There are a few ways to tell if you’re looking at an authentic, high-quality aloha shirt. If the pockets match the pattern, that’s a good sign, but it’s not everything. Much of understanding an aloha shirt is about paying attention to what is on the shirt itself. It’s about looking at the pattern to see the story it tells.

Articles of Interest is a show about what we wear; a six-part series within 99% Invisible, looking at clothing. Episodes will be released on Tuesdays and Fridays from September 25th through October 12th.

For Hawaiian Shirts, Avery Trufelman spoke with her friend Sarah Burke; Jason Morgan, the general manager of Kahala Sportswear; Zita Cup Choy, historian of the Iolani Palace; DeSoto Brown, historian at the Bishop Museum; Josh Feldman, CEO of Tori Richard; Tracey Panek, historian at Levi Strauss and Company; Deirdre Clemente, historian of 20th century clothing and fashion and author of the book Dress Casual.