Like denim, tweed is one of those fabrics that everyone knows, and everyone has some idea about – typically, in the latter’s case, that it’s a slightly old-fashioned choice, beloved of professorial types, of would-be country squires and Conservative politicians.

But that’s to malign what is one of the most noble – and impressive – cloths in menswear, not just for its surprising utility, but the way it carries colour and texture. Small wonder menswear design of more recent decades has never quite thought of it as being as fusty or fuddy-duddy as the man on the street might have.

Weave it in more striking, or more sober, colours – depending on your taste – and tailor it with minimal stuffing, and tweed is anything but stuffy. Rather, it’s a very 21st century cloth – functional, distinctive, and more versatile than it at first seems.

And with menswear’s fondness for traditional workwear right now, this hardy material is getting being rediscovered not in shooting jackets or country attire but work jackets, overalls and vests.

What Is Tweed?

For all of its aristocratic associations, tweed might well be considered an original workwear fabric, and a highly functional one at that. Anyone who has ever worn tweed knows how warm it is; but it’s also wind- and water-resistant.

That’s just as well: tweed originated in 18th century Scotland – ‘tweed’ is said to come from a mis-reading of ‘tweel’ in 1826, Scottish for ‘twill’ – where this dense woollen cloth was woven at home by the peasantry to provide sturdy protection for those who worked the land.

Drakes x Aime Leon Dore

Only later did those who actually owned the land, and their likewise wealthy holiday-makers and estate buyers from down south, take to wearing it, appreciating tweed as much for its melange of heather and gorse country shades as its utility.