2020ClothingCoats & Jackets
Time for Tencel
By Drake's
Jul 13, 2022
The breezy, lightweight fibre makes an appearance in our High Summer collection – just in time for the warmer weather.
Tencel may not be part of your fabric vocabulary, but it deserves to be. In simple terms, Tencel – a type of rayon – is a man-made fibre, produced using natural materials (plant pulp, to be precise). After undergoing a confusingly-named alchemical process known only as ‘dry jet-wet spinning’, the aforementioned pulp becomes a fine, silky fibre, which lends itself effortlessly to the making of summer clothing.
At this point, it’s easy to get caught up wondering how wet spinning can also be dry, but I implore you to sidestep that rabbit hole, and instead join me in a look at the wondrous applications of Tencel. Being close to silk in weight and texture means that Tencel is ideal when the mercury rises, offering both substantial breathability and a nice visual lustre. However, pure Tencel can be a little too fine for certain uses, but thankfully plays well with other fabrics and can be easily blended to add a bit of body.
This season we tracked down a blend of cotton and Tencel with a lovely washed-out appearance. Perfect for the summer, we thought, so we used it to produce an iteration of our ever popular Five-Pocket Chore Jacket in a pair of seasonally appropriate dusty tones. The resulting garment embodies the ruggedness of a chore coat, while exuding a certain summertime elegance – the kind of thing that might be worn strolling down the Croisette at dusk in simpler times.