five8ths on Loop de Luxe

I am thrilled to announce that five8ths is the first menswear designer to be featured in the online boutique, Loop de Luxe! Right now you will find five8ths pocket squares and the latest seven-fold necktie--it is made of the same Italian linen as the dotted navy pocket square. Shirts should soon be up, including the soon-to-be-unveiled short-sleeved designs for spring. Right now you can save 20% with code LOVELDL.

I have admired a few of the other designers on Loop de Luxe for some time, especially fellow-cyclist and womenswear designer Jill Aiko Yee and jewelry designer Laura Lombardi, so am happy to be in great company.

And for those who haven't seen the five8ths website in a while, it has been updated over the past couple months with (hopefully) more clear information and a slightly sleeker design. Let me know if you find any glitches. Thanks!

Brown twill Shacket

Last week I finished a custom order for a brown twill Shacket, for a 6'9" tall man. I flipped the facings so the wrong side faces out--it would almost look normal worn inside-out! I hadn't made a sample of this version of the Shacket, so wasn't sure how it would turn out, but I really like it!

Wirebrush shirt

The Wirebrush shirt really needs to be seen in person to appreciate its subtle design details. So, I'll try my best to bring you to it with this meager blog post.

The medium weight Italian cotton twill fabric is double-sided. The light grey outside looks slightly brushed due to its texture, and the inside is darker grey with a delicate peach-fuzz soft pile. I won't blame you if you decide to forego the undershirt and go straight shirt-on-skin.

Although the fabric is typical of a dress shirt, the styling is borrowed from old-time work shirts. The rounded-bottom pocket and sleeve plackets are reinforced with stitching in the shape of an X. The top-stitching is slightly contrasting in color to the grey twill fabric.

The shirt has a classic dress-shirt front band, and a standard-spread collar, but the collar stand is squared off at center front.

One of the first people to order a Wirebrush shirt got it in the mail and wrote with enthusiasm, "...I plan to wear the hell out of it!" Mission accomplished.

Shirts for Food

Denzel and I met a few years ago when we were both working at Baltimore Montessori Public Charter school. In the years since we met, we've each forged new paths (in the spirit of Montessori, of course!). Mine, obviously, has been to pursue the path of a clothing designer and maker, and Denzel's has been to become a local, sustainable farmer in Baltimore. Denzel's farm is called Five Seeds Farm, as he now has five children (one of whom was in my class a few years ago!). He started with a plot that used to be one of the many boarded-up row-houses in the city, and now has expanded to include another farm just north of the city line. They are "reviving the idea that farming is essential, artistic and exciting." Five Seeds Farm offers a June-November CSA, and so Denzel and I decided to do a trade: a CSA share for custom shirts and a necktie.

Not to mention that he's multi-talented--great farmer, great model!

Here's Denzel rocking his Shacket in Pigtown, Baltimore:

And here he is in his custom Red Clay shirt:

This is his final fitting at my studio (those trapezius muscles don't drape themselves...), in farmer gear, picking out his custom shirts and tie:

This upcoming summer's Five Seeds Farm CSA share is available for purchase now until February 15th at a discounted rate, and I can say based on last-year's bounty, it's going to be good. Denzel's farm features a lot of specialty veggies, such as mizuna, sorrel, and oyster root, all of which I became adept at incorporating into whatever pot or pan was heating on the stove. We ate really well last summer, and almost didn't have to plan our meals, because we could throw greens, roots, and fruits into the skillet and then wrap them in rice-paper or crepes, or saute and serve over rice, and all was delicious with very little effort. Very fresh, sustainably-grown grub.

Just wanted to share some pictures of the food that we made from the veggies from the share last season.  It was so much fun to be creative with each week's veggies.

Look how fun Denzel is! This is the friendly face you will see each Thursday if you sign up for his Five Seeds Farm CSA!

seven-fold necktie

Over the holiday season, five8ths launched a small line of accessories--neckties and pocket squares.

five8ths seven-fold neckties are made using the original method for making neckties. Rather than using a separate interlining fabric, often made of polyester or wool, I simply use one wide piece of fabric, and carefully fold it over onto itself seven times (like origami), matching the edges of each fold, until the tie is formed into its final shape. The resulting layers of fabric form the thickness of the tie, rather than the interlining "sponge". The tip and tail of the tie are hemmed and blind-stitched by hand.

Once folded, the tie is stitched up the back with one long slip-stitch, which is meant to slip back and forth along the length of the tie when the tie is tied and untied, as the tie is cut on the bias and will stretch during the tying process. The slip-stitch prevents the thread from breaking, keeping the folds secured in place. 

The tie is finished with a hand-stamped five8ths cotton twill label, and a keeper, which the tail may be tucked into for a put-together look, or left hanging free from for a looser feel.

The hand-labor involved in making each tie is significant--there is one short seam halfway between the tail and tip that is sewn with my sewing machine. Aside from that seam, the rest of the work is done with fingers, needle, and thread.

This tie digs-up and dusts-off what a tie is all about. A piece of fabric worn to accent, punctuate, form a look, express a personality. There is beauty in the simplicity of draping just one piece of fabric around the neck, rather than attaching a spongey-thing to the neckline. The weight is a bit different than an interlined tie, and the knot of a seven-fold tie is generally considered to be nicer.

Seven-fold ties are often made with silk, but the current five8ths line is composed of luxurious Italian linen, cotton, and cotton/linen blends. They hang out well between use.

Available in limited quantities online in four different fabrics: navy, charcoal, brown/tan stripe, and coco.

City Shacket

The City Shacket is the original denim Shacket's (shirt-jacket) cousin from the city. It's perfect for in-between weather as a jacket over another shirt, or as a heavy shirt to take off the chill on colder days.

Of all of my designs, this is my favorite. It's like solving a puzzle during construction, because of the challenge of getting the yoke/pocket flap layers together in the right order. My favorite part of the design process is figuring out how the pieces will fit together, and this one was a fun challenge. 

This season's City Shacket is a bit more sophisticated than the first one--it is made with a navy Italian brushed cotton with gray pinstripes, and is faced with gray medium weight Italian cotton twill. Cut short to be worn un-tucked (or tucked in, if desired), and with a little roominess in the body.

Size 46 is ready to ship, and I have enough fabric to make 10 2 one more.

Standard Sizing expanded

I'm delighted to announce that all five8ths shirts are now available in standard and semi-custom size 48! This new size, like the other sizes, is a tailored fit--not too loose and not too tight.

Here's the latest size chart that includes all measurements:

I'm hoping that with this new size, I will be able to accommodate more people who may fit well in standard sizes and who aren't interested in a fully custom pattern. Any requests for a size 50?