Designer Thomas O’Brien’s Vintage Modern towel collection for Target has long been a go-to for the design-conscious, value-seeking crowd — including some big names with big budgets to match. The palette of gender-neutral, menswear-inflected colors matched O’Brien’s classic aesthetic — and the bathroom tiles.
The fabric was just heavy enough to endure a couple of years’ worth of showers and hand washing. They were a shoo-in on designer favorites lists everywhere. So when Target announced a new, improved O’Brien towel, now in stores and online at for about $10 per towel, it brought a why-fix-what’s-not-broken shrug.
Then we tried the new towels. The colors were still good, though we wished for a true gray (our current best-loved neutral). The slate blue looked a lot like a deep peacock blue, which suited us just fine. The colors are made to resist fading, including the kind caused by some cosmetics. (Benzoyl peroxide, we’re talking to you.) But it was the fabric that won us over: still thick and thirsty, but a denser, softer version of his old towels. After repeated trips through the wash, the towels still looked fresh and were just as soft, though we did see a snag or two.
As advertised, they didn’t get quite as soggy as our old towels, and dried a little quicker. Target says this is all due to a special high-tech cotton yarn. We say we’ve found a new favorite.
