Unfunded Liabilities: a/k/a The Cloth Thread

[lordsuperb]

Top or bottom?

 

[Concordia]

Guys are always asking me that.

 

[ericgereghty]

Lol nailed it.

I say top.

 

[aristoi bcn]

What is the difference between Harris and Shetland Tweed?

Is the fibre used? The location where it is produced? The technique applied to the weaving?

Which is coarser?

Thanks in advance.

 

[marcodalondra]

What is the difference between Harris and Shetland Tweed?

Is the fibre used? The location where it is produced? The technique applied to the weaving?

Which is coarser?

Thanks in advance.

It is my understanding that is a bit of the fiber and location asShetland tweed should come from the wool of sheeps raised on the islands of the same name. In my experience it is also softer to the touch and with a thighter wave. My one cut of Shetland is from Scabal

 

[Alan Bee]

What is the difference between Harris and Shetland Tweed?

Is the fibre used? The location where it is produced? The technique applied to the weaving?

Which is coarser?

Thanks in advance.

Hi Aristoi,

I have both books from W. Bill. The Shetland is very, very porous, almost fresco like porous. It feels rather flimsy when thumbed and while I like some patterns and colors in the book, I wonder how a coat might turn out. Harris on the other hand is well ...... Harris tweed. Every thing you would expect from a bonafide tweed.

W. Bills Shetland is listed at 12/13 ounces and it feels notably flimsier than say W. Bills Donegals, Harris, or any other tweeds from the Porter & Harding books (Glenroyal, Thornproof) etc. It may well be a "stop gap" between bonafide tweeds such as those mentioned above and faux worsted tweeds such as Porter & Hardings Glorious 12th which is a worsted 11/12 oz wool in tweedish designs. In other words, a tweedy look without the weight burden of a traditional tweed most of which start off at 14/15oz

My 2 cents

Alan Bee

 

[Alan Bee]

Gentlemen, a compromise has been reached with a very honorable gentleman on this thread who approached me privately with a fair suggestion. I will endeavor to take proper photographs of featured fabrics and post them alongside the videos for those who either lack the time, or are disinclined to the videos. Now if only I can lay my hands on a proper camera ........ iPhones don't count I will do so after this S/C series which is already underway so please bear with me.

Today we have on a navy coat with burgundy windowpanes. The fabric was sourced directly from Caccioppoli's humongous warehouse in Napoli and on the recommendation of Diego Caccioppoli. Fabric is a beautiful basket weave in wool listed at 350 grams with lovely texture. My only concern regarding this (and another basket weave from same book) is how well the fabric would hold up without bagging or losing its shape. Time will tell ....

Trousers are a pair of salmon travel cotton pants made from Ariston jersey fabric (260 grams or so). The cloth is ideally a jacketing for summer but I came up with this idea as a substitute for jeans to be worn either standalone or under a sport coat. It feels like wearing a tracksuit (very comfy) while maintaining the elegance of tailored trousers. The seat seams are double stitched to keep them from fraying and so far so good.

Enjoy the clip ...

Alan Bee

 

[edmorel]

Lol nailed it.

I say top.

are you talking about Concordia or the fabric

 

[greenjb1]

Does anyone have any experience or knowledge of Con Fiducia fabrics and their relative quality? A tailor I use in NYC (Sam Wazin) has a Con Fiducia fabric book -- the attached caught my eye, but I'm not familiar with name, and googling didn't turn up much.

 

[bdavro23]

Does anyone have any experience or knowledge of Con Fiducia fabrics and their relative quality? A tailor I use in NYC (Sam Wazin) has a Con Fiducia fabric book -- the attached caught my eye, but I'm not familiar with name, and googling didn't turn up much. View attachment 835525

They are reasonable fabrics, priced accordingly. I would certainly put them below VBC in quality, but are serviceable for entry level cloth. I would have no problem wearing a suit made from their cloth as a workhorse. Obviously you would need to be realistic about the quality, as it isnt going to feel like cashmere.

 

[greenjb1]

They are reasonable fabrics, priced accordingly. I would certainly put them below VBC in quality, but are serviceable for entry level cloth. I would have no problem wearing a suit made from their cloth as a workhorse. Obviously you would need to be realistic about the quality, as it isnt going to feel like cashmere.

Thanks -- I'm looking for a 3-season workhorse sports coat that could pair with anything from jeans on up. Do you think this fabric would fit the bill? And any suggestions on a better fabric and place in NYC to get it made?

 

[dan'l]

Guess I'm a bit late to post, but with all the talk about Lamlana, wondering why no one mentioned Moonbeam. Same blend (wool/angora) and weight at a lower price. I eventually went with Moonbeam when I debated between the two.

With that said, I'd like to try something from Phoenix one of these days.

Oh, and yes, those Harrison prices posted earlier are nearly 2x as much as their pricelist (w/o VAT).

 

[aristoi bcn]

Looking forward to receive this in the mail:

90% cashmere and 10% wool from Loro Piana.

It looks green but it's dark brown with rust windowpane.

Has anybody had made a jacket in this Loro Piana cashmere/wool blend?

 

[ATWright]

Guess I'm a bit late to post, but with all the talk about Lamlana, wondering why no one mentioned Moonbeam. Same blend (wool/angora) and weight at a lower price. I eventually went with Moonbeam when I debated between the two.

With that said, I'd like to try something from Phoenix one of these days.

Oh, and yes, those Harrison prices posted earlier are nearly 2x as much as their pricelist (w/o VAT).

I like moonbeam, but many of the best patterns have run out without any intention for a restock. Same thing is happening to Lamlana. I wonder if this is to push consumers to cashmere, which this emulates for a fraction of the cost.

 

[circumspice]

What is the difference between Harris and Shetland Tweed?

Is the fibre used? The location where it is produced? The technique applied to the weaving?

Which is coarser?

Thanks in advance.

Shetland is both a place and a type of sheep, and NOT as far as I am aware, a protected appellation. So, I think if you were sufficiently inclined, you could raise Shetland sheep in Spain, and make Spanish, Shetland Tweed.

Harris Tweed is all home woven. I believe Harris merely requires UK sourced virgin wool made into yarn in the Outer Hebrides- I don't think a breed is specified. I don't know if anyone makes shetland yarn applicable for usage within the home looms used by Harris weavers - if so, you could conceivably have a tweed that is both a Harris and Shetland. Calling it a Harris Shetland Tweed would result in one being stuck by lightning by the Harris Tweed Authority - https://www.harristweed.org/

Harris will be coarse, but I am not sure how many universal claims can be made about Shetland given that it could be anything from home woven to factory made of Shetland wool