Double Cuff (French Cuff)

[bbshriver]

I've worn double cuff shirts since I was 13, (24 now) and these days since I rarely wear a suit/tie I pretty much always wear a double cuff if a tie is involved (feel silly wearing them without a tie though).

My question is, I was reading through one of the "guides" on this site regarding formal wear, and it indicated certain situations that a double cuff is inappropriate. I had always thought that the double cuff is more formal than a single cuff, or barrel cuff, so I was surprised that for instance, it is not recommended as "white tie" wear.

Is this correct? If so, what other times are double cuffs inappropriate?

 

[Edward]

White tie wear traditionally involved a single cuff - not unlike the effect you get when you use cufflinks on a 'convertible' cuff. I don't know for why this tradtion exists - I'm sure someone does on here - but that's the way it was. It's not something I've ever followed though - not so much out of choice as, well.... good luck finding a wing collared evening shirt with a single cuff!

I can't think of any other occasion a double cuff would be frowned on per se, though it would seem a little out of place with a casual ensemble of jeans or khakis and a leather jacket.

These days, black and white tie aside, I mostly find myself wearing barrel cuffs, but that's simply down to not having scraped together the time and money to have some shirts made to measure that have both a double cuff and a nice, pointed collar - not those uber-splayed collars that virtually every double-cuffed off the peg shirt in the UK has nowadays, the better to fit those modern 'soccer player' ties with their knots the size of the wearer's head.

 

[DBLIII]

the better to fit those modern 'soccer player' ties with their knots the size of the wearer's head.

Sorry for the interruption, but thank you for a fantastic visual image and the first thing that has made me smile in several days.
Highly appreciated!

 

[bbshriver]

Thanks for the reply. Maybe it is different over in the UK, but here at least in the tuxedo rental industry almost all of the winged shirts are single cuff. I had to especially look for and buy a double cuff one.

I get my dress shirts these days from Charles Tyrwhitt, which I understand is a big name over there... nobody here seems to know of it. Sale prices offer good values though.

I still want to get a bespoke shirt or 2 at some point, and have been tempted to try a Lands-End made to order shirt...

White tie wear traditionally involved a single cuff - not unlike the effect you get when you use cufflinks on a 'convertible' cuff. I don't know for why this tradtion exists - I'm sure someone does on here - but that's the way it was. It's not something I've ever followed though - not so much out of choice as, well.... good luck finding a wing collared evening shirt with a single cuff!

I can't think of any other occasion a double cuff would be frowned on per se, though it would seem a little out of place with a casual ensemble of jeans or khakis and a leather jacket.

These days, black and white tie aside, I mostly find myself wearing barrel cuffs, but that's simply down to not having scraped together the time and money to have some shirts made to measure that have both a double cuff and a nice, pointed collar - not those uber-splayed collars that virtually every double-cuffed off the peg shirt in the UK has nowadays, the better to fit those modern 'soccer player' ties with their knots the size of the wearer's head.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

White tie wear traditionally involved a single cuff - not unlike the effect you get when you use cufflinks on a 'convertible' cuff.

In the U.S.A. (and before the 1980s), single cuffs were found on those detachable collar evening shirts that were meant to be worn with wing collars -- whether for black tie or white tie. Double cuffs were found on "soft" or "semi-soft" evening shirts with attached turndown collars -- and these were for black tie only.


.

 

[bbshriver]

Thanks for the note. Which brings up another question.
Are detachable collar and cuff shirts still available?

 

[Marc Chevalier]

.



Shirts with detachable cuffs haven't been mass-produced since the Edwardian era. You might find a costumer somewhere who makes these shirts for Civil War/Wild West reenactors. I doubt that you'll find modern detachable cuffs, though.


Detachable collar evening shirts are still made in England. Brooks Brothers sells them in the U.S.A.


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[Carlisle Blues]

Brooks Brothers offers one with a detachable collar

http://www.brooksbrothers.com/IWCat..._Id=1180443&Parent_Id=216&default_color=White

 

[cptjeff]

Brooks Brothers offers one with a detachable collar

http://www.brooksbrothers.com/IWCat..._Id=1180443&Parent_Id=216&default_color=White

$225 for a cotton shirt?

I will never get just how you pull that off. I understand how you can get really high price tags with suits and such, but that much for a shirt just blows my mind. But I guess if you're in a position to actually need a shirt with a detachable collar for a white tie event or something along those lines, price isn't much of a concern.

 

[Tomasso]

$225 for a cotton shirt?

Calibrate your pacemaker....Not to shock you but......That's not a bad price.......

 

[Geronimo]

Calibrate your pacemaker....Not to shock you but......That's not a bad price.......

Isn't it a bit high for a non-tailored shirt?

 

[Tomasso]

Isn't it a bit high for a non-tailored shirt?

High?

 

[Geronimo]

High?

No wonder Hong Kong is so highly recommended:
http://www.mytailor.com/Pricing.aspx

 

[cptjeff]

I guess it's just the college student mentality, but at most there are two layers of cotton except on pleated tuxedo shirts, and cotton is dirt cheap as a base fiber. You can only weave it so finely before it's pointless, and once you have the pattern right it's not hard to cut and sew fabric. Collars would be tricky, but not impossibly so. There's nothing there for me that would justify anything over $100 unless you made it out of a nice wool or silk.

Custom shirts I certainly understand high prices on, since they are custom and require a high degree of skill on the part of the maker to get them right.

I just don't get it. I own a custom made high end shirt (granted, not made for me, but it fit pretty well when I tried it on in the thrift shop), and in terms of materials and workmanship it's not significantly better then the ones I can find at Macys for $50. I just can't see how the price is justified.

 

[Edward]

.



Shirts with detachable cuffs haven't been mass-produced since the Edwardian era. You might find a costumer somewhere who makes these shirts for Civil War/Wild West reenactors. I doubt that you'll find modern detachable cuffs, though.


Detachable collar evening shirts are still made in England. Brooks Brothers sells them in the U.S.A.


.

Interesting. I've never worn a detachable collar shirt - might try it one day.

 

[Cobden]

The hardest thing about a detachable collared shirt is the studs - the modern ones, and the majority of the the older ones too, are quite literally a pain in the neck. I often wear them for re-enactment, and find that the mark it leaves on my neck requires me to wear a cravat or a necktie for the following week in order to hide it!

Very easy to find them in the UK. Most old fashioned men's shops will stock the shirts, though usually only in white, as they are still required for barristers and judges (who wear a wing collar), and the uniforms of some public schools (Eton and King's School Canterbury, to name two that come to mind). They are also considered by some a requirement for morning dress (with a bent collar)

 

[bbshriver]

I'm with you. To me $100 is the limit on anything not made especially for me. I usually watch for stuff on sale. ctshirts.com often has really good sales which brings otherwise $200+ shirts down under $100.

I was reading about a Jermyn street shirt tailor that makes custom shirts based on 38 measurements for 125GBP.. That's obviously pretty expensive in the American dollar thanks to the exchange rate, but considering they're made the old fashioned way right there on jermyn street, doesn't seem bad at all.

I guess it's just the college student mentality, but at most there are two layers of cotton except on pleated tuxedo shirts, and cotton is dirt cheap as a base fiber. You can only weave it so finely before it's pointless, and once you have the pattern right it's not hard to cut and sew fabric. Collars would be tricky, but not impossibly so. There's nothing there for me that would justify anything over $100 unless you made it out of a nice wool or silk.

Custom shirts I certainly understand high prices on, since they are custom and require a high degree of skill on the part of the maker to get them right.

I just don't get it. I own a custom made high end shirt (granted, not made for me, but it fit pretty well when I tried it on in the thrift shop), and in terms of materials and workmanship it's not significantly better then the ones I can find at Macys for $50. I just can't see how the price is justified.

 

[Edward]

The hardest thing about a detachable collared shirt is the studs - the modern ones, and the majority of the the older ones too, are quite literally a pain in the neck. I often wear them for re-enactment, and find that the mark it leaves on my neck requires me to wear a cravat or a necktie for the following week in order to hide it!

Very easy to find them in the UK. Most old fashioned men's shops will stock the shirts, though usually only in white, as they are still required for barristers and judges (who wear a wing collar), and the uniforms of some public schools (Eton and King's School Canterbury, to name two that come to mind). They are also considered by some a requirement for morning dress (with a bent collar)

Yeah, I've seen them around a lot. I'd definitely use them if I was doing something where total period-correct details were necessary, though to be honest I've always preferred the practicality of an attached, soft-collar, even for white tie. The visual difference is so small, that for my typical purposes it's not worth it. The biggest hassle, I imagine, is getting them cleaned - or can they be (gasp!) machine washed?

 

[HodgePodge]

$225 for a cotton shirt?

I will never get just how you pull that off. I understand how you can get really high price tags with suits and such, but that much for a shirt just blows my mind. But I guess if you're in a position to actually need a shirt with a detachable collar for a white tie event or something along those lines, price isn't much of a concern.

Read a few issues of GQ, and a $225 price tag starts to seem like the bargain bin.....

 

[Scott Wood]

FL Cufflinks?

Just wondering if anyone has ever tried to make a pair of cufflinks using the a pair of the FL Lapel/Hat pins?

Scott