After Drake’s · Spring/Summer 2024
Navy and Yellow Madras Check Cotton Button-Down Shirt
This is a long-sleeved button-down shirt in madras, the light check cotton from Chennai, the city once called Madras, that has been a warm-weather standard for decades. The cloth is spun from short-staple cotton by hand, which gives it an irregular, slubby surface, and its check carries the colours associated with the natural dyes madras traditionally uses. Drake's make it in their Somerset factory with single-needle seams and a soft button-down collar that recalls American Ivy dress of the mid-twentieth century. It is intended for casual summer wear with relaxed trousers and loafers.
The original, in the Internet Archive
In Proper Cloth
Faded Navy and Sage Indian Madras
We chose a very lightweight Indian madras woven in Chennai for its comparable weight, origin and plain-weave construction, and because its navy-led plaid with yellow and cream sits close to the original's palette. We set a soft unlined button-down collar, a one-button cuff, a single chest pocket, a curved hem and mother of pearl buttons to follow the Drake's pattern. Proper Cloth's options do not include a pen-slot pocket, so we chose a rounded patch pocket. The cloth's colouring is also more subdued than the original's, with sage in place of red and bright green.
A plain-weave madras woven in Chennai from 40s single-ply cotton, very light, soft and open in hand. It is a fairly intricate plaid in faded navy, sage green, pale yellow and cream. The cloth is washed down at the mill, so it starts out softened and should not bleed colour when laundered at home.
- Composition
- 100% Cotton
- Weight
- very lightweight
- Care
- Our madras shirts are designed to have just the right amount of fade right off the bat so they won't bleed when you wash them at home. Finish: No Treatment.
Options
- Collar
- Soft Ivy Button Down
- Cuffs
- Soft One Button Barrel
- Placket
- Soft Front Placket
- Rounded Pocket
- Yoke
- One Piece Yoke
- Hem
- Shallow Curved Hem
- Buttons
- Mother of Pearl
- Stitching
- 0.2″ Stitching
- Sleeve placket
- Sleeve placket button
- Adjustable cuffs
- No adjustable cuff buttons
$165
Opens with every option set. Choose your size there.