Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette! In today's video, we'll discuss madder
silk, what it is, where it comes from, and why it's so highly prized among menswear
enthusiasts. Chances are that as a viewer of the Gentleman's Gazette channel,
you've probably got at least a passing familiarity with different kinds of
fabrics and what goes into them. If you'd like to learn more though, we have
several comprehensive fabric guides on our website, many of which have companion
videos, you can find our overview page on the website here. For example, we recently
covered the super terminology of worsted wool suits and what that means in
greater depth, if you're interested in that topic you can find the related
video here. Today, we're covering another fabric term with a bit of mystique
surrounding it, Madder silk, also sometimes referred to as ancient madder. Before we
discuss fabrication though, let's cover the history, we'll start with the name
itself. The Madder in Madder silk simply refers to a plant
rubia tinctorum, also called rubia tinctoria, common madder, or dyers madder,
from which as you might expect, natural dyes can be extracted. Use of the plant
dates all the way back to 1500 BCE and it's also been used in such various
locations as Africa, Greece, Italy, and Central Asia. In other words, it's been
used since ancient times, hence the term ancient madder, as a dye for leather and
fabrics including cotton, wool, and silk. A piece of cotton dyed with madder has
been recovered from the archaeological site at Mohenjo-daro, now in India and
historical figures such as Pliny the Elder and Charlemagne wrote about Madder.
Focusing for a moment on how the dye itself is actually produced, it starts
with harvesting the plant after about two years of growth then by drying and
fermenting the roots of the plant, red dyes called alizarin and purpurin
are extracted. These dyes were first isolated by the French
chemist Pierre Jean Robiquet in 1826. Alternatively, the roots can also be
dissolved in sulfuric acid which leaves a dye called Garance which is the French
word for madder. In 1869, German chemists were able to synthesize artificial
alizarin dye, effectively ending the need for cultivation of natural madder roots.
And relating our historical overview specifically to the topic of menswear,
madder silk ties, primarily produced in England ,became a staple of Ivy style on
college campuses beginning in the 1930s. As an alternative to the repp stripe
patterns that were standard at the time, madder ties were often seen either in
Paisley or in small repeating geometric patterns. According to author and
menswear historian, G. Bruce Boyer, they were considered the king of campus ties,
inevitably more expensive than the other ties but more prestigious and
discriminating. By the way, if you're interested in a complete overview on ivy
style you can find our video on that topic here. Alright now that you know
where madder dyed silk comes from, let's discuss why it's so highly prized among
menswear aficionados. While natural madder root produced primarily only red
dyes, the modern dyeing process for madder can produce a wide array of rich
saturated hues. Most of these colors are on the darker end of the spectrum, think
for example, colors like mustard, forest green, burnt orange, deep blue, and
violet, and of course, red, and burgundy. Madder ties are now always printed on a
twill silk fabric that has been treated with gum arabic leading to a distinctive
finish and feel, this is referred to by the experts and those in the industry as
a chalk hand. Specifically, the silk used is first boiled to remove its natural
gum which is an organic resin. Then, the silk is dyed whatever color or colors
it's going to be and then artificial gum is added back in
to give the tie that distinctive chalky feel. And regarding pattern choices, as we
mentioned previously, madder ties are almost always produced in either paisley
or repeating geometric designs. This combination then of the rich but subtle
colors and the neat but intricate designs will give a madder tie an
unmistakable touch of refined class. Madder ties will then be visually
interesting and somewhat playful but also suitably formal for a wide variety
of situations and speaking of different levels of
formality, if you're curious about how what you should wear depends on the
formality of a situation, you can find our dress code primer video here. Now
that you're hopefully sold on the reasons why madder ties are so revered,
the question does remain, where can you buy them? While fewer manufacturers today
produce madder ties than was true in the previous century, there are still a
few retailers who carry them. These manufacturers would perhaps most
famously include Drakes of London but there are also others such as J. Press
and Sam Hober. For a great selection of authentic madder silk ties though, you
fortunately don't have to look any further than right here at Fort
Belvedere. This then begs the related question, what makes our Fort Belvedere
madder silk ties so special? Firstly, production of madder silk is a difficult
multi-step process of screen printing and only the highest quality silks can
be used. As a matter of principle then, Fort Belvedere sources all of its
ancient madder directly from England. To produce a blue madder tie, for example, a
natural white base cloth will be outlined with a pattern and highlight
colors would be applied to certain areas. Once the pattern printing is finished,
the fabric is immersed in an indigo bath rendering the omitted areas madder blue.
And in addition to their rich colors, Fort Belvedere madder silk ties also
feature the distinctive chalk hand of genuine madder neckwear.
Our ties are untipped, sport fine hand rolled edges, a carefully chosen
interlining chosen for ideal knots, and a signature green 3 ply silk yarn from
Germany for additional durability. Finally here, Fort Belvedere offers three
different lengths of ties so that any man can properly size the tie that he
wants for his specific height. On that topic if you'd like to learn more about
ties you can find our playlist on the subject here. Setting aside genuine
madder ties for a moment, it is true that you can find imitations out there but of
course, it should go without saying that a true gentleman will demand the genuine
product. One final note today, what are the best ways to wear a madder silk tie?
In the most general terms, they're particularly well suited for fall,
although they can be worn year-round depending on how you choose to
incorporate the color palette into your outfit. As an example, you could combine a
tweed jacket or full suit with an Oxford cloth button-down shirt and a madder silk
tie for a distinctly Ivy style inspired look. In addition to tweed, most heavier
fabrics with some heft and texture to them will pair well with madder silk
ties such as for example the camel hair jacket I'm wearing today and if you are
curious about tweed in particular you can find our video on that subject here.
regarding dressing for fall you can find our video on 11 must-haves for the fall
season here Overall then, given that madder silk has some historical pedigree
just as rich as the colors it produces, mdder silk ties should be a staple of
any discerning gentleman's wardrobe. you can check out our selection of madder
silk ties as well as pocket squares in the Fort Belvedere shop and you'll soon
see that it truly is a matter of taste. as you may have guessed my outfit for
today's video features both a madder silk tie as well as a madder silk pocket
square both from Fort Belvedere the tie is in orange red and it features a
repeating geometric pattern in buff meanwhile the pocket square is in
dark bronze and it features a red and green diamond pattern with a Paisley
border between the Paisley pocket square and the geometric pattern tie both of
the main patterns for madder silk are represented in today's outfit to
harmonize well with this warm color palette then I'm wearing a camel hair
sport coat and a yellow French cuff shirt from Charles Tyrwhitt my trousers
are in plain brown in a shade that's a little bit darker than the camel hair
color and my socks are in buff to harmonize with the shirt and the pattern
on the tie they also feature a pattern which is a geometric pattern of
repeating squares my tan cap-toe derby shoes go well with the jacket and they
feature a little bit of broguing along the cap toe they're from Allen Edmonds
also from Fort Belvedere today are my cufflinks which are gold-plated sterling
silver links in an Eagle Claw design and featuring tiger's eye as the stone as
well as my boutonniere whose flower is white phlox you can find the madder silk
tie and pocket square as well as the boutonniere and cufflinks and a wide
variety of other men's wear accessories in the Fort Belvedere shop here