Shantung Summer

Shantung Summer

As the weather changes so does our wardrobe and many of us look forward to these transitions, but. “look forward to” may be an understatement when it comes to warm weather wear. Clothes horses everywhere begin salivating over madras, seersucker, and linen as Memorial Day (The official first day for these fabrics) draws near. However, there is one summer fabric that doesn’t get nearly as much attention as the others. This fabric is Shantung Silk.
Shantung tie                                                                   My one and only Shantung Tie.

What is Shantung?
Shantung ties get their name from, yep, you guessed it: The Shantung Province of China. Shantung silk is made from raw silk and was traditionally woven from uneven pieces of yarn. The result is a very textured slubby silk that is perfect for warm weather tie wear. Learn more over at Gentleman’s Gazette.

Who sells them?
Sometimes I think that I drop the same names again and again (J.Press, Brooks Brothers, O”Connell’s, etc) when I am guiding readers to products. This time I tried to switch it up a little bit (, just a little bit.).
PRL Shantung Silk Tie PRL Argyll & Sutherland Shantung TieThe first Shantung ties that caught my eye are over at Ralph Lauren (above and here). While RL is no stranger to those interested in traditional American clothing they are often overlooked by the Trad crowd, because of their use of logos and their image as a bastion of all things preppy. However, I suggest keeping tabs on them. Especially for ties. Uncle Ralph’s Shantungs come in at 3” (A tad slim for some.) and they only offer 3 striped variations, but two of them were so well executed that they are definitely worth a look.
Drakes Shantung Regimental Tie Drakes Shantung Regimental TiesMy Second recommendation for sourcing Shantung ties is Drake’s of London (above and here). Drake’s has an impressive number of attractive Shantung offerings such as regimentals, dots, and solids. These ties are 8cm (or 3.14962 inches) which a touch wider than the PRL ties, but they are also about $70 more expensive than the PRL ties. What I like most about their selection is the number of muted colors (like tie #1) that say summer without yelling it.

The next time you are stocking up on summer staples think about picking up a Shantung silk tie. These slubby ties pick up where your tweeds left off adding texture to your summer rigs. Whether you go with my suggestions above or hit up the usual suspects a Shantung tie is a great way to bring a piece of summer into the office without screaming GTH.

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

3 Comments on "Shantung Summer"

  1. Reddale says:

    Sorry, but they really look as if my cat has played with them.
    Would an electric shaver help?

  2. Spin says:

    I’m crazy about that dark one that lacks the gold stripe. I still can’t tell the difference between shantung and raw silk though. I know the Knottery has a few dot raw silks that I wouldn’t mind getting.

  3. oxford cloth button down says:

    Spin – I that dark one a lot as well. It reminds me of the olive and burnt orange madras that I like, summery, but more like shade than sunshine. If you couldn’t tell by the similar ties that I posted from PRL and Drake’s I have a thing for the color combination.

    Reddale – I understand your sentiment. They are not for everyone, but the imperfection of these garments is what makes them so attractive in my opinion. For instance, trads are drawn to the four in hand knot even though others do not like this knot, because it will never look symmetrical.

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