I recently interviewed Tom, high school senior, trad/prep/ivy/WASP/whatever enthusiast and author of
Ivy Inspired, who recently opened an online shop just the other day.
The Ivy Inspired shop at Storenvy is currently offering gingham bow ties and pocket squares made by Tom, himself. Always one to support quality, handmade goods, I thought I'd find out more about Tom's venture.
Well, I started making bow ties about a year ago, just for fun since I
had some ugly old ties laying around and I though I'd experiment. At the
time I was doing everything by hand (a total pain in the ass). For
months I dissected old bow ties to see their construction, and developed
my own templates/design. The part that took the longest to develop was
the adjustment system in which I uniquely use a button and button holes
along the neckband. For Christmas my parents gave me a sewing
machine because I enjoyed making the bows and I wanted to further
improve my skills. At the time I had only been cranking out creations
for my brother and I, but as popularity grew I decided to finally open a
little online shop.
In the shop I carry all of my handmade bow ties (mostly
gingham as of the moment), hand-rolled pocket squares (also gingham),
and later I hope to branch out to selling vintage ties and also small
antiques. For this first run, I decided I would keep everything simple
(fabrics, prices, etc.) just to see the response I get back. In the
future I also hope to open a custom section in the shop where people can
send me fabric/shirts/ties to make into a bow for them. Hopefully in
this first run people will like my product and I will be able to keep up
production with new collections for Fall and Winter.
In the initial run everything will be gingham (red, navy, green, orange).
For each color I have 4 bows (2 regular, 2 diamond point), and I'll have 3 or 4 pocket squares each for the colors. The bows will
be $25 and the pocket squares will be $15, however for the grand opening
I am offering a 20% off coupon code that will be posted along with the
link to my store that day. I'm starting small, so I will have around 16
bows, and a couple pocket squares. The pocket squares are 13"x13". I can accommodate neck sizes 13 3/4" - 18", however the customer must
give me their neck size at the time of their order. My custom adjustment
system is different from anyone else's - I use a button and buttonhole.
This adjustment not only insures a person's perfect fit, but allows for
a 1/2" increase and decrease in size as needed.
Bow ties are fun - they're different. You see a guy walking down the
street in a tie and it's whatever, but if he has a bow tie on, you'll
notice him. An outfit is never complete without a pocket square. The
pocket is there for a reason! It helps to connect everything your
wearing. Even if it's just a simple white pocket square, it just adds a
certain wholeness.
