Introducing Our Staple Clothing Fabrics
Seersucker Fabric: Breezy Elegance
Seersucker, from the Persian shîr and shakar (milk and sugar), is a very clever fabric. It’s a smooth cloth (that’s the milk part) interspersed with bunched up threads (that’s the sugar) which make the fabric look sort of puckered. This isn’t just a novelty, though — it means that seersucker fabric doesn’t lie flat on the skin, allowing for greater air movement. More air movement means a cooler fabric and a much more pleasant summer.
What is Seersucker?
How is Seersucker Made?
It’s pretty labour intensive to make, seersucker. It’s made using a slack-tension weave (don’t worry about it). Essentially, the cotton threads that become the puckered bits — the sugar in the milk — are fed into the weave at a faster rate than the smooth threads, so they bunch up and make the little bobbly bits. Those bobbly bits mean you won’t have to iron your seersucker, which is brilliant. Our Seersucker Cuban Shirts are about as summery as summery gets, especially the Ecru colourway — you cannot go wrong.
Does seersucker shrink?
Seersucker is made of cotton so it may shrink if you’re not careful with it. It’s generally pretty hardy but we’d recommend exercising a little bit of caution and washing your seersucker at low temperatures, followed by an air dry as opposed to machine drying. Look after your clothes and they last longer, and you buy fewer clothes — you’re saving yourself money in the long run (and potentially bankrupting us but, listen, we just want you to be happy).
Is seersucker breathable?
You’d better believe it is. So breathable. It basically hyperventilates so you don’t have to. That uneven, puckered texture means it has minimal points of contact with your skin, so ventilation is maximised, air flowing past your skin and taking all that moisture and sweat with it, keeping you dry and cool. Like having gills all over your body. That’s the dream, isn’t it? Gills everywhere? Like a suped-up fish.
Mohair Fabric: Embrace the Finesse
What is Mohair?
Mohair is a yarn made from the hair of the Angora goat. It’s got a characteristic sheen to it that separates it from other wools. It’s naturally flame-resistant, crease-resistant, elastic, durable, moisture wicking, and insulating. A dream of a fabric, is mohair. Kurt Cobain played Nirvana’s seminal Unplugged concert in a mohair cardigan just like our Men’s Gambit Mohair Cardigan in Sand, and he looked incredible. His didn’t have chess pieces on it, more’s the pity.
How is mohair made?
Twice a year, you take your Angora goat, and you shear it. You gather your goat hair, you give it a clean to get rid of any natural greases or dirt, you weave your goat hair into a yarn. Congratulations. You now have mohair.
Does Mohair Shrink?
Similarly to seersucker, mohair isn’t going to shrink at the drop of a hat, but definitely still avoid washing it at a high temperature and do try to air dry when possible. If you take liberties with high temperature machine washing and drying, you’re putting the life of your mohair in the hands of the fabric gods, and the fabric gods are vengeful.
Casentino Wool: Italian Heritage
What is Casentino wool?
What is the history of casentino wool?
Casentino wool originated in a place called Casentino in Tuscany, which is convenient for marketing. It was developed in the 14th Century for farmers and animals, to keep them warm during the winters of their respective discontent. Casentino was traditionally emerald green, but a failed experiment into the use of alum to make the fabric more waterproof led to a duck’s beak orange variety, which became just as iconic as the original emerald.
Is casentino wool warm?
God, yes. It was literally created for the purpose of keeping not just humans but also animals warm. It’s heavily brushed in the manufacturing process to give it that trademark fuzziness, adding comfort and warmth. Perci makes the best Casentino Overshirts on the market these days. Find better — we’ll believe it when we see it.
Boucle Wool: Unparalleled Texture and Coziness
What is boucle fabric?
Bouclé is French for loop. It’s a looped yarn. A yarn made with loops. Two strands are woven together, one with a much looser tension than the other. The high-tension strand is known as the anchor strand, whilst the looser strand (or effect yarn) loops around the anchor strand to create the infamous bouclé loopy texture.
Is boucle fabric durable?
Bouclé was originally used in furniture, and only came into clothing in the 1950s via Coco Chanel. If you can make a couch out of it, it’s pretty durable, we’d say. It’s looped by nature so it will snag if you run through a thicket of thorns or hug a cactus in it, but if you just avoid that sort of activity it’s going to hold up pretty well.
Is boucle fabric soft?
Bouclé can be made of all manner of yarns but generally speaking it’s very soft, yes. It feels a bit like petting a sheep. If you’ve never petted a sheep, well, we don’t know what to tell you — it’s like… no, it’s quite a unique feeling actually. Treat yourself to one of our Long Sleeve Negroni Knit Bouclé Jumpers and find out.