The boxer briefs
Released in October 2020
To learn the story behind our first boxer briefs, read this article
Released in April 2021
- Adjusted size chart: wider at the waist, more fitted at the crotch and thigh
- The elastic waistband is folded over to stop the top edge from fraying
- The inside logo is screen-printed rather than transferred, for greater durability
What makes this Egyptian cotton special: extra-long fibres for strength (over 3.6 cm, compared to an average of 2.5 cm) and very fine ones for softness.
Full composition: main fabric 96% organic cotton 4% elastane, elastics 68% polyamide 19% polyester 12% elastane.
The fabric is soft thanks to the fineness of the Giza cotton. The waistband too, because the polyamide yarn has been air-jet textured to reproduce the fluffy feel of cotton.
In our lab abrasion-resistance tests, thanks to a two-ply yarn, our boxer briefs scored the highest marks: visible elastane at 35,000 cycles for the Loom boxer briefs vs. 16,000 for the reference pair, see results in pictures.
These boxer briefs are made in the Portuguese factory Jobarros, which we've been working with since 2020.
Worn, tested and approved by thousands of customers, this pair of boxer briefs is the result of several years of continuous improvement. We've refined it over time to reach a quality-ethics-price balance that we now consider optimal. For example, we could bring the price down by using cotton with shorter fibres, but then the boxer briefs would wear out faster.
The techniques behind the quality
Combed cotton
Cotton with its short fibres removed by "combing" it: softer and more durable than regular cotton.
Combed cotton
Two-ply yarn
Dense fabric
Durable belt
Pre-washed
Two-ply yarn
Thanks to the very fine Egyptian cotton, we were able to twist two threads together like making a cable (this is what we call "two-ply"). So it takes longer for holes to appear in the areas that rub against each other (i.e. at the crotch).
Combed cotton
Two-ply yarn
Dense fabric
Durable belt
Pre-washed
Dense fabric
Fairly high weight of 220g/m2 to delay the appearance of holes.
Combed cotton
Two-ply yarn
Dense fabric
Durable belt
Pre-washed
Durable belt
Made in France by the Berthéas factory, which specialises in elastic bands (notably for the medical field), our waistband withstands washing without warping or losing its shape (lab-tested through accelerated ageing).
Combed cotton
Two-ply yarn
Dense fabric
Durable belt
Pre-washed
Pre-washed
These boxer briefs are stabilised and pre-washed at the factory, so they won't shrink at home (with cotton clothes, most of the shrinkage happens during the first wash)
Combed cotton
Two-ply yarn
Dense fabric
Durable belt
Pre-washed
It won't wear through anytime soon
Thanks to the fineness of Egyptian (organic) cotton and the texture of the elastic waistband (made in France), these boxer briefs are super soft. But hard-wearing too: to stop holes forming for longer, we used a double-twisted yarn – two yarns twisted around each other, like a cable.
In detail
Soft belt
Made in France.
Flat seams
To minimise chafing.
Crotch gusset
A rectangular piece of fabric between the front and back of the boxer briefs so you don't feel too tight.
Care instructions printed
To avoid scratchy labels in the back and attachment seams that damage the fabric.
Composition
Main fabric: 96% cotton, 4% elastane
Waistband: 68% polyamide, 19% polyester, 12% elastane
Origin and certifications
- Knitting, dyeing and manufacturing: Portugal
- Elastic waistband: France
- Cotton and spinning: Egypt
... make it in Portugal and not in France? Of course, producing in Portugal lets us sell at lower prices. But it also makes it easier to achieve good quality there: back in the 80s, when France offshored its industry, Portugal strengthened its own. That said, others do manage to make things 100% in France, like Le Slip Français.
Why does the cotton come from so far away? Actually, it's hard to get any closer. While a few diehard Gauls manage to grow some in their fields, cotton farming is marginal in Europe. The closest places we can source it from are Egypt, Turkey and Greece.
How this product will age
How do we know? We ask our customers what they think of the product one year after they've bought it. And if the product is less than a year old, we give you our predictions based on some spontaneous feedback and on our experience with similar products.
The boxer briefs will stay in great shape, stretch out very little and won't develop holes any time soon (only a small handful of customers have reported holes after several years of wear).
That said, like all cotton garments, it will lose a little of its softness and shine over time as you wash it.
Care instructions
It's machine washable at 40 degrees, but it's better to wash it at 30: it's just as effective, far greener, and it will extend its lifespan.
And above all, inside out, to better protect the colours.
For its longevity and for the sake of the environment, the ideal is to air-dry it. But sometimes you don't have a choice: if you have to use a tumble dryer, do it on low heat (i.e. on the delicate or synthetic setting) to keep it from losing its elasticity and damaging the fibres too much.
Lastly, it may feel a bit snug around the thighs at first: that's normal, and it stops it from riding up too much over the course of the day. It will loosen slightly the more you wear it.
If it pills a little against the skin the first few times you wear it, that's normal: the pills will disappear completely after a few washes.
If it looks a bit shiny at first, that's normal too: this slightly silky appearance comes from the fineness of the cotton fibres, which give it its softness and strength. But don't worry, this shine tends to fade wash after wash.
Environmental cost
This environmental cost is calculated using the official methodology of the French environmental labelling scheme (in force since 1 October 2025).
The label above shows the product's environmental cost according to the official methodology of the French environmental labelling scheme. It's what its manufacturing "costs" nature when you look at its impact on climate change, ocean acidification, its toxicity for fresh water, and so on. Now rolled out in the textile sector, this label should soon appear on many everyday consumer products (food, cosmetics, furniture, etc.) to help you shop more responsibly.
The boxer briefs therefore have an environmental cost of 263 impact points*.
By comparison, a garment of equivalent weight, made of 100% conventional cotton, manufactured in Bangladesh and sold by a fast fashion brand, has an environmental cost of 943 points*.
Why the difference? Here are the main reasons:
- The countries of production: manufacturing in Portugal or France requires less fossil fuel than in Bangladesh (one of the main producers of low-cost clothing). The result: this more local manufacturing limits the impact on climate change, ocean acidification and resource depletion.
- The material: organic cotton has a fairly low environmental impact compared to conventional cotton, notably because it uses few pesticides (so low toxicity for freshwater) and is biodegradable (so fewer issues with micro-fibres or end-of-life waste).
- Durability: fast fashion brands drive purchases by refreshing their collections very quickly and offering a huge number of styles, and they discourage repairs by charging laughably low prices. This increases the number of garments sold per person and reduces the number of times a garment is worn. At Loom, we've taken the opposite path: we've chosen business practices that encourage our customers to keep their clothes for as long as possible.
Even though we've done everything to keep it as low as possible, the environmental impact of this product isn't negligible. So before buying, make your clothes last as long as you can.
*Calculations performed by Loom on 14/09/2026. Click the links to access the simulations from the official Ecobalyse tool and get more details on the assumptions used. Please note: the number of points isn't always exactly the same on Ecobalyse (whose method is regularly updated) as on the official environmental label (based on version 7.0 of Ecobalyse)
Reviews for this product
The standard practice is to send review request e-mails a few days after the purchase. We wait a month, the minimum time needed to form a well-informed opinion
Customer review policy
When do you ask customers for reviews?
We send you a review request one month after you receive your order. We reckon that's the minimum amount of time needed to have worn and washed a garment several times and to really form a well-informed opinion. After that, all your reviews are published within the week, whether they're good or not.
Do you ask for reviews on 100% of the products customers order?
We used to do that at first, then we realised we were starting to send far too many emails to some people who buy from us regularly. In short, we were spamming a bit. On top of that, it was starting to take up way too much of the team's time to reply to reviews - since we want to reply individually and privately to almost every person who leaves us a review. Today, we no longer ask for reviews on products that meet the following two criteria: 1/ There are enough reviews shown on the site for people who want to buy to form a well-informed opinion about the product 2/ We've read enough reviews within the Loom team to understand how to improve the product for the next generation.
Hold your horses: what proves we don't tamper with reviews by slapping 5 stars everywhere?
Honestly: nothing, we're just giving you our word. Same as for everything else, by the way: where we manufacture, where our wool comes from, our lab test scores, and so on. The only times we might touch what you write are if your message contains spelling mistakes (and even then, quite a few slip past us) or if it's racist, homophobic, and so on (but that's never happened so far).
Asking for a review after a month isn't enough to know whether the clothes really are durable, is it?
You're right, which is why we send you another review request email a year after your purchase – we even ask for a photo to see how your garment has aged. The answers help us improve our clothes and provide information about "how this product will age" on our product pages. To avoid bothering our customers needlessly, we don't ask for these reviews on 100% of the products ordered: as soon as we have enough data to understand the areas for improvement, we stop asking for the one-year reviews.