NEWS

The Classic English Madder Print Tie
The English Madder silk tie is recognised worldwide as an icon of British style. It’s a home grown classic with a proud heritage and a distinct provenance. The “madder” part of this lovely phrase refers to a natural dye from a Eurasian herbaceous plant, Rubia tinctoria.

Its continuing success through decades of rise and fall owe much too scientific intervention.

The colouring agent in madder root called alizarin was in fact first chemically extracted and then synthesized in 1869 by two English chemists. Although the dyeing process, even today, requires a variety of painstaking steps, synthesized alizarin brought the price within the reach of commercial producers. Silk dyed in this manner is characterized by a dusty-looking finish and a feel (referred to as a chalk hand by the experts) very much like fine suede, and a matte finish. Reference 201.5

Continuing, English madder silk ties adorn the necks of English gentry countrywide. Sitting perfectly with tweed jackets and checked shirts. It complements a recognisable style that remains true to form and function with a distinctive British sensibility.

Even today designers include them in their seasonal collections. Michelsons Tie Makers since 1937 regularly produce a small range of madder prints. Often using small paisley and geometric patterns against a richly coloured back drop is emblematic of such a proud heritage. Paisley madder ties have been a status symbol on college campuses since the 1930s, as natty alternative to the traditional striped tie.

Now, don’t rush off in pursuit of that elusive madder silk tie left hanging darkly in your wardrobe. Wait until autumn is upon us and choose one that matches the brilliant hues of nature.

The Prince of Wales Smoking Jacket
Try to chart the course of fashion and you’ll need more than a sexton, compass and telescope, to navigate to its beginning. The rise and fall of fashion is like waves in a storm filled ocean. However, charting the course of style is much easier, it has a known beginning, its progress can be documented and unlike the turbulent fluctuations of fashion, style dictates a constant theme that has the ability to cross cultural barriers and oceans.

British civil administration made it easier for us to chart because of the precise way its administrators recorded important historic events. But it’s also worth remembering that before computers and electronic organisers’ people kept diaries with great accuracy. Unlike the throw away society of today many were kept and are intact even today. Autocratic systems certainly play an important role, accurately recording information through the ages enabling fashion designers to access archives.

For example; Thomas Burberry opened his own business in 1856 in Basingstoke, Hampshire. Noticing how local shepherds and farmers wore linen smocks, which were cool in summer and warm in the winter, he attempted to apply the same principles to other clothing. In 1879 he developed a fabric which was weatherproofed in the yarn before weaving, using a secret process and then proofed again in the piece, using the same undisclosed formula. The new material was un-tearable and weatherproof, whilst cool and breathable. He called the cloth ‘gabardine’ and registered the word as a trademark.

In 1901 Thomas Burberry designed a raincoat that became the regulation style during the First World War. Adapted to include functional epaulettes, straps and D-rings, it was named ‘The Trench Coat’. At that time, officers in the army took to wearing a Burberry raincoat as part of their uniform. The lightweight cotton was preferred to the heavy rubberised mackintosh that was supplied at the time.

The Burberry Trench coat continues to be an essential part of outerwear collections. Authentic details remain even to the metal “D” rings on the belt, which are now purely decorative. However this is interpreted from season to season according to whether fashion dictates a slim or full fitting silhouette together with a long or short hemline. Reference 102.10

Extraordinarily that same century, in 1860, the Prince of Wales ordered a short smoking jacket to wear at informal dinner parties at Sandringham from his friend, the tailor, Henry Poole. It was the first dinner jacket on record and was cut in midnight blue cloth. In 1886, a Mr James Potter of Tuxedo Park, New York, was a houseguest at Sandringham. He consequently ordered a similar dinner jacket to Bertie's from Henry Poole & Co. It was this dinner jacket that Mr Potter wore at the Tuxedo Park Club inspiring numerous copies that fellow members wore as informal uniform for stag dinners. Thus the Tuxedo was born at Henry Poole & Co. It took only eight years for an accidental style to cross the Atlantic Ocean and soon became an American institution. Reference 102.11

There are many prime example of style innovation to note, many originated in England. Like Harris Tweed; it’s been constant through many decades of fashion fluctuations. The dark business suit dates back to the early nineteenth century, initiated by Beau Brummell, this style continues today. The tie dates back thousands of years.