Once you’ve tried out a premium upgrade to a sort of everyday basic — like a newer, better, more premium and precise take on the tried-and-true fall flannel shirt — then it becomes hard to go back to anything else. A lofty sentiment though that might be, the best fall shirts for men epitomize quality construction and a handsome, rugged, classic-meets-modern design.

Again, that’s a high bar to clear, but in my experience, Billy Reid (the Alabama-based designer of a slew of modern icons) delivers accordingly, and that holds true with new arrivals from Billy Reid, here just in time for autumn’s finest weather and foliage.

The Billy Reid Melange Grid Wilson Shirt updates the time-honored fall plaid pattern of a sturdy buttondown shirt, giving it a slightly faded effect that turns it into something as easily worn with dark blue jeans and a navy blazer as with, well, those same blue jeans and broken-in leather boots.

The Billy Reid Melange Grid Wilson Shirt manages to feel classic and yet modern at the same time, boasting all the proper details one might expect from a designer known for outfitting James Bond in the Bond Peacoat over the years.

In fact, the rugged-yet-refined Billy Reid Melange Grid Wilson Shirt is a prime layer to wear beneath the iconic Billy Reid Bond Peacoat, boasting the kind of design that can be worn untucked with Billy Reid denim or tucked in alongside wool trousers and a midweight V-neck sweater (at the office or out on a date, mind you).

There are plentiful stylish features built into the Billy Reid Melange Grid Wilson Shirt, from the hidden buttondown collar (which gives the collar structure and shape without looking overly casual) to the shirt’s heirloom ribbon detailing at the hem.

That last touch on the Billy Reid Melange Grid Wilson Shirt is a Billy Reid classic, one that helps make this shirt feel so much more than a buttondown to be thrown on at a moment’s notice (although you can certainly do that, too!).

With its mother-of-pearl buttons and soft brushed cotton construction, the handsome and versatile Billy Reid Melange Grid Wilson Shirt speaks to the idea that even the everyday essentials can be made better — take heed and dress accordingly this fall, my friends.