Last edited by Sam Hober (2006-12-01 06:02:34)

Good morning Horace,

"thanks again.  I think you are too nice & generous in defering to personal choice.  But maybe that's best in these matters when things get heated!"

Thank you for your kind words, but now we are venturing into philosophy in a way. Is it possible for someone to really know what is best? I believe that the business world has some nice basic clothing styles - thnk classic Brooks Brothers which are great. And if you are going to a formal wedding or coranation then rules work well. But excepting a very few formal situations I do not believe in rules or someone knowing what is best.

In a very few situations, I will make a strong statement such as my thoughts that a lined six-fold is not a seven-fold, or a double-four fold, and if we do not put a stop to this incorrect usage seven-folds will go the way of the Panama hat... which is actually made by artisans  in Equador - or at least they used to be....

"Anyway -- have you ever had a chance to look at older Brooks makers ties and at older Talbott and others.  I wonder if gradually the quality has lessoned.  Certainly the few Makers ties I have from the old days (I just bought a new Brooks tie and the lining doesn't seem to be what it once was) had to my(admittedly untutored) eye and hand a better lining.  I'd love to send you some older stuff for you to examine and post your thoughts on had you the chance."

These days I rarely look at other makers ties due to a lack of time, and because I have the general idea of whats out there. With that said, I wonder if perhaps you are correct. But remember, they have a certain price point that they market to and they have sales. Not just now but sometime I would be happy to look at your older ties. I think that your eyes and hands together can make a very good judgement because you have been wearing ties for a while and love them.

Noina has has 20/10 eyesight and is very good with colors and textures - better than me by far. Yet, I don't always agree with her. Her views are somewhat artistic rather than classic at times. Also I still have some oldstyle beliefs that men know more about ties than women. Noina rarely reads the forums so I am safe (smiling).

"I still amazed that so many ties are offered made in the USA out of English silk.  I guess costs aren't prohibitive in a way that they are for other things now made off-shore."

This is a very interesting point. And I may have more questions than answers.

A long time ago silk was woven  in the USA. Why can't we bring the craft of silk weaving back?

We have a brand/division called "Sangdao" which sells Thai silk yarn to textile artists here in the US so there are some American artists still weaving silk. Mostly wall hangings and some for clothes.

China has a labor advantage but I think that a small commercial silk mill in the US that is set up for small custom silk orders could be a viable concept - I think, but I am not sure.

England has a cultural advantage (think of those thousands of striped designs in their archives) but not much of a labor advantage. I will bet that there are lots of North Carolina out of work textile people that would love to weave silk.

"I bought a Polo tie way way back - and it was maybe 4" or more in width.  I think he started by offering very wide ties didn't he?  No doubt you know the market now better than I, but I've always felt that a 3.5 or at most 3 5/8 tie seemed a heck of a lot more timeless than other widths."

I think that you know the desirability of tie widths as well as I do. As for the market 3 3/4" seems like a happy midground between the wider Italian ties and the classic American ties. Sam Hober does not actually sell ties, we sell the service of making a tie so we are immune to the problem of worrying about tie widths.

Were we to make readymade ties I would perhaps make a couple of widths?