The checked fabric, Madras, was adopted by the affluent elite of 1950s America, and has since been known as the preppy ‘old money’ wardrobe hero. What most people don’t know is that the fabric’s origins are rooted within a South Indian fishing village.
Traditionally, the hand-woven fabric has the same pattern on both sides, often featuring primary colours created using vegetable dyes, which would bleed when washed, with the colours gradually blending into one another. This craft created an environmentally-friendly and sustainable fabric that was soft, and had a distinctive, slightly bumpy texture. The lengthy and delicate process of hand weaving gave the fabric its rustic appeal.
Long before the British built a harbour in Madras in the 1700s, the region was already known for its cotton weaving. South India had been producing beautiful, breathable textiles for centuries. However, it was the arrival of the British East India Company, and the opening of the port, that turned Madras into a global textile hub. From there, the fabric started making its way around the world, carrying with it a piece of the culture and craftsmanship it came from.
Far removed from the hallways of Yale or Harvard, in Chennai, India, the coastal city from which it takes its name. (Chennai was known as Madras during British rule.) Originally worn by Indian labourers, the cloth was close to sparking a corporate scandal for American textile importer William Jacobson in 1958 due to its tendency to bleed when cleaned with strong detergent in high-powered washing machines, something the fabric was not prior exposed to.
On the cover of Lisa Birnbach’s “The Official Preppy Handbook,” a tongue-in-cheek 1980s guide to embodying that classic US prep school elite style, a pattern along the border depicts a fabric that has become synonymous with casual American luxury, Madras. Today we identify the plaid cotton cloth as synonymous with brands like Ralph Lauren, nostalgic and premium. Think light silhouettes worn at the country club or on holiday in the Tropics.
A question people often ask is what constitutes a shirt being identified as ‘Madras’? Much like how Champagne can only derive from the Champagne region of France, real Madras check has to come from Madras (now Chennai), India. As aforementioned, It’s not just a pattern, this fabric has roots. True Madras is made from pure Indian cotton, yarn-dyed and handwoven into a lightweight, breathable cloth. What sets it apart is its irregular, often bold mix of colours and the signature “bleed” of the dye, a perfectly imperfect result of the traditional dyeing and weaving methods still used today. No two pieces are quite the same, which is part of what makes it so special. It’s a fabric with soul, shaped by the place it comes from and the hands that make it, something you just can’t replicate with machines or shortcuts.
Today we admire the likes of Drake’s and Beam’s executing Madras with modern sartorial styling it deserves, with an Ivy League essence, packaged up to present it’s heritage and quality for the modern consumers appreciation.
We have some of the best Madras styles we've seen landing with us in the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned to find your fit.