Windsor's clothes Part 1

A selection of London Lounge articles
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alden
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Tue Jan 17, 2006 10:54 am

Let us forget the man for a moment and focus on Windsor’s clothes.

In the archives, each piece of the Duke of Windsor’s clothes is wrapped in special protective paper and stored hanging in a kind of vault. Opening the pieces of paper to reveal the suits is a bit like discovering Inca gold or Tutankhamen’s burial crypt. Flashlights blinking, incense smoldering and then suddenly appearing out of the mist the twinkling luminescence of a tweed suit!

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The first eyeful of suit was of absolutely splendid tweed. The first fistful of suit was at the shoulder where I immediately recognized Scholte, forerunner of AS and the other tailors who practice the noble art of the natural shoulder. If I closed my eyes I could be feeling my own jacket’s shoulder, a distant relative: the feeling of dense, rich cloth and nothing more. But this cloth was something I had not had the occasion to feel very often. It was very dense and tightly woven cloth, light in the hand for its weight, hand woven cloth that had taken someone weeks of labor.

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There are a few topics that are likely to recur in this description of the Duke’s clothes so good sense would have us define the major points straight away: quality of fabrics used, supreme quality of the handwork, overall sobriety of design and perfection of balance demonstrated. It seems to me that this about summarizes what many bespoke clients are after when they choose cloth and visit tailors. Windsor had it all.

Design

The most striking aspect of the design of the suits was the absence of design.
As I went over the coat with my tape measure, hoping to discover some element of elegance heretofore undiscovered, it became quite clear that the clothes were textbook Savile Row. Back balance, front balance, lapel width, lapel height, buttoning point, pocket height, back neck measure, one by one I clicked them off and noted each bit of data carefully. The numbers confirmed the lack of any design anomaly. The only thing out of the ordinary was the shoulder seam recessed to a point half an inch further back from where one might expect to see it. The vents in the jacket are also shorter than what we might expect to see:

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The personal features of Windsor’s clothes, what we might call the design features, were hidden from sight. They were features intended to improve his comfort not impress the beholder. No ornaments to be found here. Instead of knick knacks, bells, whistles, accessories, or add-ons, one notes simplicity. For example, no opening button holes:

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An example of a personal Windsor touch can be found in the buttoned in boxer shorts feature.

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The Duke also favored two back pockets on his trousers, one with button and one without. This was to make accessing his cigarette case easier.

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Let’s put another mystery to rest: the crescent pockets are without flaps.

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So my first thought on seeing Windsor’s clothes was the absolute futility of both fashion and design: the two charlatans who have successively lured and betrayed men for decades. Take Windsor’s clothes, grow them to fit your size and you will see how actual and modern they truly are.

What has changed since 1932 is the quality of the materials and hand work. Stay tuned for Part II.
Last edited by alden on Thu Jan 19, 2006 4:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
DD MacDonald
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Tue Jan 17, 2006 1:56 pm

[quote="alden"]
An example of a personal Windsor touch can be found in the buttoned in boxer shorts feature.

Image

I know that every man puts his trousers on one leg at a time, but it takes a special man to do it without any underwear on, Ain't it grand to be the King. :lol:

DDM
pchong
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Tue Jan 17, 2006 2:29 pm

interesting buttoned in boxers...is this practice common those days? Also, the metal zipper, isn't that quite a novelty those days? I would guess this garmet would be post 1934 when zippers were put on trousers.
alden
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Tue Jan 17, 2006 2:50 pm

Both sets of trousers (1932 and 1934) had zippers as Windsor was an early adopter of the modern technology.
TVD
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Tue Jan 17, 2006 3:11 pm

A quick search of the net reveals that the zipper mechanism is based on a 1893 patent, perfected in 1911 and patented (the improvements) in 1917.
E. Tage Larsen
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Tue Jan 17, 2006 5:01 pm

Dear Mr. Alden:

Thank you, as always. What a fine and edifying presentation.
Leon
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Tue Jan 17, 2006 8:14 pm

Mr Alden,

Raiding the Duke of Windsor's wardrobe, what a delight!

Are there any plans to put these clothes on show?

Leon
Cufflink79
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Tue Jan 17, 2006 8:26 pm

Mr. Alden:
Thank you very much for sharing these nice photos. The buttoned in boxer shorts are a great idea, one less thing to pack when traveling. Looking forward to seeing part 2.

Best Regards,

Cufflink79 :D
Concordia
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Tue Jan 17, 2006 10:49 pm

Cufflink79 wrote:...one less thing to pack when traveling.
I suppose, if you never have to change them.
DD MacDonald
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Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:24 pm

Looking over the responses above, and excusing my relatively lame attempt at humor, I do have a question. Was the practice of button-in boxers a common one? I'd never seen nor heard of it before.

This is a great thread and I believe that Mr. Alden's observation that the sucess of the garments/wardrobe/style depends on the attention to fit and construction should prove a good rule for all of us.

DDM
Mark Seitelman
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Wed Jan 18, 2006 2:30 pm

Dear Mr. Alden,

Where are these treasures kept?
Prince Barry
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Wed Jan 18, 2006 6:15 pm

Fabulous report and photos. It is a rare treat indeed to see photos of these garments. Thank you for posting them.

I think it's quite amazing that you were actually allowed to touch the fabric with your bare hands and not having to wear protective cotton gloves so that the acid in the skin didn't damage the fabric.
whittaker
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Wed Jan 18, 2006 7:42 pm

Quite fascinating. Thank you, Michael.

Is it the case that fabrics of this quality are no longer available? What qualities of the fabric are impossible to recreate today?

Also, I echo a previous question: is it possible to personally view these items?
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