We begin each selection nearly a year earlier than it becomes available when we visit with the woolen, cotton and silk mills that have been our resources for decades, or visit with them at the fabric trade shows in Europe. Our relationships with these mills is so longstanding that during the pandemic, when we were unable to travel, they began to send us digital files of swatches, and often created packets for us reflective of our classic style.

We always start with jacketing fabric, the materials varying by the season, woolen or cashmere or linen or blends of wool, silk and linen fabrics. A visit to the fabric mill is always a chance to discover something fresh, or something overlooked before. Trips to Italy and England, Scotland and Ireland have always been part of the process, but also there are trade shows. For fabrics there is Milano Unica and Premiere Vision.

We look at swatches, examine patterns, often recolor a pattern we like, and then order a small quantity to be made as samples of sport coats or suits, or pants or overcoats. For shirts, after confirming we will be able to replenish our most classic shirtings, predominantly from Italy and Switzerland, we look for new seasonal high thread count cottons in tattersalls, and graph checks and Bengal stripes that we love. In neckwear, we work with our gifted silk designer, who prepares “blankets” – designs in multiple color combinations or multiple warps and wefts. If we like the pattern, we may nevertheless recolor with a new weft or explore a different warp color. The same weft colors on various warps will look entirely different.