Cotton drill trousers

[Naive Jr.]

Does anyone have experience and judgment in regard to cotton trousers offered by
Ede & Ravenscroft http://shop.edeandravenscroft.co.uk/...drill-trousers,
Oliver Brown http://www.oliverbrown.org.uk/index....on-drills.html (Brisbane Moss) ,
and Cordings http://www.cordings.co.uk/menswear/t...-trousers.html ?

 

[Naive Jr.]

Originally Posted by Naive, Jr.

Does anyone have experience and judgment in regard to cotton trousers offered by
Ede & Ravenscroft http://shop.edeandravenscroft.co.uk/...drill-trousers,
Oliver Brown http://www.oliverbrown.org.uk/index....on-drills.html (Brisbane Moss) ,
and Cordings http://www.cordings.co.uk/menswear/t...-trousers.html ?

Yes, I have a pair from Ede & Ravenscroft which just arrived. They look well made and have a strange button on the front which takes some effort to put through the hole. I attempted to shrink them as much as possible before hemming and have been warned by Hilditch & key that the viscose lining will be damaged.

 

[idfnl]

Those look like pants.

What are drill trou? Dont see a difference.

 

[Naive Jr.]

Originally Posted by idfnl

Those look like pants.

What are drill trou? Dont see a difference.

I'm new in this field myself, so I can't tell you more than what I read - twill refers to the weave. I do have two pairs of Bill's <Driving ....> pants and suspect they belong to the twill category as well. Judging from what the person wears on the photograph you show, I'd imagine you do need good advice. Sorry.

 

[Sanguis Mortuum]

Originally Posted by idfnl

What are drill trou? Dont see a difference.
'Cotton drill' is the type of fabric.

Originally Posted by Naive, Jr.

I'm new in this field myself, so I can't tell you more than what I read - twill refers to the weave. I do have two pairs of Bill's <Driving ....> pants and suspect they belong to the twill category as well.
So are you talking about twill or drill? I don't think they're the same thing, are they?

 

[Holdfast]

Originally Posted by Sanguis Mortuum

So are you talking about twill or drill? I don't think they're the same thing, are they?

AFAIU drill is a twill weave fabric, but in a particularly heavy cotton, with a particularly strong diagonal pattern in the weave.

From the 3 brands the OP listed, I only have experience with Ede's drill, and even then, only from browsing them in the shop. For me, drill is too heavy/sturdy a fabric. If you like that sort of thing, it seems OK. Not my cup of tea.

 

[andreyb2]

Originally Posted by Naive, Jr.

Yes, I have a pair from Ede & Ravenscroft which just arrived. They look well made and have a strange button on the front which takes some effort to put through the hole. I attempted to shrink them as much as possible before hemming and have been warned by Hilditch & key that the viscose lining will be damaged.

Lining in drills... oh, horror!

Cordings are well (though obviously not beautifully) machine-made, with good materials employed. No lining! BTW, the label says "dry clean only".

Andrey

 

[Naive Jr.]

Originally Posted by Sanguis Mortuum

'Cotton drill' is the type of fabric.



So are you talking about twill or drill? I don't think they're the same thing, are they?

Thanks very much for taking the trouble to bring this distinction to my attention. I became aware that I wrote <twill> instead of <drill>, but I only corrected the spelling this false substitution afterwards without researching the difference in meaning. In my present circumstances I have quite limited access to Internet and no means or persons to determine the difference in meaning for cloth. Since you are located in Cambridge, you have numerous advantages I don't share. Would you be so kind to explain the difference between both terms as you understand them?

 

[KObalto]

Originally Posted by Naive, Jr.

Since you are located in Cambridge, you have numerous advantages I don't share. Would you be so kind to explain the difference between both terms as you understand them?

I think Oxford beat Cambridge to the punch in explaining the fabric (Holdfast's post). Still waiting for Harvard to weigh in...

 

[Naive Jr.]

Originally Posted by Holdfast

AFAIU drill is a twill weave fabric, but in a particularly heavy cotton, with a particularly strong diagonal pattern in the weave. From the 3 brands the OP listed, I only have experience with Ede's drill, and even then, only from browsing them in the shop. For me, drill is too heavy/sturdy a fabric. If you like that sort of thing, it seems OK. Not my cup of tea.
If I understand you correctly, you present following relationships: weave cloth twill i.e. "drill" heavy cotton diagonal weave It becomes apparent that the weave side is rather vague. In regard to Ede, I have got those trousers and so I can speak from first hand experience. However, I cannot say if what you examined in the Ede shop was the same cloth. I must express my astonishment that you have the impression that these trousers were heavy! I washed them a few times to get maximal shrinkage before sending them off to be hemmed. When I get them back, I shall compare them with my Bill's "Driving Twills/Drills" (I'm confused and don't have them here with me to check the label). I have sent an Email about your feeling the cotton drill cloth is heavy to Ede and asked for the cloth weight. I see that the address in my first post above no longer shows the fuchsia colour I bought. I wonder if Ede has more than one interpretation of cotton drill trousers? I am very interested in your experience and judgment and would like to know which cloths you prefer. I fear to experiment with any linen mixtures with either cotton or silk because I wish to avoid any possibility of crease. Edit: I see the other side of my diagram got lost, so please forgive confusion that cloth tree omitted.

 

[Sanguis Mortuum]

Originally Posted by KObalto

I think Oxford beat Cambridge to the punch in explaining the fabric (Holdfast's post). Still waiting for Harvard to weigh in...

 

[Naive Jr.]

Originally Posted by KObalto

I think Oxford beat Cambridge to the punch in explaining the fabric (Holdfast's post). Still waiting for Harvard to weigh in...
Sorry if I did injustice to Oxford, whose name I've seen as a kind of cloth, too. I mentioned Cambridge because the poster identifies himself with that location, which is also where certain shops like Ede & Ravenscroft are located which I cannot visit due to travel limitations. I was not aware that Oxford and Cambridge are in competition in regard to velocity of cloth tutorship. I appreciated that Harvard College admitted a convicted felon in a freshman class awhile ago, but I don't know what I've missed as far as clothes go.

 

[Naive Jr.]

Originally Posted by andreyb2

Lining in drills... oh, horror!

Cordings are well (though obviously not beautifully) machine-made, with good materials employed. No lining! BTW, the label says "dry clean only". Andrey
Thank you very much for your interesting comments. I am waiting for the Cordings' sale. I think their heavy cords are better in cut than those I bought from House of Bruar and Pakeman, Catto & Carter. I disregard any dry clean label because I want to wash my trousers, not dry clean them. I don't have the impression that the viscose material of the lining suffers by washing. As far as lining goes, the linings extend to the knee and if I remember correctly are only in front.

 

[Holdfast]

Originally Posted by KObalto

I think Oxford beat Cambridge to the punch in explaining the fabric (Holdfast's post). Still waiting for Harvard to weigh in...

Originally Posted by Naive, Jr.

If I understand you correctly, you present following relationships...

I wouldn't overcomplicate things.

Every cloth has its own weave (the way the yarns are woven together to make up the fabric). Twill is one of those weaves. Drill as I understand it is a subset of twill, where the diagonal pattern of the twill weave is particularly prominent due to the way the cloth is made up.

Drill as I understand it is quite "rigid" (what I previously referred as heavy/sturdy) probably due to both weight and weave. What I've seen in Ede would fit that description. It's a hard-wearing fabric, but I personally prefer wearing softer fabrics; that's personal preference, not any objective statement that I would presume to make universal. If you like drill's properties, great.

 

[GBR]

Only the Ede and Ravenscroft have two back pockets so that reduces the field to one.