Navy Gingham is one fabric pattern that’s synonymous with summertime. It can be worn under a cotton or linen suit in khaki, light grey or navy to a warm-weather wedding, or paired to denim or chino shorts with its sleeves pushed up. 

The only drawback of navy gingham is that it may have become a bit too successful at being the unofficial shirt of summer. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, but if you’re not inclined to follow the crowd and wish to strike out on your own, here are five navy gingham alternatives to consider this summer:

Light Blue Check
At first sight, a check is quite similar to a gingham. Yet its pattern is more discreet, as it’s at a smaller scale and features just one shade of color over white, in contrast to the alternating light-and-dark shades over white that are typical of gingham.

Light Blue Fine Check
This is a fine check, aka a scaled-down check. Its smaller scale, combined with a paler shade of blue, makes for a summery, patterned shirt that whispers rather than announces its presence. You’ll find that it more easily pairs with suits than traditional navy gingham, but is just as easily dressed down with denim and shorts. 

Blue Crossed Oxford
Even more subtle is a blue crossed oxford. From a greater distance it will almost appear as a solid blue, but a closer inspection reveals it to have a subtle, alternating pattern and texture.

Faded Tattersall 
Tattersall is similar to gingham in that it features two alternating bands of lighter and darker color. This tattersall features light, faded colors that mellow into the background, which allows its cool, summer colors to show without dominating the scene. 

Aqua Check
Many of the choices above stand on the more minimalist side of the scale—but this vibrant aqua check certainly does not. Its repeating navy and aqua blue checks set against a white background create a vibrant contrast that can steal the show from any nearby navy gingham shirt-wearers.