Closures: A Field Guide

How a top closes is half its personality. Buttons read one way, ties another, knots a third — and the rail covers all of them. Third in our field-guide series, after sleeves and necklines: every closure we make, and what each one is for.

The side-tie: the adjustable one

Most of our wraps close with a tie at the side seam — the Sand Linen Wrap Top, the Washed Linen Wrap Top, the shirts, the vest. The point is adjustability: the same top fits a heavy-lunch day and a photograph day, because you set the tension. No other closure does that.

The self-tie: the decorative one

The Steel Linen Tie-Front Top closes with three slim self-ties down the centre front — same fabric as the top, tied in small knots. Functional, but mostly expressive: tie all three for a clean line, leave the lower ones open over a cami and the closure becomes the styling.

The frog knot: the traditional one

Corded loops and knots, fastened by hand — the closure with the longest memory, straight off the bandhgala. On the Champagne Silk Jacket three of them run down the centre, and they're most of the reason the jacket reads considered rather than plain. A frog knot is jewellery that happens to fasten something.

The button and the placket: the dependable ones

The Ink Linen Camp Shirt runs three tan wooden buttons down the front — warm against the ink-black linen, and honest in the way only a button is: closed or open, nothing in between. The Moss Chanderi Popover shortens the idea into a two-button placket at the chest, which is what makes a popover a popover — you pull it on, then decide how open the collar sits.

Which closure is yours

Want a fit you can adjust: side-tie. Want detail without jewellery: self-ties or frog knots. Want zero fuss: buttons or a placket. There's no wrong answer — but there is a right one for how you actually get dressed.

Cash on delivery available. Easy 7-day returns.

Frequently asked questions

Do side-ties come undone during the day?
A double knot holds through a normal day. The tie is fabric-on-fabric, which grips better than a ribbon or cord would.

Are frog knots hard to fasten?
Slower than a button the first week, automatic after that. They're also far more forgiving of repeated use than they look.