Detachable Collars

[ArrowCollarMan]

I'm planning on ordering a shirt with a detachable collar and startched bib for my schools upcoming Homcoming Dance. I'm a little weary of buying because it seems that it might be uncomfortable. Has anyone ever worn one or both of these? Was the hard collar too contrsciting? etc

 

[Spatterdash]

No, if the size is right you'll be fine. It maintains it's shape better so it won't be quite as forgiving as cloth, but it's not terribly uncomfortable. If anything, the collar and bib will help remind you to maintain good posture without hurting you.
I've worn celluloid collars off and on, and I'm never uncomfortable. The trick is to make sure you can fit one finger between the collar and your neck.

 

[ArrowCollarMan]

The trick is to make sure you can fit one finger between the collar and your neck.

And a wonderful trick it is! I learned that from my dad. Instead of 16 I wear 16 1/2. I'm not sure about the bib exactly. It makes the front look so much nicer but I think it looks a little funny when one sits down. The detachable collar I think is a good idea. Instead of having a bunch of shirts with one collar style I can have one shirt and a bunch of collar styles.

 

[Braxton36]

I had a formal dress shirt for white tie with a detachable collar. They were both starched to the hilt and about as comfortable as wearing a coil of barbed wire around my neck. I learned that having the shirt laundered professionally was ok but the collar was best left unstarched and ironed at home. Just a handy tip from a former starched-collar-victim.

 

[ArrowCollarMan]

So don't startch the collar? [huh]

 

[Braxton36]

That would be my suggestion. Maybe lightly. At home. But don't have the laundry do it.

 

[shindeco]

Complete opposite viewpoint here. I always starch my collars stiff, stiff, stiff and don't find them uncomfortable.

Size and shape are important, though. Your collar should be half a size larger than your shirt collar (it does have to go over a band of cloth). Manufacturers were/are not consistant with this, though. Some will mark their collars at the actual size, some at half a size smaller. You have to check, double check and then measure...

It also depends on whether you're wearing a stand up or fold-over collar. Stand up collars can be uncomfortable if you have, for example, a short neck and a high collar. Standard height on a modern wing tip collar is about 1.5 inches but you can get higher or lower. The only "rule" is that you want to show as much collar as you can. Long necks can show a lot more, obviously! You don't want it digging into your jawline.

Fold over collars take a bit of getting used to; especially when you're getting dressed. They don't fold over the tie nicely after you've finished tying it. In fact, they don't fold over nicely at all after you've put them on! I find I have to put the tie in the folded collar before attaching it at the front; then tie the tie in the already folded over collar.

My only advice on the bib-fronted shirt is to make sure the bib doesn't extend below your "bend line" when you sit down or it will dig into your stomach and legs. This is not a problem with vintage shirts but some of the new boiled shirts have incredibly long fronts (to accomodate low rise trousers) and I could see this as a potential problem.

 

[Cobden]

I'm with shindeco; having worn soft, starched, bent, wing and even imperial collars at various stages during my life, I'd say to get one the right size and (with stand up collars) starch the hell out of them. It can be a bit uncomfortable at first, but you do get used to it - infact, I find the studs more uncomfortable then the collar itself. But, most importantly perhaps, is that with a starched detachable collar it is smarter and doesn't run the risk of looking like a normal attached wing collar shirt (something I must admit I abhore).

That said, avoid imperial collars like the plague. They really do hurt to bu**ery!


PS. If you do find it uncomfortable, get it starched properly and then wet the edges of the collar. This should make the edges softer (as it removes the starch) where it is most likely to cause anguish, whilst maintaining the smart stiffness that starch brings

 

[cambridgedrone]

Hello everyone,
I wear a formal shirt with a detachable collar. I recently took the collars into the cleaners to get starched and was told they don't starch (and this is the largest dry-cleaning chain in the UK!). I'm looking for places that *will* starch in town, or as a last resort I'm sure there's a cleaner in London who will. But as an alternative, is there a way to properly starch one's collars at home?

I'm new here, by the way... hi everyone!

 

[scotrace]

Welcome to The Fedora Lounge!


Proper, stiff starch such as is needed for a collar would probably only be possible using the boxed powdered starch (Argo is the brand in the USA). One soaks the item in the starch, then it is hung to dry. At the ironing board, it is remoistened with a spray bottle and pressed.

A dry cleaner who doesn't do starch - how odd! Like a car repair shop that doesn't do brakes!

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Give a ring to London's "New & Lingwood, Shirtmakers". They still make detachable linen collars, mostly for the barrister/judge market. I imagine that they could refer you to a helpful cleaner, and/or give you tips for starching at home.


.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

A dry cleaner who doesn't do starch - how odd!

It's a cultural thing. In Chile, laundries and drycleaners don't starch anything -- because their customers don't like starch.

.

 

[Cobden]

You can get hold of old fashioned starch from Lakeland plastics.

Wash the collar normally, and then soak it in a solution of the starch; then, when you iron, iron it flat then pull the collar up as you iron, so as the give it a more rounded shape. Another good trick is to have the iron too hot, so it sort of scorches the starch in the fabric, giving it a sort of waxy shine. It won't damage the collar (as it's the starch that scorches).

 

[Tomasso]

Luke Eyres may know a laundry service in your locale.
(0)1353 863 125

Jeeves will launder collars.
http://www.jeevesofbelgravia.co.uk/

 

[shindeco]

I've always startched my own shirt fronts and collars. It's dead easy. I follow the instructions from a 1912 laundry instruction book I have (which gives some amazing instructions--I can tell you how to clean swan's down fur, too!)

Laundry starch is really just rice starch so if you can't find boxed starch, go to the Asian food section of your local grocer and pick up a box there (I use tapioca starch, to be honest. Gives a nice finish)


You need 1 tablespoon of starch and 1 cup of water.

Mix the starch with just a little of the water in a shallow bowl until it's smooth; then add the rest of the water.

Take the collar (dry) and dip it into the starch mixture two or three times, rubbing to get the starch grains into the collar. Press out the water between dippings.

Stretch it out evenly on a clean towel and roll it up tightly in the towel. Let it sit (half hour minimum). The drier the collar is when you iron it, the less time it will take.

Unroll everything and stretch the collar a bit (gently) then start ironing. The iron needs to be really hot because you're actually cooking the starch! Start ironing from the inside first. If you have extra fullness of fabric, iron it towards the centre.

Iron the front and back alternately, carefully pressing down the wing tips on the front. You 're technically suppose to keep ironing until it's dry. I usually don't have enough time to let it sit for a long time before ironing so I iron it while it's still wet and let it dry completely over night.

Oh, for the impressive finishing touch! You have to curl it. This is just like curling ribbon on Christmas presents: hold one end of the collar; put the iron down as close to your fingers as you can; press down on the iron and pull the collar through. Do this a couple of times and your collar will be beautifully round!

 

[ArrowCollarMan]

I too like the look of a hard collar. I'm ordering a shirt and collar set off of Amazon Dry Goods (hopefully next week, I'll need it for homecoming). The collars are made of card stock and laminated with cloth, I was afraid they might be too uncomfortable but after experiementing with hard paper around my neck I found that it can be bareable.

Has anyone ever ordered from Amazon Dry Goods?

 

[shindeco]

I too like the look of a hard collar. I'm ordering a shirt and collar set off of Amazon Dry Goods (hopefully next week, I'll need it for homecoming). The collars are made of card stock and laminated with cloth, I was afraid they might be too uncomfortable but after experiementing with hard paper around my neck I found that it can be bareable.

Has anyone ever ordered from Amazon Dry Goods?

Oh, the cardboard collars are FUN!!! They're made on the original machines and have, in fact, been in continuous production. The company has changed hands a few times but the collars are still available. Those are the collars I used for dancing because you can get 2" collars. They are really not much different from a starched collar. Have you got collar studs, too? You're going to look fantastic at your homecoming! Can't wait to see the pictures.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Fold over collars take a bit of getting used to; especially when you're getting dressed. They don't fold over the tie nicely after you've finished tying it. In fact, they don't fold over nicely at all after you've put them on!

Another typical problem with these collars, both then and now: the necktie does not slide back and forth very well once you've got it tucked in the collar. Normally, when you tie a knot, you have to adjust the tie first, by looking in the mirror and sliding the tie into the correct "tying" position. Stiff fold over detachable collars make such sliding all but impossible. As you try to slide the tie, it chafes and ends up fraying in a short time. In addition, the tie rubs against (and sometimes gets stuck on) the rear collar button.

Advertisements from the early 1900s show men struggling with their ties and ripping them apart by accident. One solution was the popular "Slidewell" collar, which was designed to facilitate neckie adjustment. Deadstock "Slidewell" collars pop up on eBay from time to time.

.

 

[Tony in Tarzana]

I'm a bit afraid of stiff collars, too. I get a weird feeling whenever anything presses against my neck.

 

[Curt Chiarelli]

I had a formal dress shirt for white tie with a detachable collar. They were both starched to the hilt and about as comfortable as wearing a coil of barbed wire around my neck. I learned that having the shirt laundered professionally was ok but the collar was best left unstarched and ironed at home. Just a handy tip from a former starched-collar-victim.

Did you send your collar to a laundry that was properly set-up with the correct antique equipment to starch them? Sending your collar out to a laundry that doesn't have this equipment will result in them being starched incorrectly - which is to say, flat.