From pitch to prep to peaks
The story of our Stanage Scrum Jersey
Dedicated menswear followers might have noted the resurgence of the rugby shirt in modern times. Its journey has been well documented. For the uninitiated, the story goes that rugby playing students from Britain's public school system and red brick universities brought the shirt off campus, home for the holidays and into the countryside.
The rugby shirt’s vivacious hoop schemes combined with its collegiate roots to attract artists like David Hockney and Mick Jagger who were looking to stand out. Later preppy brands like Ralph Lauren and Gant used jerseys to tap the cool refinement of British heritage as part of their lofty Ivy League aesthetic. Throw in US climber Yves Chouinard, said to have chanced upon a bunch of old shirts on a trip to Scotland, founding his new brand Patagonia on the designs when he got home, and a seemingly one-note garment was revealed as more plural and globally transcendent than anyone ever thought possible.
Breaking and honouring tradition
History and trends are one thing, but Uskees doesn’t operate on those levers. The pull for us when taking on a new garment is the creative challenge and brand fit.
If we were to try our hand at a classic like the rugby shirt, could it feed our interest in utility, form and colour? Could we make a famously tough garment even tougher? What about a novel twist? Rugby shirts are so well designed they've barely changed in a century. Does what isn't broken really need to be fixed?
Well, we went all in on the 7025 Stanage scrum jersey, and we’re really pleased with where we landed. It both respects and breaks from rugby shirt traditions, employing fine stripes instead of chunky block patterning, and retaining a forgiving structural format that's in keeping with the garment's sporting identity and our own workwear past.
Elsewhere, we held onto the strong twill collar with the Stanage. However, we allowed the lovely colouring to flush right underneath so the collar can be worn popped. We also dropped the shoulders to make the design less boxy, then reduced the weight from the traditional 390gsm to 290gsm, making it lighter and layering ready. Because as the shirt proved when we took it out on shoot, it's far more comfortable down the pub than on a rain soaked pitch.
Composition-wise, we improved the durability and elasticity by introducing a tiny amount of spandex to our design. 3%, to be exact. This means the scrum jersey will survive washes of all kinds for generations. In honour of its mountaineering connection, we named it after the mighty Stanage Edge in the Peak district, home of climbing in the North, UK.
Shop the 7025 Stanage scrum jersey here.
Respect Tradition
From pitch to prep to peaks
The story of our Stanage Scrum Jersey
Dedicated menswear followers might have noted the resurgence of the rugby shirt in modern times. Its journey has been well documented. For the uninitiated, the story goes that rugby playing students from Britain's public school system and red brick universities brought the shirt off campus, home for the holidays and into the countryside.
The rugby shirt’s vivacious hoop schemes combined with its collegiate roots to attract artists like David Hockney and Mick Jagger who were looking to stand out. Later preppy brands like Ralph Lauren and Gant used jerseys to tap the cool refinement of British heritage as part of their lofty Ivy League aesthetic. Throw in US climber Yves Chouinard, said to have chanced upon a bunch of old shirts on a trip to Scotland, founding his new brand Patagonia on the designs when he got home, and a seemingly one-note garment was revealed as more plural and globally transcendent than anyone ever thought possible.
Breaking and honouring tradition
History and trends are one thing, but Uskees doesn’t operate on those levers. The pull for us when taking on a new garment is the creative challenge and brand fit.
If we were to try our hand at a classic like the rugby shirt, could it feed our interest in utility, form and colour? Could we make a famously tough garment even tougher? What about a novel twist? Rugby shirts are so well designed they've barely changed in a century. Does what isn't broken really need to be fixed?
Well, we went all in on the 7025 Stanage scrum jersey, and we’re really pleased with where we landed. It both respects and breaks from rugby shirt traditions, employing fine stripes instead of chunky block patterning, and retaining a forgiving structural format that's in keeping with the garment's sporting identity and our own workwear past.
Elsewhere, we held onto the strong twill collar with the Stanage. However, we allowed the lovely colouring to flush right underneath so the collar can be worn popped. We also dropped the shoulders to make the design less boxy, then reduced the weight from the traditional 390gsm to 290gsm, making it lighter and layering ready. Because as the shirt proved when we took it out on shoot, it's far more comfortable down the pub than on a rain soaked pitch.
Composition-wise, we improved the durability and elasticity by introducing a tiny amount of spandex to our design. 3%, to be exact. This means the scrum jersey will survive washes of all kinds for generations. In honour of its mountaineering connection, we named it after the mighty Stanage Edge in the Peak district, home of climbing in the North, UK.
Shop the 7025 Stanage scrum jersey here.