How Silk Ties Are Made: From First Sketch to Finished Tie
A finished silk tie may look simple, but behind every Oliver Jorg design lies a process of ideas, sketches, colour decisions, sampling and refinement that takes it from concept to cloth.
From the first motif to the finished tie, each design moves through several stages before we are happy for it to carry the Oliver Jorg name.
It Starts With An Idea
Every tie begins with inspiration, which shapes the design from the outset.
For Oliver Jorg, that inspiration often comes from the world around the brand - British racing, equestrian sport, the countryside and traditional British style.
Sometimes the starting point is very specific: a horse, a piece of riding tack, a jockey's colours or a detail spotted at the racecourse. Other times, it is a colour combination or an idea that translates beautifully onto silk.
From there, we sketch and explore how that idea can become a wearable design.
Creating The Motif
Once we have chosen a direction, we develop the individual motif.
This matters because something that works as an illustration does not always work when repeated hundreds of times across a tie.
The shape, level of detail and proportions all have to be considered, along with how the motif will look from a distance.
We then experiment with the repeat itself - changing the size, spacing, direction and positioning until the pattern feels balanced.
Even a small adjustment in scale can completely change a tie's character.
Our aim is usually to create something distinctive up close, while remaining elegant and understated when worn.
Choosing The Colours
Colour is one of our favourite stages in the design process.
We explore different combinations for the background, motifs and smaller details before narrowing these down to the colourways that work best.
Rather than relying on how a colour appears on a computer screen, we specify our production colours using Pantone references.
This gives the mill a physical colour standard to work towards when printing the silk.
However, silk has its own character. The way a colour appears on a screen, or even on paper, can look quite different once printed on 36oz silk twill.
This is one of the most important stages.
The Strike-Off
Before committing a new design to production, we create a strike-off.
A strike-off is a small test print of the design on the actual silk. It lets us see how the colours, scale, and pattern work together in real life before we produce the finished ties.
This is where we properly assess the design.
Is the background too dark? Does a particular colour need adjusting? Are the motifs slightly too small? Does the pattern need more space?
Sometimes the first strike-off is exactly what we imagined. Other times, it goes back for another round of adjustments.
It is an extra step, but an important one.
We would much rather change a colour or increase a motif by 10% at this stage than compromise on the finished tie.
Printing the Silk in England
Once the design, colours and scale have been approved, the final artwork is ready for production.
We print our 36oz silk twill in England, using the approved design and colour specifications.
Seeing a design move from digital artwork to printed silk is always one of the most exciting stages of the process. What began as a small idea is suddenly repeated across the cloth that will eventually become a collection of Oliver Jorg ties.
The printed silk is then prepared for the next stage of its journey.
Hand-Stitched in Italy
The silk travels from England to Italy, where artisans individually make and hand-stitch each tie.
The pattern needs to be positioned correctly, the silk cut and constructed, and each tie carefully finished.
Here, the printed silk finally becomes the product we originally imagined.
The finished ties measure 150 × 9cm and retain the weight and handle that we wanted when choosing our 36oz silk twill.
From Sketch to Finished Tie
By the time an Oliver Jorg tie reaches its presentation box, it may have gone through sketches, different motifs, multiple colourways, scale adjustments, Pantone selections, strike-offs, printing and hand-stitching.
It takes time, but that is exactly the point.
We don't create designs just to release something new. Every pattern has to feel right for Oliver Jorg and, most importantly, be something we would genuinely want to wear ourselves.
From an idea inspired by the racecourse or British countryside to silk printed in England and hand-stitched in Italy, every Oliver Jorg tie has a story before it is ever knotted around a collar.
