There is huge variance in t-shirt quality and fit. In my experience, American Apparel tees are the best I've ever found, and I order them 150-200 at a time (in black, of course). I have to lie and say they're for screenprinting, due to some weird requirements Am Appy instituted for their (now pretty restricted) wholesale customers. In bulk and in quantity (free shipping), they are $6/ea stateside. (Retail where I live is €27.)
I firmly believe from experience that no t-shirt looks better than a washed-once American Apparel black T in the right size. It's the closest thing we hackers have to a suit, I think.
By "runners" I assume you mean running shoes? Those aren't all-weather and can't be worn with an actual suit. I've a nice pair of black Doc Martens which shine up wonderfully, and have been treated to be fairly waterproof. They are perfect universal-occasion shoes, and incredibly comfortable.
Have you thought about using one of those fabric softeners designes specifically for black clothing?
My t-shirts last about 3 years. Business-presentable up to a year or so ... that's hundreds of washes considering I cycle through most of my t-shirt stack every 1.5 weeks.
After 5 years they're only good enough for the gym, on account of the fabric becoming weird. The colour is still mostly fine.
Also, I think you're doing something seriously wrong when washing your t-shirts ... you are doing cold washes right? Nothing above 40C and all that ... also, is your washing machine filled with sand or something?
The whole mess of them fit into one of those plastic 22-gallon (ca 80L) storage tubs.
They are business-presentable for 3-4 washes, and around-the-house for another 4 or 5 after that.
A big part of it is that I live somewhere with exceptionally hard water for a major city (Berlin), so they tend to develop the characteristic white edge thing that happens to black clothing more quickly than "normal" (for other locales).
I figure my latest batch will last me ~3 years?
Buying them in big batches is a huge time and money saver, even if I just tossed them after 3 washes.
Have you checked to see what treating your water would cost? Chemical water softeners are relatively cheap. This one[1] costs roughly $0.30 per load of laundry. If it doubled the wash lifetime of your shirts you're throwing away a ton of money by not doing it.
I've tried it. It's a combination of hard water causing greying and the fact that the hems on the t-shirts (usually the collars) end up curling after 7 or 8 washes. It's not a 100% gain, maybe 20-50% for substantial additional hassle.
T-shirts cost me ~$400/year presently. I live on a 4th floor walkup, my washer is on my second floor (yet another floor up), chemical water softeners are heavy, and shirts simply don't cost enough to jump through hoops of buying, carrying, and stocking another heavy supply fluid (already doing that for detergent and fabric softener).
I try not to add significant inconvenience to my life for things that will save me under $1000/year.
To put it in perspective, I spend more on bottled water than I do clothing.
my personal preference - Hanes Beefy-T, black, there is none better; much thicker T than American Apparel; started printing t-shirts in high school (20+ years ago) been wearing them ever since.
They retail from AA in the US for $18 each, but are available from limited wholesalers for $6 in quantity with free shipping, presuming you convince them that you're a screenprinter and won't be selling them unmodified.
200 of them is only $1200 that way, and it'll last me 3-4 years easily.
I firmly believe from experience that no t-shirt looks better than a washed-once American Apparel black T in the right size. It's the closest thing we hackers have to a suit, I think.
By "runners" I assume you mean running shoes? Those aren't all-weather and can't be worn with an actual suit. I've a nice pair of black Doc Martens which shine up wonderfully, and have been treated to be fairly waterproof. They are perfect universal-occasion shoes, and incredibly comfortable.