Striped for Action

By Film Noir Buff

The Suit is a bit like tournament armor these days; the sort of armor worn by medieval gentlemen at jousts. However, no man wants to wear bulky metal. And, although we all dream of being a super hero, we likewise cannot wear colorful tights to the office. For one thing, it would blow our secret identities.

But still, we want to play the hero; humble and yet admired for our good manners and tastes.

I recently had a suit made up in Harrisons of Edinburgh’s super 180s fabric. I wore it for several months and have some observations.


Typical FNB jousting panoply. Suit fabric and lining are Harrisons made up by Corvato Custom Designs (NYC). Shirt fabric is Acorn of Cumbria made up by Paris Custom Shirts (NYC). Tie is Van Buck, pocket hankerchief by Harvie and Hudson and cufflinks by M.P. Levene.


It is a light, soft cloth with some sturdiness to it. It has twenty (20) percent cashmere in it which gives it a slightly milled finish. That milled finish gives the cloth some surface interest and more depth than a super 180s normally has. I do not know that there is another 180s cloth on the market with this unique look.

The cloth itself is light on the shoulder and as soft as a cashmere sweater but still exhibits both strength and robustness. No seams have burst, no signs of piling or stretching in the “stress” areas at all.

This strength and robustness is not just because the suit was lovingly pieced together by master tailor Nino Corvato of New York City but also because Harrisons prides itself on producing “proper cloth” even when luxury fibers are involved (Their Multi-Millionaire cashmere suiting wears like steel.)

The results are finer and softer cloths with steel-like properties which entice even the denizens of London’s city who normally prefer heavier, harder cloths.


Showing off the soft “milled finish” caused by the cashmere content. Harrisons are very good at designing cloths which meld English traditions with the needs of the contemporary man of manners.


I did not find the cloth expensive and believe it represents a good value. The cloth is so comfortable to wear that I never want to take the jacket off.

My only complaint is that the range needs more stripe selections because at the moment there is only one white beaded stripe in a charcoal, midnight blue and black. The rest of the collection are solids with either a plain, sharkskin or self herringbone pattern in greys, navies and blacks. My hope is that the range will expand to include patterns.

There you have it. Now, when you storm into a conference room, you can assure yourself the tensile protection of armor combined with the flowing form fit of a super hero’s costume. You will be at once invulnerable, genteel, just, honorable and ready for anything the baddies can throw at you. However, I would still suggest caution around ink cartridges.


This combination will whip any man into shape.


Harrisons have a website now where you can see swatches of their cloths. Most of the swatches have been true to shade on my monitor.



www.harrisonsofedinburgh.com

  1. Gentleman's Gazette    Apr 3, 16:20    #

    These ties are more than a statement. Personally, I would not wear them but hats off to the ones that do ;).


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