Mallard Madness at Red Fleece

The end of summer is in sight. Hot and humid days will soon give way to cool fall days just as seersucker shorts with nautical motifs will turn to wide-wale cords littered with water fowl and woodland creatures. This is a change that I am happy to embrace and one that Red Fleece is currently rolling out.
Duck SweaterBrowsing Brooks Brothers Red Fleece Line (younger & slimmer with a neo-prep tendencies) this week I spotted a few mallard emblazoned items in the new arrival bin. I am a sucker for a duck motif, but so far have limited this love to my ties (I Don’t Give a Duck). However, I am tempted by the Red Fleece blue lambswool duck intarsia sweater (see here). They also have a tie (here) and a sport shirt (here), but the sweater is the stand out of the bunch. I only wish the ducks on the sweater were a touch smaller (and the tie a tad wider).

I expect to see more motifs coming out of the woods soon along with the traditional cords, shetlands, and tweed. In anticipation for fall, the season of Trad I leave you with these words from the OPH on the subject of ducks.

 STRAIGHT FROM THE OPH – THE DUCK MOTIF

The duck is the most beloved of all totems. The duck suggests hunting,  water,  Maine – all the things worth thinking about. The basic duck is the mallard. The most common view of the duck is silhouette, although the duck in flight runs a close second. Three-dimensional decoys are nearly as popular and may appear as lamp bases, planters, doorstops, candlesticks, and paper weights.  Ducks themselves – real ducks – may be of little interest. It is the representation of the duck that counts. And the less the object has to do with ducks, the more it cries out for duck adornment. Ducks are stenciled, engraved, embroidered. Embossed, debossed, appliqued, mounted, and otherwise emblazoned on wood, brass, fabric, leather. silver, glass, crystal – anything.

oxford cloth button down
Jerrod Swanton is a simple man interested in simple, classic, and traditional style.

3 Comments on "Mallard Madness at Red Fleece"

  1. George says:

    I simply LOVE ducks! As a theme, they work very well, I think. I’m biased, of course, since in my neck of the woods — northern CA, up a bit from Sacramento — duck, pheasant and geese are world-class. Still, bias aside, it’s the colors and the active image. As for the sweater, I’m in. Very nicely done, I say.

  2. DPG says:

    I definitely love the duck motif on the whole, but this sweater may take it too far into the realm of a “costume”. I don’t foresee a sweater like this having any staying power in one’s closet and could even be looked at in time with buyer’s remorse. The tie linked in the article is a much better example of a tasteful use of the motif.

  3. Billax says:

    OCBD, Thanks for this intriguing post. I, too, am a duck guy. I really like the replies of George and DPG. They represent the Yin and the Yang of this Intarsia knit sweater.

    For better or worse, I’m with DPG. My sweater arrives late next week.

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