Collar stays

[chorse123]

This morning, like many previous mornings, I unhappily slid cheap plastic collar stays into my shirt. Do any of you use more hefty stays, which do you prefer, and do you notice a difference? I'm thinking of investing in a pair.

 

[AlanC]

I generally just use Brooks Brothers stays I've gotten from shirts over the years. I have a few other plastic stays from Talbott and Hilditch & Key that are also in the mix. I do have a pair of the Carlo Franco MOP stays, but I really don't use them very often. They're really nice, though. I also don't use my Tyrwhitt brass stays much. I'd say you'd do just as well to buy the little tube of stays that BBs sells.

I believe our own Mr. Kabbaz is an advocate of plastic stays for utility reasons.

 

[Nonk]

Try this seller, I have these exact ones, they are beautiful, a bargain and you will feel much better with these than using plastic strips. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws....0870758

 

[chorse123]

I believe our own Mr. Kabbaz is an advocate of plastic stays for utility reasons.

Do you remember the reason for this advocacy? It seems to me like the silver ones might weigh down the collar too much. MOP seems like a good solution, but wouldn't they be prone to cracking if they're thin?

 

[shoreman1782]

I think the complaint about metal stays is that they can make collars wear out more quickly, and can tear the collar stay pocket (technical term). I don't have this problem - I usually use the metal stays that came with a couple Tyrwhitt shirts I have - but I understand that plastic are probably gentler.

I think BR is giving away metal stays now with their shirts.

Anyone know where to get really short stays (for spread collars)? Or do you just trim down plastic stays...

 

[imageWIS]

Normally I just use plastic BB stays, but once in a while I will use a pair of brass stays that came free with a CT shirt I got as gift.

Jon.

 

[globetrotter]

anybody know how silver stays effect airport metal detectors?

 

[NewYorkBuck]

I also use the metal CT stays. Have used them for years and never had a problem.

 

[tdial]

I have two pairs of MOP I got from Carlo Franco. I use them with most of my shirts. They don't quite fit some of the shirts I own (in which case I use the wide, more firm Borelli stays), but the majority of them they work quite well. They are thick enough that they won't break, but don't feel like weapons into my jawbone like metal ones do.

 

[demeis]

I use plastic now. I posted this question several weeks ago when i was thinking about purchasing silver stays. I since have purchased a set of brass and like plastic more. they have more flex to them and when i move i can feel a slight difference. Also on some of my shirts when i use the brass stays they dig into my collar bone, which needless to say is somewhat incomfortable. This usually happens when i'm looking down and working on some paper work or the like. I'm always going with plastic from now on. And yes BR is giving them away with their cheap ugly premium shirts.

 

[RJman]

And yes BR is giving them away with their cheap ugly premium shirts.

I'd say they're as good as Thomas Pink at half the price. And the BR shirts have MOP buttons. The Pink gusset is completely useless -it's not well enough sewn or made to help the shirt.

 

[Manton]

I have one pair of MoP stays. I didn't think I would like them, but I do. They will not break with ordinary wear. Whereas I have broken plastic stays simply by leaning my neck into the collar by reaching for the phone. (My collars are quite high.) The main problem with my MoP stays is that too few of my shirt collars' "stay pockets" are big enough for them to fit.

 

[trogdor]

Anyone know where to get really short stays (for spread collars)?

Turnbull & Asser do a little gift wallet thing with six regular stays and six short stays for cutaway collars (all plastic). I received a set as a gift, and they're great, but I can't seem to find them on the T&A website; perhaps it's a seasonal thing.

FWIW, I prefer plastic to brass, since the brass ones can jab you in the collar bone, and they also tend to bend a little bit over time. I can't bring myself to fork out for silver/MOP because that would be a sure-fire way to guarantee I'd lose them.

Finally, I've said it before, expired credit cards are a superb material from which you may fashion your own "bespoke" collar stays. Flexible, personalised, and more expensive than any you could buy; don't leave home without them.

 

[chorse123]

That's a cool idea, trogdor. I'll have to try that sometime.

 

[Nonk]

anybody know how silver stays effect airport metal detectors?

Mine have not set off any alarms etc, and I believe I read somewhere that these machines do not detect precious metals.