The Quality of your Knitted Tie
What goes into making a good quality knitted tie?
There are lots of components that go into making a good quality knitted tie but it doesn't start and stop with the materials.
The quality of material is a prerequisite for a good knitted tie, there is absolutely no doubt there, but when you look at the story behind the label, the people that make the knitted ties come into view.
From concept to store
There are several key ingredients that are considered for a knitted tie:
- The quality of the natural materials
- The skills and experience of the machinists
- The dyeing processes
- The environmental impact
- The rights and working conditions of the workforce
Our manufacturers are focussed on ensuring that the knitted ties they produce are of the best quality and so they have exclusive relationships with a specific dye factory and raw material suppliers. Rather than fixating on getting the lowest prices by using multiple suppliers.
We use natural silk yarn, high-quality wool and cotton white yarn, which is then sent to the dyeing factory for treatment. Throughout the dyeing treatment process, we ensure they meet environmental protection requirements and all dyes must be AZO free. Polyester and microfiber yarns are also required to meet the same standard in the dyeing process.
What is AZO free dye and why does it matter?
AZO control has become the most important quality control project in the international textile and garment trade, as well as one of the most basic quality indicators of ecological textiles.
AZO dyes are the most widely used synthetic dyes as they achieve bright, vivid colours and are more easily and cheaply manufactured. However AZO dyes are bad for your health as some are carcinogenic and there is potential for an AZO dye to be absorbed into the body by having direct skin contact.
They are also extremely bad for the environment. They cannot degrade naturally and so when wastewater is released from the factory, it has a direct impact on the ecosystem surrounding it, being toxic to fish and plants. The wastewater also runs clear and so is very hard to detect.
The Quality of the Knit
The knitting of the tie is the most important part in all the procedures. The quality, size, feel and thickness of the products all depend on this process.
There is a lot of research and testing that goes into developing an optimal weaving method which helps to create a strong bond. Using a premium weave helps ensure that the tie keeps its shape and strength over time.
The right degree of tightness ensures that the tie will finally have the perfect texture and hand feel, and the right length and width to ensure that the tie will meet size requirements before being finalised.
Our skilled machinists take control of the rotation speed, timely adjusting the yarn position and other operations in the knitting process to ensure the perfection of the final product, something that can’t simply be completed overnight, it’s something that requires a lot of experience.
When one says that a knitted tie can be cut by hand to ensure the perfect size, this is not true, especially for a flat knit tie.
Getting stitched up
If you look carefully, you will find that the ends and the middle of a knitted tie are not of the same texture as the rest of the tie. This is not a problem that can be solved by cutting and it is not easy for a knitted tie to be cut and then reconnected. It requires strict controls of each part during the knitting process.
When you finish knitting, a knitted tie, we won’t lie, it looks, well it's just looks ugly. This is where sizing comes in.
The tie as shown above is frizzy before sizing. We set a piece of iron that is the same shape as the tie on the inside, and we smooth the tie out by hand, then place the tie under high-temperature and high-pressure fumigation and drying, this is how the knitted tie sets.
It is well known that a knitted tie and other garments are easy to shrink. Therefore, machinists are required to manually finalise the design according to the characteristics of raw materials, and ensure that the final product will not shorten over time.
Different materials, different seasons, match different temperatures, pressure and fumigation time, this is also one of the secrets to making a good quality knitted tie.
When the styling is complete, a knitted tie has been formed. Then our experienced employees hand sew the neckband, using ribbon. The ribbon helps makes the collar more suitable for when tying a knitted tie.
Quality control
Before packaging, there is an essential step, which is to examine each tie carefully to ensure that all the products are in perfect condition.
Whilst we not only pay close attention to the quality output of the product, we also pay attention to the company's business philosophy and their social responsibility.
Our manufacturer are members of SEDEX and FWF, who ensure they have established a good social responsibility system.
We want to ensure that every knitted tie is produced in the process of happy labour, and we also hope that all the people who use our products feel the same.
Responsible sourcing
Is key when it comes to working with our manufacturers. The relationships that we forge remain a huge part of how we find our suppliers, ensuring that they proactively source materials and services ethically and sustainably, throughout each tier of the supply chain. We are proud that our manufacturers adhere to the Sedex global standard.
“Sedex is one of the world’s leading ethical trade service providers, working to improve working conditions in global supply chains. They work with some of the world’s most recognisable brands and standard setting organisations, such as the United Nations and Ethical Trade Initiative.”
Sedex is an organisation that knows businesses no matter how big or small can be leaders for driving positive social and environmental impacts and helping to improve the standard of working conditions for people working in global supply chains.
At Broni&Bo we have always been mindful of the ethical creation and sustainability of our knitted ties and believe it is our responsibility to incorporate social, environmental and ethical operations within our business. Proven by taking an active understanding for the entire life cycle of our products and protecting the rights of workers during the production process.
Ethical manufacturing
Are my clothes and accessories made in an ethical way? It’s a simple question that can be difficult to answer in today’s world.
We are proud to work with a manufacturer that is a member of the Fair Wear Foundation. A not-for-profit organisation whose mission is,
“to see a world where the garment industry supports workers in realising their rights to safe, dignified, properly paid employment.”
It means that our knitted tie manufacturer is committed to providing its employees with fair wages, reasonable hours, a safe and healthy work environment, no discrimination in employment, freedom to join trade unions and does not use child labour or any form of forced labour.
Our environmental impact
As an online retailer we have invested in new technology to help offset the impact of shipping. You can now try on our knitted accessories from the comfort of your home via your mobile phone, through augmented reality.
Built using the latest 3D and augmented reality technology we have created an engaging and immersive shopping experience which enables you to view our knitted accessories easily.
Through this, we have seen a reduction in unnecessary shipping and returns. Prior to our investment in this tech, a lot of customers would buy purely to try on, especially buying a range of different colours to choose their favourite.
You can find out more on the technology that we use here.
The quality is in the detail
We feel that all of the elements that we have highlighted is exactly what sets a good quality knitted tie apart from the rest. There is certainly a lot more that goes into making a quality knitted tie than meets the eye.
Finally, our handy tip for testing the quality of a knitted tie is what we expertly call “the crumple test”. Scrunch up your tie in one hand, any good quality knitted tie worth its weight in quality will return to its original shape.
Check out our range of knitted ties here.
