You Know You Just Can't Find Anything Decent To Buy A Man At Christmas .....

I find people present me with a variation of the above blog title line every time they are discussing gift ideas - as though there really isn't possibly anything to buy a man. It continues in this vein "he already has a lovely pen, he doesn't wear shirts with French cuffs so cufflinks are out, he doesn't wear ties because he's no longer in the city, he's very picky when it comes to his sneakers and he has a wide foot, I could get him socks but then that doesn't say much does it? I was thinking of some gardening tools but then I am not sure he does anything around the house".

When people like this babble on in front of me, especially women, I keep thinking 'if they would draw breath I'd give them an answer'. The answer is a bow tie, because it's something fun and interesting that you don't necessarily have to wear this week or next, something you will keep for years, something which, if we did our job correctly, will remain timeless in his wardrobe. Yes, you can complain that you can't find anything to buy, but sometimes things are right under your nose.

The below silk has just come in and we have begun cutting them into bows. Every time we run a limited edition there is an inherent risk that it might all go wrong - there is no guarantee that your wonderful initial idea or sketch will translate well to silk. The shape below started in my head as a by-product from a drawing based on a shape I witnessed in the making of our Solitude silk last year. Refining the drawing over time I came up with the approximate idea I had in mind and I began re-working the design in vector graphics in Adobe Illustrator. Some might say it was part Indigenous Australian in it's look and appearance. For me it might be a mixture of that influence coupled with things we might find in deep space or as we break down structures in nature. Whatever it is that this thing represents, it's not normal, it has a life of it's own and if you thought wearing a bow tie was controversial then adding this jacquard into the mix is like pouring diesel onto the fire.

My advice is to let the bow tie speak for itself, paired with a navy suit and white shirt or in the instance of the gold colour way, with a lighter grey towards silver suit.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and hopefully you will be able to find a gift for the men in your life - be it dads, bros, broheims or beaus. www.lenoeudpapillon.com