The Official Dieworkwear Appreciation Thread

[K. Nights]

Sadly very boring choices. I bought charcoal and forest green.

I really like this dusty pink polo from Canali, but it's pretty expensive and I'm sure I wouldn't look this good anyway. But I dig the color.

I was admiring that same Canali shirt in charcoal (I like the way the collar falls), but yeah, it's pretty expensive for a polo.

 

[emptym]

Speaking of RRL cardigans and Cowichans, does anyone know of a good source for custom cardigans?

I'd like something like this old one from Orvis:

It was cotton, I believe, and I'd like one in wool. Densely woven but fairly soft.

 

[UrbanComposition]

I was admiring that same Canali shirt in charcoal (I like the way the collar falls), but yeah, it's pretty expensive for a polo.

I'm normally not a fan of polos but the silk/merino blend on this is amazing. I sweated (swat?) to death in it while in Italy but it was still comfortable.

 

[AW84]

Speaking of RRL cardigans and Cowichans, does anyone know of a good source for custom cardigans?

I'd like something like this old one from Orvis: View attachment 1676753
It was cotton, I believe, and I'd like one in wool. Densely woven but fairly soft.

Granted Sweater Company and Kanata Hand Knits both offer customs. I don’t have experience with either, but No Man Walks Alone has carried Kanata so I gather the quality is reasonably good.

 

[Waldo Jeffers]

On color, the Harris Tweed Authority has a great Instagram page (and also web journal) which juxtaposes its fabrics vs the local natural landscapes

Our Journal

Our selection of Harris Tweed® stories, archive, weavers, mills and makers. Plus the most beautiful cloth in the world celebrated through photography.

www.harristweed.org

 

[1969]

Robert Geller stuff was also good with those dusty color schemes. I have an appreciation for it, but the scarcity of those kinds of palettes in menswear means it's hard to build a wardrobe.

 

[MarkI]

Can we talk about shrinkage…? I don’t understand why more brands don’t preshrink fabrics before creating the item, it’s just frustrating having to account for things shrinking after first wash etc.

 

[cr2596]

View attachment 1677027

Can we talk about shrinkage…? I don’t understand why more brands don’t preshrink fabrics before creating the item, it’s just frustrating having to account for things shrinking after first wash etc.

The cost plus the environmental consequence. We as consumers should put forth more effort in our role.

 

[DavidLane]

This just popped up on the RL site:

-DL

 

[slows2k]

We as consumers should put forth more effort in our role.

Not sure if serious...

Can we talk about shrinkage…? I don’t understand why more brands don’t preshrink fabrics before creating the item, it’s just frustrating having to account for things shrinking after first wash etc.

Agreed, completely. The issue is it is never possible to tell if something will shrink, or how much; it varies across every axis, and once washed if the fit is not what one anticipated, returns aren't allowed. Very frustrating.

 

[dieworkwear]

Can we talk about shrinkage…? I don’t understand why more brands don’t preshrink fabrics before creating the item, it’s just frustrating having to account for things shrinking after first wash etc.

Do you use a dryer? With some exceptions, such as unsanforized denim, it's usually the dryer that makes fabrics shrink, not the wet washing process.

 

[FlyingHorker]

The new article reinforced how much I don't understand about colour and its effects. I didn't even think much about the environment outside, how intense the sun is, etc.

An urban environment with artificial lighting, grey buildings, and lots of shadows makes sense on why people in NYC wear black.

What about the suburbs though?

Here, we get loads of sun all year in the prairies. Fall exists with all the wonderful autumn colours, and then long periods where the ground is stark white with snow.

 

[FlyingHorker]

Do you use a dryer? With some exceptions, such as unsanforized denim, it's usually the dryer that makes fabrics shrink, not the wet washing process.

When it comes to things like sleeve length for shirts, I find the 1-2% shrinkage from cold washing can make a big difference on proper cuff length for wearing under SCs.

Proper Cloth is pretty good at accounting for shrinkage for most cloths for MTM shirts.

Spier & Mackay's shirts I always ask them to wash and dry the fabric before cutting to account for consistency for MTM. Works pretty well.

 

[jaaz16]

I was hoping some people here could help me understand the worsted vs. woolen flannel distinction. By distinction I don’t mean literal, I mean more why someone would opt for one or the other.

For context, there is no dress code at my work (academia; dressed up generally means looking like you rolled out of REI. No judgment, just reality). There are only a few days a year, September-May—at least once but never more than 10 days in a given year—where I need something like a navy jacket and gray trousers. I also really like the smart look of gray flannels with dark brown suede chukkas, navy/brown/cream knits etc etc. So after many years of reading DWW recommend them—and getting the nudge from Derek himself—I am looking to find a pair.

While looking around, I found this PS post where Simon is very anti-worsted flannel, basically calling it a waste of time and worse in every way possible:

Permanent Style

The Guide to Flannel

www.permanentstyle.com

Derek’s explanations of worsted flannel come off less dismissive, but I wasn’t sure if I was missing something. So…what’s the deal? If worsted flannel is indeed inferior (doesn’t drape well, doesn’t hold center crease, other stuff I might be missing?), why would someone go that route rather than woolen flannel?

 

[dieworkwear]

I was hoping some people here could help me understand the worsted vs. woolen flannel distinction. By distinction I don’t mean literal, I mean more why someone would opt for one or the other.

For context, there is no dress code at my work (academia; dressed up generally means looking like you rolled out of REI. No judgment, just reality). There are only a few days a year, September-May—at least once but never more than 10 days in a given year—where I need something like a navy jacket and gray trousers. I also really like the smart look of gray flannels with dark brown suede chukkas, navy/brown/cream knits etc etc. So after many years of reading DWW recommend them—and getting the nudge from Derek himself—I am looking to find a pair.

While looking around, I found this PS post where Simon is very anti-worsted flannel, basically calling it a waste of time and worse in every way possible:

Permanent Style

The Guide to Flannel

www.permanentstyle.com

Derek’s explanations of worsted flannel come off less dismissive, but I wasn’t sure if I was missing something. So…what’s the deal? If worsted flannel is indeed inferior (doesn’t drape well, doesn’t hold center crease, other stuff I might be missing?), why would someone go that route rather than woolen flannel?

Worsted and woolen refer to the combing process before the fibers are spun into yarn. So, as you know, fibers come from animals or plants. When a spinner collects those fibers, they have to figure out whether they should comb them or not. If they comb them, this sets all the hairs in parallel to each other. If this is done before the hairs are spun into yarn, the yarn ends up taking this sort of smoother, regular effect.

Woolen fibers are not combed before being spun into yarn. As such, the fibers stick out in all sorts of directions. Nearly all tweeds are woolen; gabardine is worsted. Flannel can be worsted or woolen.

Worsted flannels will have a very subtle twill weave just under the nap. If you look close enough, you can see it, but it's otherwise invisible. It still basically looks like flannel.

Woolen flannel, on the other hand, is often a little cloudier and spongier.

To my eye, woolen flannel is more handsome, but worsted comes with the advantage of being able to use the yarn to make lighterweights. A woolen flannel is very spongey and will lose all structure if you make it into weights lower than 12 oz or so.

If someone really doesn't like heavy flannels, they will have to go with a worsted flannel. If you bought an 11oz woolen flannel, the fabric would be prone to bagging over time (nearly all flannel bags, but such a lightweight woolen flannel will bag very quickly at the knees and seat).

Right now, it's about 79 degrees in the Bay Area. I suppose if you really wanted to wear flannel in this weather, you might want a worsted. I'm still in tropical wools. In the Bay, it can stay about 75 to 85 degrees well into November. So it may have some uses in very specific situations (someone likes the feel of fall, but not necessarily the weight of those clothes). Once you get into the lower temps, I personally think woolen flannel looks a little better. Although I personally don't like the super heavy flannels -- 12-14oz is the sweet spot, I think.