Shirts, left to right, from eBay sellers Twitch Vintage, Mr. Boots Vintage, and Stormcrow Vintage.

THE PERFECT T-SHIRT. Even the most skilled DIY-ers and the sharpest-eyed of thrifters have trouble with this one; the perfect t-shirt (by my definition) is an elusive mix of worn-in softness, well-worn transparency, ideal length, and TOTAL COMFORT. I've tried them all: from American Apparel tri-blend to Alternative Apparel burnout; from three-packs at the dollar store to twenty dollars at the merch booth to one single grey tee that was Far Too Expensive; I once even spent a whole weekend surrounded by piles of cotton jersey, cutting and sewing and re-cutting and re-sewing my very own t-shirt from a homemade pattern. Some did the job, several hit the mark, and a memorable few even achieved momentary perfection, but the truth needs telling - nothing, NOTHING, beats a vintage t-shirt. Not only do they come pre-loved and oh-so-soft, but that already-broken-in feeling makes for a great-fitting tee.

Because my own thrifting patience no longer extends to flicking through a 20 foot-long rack of inevitably unwearable tees, I've taken to eBay for all my vintage t-shirt scouting - there are literally hundreds of sellers who specialize in perfectly worn-in vintage tees of all kinds. Adding adjectives like "soft," "thin," and "faded" to your search will aid in turning up more desirable pieces, and I recommend avoiding items with multiple listings or with keywords like "retro" or "like vintage" - they tend to be brand-new items in disguise. Any eBay seller worth his or her salt will include measurements with the item description, so be sure to check them against a tee that you already own and love the fit of. And even if you don't end up finding your dream tee, you're at least guaranteed a highly entertaining search - my research for this post turned up gems like "Biker's Graveyard" and this totally amazing, 1980s airbrushed Tommy Lee shirt.

How many of YOU are frequent eBayers - for t-shirts or other items? And more importantly, have any of YOU found YOUR perfect tee, vintage or otherwise??