Product Review - General Knot

Craig of That Dapper Chap reviews neckwear available from General Knot & Co

PRODUCT

General Knot & Co neckwear and accessories are designed in Bedford, New York & made exclusively in the United States.

The guys at General Knot & Co say "We create limited edition neckwear and accessories in the U.S.A., using rare and vintage fabrics collected from around the world. Our goal is to offer uniquely designed and enduring products that stand the test of time"

After years of directing creative teams for brands such as Ralph Lauren, Original Penguin, Tommy Hilfiger and Levi’s, co-founders Ann and Andrew Payne began General Knot & Co. in the Autumn of 2010 with the desire to combine a passion for design with an unyielding commitment to bringing conscientious quality manufacturing back to the United States.

The say "It is an honor and a privilege to create all GK&Co. products here in the United States, with the world’s greatest craftsmen. Those whose talents and skills have been honed through generations of shared adoration of their craft"

The GK&Co fabrics are curated through a global network of collectors who search high and low for the most amazing vintage fabric, giving it another lease on life.

Each collection of General Knot & Co. designs are made in very limited quantities, uniquely finite and never to be repeated. They hope that you enjoy them as much as they have enjoyed creating and bringing them to you.

PRICE

At between £45.00 ($68.00) and £70.00 ($108.00) for a bow tie/tie I can't tell you that these are a budget garment. They are at the higher end of the price scale, but for that price you are getting something very limited and crafted by individuals with a real passion for what they do, rather than a mass produced tie that you're going to see on another guy at some point.
The fabrics are all vintage, they are unusual, and the majority of their ties and bow ties have contrasting fabrics, or are double sided making them very unique and versatile.

My two General Knot & Co bow ties

PACKAGING & PRESENTATION

The items arrived quickly and were nicely packed in a box and wrapped with tissue paper.

In addition, each tie has its own vintage style card sleeve detailing the product information and its limited edition number. This is a nice touch and again reinforces the fact that these items are crafted with love and care.

My ties, neatly packed in their card sleeves

My GK&Co bow tie, styled with a beige suit

The light jade pickstitch wool neck tie

PERFORMANCE

What does a guy want from a tie? You want it to look good. Check. You want it to tie well. Check. and you want it to stay in place. Check.

All of the ties I received covered all of these requirements. They were all well made with no snags or loose threads and were all the correct size expected from a tie or bow tie, the bow ties of course being fully adjustable.

The 1970's carpetbagger neck tie $108.00

These are vintage fabrics and to some degree you could expect to find damage, maybe even the odd smell. I can assure you that I experienced neither of these with any of the items that I received. Please buy with confidence that the guys a GK&Co. take what they do very serious and are committed to quality.

Wearing my beige suit with a double sided GK&Co. bow tie

PERTINENCY

If you like the idea of wearing something from a unique family company and supporting everything that that means, check out General Knot & Co.

If you are a gentleman who also enjoys the thought that your new tie has had a life before it reached you, and that you're helping the world you live in by recycling and reusing discarded items, then you should check out General Knot & Co. too.

If on the flip side you're a guy that wants a standard garment and something off the shelf that has not been anything else in an unknown previous life (I know that some people find this icky) then maybe you should stick to the high street.

The light Jade pickstitch bow tie $78.00

The 1970's Kaleidoscope tie $108.00

PRO'S & CON'S

I genuinely love the fact that these ties have history and a soul, that they were something else before it happened upon my neck. I respect the fact that GK&Co. are recycling and doing their thing for our environment too. I also very much appreciate the individuality of each item and its limited number.

On the more negative side, I do feel that the price is a little on the high side. Lowering the price will make these products more accessible to a wider audience and one that appreciates this concept.

A closer look at my limited edition bow tie

PEOPLE

The team really liked these ties. They liked the seasonal fabrics and tones and the very individual looks. With comments like "I've never seen anything like this one before" and "I like that they are double sided"

The were a little taken back by the price but one member of the team did comment "well you get what you pay for, if you want a cheap boring tie, go to xxxxx"

One member of the team was put off by the fact that the fabrics are vintage and didn't like the thought of not knowing where the fabric had been and who had owned it. While I don't subscribe to this view myself, I do understand that it's an issue for some people.

The jade pickstitch neck tie

PRÉCIS

Overall, I'm a fan. The use of vintage fabrics is a great USP. The choice and attention to detail is very good and I felt good when wearing them in the knowledge that I was never going to bump into another guy wearing the same tie.