy: amazon.com, $24

It is on the thinner side, and while I wouldn’t call it see-through, if you were wearing a brightly covered bra or shirt underneath, it would show through a little. For me, this was fine, as I was mostly wearing it unbuttoned with something underneath. If you’d plan on wearing this mostly in cooler weather, however, you might prefer a shirt with more substantial fabric. Some reviewers also say that the sleeves are on the short side, which wasn’t my experience, but I did size up because I wanted a looser fit (for context, I’m 5' 6" and ordered a medium).

It’s been about eight months since I bought the Big Dart Women’s Long Sleeve Loose Fit Button-Down Shirt, and I still wear it often (and it has held up shockingly well during that time). And thanks to its ability to tie together countless outfits, I always reach for it when I’m traveling — I still have a ways to go, but it’s helped get me one step closer to my tightly edited suitcase dreams.

At the time of publishing, the price started at $24. 

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