What is it that makes our new wool ties so perfect: they’re versatile, elegant and understated plus the knitted tie has a softer look. Textured wool, ideal for winter, delivers richness to these solid blocks of colour. These ties, knitted in Scotland, are more informal and look great with chunky cardigans or sports jackets teamed with chinos or jeans. Perfect work-to-weekend versatility.

Shop the wool tie collection now http://tinyurl.com/ckdz8j6

Add warmth. Add colour. Add style. Wrap up in our uber-luxe soft and generously oversized winter scarves. Casually layer over jackets for instant warmth or create the perfect contrast for your bespoke overcoat. If you’re wearing a streamlined look, add interest and layers with a loose once-around knot, we use this tie method when we want to cultivate that ‘haven’t had time to finish the job right’ – because usually, we really haven’t had time.

Shop scarf collection now

Sterling Silver worn regularly requires less care than stored pieces. It will tarnish, especially when in contact with gases in the air, but with proper care sterling silver will remain lustrous. All our cufflinks and highland accessories are made from sterling silver, a metal containing at least 92.5% by mass of silver and 7.5% by mass of other metals, usually copper. Pure silver is too soft to create durable cufflinks, so to enhance its performance it is mixed. To care for Peter Johnston silver products we recommend a couple of practices: polishing and washing. Its best to use a soft cloth to apply a silver polish and wash off in sudsy water. Be sure to rinse and dry fully to restore to its original appearance. 

Cufflinks

Highland Accessories

It seems like only yesterday that we last wrote. And yet, it was in fact over three weeks ago. Time flies when you are having fun, so the saying goes, and we have been having fun. When you embark on a new project, nobody reminds you that there’s a whole heap of detail to look over do they? So it’s been ‘head-down’ and ‘focus’.

The door to our new online shop and website opened this week and we’re excited. We think you’ll like it. We thought it completely appropriate at this time, with the USA Peter Johnston at Saks launch and the extension of our bespoke tailoring services in Scotland, to give ourselves a crash course in who we are and what we do, and then re-fresh our website to share that with you. A good number of our friends already know about our hand crafted ties, cashmere scarves and other luxury accessories and have entrusted us with their sartorial elegance from the showroom. Well sometimes, you just need to quick-shop to complement your busy life so we’ve put together a collection of accessories for purchasing online.

Reassuringly, our online products are still beautifully made in our signature style of craftsmanship and quality – we’ve simply made it hassle-free to purchase them from the moment you place your order to when the postie delivers your parcel. It just makes sense – doesn’t it?

And thanks for all your interest and support; we’re pleased to be back in contact with you. 

www.peter-johnston.co.uk/bespoke-tailoring

www.peter-johnston.co.uk/shoponline

If you are proud of your heritage and ancestry or simply need a subtle reminder of a special date then engraved cufflinks could be the answer. They are highly representative of the person who wears them.

'Golden Twins' as they have become known, date back to around the 14th or 15th century. The classic cufflink consists of two studs linked by a chain and when engraved they show an attention to detail and an expression of your personal style. 

Historically, engraving a monogram or family crest was a sign of rank in society and an important seal for validating personal legal documents; today engraved cufflinks can be a personal, understated and refined way of showing your sense of history with an easy sophistication. A quality accessory with heritage that adds a classic elegance to your tailoring.

12 craftsmen, 70 separate procedures, woods of distinction, tempered steel, brass and nylon: supreme craftsmanship to keep the rain off your head (and tailoring). We are proud to say that one of the very few custom umbrella makers in the world makes for us by handcrafting these masterpieces from a small workshop. Each umbrella is made up of a cane, a crown, a runner, a handle, spokes, springs, fabric canopy and thread. Sturdiness is obviously paramount and so with that in mind, some processes are spread over a few days for example the steaming and the bending of the handle to shape and stabilize the wood e.g. malacca, whangee (bamboo) or polished chestnut. The slider, made of cast iron, is for opening and closing the umbrella and the crown, made of brass, is a special ring that keeps the spokes together. Each fabric canopy has eight segments that are cut by hand then sewn together using high tensile strength threads while keeping the fabric as taught as possible. Securing the canopy to the spokes is exacting work but it is the little extras that really count like the little bit of extra fabric put under the area where the spokes touch the fabric. This operation takes a lot of extra time and is a sign of premium craftsmanship. You'll notice too the sound when these umbrellas open, they stretch and tighten until then spring in to place - a reassuring sign of excellent quality. 

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Do you know your 'Hard Enamel' from your 'Soft Enamel'? It's Hard Enamel, also known as Vitreous Enamel, two hundred year old techniques that are used to craft our cufflinks. Time consuming hand work that requires great skill and patience, all the processes employed to make our cufflinks are done by hand and eye without any mechanical or automated assistance. Vitreous Enamel is glass that is first ground to a very fine powder, mixed with distilled water, applied by hand to the prepared metal background, heated with a gas torch to approximately 800 degrees celsius to fuse the glass to the metal. To achieve the excellent bright smooth finish and depth of enamel colour required for our cufflinks, this process is repeated many times on each piece. Take a look:

Freshen up a winter wool suit or jacket with a little flair by adding a pocket square. It's spring, you've discarded your overcoat and it's all on show again so it's a good time to add a splash of individuality. You can't beat crisp white linen (in our opinion) and when folded 'square' as the man himself would, it's very Cary Grant. If you prefer colour, then with a pocket square the trick is not to match too closely to your tie but to go for shades lighter or darker that harmonize. As a beacon of classic good taste, like the subtle hand-stitched finishes on your bespoke tailoring a good quality pocket square always has rolled edges. The hand-rolling is an important detail as the handkerchief is folded to reveal its edges and points. There are many ways to fold including the square end, the multi-point, the crushed and the puffed but we would advise to only use the simplest of folds with linen. We suggest finding one you like and sticking with it - like most things in life. 

• Crisp white linen always works, fold it 'square'
• Patterned pocket squares should sit with plain ties
• Don't match pocket square and tie exactly, harmonize with shades darker or lighter
• Beacon of good taste and top quality - hand-rolled edges

 

A beautifully tailored suit, an impeccably cut shirt and the finest handmade shoes.  Together, they send an unmistakeable message – of assurance, style and taste. But the look is incomplete, the message blurred, unless careful attention is paid to the fine details.  It’s the ‘V area’ that people will focus on next – the collar, the lapel and in particular the tie.  Only the right tie will speak true – of elegance, panache and flair.

The signs of quality

As with any part of the gentleman’s outfit, it’s best to keep it simple and allow quality to show through:  it’s important to invest in a good quality pure silk tie for its suppleness, strength, depth of colour, and drape.  There’s a lot of science to ties, but most important is that it should feel right. Pick it up and feel it before you buy it, crumple the silk carefully – does it spring back?  Your first impression is your best guide.

While there are a number of things which distinguish a high quality tie, the most important is probably the quality of the silk. The process of producing silk is time- and labour intensive (once the silkworms have spun their cocoons the threads need to be unwound with the aid of special brushes, a complex and expensive process), and it’s very difficult for non specialists to tell the true quality of the silk used. 

Peter Johnston ties are made from an exclusive “350 End” silk quality.  There are 350 warp threads every inch, with each warp thread actually 2 threads twisted together to give improved strength, weight, texture and fall.  This gives a lustrous finish and a special, almost audible, ’crunch’ to the silk.  All our silk fabric is ‘pure dye’, meaning that no artificial additives have been added to the warp or weft yarn – the weight and lustre of the fabric is achieved simply by virtue of the yarn itself.

But while the choice of silk may be the first important test of quality, the precision of the cutting, the quality and cut of the lining and the accuracy of the stitching are also extremely important. The silk should be cut on a perfect 45 degree angle so that the interlining fabric isn’t visible.  All Peter Johnston ties are cut in this way.

The interior construction of the tie determines whether the tie knots well, hangs straight and retains its shape.  The thickness of the interlining affects the thickness of the knot, and a silk tie with quality wool interlining will feel classier, look better and last longer.  The interlinings of Peter Johnston ties are made from 100% brushed wool, which provides the tie with body and elasticity ensuring that after wearing it will (if carefully rolled) spring back to its former shape.

And sewing anything by hand makes such a difference.  Each Peter Johnston tie is painstakingly hand cut and sewn in the UK. We ensure that, for each tie, the weight of cloth is matched to the weight of interlining, and then assembled according to Peter Johnston's unique specification. We utilize the skill and experience of artisans who have been working in the tie making industry for decades, each tie made by one of three skilled seamstresses familiar with our particular make.

With ties, the slipstitch is the main seam and allows flexibility and movement along the tie. The stitch must catch the two sides of the tie and connect them to the interlining perfectly – never catching the front of the tie. It’s not easy. Like all high quality ties, Peter Johnston ties are made in three sections (less expensive ties are made up of only two). And the finest neckties – such as Peter Johnston ties – tuck the self-loops ends into the blades centre seam, anchoring it securely. 

That’s a lot of science.  The main thing to remember is that craftsmanship and finishing all matter for how your tie looks and feels. However good it is, technology will never replicate the human touch, and ties made with machines will never be more than pale imitations of their hand-made cousins.  If you want to take three things away from this they are that a quality tie should be cut by hand at a 45 degree angle;  that it should be made by hand in three pieces by skilled artisans; and that only the finest ties tuck the self loop ends into the blade’s centre seam.  Peter Johnston ties pass all of those tests.

Plains, Stripes or Spots?

Your tie will set the tone for your entire image.  But while it can and should be the centerpiece, it should contribute to the overall image, not stand in splendid isolation.  In short, colour and design matters!

You won’t go wrong with a well-cut and tailored blue suit, a crisp white shirt and a subtle solid colour tie;  you’ll look elegantly understated – someone who knows what they like. A navy blue tie can be worn on almost any occasion, with almost any shirt, suit or coat. There are four main components to the Peter Johnston navy blue selection: navy with white pin dots; navy with white polka dots; navy textured weave; and navy with ecru pinstripe.  And there are twelve additional variations on stripe widths and spot sizes. 

If you prefer to experiment you could try mixing similar patterns. Like-patterned garments such as a stripe shirt and a stripe tie combine effectively and subtly, provided the design size of each is as different from the other as possible.  For example, where you choose to combine stripes make sure one item has close-set stripes the other wide. Subtle stripes and one colour dots look great with a plain shirt.  Ultimately mixing patterns simply depends on your personal style – if in any doubt ask Peter for guidance.

The knotty issue

The type of knot you choose doesn’t matter so much as how well it’s tied. You should end up with a neat, taut, arched knot with a dimple underneath.  A taut knot will stay in place and give the knot the spring it needs to arch out from the collar. Ideally, wedge your knot high into the collar ‘V’ and line up your dimple in the centre. If it’s a Peter Johnston tie , the woven silk’s slightly textured surface will help keep the knot in place.

Practice makes perfect but – you guessed it – a good quality tie will make the process easier and the end result far superior.  If you’d like any advice, Peter would be delighted to help at your next tailoring appointment.

So…

We hope this has given you a few insights into the finest quality ties by Peter Johnston. Peter’s ties offer a statement of quality, taste and style: an understated exterior concealing the highest quality.