Madras linen cloth

*Note: This is a cloth, to buy and use with a shirtmaker. It is not a finished shirt

Most checked shirtings available for bespoke are bright and loud. It's hard to find something that's subtle, or may we even say, sophisticated. 

In Simon's words: "I generally dislike those loud checks. They can be fun, but are more often crass. And they’re not easy to wear. As a result I have very few checked shirts."

"So last year while at Milano Unica, when I saw a pattern I particularly liked in Thomas Mason’s full collection, I decided to order it in bulk myself. This is the cloth - a Madras-inspired riot of blue, orange, pink and yellow, woven and washed to look faded, almost vintage."

The cloth is 100% linen, and clearly inspired by the bright cottons imported historically by the British from Madras, and made famous by Brooks Brothers in the US. It was also deliberately woven with delavé yarn, which is used in textiles to create a faded effect: the dye fades with industrial washing, allowing the mill to pick the look they want. 

Adds Simon: "I went through a few different washes before settling on this one: not too bright, but too so faded that you can’t make out all those different colours (I count eight in total). Once in this state, though, it shouldn’t fade more than a regular shirt when washed at home."

- The cloth weighs 123-129 g/m2

- Like the other PS cloths, it is shipped in 2m lengths, which is generally good enough for someone up to 6’3’’ in height. But it also depends on your other measurements, so best to check with your shirtmaker

- If you want to send it straight to a shirtmaker, put them as the shipping address, including your name as a reference. And let the maker know it’s coming

For more background on the cloth, and styling, see the original PS post here.