Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette. In today's video, we'll discuss the underrated
Winchester shirt style, its history,
the different types you can find, and, of course, how to wear it well.
[The Gentleman's Gazette theme song plays]
So, to jump right into today's video, we must first answer the question: What is a Winchester
shirt? In simplest terms, a Winchester shirt is a dress shirt style that is colored, striped,
checked, or otherwise patterned but has contrasting collar and cuffs. These are almost always
white. But, you can sometimes find models that don't have contrasting cuffs, but rather
that match the body of the shirt.
In either case, though, the collar will be contrasting and, again, almost always white.
The advantage of such a shirt style is that it is somewhat more formal given that it will
almost always have white collar and cuffs. But, there will be a pop of color or, sometimes,
pattern in the v-shape between your collar and the lapels of your jacket. And because
of the white collar and cuffs,
Winchester shirts are slightly more formal than if they were to simply have collar and
cuffs that both match the body of the shirt. Therefore, they're well suited to business
wear and less so casual wear. Essentially, the Winchester shirt is mimicking fashions
of the Victorian era when men often wore shirts with detachable collars and cuffs. Men would
mix and match shirt bodies that had different colors and patterns with their white cuffs
and collars. Given that this is a Victorian-inspired look, you will sometimes see Winchester shirts
worn with formal day wear and this is an appropriate option. For more information on morning dress,
you can find our comprehensive guide on the subject here. Winchester styles might also
remind you of the 80s power suit look as immortalized by Michael Douglas as Gordon Gekko in the
1987 film Wall Street. But, we assure you that while these 80s power suits will look
dated today, you can still very easily wear a Winchester shirt with a classically-inspired
wardrobe and not look out of place. With a simple definition of what the shirt is out
of the way then, we should now get into history, which is to say where did the shirt and its
name come from. The shirt is named after the 52nd Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut,
Oliver Fisher Winchester, whose name is more commonly associated with the Winchester rifle,
which was developed by his company, the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. Born in 1810, Winchester
started his career as a clothing manufacturer, opening his first men's furnishing store in
1837. Following this, he moved to New York City ten years later in 1847 and co-founded
the Winchester and Davies Shirt Manufacturing Company in 1848. He would use his profits
from these companies to become the majority stockholder of the Volcanic Repeating Arms
Company in 1855 and the president by 1856. He eventually bought out and reorganized the
company in 1857. He would then go on to reorganize this company a second time before sticking
with the name Winchester Repeating Arms Company, which is when his famous rifle was invented.
So, yes, the man behind the rifle and the shirt are one and the same, So, what about
the shirt itself then? Winchester and Davies created the Winchester and Davies Shirt Manufacturing
Company in 1848. By 1860, they were producing 800 shirts a week and they paid their machinists
more than their hand sewers.
The reason for this was simply that because, by using the sewing machines, the machinists
could produce a high-quality shirt in under an hour;
whereas, the hand sewers could sometimes take up to 14 hours to produce a single shirt.
While other factories and manufacturers of the time saw machine sewing as cheap and unskilled
work, Winchester and Davies capitalized on the speed and efficiency, hiring more machinists
and paying them more to maximize production. By the beginning of the 1930s, the older-style
detachable collar shirts were beginning to lose favor, but men still wanted to mix and
match their colors. Thus, at this time, the most popular styles of contrasting collar
and cuff shirts with colored bodies were being sold by the Winchester and Davies Company.
So, this is most likely why they became known as Winchester shirts. With history out of
the way, the next question we'll tackle is why one would want to choose a Winchester
shirt today? Not only do Winchester shirts look slightly more formal than conventional
dress shirts as we mentioned already, but they also give a very direct visual signal
back to the golden age of classic menswear when contrasting collars and cuffs were more
common on well-styled gentlemen. The white cuffs and collar provide nice visual contrast
adding layers to your outfit. But also, in particular, the white collar provides a nice
neutral background for a necktie. As the shirt collar and necktie are often a main focal
point when wearing a suit given that they are close to the face, it is important that
they harmonize well. Plain and neutral white dress shirts will pair well with any necktie
style;
whereas, sometimes a colored shirt might look a bit too flashy with the rest of the outfit.
But, if you feel that an all-white shirt would be a bit too plain or too formal and you still
want to incorporate some color into your shirt, a happy middle ground is to use a Winchester,
where you'll have the plain white collar to frame your necktie along with usually plain
white cuffs, but a colored shirt body. Essentially then, the Winchester shirt can often represent
the best of both worlds for many outfit combinations. Next, let's look at some of the typical features
of a Winchester shirt
starting, of course, with the collar. While the defining feature of a Winchester shirt
is its contrasting collar, there are no set rules on what type of collar it must be. Therefore,
the Winchester can come in pretty much any style of collar. And since we have produced
a comprehensive video on the different shirt collar styles, which you can find here, we
won't go into too much detail today.
But, what follows is a quick rundown of the collar styles we think look particularly smart
with a Winchester shirt. The classic point or straight collar can be paired with a
number of different necktie knots and can also be worn with collar jewelry. The longer
spear or spear point collar also looks good paired with a slimmer tie knot and looks
smart when paired with collar jewelry as well. The tab collar, which features a loop and
a tab with a button will hold the collar down against the shirt body and push the tie
knot out, essentially using the same function as collar jewelry. Cutaway collars can be
another good option, though we would advise using a larger tie knot to accommodate the
wider spread. And even though Winchester shirts are generally more formal, you will occasionally
see them with button-down style collars as well. In this case, we would simply recommend
that you avoid buttons or button thread that is strongly contrasting as it will detract
somewhat from the formality of the Winchester style. And speaking of formality, at the upper
end of the formality scale here would be the "wing collar", which can also be found on
Winchester shirts, mirroring the detachable styles of the 19th and early 20th centuries.
You won't have
[Preston pauses to collect himself]
I feel like every time I talk there's something out there.
[Godzilla roars and machine guns go off]
You won't have too many opportunities to wear this particular style outside of formal day
wear. But, be aware that if you are wearing a morning dress, this style is an option.
So, if the collar maintains its formality by being white, what are the most common colors
and patterns that you'll see on the body of a Winchester shirt? Most commonly seen are
Winchester shirts with either a plain blue body or a body featuring blue and white stripes
as I'm wearing here today. This is a very subtle and safe look. So, if you're just venturing
into the world of Winchester shirts, we'd recommend starting here as the light blue
will provide a nice neutral base on which you can build many types of outfits. Stripes
are definitely a favorite among wearers of the Winchester style as they were popular
from the Victorian era all the way into the 1930s. And, of course, striped shirt styles
persist to this day.
With that said, though, we would recommend that you avoid Winchester styles that contain
particularly thick or gaudy stripes in loud and garish colors as these aren't going to
be versatile options to build outfits around. Safer options would include stripes in one
color, perhaps in a neutral shade or if you're going for multiple colors, make sure that
the stripes are thinner and finer. Furthermore, the stripes don't always have to be against
a white backdrop. You could also find Winchester shirts in pastel shades like pink, perhaps
with a thin blue stripe for an accent. And while the most common pattern for Winchester
shirts you'll find will be some variation of stripes, there are also checked Winchester
shirt styles available.
We wouldn't recommend trying these right away if you're just starting out with Winchester
shirts as their bolder pattern nature can be a bit more difficult to incorporate into
your outfits.
With that said though, simple patterns like box checks can add some dynamism to an outfit,
while something like a smaller and more subtle gingham will add an element of visual interest
while not being overpowering and thus allowing you to experiment more with your accessories
and other outfit elements. Just remember that, in general, the wider and larger a checked
pattern,
the less formal the shirt is going to be. Micro-check patterns will be safer. And if
your check pattern is a bit too wide to be worn well, you could always just repurpose
the body of the shirt as a game board for your next game night. And, of course, if you're
interested in learning more about shirt styles with grid patterns, you can check out our
video on checks and grids here. You can, of course, also find Winchester shirts with solid
or block-colored bodies as well, and these make a particularly good canvas around which
you can build outfits and experiment more with your tie and other accessories. If opting
to wear a block-colored Winchester shirt, we'd recommend going with pastel colors such
as light blue, yellow, or pink as these are classic and well-worn options in the world
of classic menswear. Again, remember that your shirt is acting as something of a canvas
here, serving to complement and add dimension to your suit and your accessories. Therefore,
going with something subtle is always going to be a smart choice. Conversely though, bright
and flamboyant colors in things like electric pink or dark jewel tones are just going to
look loud and flashy, and will definitely take
your outfit more into 1980s power suit territory.
To give you some more styling inspiration for Winchester shirts, we've put together
three different outfits which will show you different kinds of shirt. The first of course
is the outfit that I'm wearing today.
This is, of course, a more formal business-style outfit with the navy suit grounding the outfit.
And it features the Winchester shirt with the most common blue and white striped design.
The light blue of the shirt harmonizes well with the navy tones of the suit, but it also
provides a somewhat subtle backdrop for my Fort Belvedere tie, which is in a burgundy
shade of jacquard woven silk featuring small white polka dots. Also in this same color
family are my vintage silk pocket square featuring a glen check pattern in burgundy and a very
pale light blue and my small dark red carnation boutonniere, which is from Fort Belvedere.
Furthermore, another Fort Belvedere accessory are my cufflinks, which are in our platinum-plated,
sterling silver eagle claw design featuring red carnelian as the stone to again harmonize
with the other accessories. The tie is framed well by the white collar of the shirt and
the cufflinks are allowed to stand out even more against the white shirt cuffs. The peak
lapels of the suit jacket perhaps give just a taste of that 1980s flare while not looking
distinctly dated. This outfit is rounded out by a pair of dark brown, cap-toed Oxford shoes,
which are somewhat more formal in nature and some Fort Belvedere socks in our new two-tone
solid designs in varying shades of blue. Our next outfit features a gray suit style in
a bird's eye weave with a Winchester shirt that has a very subtle herringbone pattern
and a blue body. The subtle herringbone pattern and pastel blue background make for a good
canvas for our Fort Belvedere accessories, which include a grenadine tie in blue and
purple, a blue cornflower boutonniere which of course has some purple tones, and a white
linen pocket square. Our final outfit here features a brown patterned suit and a Winchester
shirt in yellow. We've accented it with our Fort Belvedere madder silk tie in orange
red with a micro pattern in buff as well as a boutonniere, which is the orange exotic
Caribbean.
The pocket square is in a wool silk blend in a color we're calling "antique gold yellow"
and features paisleys in beige, blue, red, and orange also with a shoestring edge for
more contrast. Here, the plain yellow color of the Winchester shirt provides a good base
for the slightly bolder accessories, and we've also capped it off with collar jewelry given
that the collar of this particular Winchester shirt incorporates the use of a collar bar.
My gold-plated, sterling silver eagle claw cufflinks with tiger's eye as the stone reinforce
this same warm color feel and, in addition, I'm wearing the same shoes as before and a
pair of socks with a subtle pattern that also picks up on the same color feel. Hopefully,
by now we've inspired you to try incorporating Winchester shirts into your wardrobe. But,
if you don't already own one, where can you buy one? While perhaps not as common as they
once were in decades past, Winchester shirts are still somewhat common so you should be
able to find them at your local department store or men's clothing store. Still, if you'd
like a few specific brand recommendations, we could list Charles Tyrwhitt, a brand we've
recommended on this channel before who offers 100% cotton Winchester shirts from around
$60 to $90 per shirt. T.M. Lewin also supplies Winchester shirts in pure cotton that they
refer to as "contrast collar shirts." And they sell them for about $65 a shirt.
[Preston reacts to background noise] Well, I guess
we just have to wait for whatever that is
to get out of here. [Static sound] Some sort of large vehicle that's just like
idling?
[Raphael dances to techno music]
Hawes & Curtis probably has the widest selection of Winchester shirt styles available at least
at the time we're recording this video. Unsurprisingly, Brooks Brothers also offers Winchester styles
from time to time. And if you're looking at other international brands, Japanese offerings
include the brand Suit Company. And the American brand Paul Fredrick commonly offers Winchester
shirts,
although they can occasionally be quite bold so exercise your best judgment. And finally,
for something more upscale, Thomas Pink sells Winchester styles typically for around
$230 a shirt in a poplin weave, though the fabric composition isn't listed on their website
at this time. In conclusion, then, we believe that the Winchester shirt may be the perfect
shirt option for bringing a bit of color contrast and dynamism to your outfits while still maintaining
a formal air with its white collar and cuffs. In this way, it makes for a subtly dynamic
background for your other outfit accessories and, again, is something of an underrated
shirt style so we hope we've raised its profile today. Of course, I already discussed the
the outfit I'm wearing in today's video earlier on. But, as a reminder, you can find the cufflinks,
tie, boutonniere, and socks that I'm wearing in the Fort Belvedere shop, along with a wide
array of other classic men's accessories.
[The Gentleman's Gazette theme song plays]