Category: Socks and underwear

Long-time readers may remember The Underwear Project in 2011, which involved trying every major producer of luxury men’s underwear to see which I preferred. Zimmerli won that competition, and I’ve worn pretty much j...

  It’s that time of year again. The TV adverts that started a month ago should have been a warning. Below is my Christmas gift list for 2019. It is not a comprehensive list of the best menswear gifts right now. I...

It’s been over a year since I last had the chance to browse the stock at No Man Walks Alone and write one of these pieces, for which I blame a lack of travel to New York. It is possible to select a few favourites onli...

This suit from Vicenza-based Sartoria Pasinato has turned out very smartly, with a clean fit and very sharp line. Part of this is a result of the cloth, which is a cavalry twill from Vitale Barberis Canonico (584, 440g)...

1 R. Culturi There are many brands launching ties or handkerchiefs online these days, given it’s an easy area to try and express something new - and the lack of sizing makes it relatively easy to sell online. One that...

   The following is an extract from my book Best of British: The Stories Behind Britain’s Iconic Brands , published by Prestel. Dedicated copies are available to buy here – James Smith & Sons Two or th...

   For the past month I have been testing Viccel socks, a Turkish manufacturer that pretty much only sells through its own website. If they tested well, I hoped Viccel would be a good value alternative for over-the-cal...

   UPDATE: Bram is now offering free shipping for all orders of three socks or more, which include one Diamond Rib pair (our design above). Go through to checkout on the store and the shipping charge will be removed �...

  About 50% of Permanent Style collaborations never come to fruition. The quality’s not right, or the cut, or some other aspect just can’t be perfected. Often the lead time proves to be too long. It makes yo...

  My latest column for How to Spend It is on the innovative Bram Frankel, creator of sock brand William Abraham. I continue to be impressed by Bram ever since I first helped launch the brand back in February. He is doin...

  One of the first people I met in New York last week was Bram Frankel, founder of William Abraham socks. Bram’s product is nothing less than a step change for the industry – something few companies achieve in a bus...

Last month, a reader asked for some recommendations of “affordable luxury”. By this, I think he meant items that weren’t necessarily that expensive, but were nonetheless luxurious. The best (a little) money could b...

In the past few years some of Europe’s bigger sock makers have been pushing their own branding and online sales. There is now far greater availability of high-quality over-the-calf socks, which is great. The proble...

The cost of variety is rarely appreciated by consumers. Among all the things that make up the price of a piece of clothing – materials, labour, rent, tax, marketing, R&D – the waste implicit in a broad range is h...

One of the nice things about having nice advertisers is the range of Christmas shopping ideas they present. Here are my favourites. Among the best additions to the collection at Drake’s are the untipped cashmeres in va...

Colours that go with tan Dear Simon, I’m getting stuck putting an outfit together, and what it comes down to is the socks.   I’m wearing a mid-grey worsted wool suit with a sky-blue shirt and regimental tie ...

Normal.dotm 0 0 1 294 1678 Euromoney PLC 13 3 2060 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false One of the pleasures of writing this blog is meeting entrepreneurs. I’m not sure I’d ever have the courage to strike o...

There are three types of knitting machines at Corgi: old, domestic models; double-bed machines; and single-bed machines. All require hand framing – that is, the worker must pull the carriage up and down by hand.   The...

Corgi is a lovely little company, just outside Swansea in south Wales. It’s been around since 1893 and has the Prince of Wales’s royal warrant. But, more importantly, it’s one of only a few companies left in the UK...

Most of the factories I visit present few surprises in the manufacturing process. I’ve seen a lot of looms, from Hattersleys made in 1910 to the latest air-pressure machines that make up most of the production at Loro ...

Of all the factories I have visited for the current book, the contrast between product and production was greatest at Zimmerli. The production facility is a small, two-storey building in Coldrerio, a Swiss town just acro...

At Bresciani today, in Spirano just outside Bergamo. Lovely socks, and some nice sheep too. They’ll be the socks chapter of my upcoming book. More photos on   www.andybarnham.com...

In Coldrerio and Mendrisio, Switzerland, today to visit Zimmerli underwear. That’s the cloth being cut in Mendrisio. Zimmerli will be included in The Finest Menswear in the World as the producer of the best underwe...

The second brand to be tested as part of The Underwear Project is very British company Sunspel. (Previous post, on The White Briefs, can be seen here.) Sunspel is the cheapest of the brands on offer. Their regular briefs...

A few weeks ago I began a project to search out the best underwear made anywhere in the world. Obviously, given the focus of Permanent Style, the focus would be on both quality, including materials and construction, and ...