A winter blazer

[Manself]

I'm expecting to bespeak a winter blazer next week. I've already got a lightweight summer blazer, so this need only work in London's cooler months. I'm considering a structured DB version for winter, but I'm yet to settle on a cloth. Flannel? Serge? Please step forward with suggestions, especially suggestions grounded in experience of what works in everyday life. Which cloth books should I be looking at?

[alden]

Manself

H Lesser used to have a bolt of 20 ozs blue serge in the warehouse that was never in any of the books. You might see if they have any left. I have a suit from the cloth and it is perfect for the use you describe. This winter I'll bring it to town for you to see.

If this is not available, the second choice would be either the Whole Fleece from Smith's in Navy or one of the heavy woollen flannels from LBD.

Cheers

M Alden

[Joshua Byrne]

I would suggest the Lesser's 16 oz, which is the best cloth at its weight that I have found, and has a very good blue serge. Harrisons, have a range of cloths at 18 oz, if you are looking for something heavier.

[DD MacDonald]

Though not a candiate for next week, how about the 16oz Blue Mistral?

If its like the Brisa, the finish of the cloth should be between that of a harder finished Serge and a softer flannel.

DDM

[chelsea]

Personally I would go for a heavy flannel. It is easy to wear and comforting in a cold winter.

We all know flannnel cannot take extended heavy wear, but coats take considerably less of a battering than trousers. My flannel blazer looks good after several years of regular,if intermittent, wear.

Chelsea

[couch]

Flannel versus a less napped cloth is a personal preference, but my experience supports Chelsea as to durability if the flannel is of good quality. As I think I've posted before, I have a blazer made in 1984 of a very dark Holland and Sherry worsted flannel that I still wear on occasion. It was one of the first "supers" cloths before they became silly--a super 100s, at about 10-12 ounces. I was not looking particularly for a cool-weather cloth at the time, rather one that I could wear in all but the very warmest weather. It still looks quite good in itself--my altered taste in cut and some inevitable slight changes in fit are the only things that restrict my wearing of it. I liked and still like the look of dark navy flannel. My only observation would be that, especially in winter, it does tend to attract and retain lint, pet hair, etc., and is a bit harder to brush clean as often as needed without raising the nap excessively.

[Jordan Marc]

Manself:

For a winter blazer, let's get the overhyped and least desirable fabric out of the way first, namely cashmere. The late Colin Hammock of Huntsman was of the opinion that every well-dressed man should have a navy blue reefer jacket of this cloth. Heaven knows why? It has no guts; and after ten wearings, it pills badly. Whether it's pure cashmere from Harrisons of Edinburgh or Loro Piana of Italy, neither of which is heavyweight, it has no longevity. Bespoke clothing should last.

There are fans of serge and fans of flannel and fans of basketweave wool hopsacking. Of the three choices I prefer heavyweight woollen flannel, not the worsted variety, because of its soft hand and beauty of its color. There are rich navy blues with lustre and inky navy
blues that are dead flat ugly. The cloth you choose will be the one that sings to you; and when you've made your selection, explore the
wonderful world of buttons to add a bit of bling--nothing gaudy, nothing tatty--just gorgeous.

Finally, there are trousers to consider such as brushed grey flannel (Oxford or Cambridge shades), marled cavalry twill (brown-and-tan
effect), and woollen tweeds of one kind or another. Why not a pair from each of the three types? Variety adds interest to clothing.

JMB

[Simon A]

I love navy blazers, but I have seen some images from the 1930's with gentlemen wearing tan or burnt-gold flannel blazers, double breasted and with brass buttons. They look amazing. Some samples shown here http://www.thelondonlounge.net/forum/vi ... =39&t=8856

[Manself]

Thank you for the useful suggestions. I plan to stick with navy serge, because it seems the place to start for my first winter blazer - flannels and other colours can wait for another year. The heaviest Lesser's fabric now available is 18/19oz, and it's wonderful, but it's closer to midnight blue than navy - I had to ring to check it wasn't actually black. So that's out, because I find dark navy rather boring. I'm now awaiting a sample of Lesser's 16oz navy, and will report back. In the meantime I visited Smith's, and picked up a sample of the navy Whole Fleece (15oz), which is perhaps a shade darker than I'd have chosen, but is such a great cloth that I'm sold on it. I'm not sure, however, that I quite understand what the 'Whole Fleece' actually means - there's something about it retaining more natural oil from the wool than is usual. However it's achieved, it has a tough, durable feel I really like.

And while I was there I picked up a sample of grey woolen flannel (15oz) for trousers - the lighter of the two available colours. Does anyone have a view on this, or alternatives they'd recommend?

[Des Esseintes]

There are fans of serge and fans of flannel and fans of basketweave wool hopsacking.

Indeed, and I would like to throw in a few words for the guys in the hopsack corner.

I love flannel, as a suit, as the most elegant and versatile pair of odd trousers, as a sports coat, but I somehow cannot really come to terms with a flannel balzer. To me, one of the attractions of a blazer is not so much its history in uniform but the uniform connotations it conjurs up, still today. Uniforms have a certain strict, tough, robust, cold, hard and formal air to them, and flannel, to me, feels exactly the opposite, however hard-wearing it might in fact be. Flannel is soft, to touch and to the eye, warm, informal, and somehow always cosy. A flannel suit is almost the perfect civilian opposite to a military uniform.

Serge, on the other hand, has all the attributes of a uniform cloth, but I personally - owning three or four serge blazers - never really got to like the feel nor the look of serge. Personal preference, I guess.

Now,hopsack, my favourite of the three cloth types discussed, combines a crisp look, not exactly uniform but certainly not as soft as flannel, with hard-wearing qualities, is, in my view, far more interesting in terms of its visual and tactile properties, and - an advantage even during the colder months of the year, I'd argue - is far less sudorific than flannel. Some might consider hopsack a rather American choice - whether that is an asst or a liability, you decide!

I loathe the sack, but I love the hopsack.

(Apologies for this deradful pun)

dE

[Gruto]

I somehow cannot really come to terms with a flannel balzer.

Isn't there a difference between the SB blazer and the DB blazer? I feel the latter is connected to a smooth cloth, because of it's naval origin, while the SB blazer, which come from sports, can take different types of cloth, flannel too.

[Des Esseintes]

Dear Gruto,

I am sure you are absolutely right with regards to the origin of the different blazer cuts. Nevertheless, givne that sportswear nowadays has moved on to some altogether rather distant shores, any blazer has a strong military connotation to me, hence my dislike of flannel blazers. From a purely historical point of view, there is probably no good argument against a flannel blazer indeed.

dE

[Bishop of Briggs]

Does anyone offer a good navy barathea cloth around 14 to 16oz these days?

[luk-cha]

Does anyone offer a good navy barathea cloth around 14 to 16oz these days?

Harrisons P&B universial book should have something that you are looking for!

[Bishop of Briggs]

Does anyone offer a good navy barathea cloth around 14 to 16oz these days?

Harrisons P&B universial book should have something that you are looking for!

Many thanks. A Harrisons cloth would be ideal.