FeedArchive

The grenadine tie is a weave, not a print

The texture people call grenadine is a structure, not a surface: a leno weave that twists two warp yarns around each weft to leave that open, breathable grid. Genuine grenadine still comes off wooden shuttle looms in Como, and essentially the whole supply traces to two mills. Fina reads almost solid; grossa is the textured one Connery's Bond wore.

The weekly

NewsletterWeekly One email a week. Every post from the week, and what didn't fit on a slide.
Free. Never shared. Unsubscribe any time.

The post, as it ran

01THAT PEBBLED GRENADINE-TIE TEXTURE ISN'T A PRINT. IT'S A WEAVE, A LENO OR GAUZE WEAVE IN WHICH TWO WARP YARNS TWIST AROUND EACH WEFT TO HOLD AN OPEN GRID.
02IT IS STILL WOVEN ON WOODEN SHUTTLE LOOMS AROUND COMO, ITALY, AND ESSENTIALLY THE ENTIRE SUPPLY TRACES TO TWO MILLS: FERMO FOSSATI, FROM 1871, AND SETERIA BIANCHI, 1907.
03IT COMES IN TWO GRADES: GARZA FINA, TIGHTER AND ALMOST SOLID, AND GARZA GROSSA, LARGER AND MORE OPEN.
04SEAN CONNERY'S JAMES BOND WORE THE GROSSA. THE OPEN WEAVE SNAGS EASILY, SO IT EARNS ITS CAREFUL KNOT.
Open on Instagram