Linen shorts

[tteplitzmd]

I had these shorts made. They are of an Italian linen, subtle herringbone weave. Quarter pockets, extension waist, elastic side tabs, double pleats. In February we were in Palm Beach, and I was looking at archival photos of The Breakers. I cannot recommend the Hotel, but photos were fascinating from ca. 1920-1950. I recall some earlier posts about shorts so with summer ending:





I actually had a suit made of this cloth, and had left over cloth, too good to discard. The shirt is Egyptian cotton, linen like texture, Malo.

[yachtie]

Very nice. Are there adjusters for the waistband?

[tteplitzmd]

Yes. Also a good sized pocket inside the waistband for money, hotel key, and with some effort my Blackberry. The cuffs are my own doing. I take full responsibility.

[dopey]

Nice shorts, Terry.

I am still pondering my opinion on the cuffs. I think I like them, but then I wonder why none of my shorts have them. I am a creature of habit and cannot like anything new.

[tteplitzmd]

I have this vague, fugue like recollection of the cuffs in one of The Breakers archival photos.
Or perhaps it was in a photo of British khaki colonial (military) shorts.

[Cufflink79]

Dear Mr. Teplitz:

The shorts look great!

I have been wanting to do something like that for shorts and casual pants for a long time.

The RTW market has shorts and trouser that are just cut too darn close to the body and don't fit right.

If you don't mind my asking where did you have them done, and what was the cost?

Best Regards,

Cufflink79

[tteplitzmd]

My cloth, Italian linen, $20 per yard, Tip Top, last allowed WW Chan commission with customer's own cloth, $165 for labor, shipping, duty, door to door. The cuffs really let them 'hang' nicely, I just wish I could recall if it was my idea or from old photos.

The waist, thigh, inseam measurements are different from my default trouser measurements, to allow for them being worn a little higher, and so that the thigh area looks OK given the more active movement (theoretically) of shorts and linen's characteristics.
It took two tries to get the measurements to my liking. The length was my choice.

[whittaker]

That's a great looking pair of shorts. I've been pondering something similar for a while.

[couch]

Excellent project, Terry! Too bad about Chan's change in CMT policy.

Re cuffs: back in the early '80s during the Reagan / Ralph Lauren revival in Anglo chic, pleated RTW shorts about that length were plentiful and quite a few came with cuffs. That's also when I acquired my first pair of Ghurka-style shorts (from the old Banana Republic when they were a surplus/repro outfitter) with the crossing waistband. In old photos of English and Indian Army personnel, including Ghurka regiments, you sometimes see those shorts "turned up" in the same way shirt sleeves are--the number of turns presumably depending on the weather, the strenuousness of the labor being performed, and the depth of water in washed-out roads needing to be forded . . . . As in turnups on country trousers, I suspect that was the inspiration for the pressed-in cuffs. In any case, whether yours was an independent discovery or not, you have plenty of historical precedent.

[dopey]

. . . Ghurka-style shorts (from the old Banana Republic when they were a surplus/repro outfitter) with the crossing waistband. . .

I really miss those. I bought a pair of the Orvis ones, and while they are better cotton and mostly better made, the waistband is not handled nearly as nicely as on the Banana Republic ones. Or at least not as nicely as the version of the Banana Republic ones that resides in my memory. That version had a wider and curved waistband in front, no center seam on the waistband, and metal grommets instead of stitched holes for the side buckles.

I have been told that Rubinacci sells a nice RTW version of the Ghurka short.

[whittaker]

I have been told that Rubinacci sells a nice RTW version of the Ghurka short.

Yes, they are excellent quality and in a wide range of colours. I own several pairs and love them. They are not on display so you must request them.

[couch]

This is the kind of situation when my lack of a decent camera is frustrating. I still have the BR version (slightly frayed, but not badly) and a Rubinacci version purchased last year in the London shop. One of these days I will have a digital camera. And then I'll post side-by-side pictures of the two models so we can analyze the cuts (meanwhile I'll try to find some shots shots of the original in theatre). One thing I can say for sure is that the Rubinacci versions are cut to sit lower on the waist. The waistband still looks nice (one plus for them is that the buckles are secured on their straps with buttons, thus removable for washing) but the higher version with the wider waistband has more dash. The R's of course are a much handsomer make, including pleats instead of stitched darts in the rear. IIRC the BR versions have darts. Don't know which, if either, is truer to the original. It's in my mind one day to have Izzy get Dario to make up a pair from the best points of both, in a heavy cotton twill I found at Beckenstein, in a color very close to the U.S. Army officers pinks of WWII vintage.

[tteplitzmd]

I like the higher sitting waist on the shorts. Also, Couch, if you get them made, give some thought to the thigh and length measurements. It was trickier than I thought, the cut is different from my default trousers. I have seen some of the "Empire Busters" that seem tapered and others that seem flared.

[alden]

Nice looking shorts. I would suggest using a heavy Irish linen for shorts like these (16 ounces) and make sure it is a very tightly woven linen. Ambrosi recenly made me a set ot shorts in heavy cotton cloth and they turned out exceedingly well with cuffs.

[tteplitzmd]

PHotos, Mr. Alden?