Sunday, January 25, 2009

Sailing, Sailing . . .

Here's another nice tie in shades of brown and orange, which seems to be a favorite color combination for tie designers in the 40's and 50's. I have an entire tie rack devoted to this general color combination and hue. For a few more ties in this general color scheme, see some of the following links:

Well, that's plenty to make my point. Some are more orange than this one, which is a bit more on the brown side.

The designs on the tie remind me of the sails on sailboats, although there are no boats, no hulls, under the sails. So maybe they weren't intended to resemble sails, maybe they're just abstract triangular shapes.

The tie also has one of those nice brocade patterns that I'm so fond of, woven into the fabric. You can see them fairly clearly in the scan, although as is often the case, they are probably clearer in the small end scan than in the large end. The brocade patterns consists of diamond shaped blocks in patterns of four, and more rectangular shapes in pairs, which form or fill a similar sized square.

Unfortunately, the tie has no labels surviving.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Brown with Yellow Ribbons

I don't think these are supposed to be the yellow ribbons tied "round the old oak tree," as it says in the song. These look more like ticker-tape ribbons, or maybe old film unwinding. Who knows? They don't look exactly like any of the above, but are suggestive or reminiscent of all of them.

This is an attractive forties tie, good quality fabric that has a nice brocade pattern woven into it. It will probably be difficult to make out the brocade pattern in the scan, as it often is, but the pattern consists of many parallel lines running diagonally across the tie at ninety degree angles to one another, creating, as they cross one another, an intricate almost braided appearance.

The tie has one label, sewn into the small end, which reads simply

Arrow
Made in U.S.A.

The "Made in U.S.A." part has an arrow entering at the left end of the words, with the point exiting at the right. Arrow, is, of course, one of the classic American brands in men's wear, and with a history that goes back over 150 years, apparently. Not that I know all that much about it. The Arrow brand currently appears to be owned by the Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Orange Florals Kick off a New Year

FINALLY! I'm back, with another vintage tie. I do apologize for the two months' worth of absence, but things have been very busy. I'm not sure I really have time today, either, but I'm making time, since I really want to get back to posting ties, and writing at least a little bit about them.

This is a nice one. Pastel orange background, with splashes of lavender (pale purple, if you prefer) and brick red with off white garnishing. (By which I mean that each splash of color has an off-white shadow, or parallel splash next to it.)

The entire tie is covered with what look like hand-drawn leaf and floral patterns, drawn in a rich brown color.

The fabric has a rich brocade woven into it, which will probably be difficult to see in the scan, but which consists of plump leaf shapes. They are much more visible on the reverse side of the tie, where there are no drawn lines. If I had more time (none to spare this evening, unfortunately), I would have considered making a scan of the back of the tie and loading it as well.

The tie has one label, which is visible on the small end of the tie in the scan. It reads:
ESQUIRE
Cravat
Resilient Construction

and depicts a "coach and four," which is to say, a an old fashioned stage coach, pulled by four horses, with a driver on top, and several other figures, one of which, at the rear, appears to be blowing a horn, announcing their arrival.

I hope to see you again next week, with another tie. In the meantime, enjoy!