Products With Personality: Tweed Workshirt

In the depths of winter we all have our rituals for bundling up before we head outside. We layer on sweaters, thick socks, heavy coats, and hats, before we brave the icy winds. As the weather warms up and spring arrives, some of those colder weather clothes will be packed away in the closet for next winter, while others will transition to multiple seasons with ease. A wool overshirt has its uses as a winter inner layer, a spring or fall outer layer, and a throw-on light jacket on cool summer nights.

Timeless Traditions: Donegal Tweed

As we’ve discussed in a previous blog post, the wool cloth collectively known as tweed was developed as a hard-wearing material for country wear in Scotland and Ireland. Using locally produced wool, regional tweeds evolved to suit the needs of the outdoorsmen who would wear them, resulting in variations that would come to represent the style of entire regions of the British Isles.

Timeless Traditions: An Introduction to Tweed

Most of the clothing that we cover here on The Andover Shop Blog originates in the British Isles. Famous for their changeable weather, particularly in chilly winters, Great Britain and Ireland are also historically a center of wool production. During the Middle Ages, the English economy was supported primarily by the production of sheep’s wool and the weaving industry. The historical importance of this industry can be seen in the fact that to this day the presiding officer of the House of Lords sits on The Woolsack, a symbolic chair stuffed with wool.

Suits with a Story: Eric Twardzik

Eric Twardzik has been a lifelong devotee of Ivy Style. “For years, I’ve been into Anglo-American style.” Writing about menswear had piqued his interest and driven him to search stores and online for modern reproductions of the classic Ivy look, “and at The Andover Shop I found the real thing.” Eric visited The Cambridge location a couple times to get his bearings before deciding what item of clothing he wanted to have made to measure. “I work from home, so I wear sport coats because I want to, not because I have to.” He consulted at length with the staff to figure out exactly what would fit his needs.

Products with Personality: The Chrysalis Alpaca-lined Overcoat

Chrysalis England has been producing high-quality outerwear in the UK since 1985. They are particularly well-known for their warm, casual Field Coat designs, which The Andover Shop has carried for years. This year however, Chrysalis looked back at the history of men’s outerwear and forward to what may be a very cold winter, producing a classically-styled coat that will guard against the roughest weather.