The Pampered Systems Analyst

For a brief, shining period in 2003, Chicago formalwear company Pamper Him offered their own line of ties on ebay. They all had striking retro designs printed on fine silk satin, and were lined and cut perfectly: it takes no effort at all to tie them into a perfect little triangular knot. I accumulated several Pamper Him ties before they disappeared, all of which remain in my permanent collection. I brought one out today to pair with my infamous pink pants. Quite by accident, I discovered the source of Pamper Him's exotic silks: Exotic Silks! Some of the Pamper Him tie fabrics, including this one, are still available in the Modern print gallery.

This will be the last blog entry of the week. My grandfather passed away this week at the age of 91; we will spend Friday driving to North Carolina for Saturday's funeral. While I will wear a tie to the funeral, it will not be flashy, and I will not post it here. It will be one of the very few occasions for which sartorial flair is not only meaningless, but downright inappropriate. Please pardon this moment of gravity in a largely gravity-free oeuvre.

Still pampered

It's been almost a month since I last wore a tie, and a year and a half since I wore one of my treasured Pamper Him ties from Chicago. This is the third one to appear on the blog, which leaves me with three yet to be blogged, I believe. That could take another couple years, at this rate. Pamper Him seems to have vanished, as have most of the fabrics from Exotic Silks from which they made their ties (but this one is still there). Only the ties remain, and darn few of those, I suspect.

Fortunately I have popped back onto the blog in time to learn about Catherine Gutsche's upcoming show at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum in Almonte, Ontario. Faithful readers (both of you) will recognize Catherine as the artist who turned my wedding tie into a painting, which now hangs in its place of honor over our marital bed. The show runs May 14 through August 2 (2008, in case you're reading this in the future), with an opening reception on Saturday, May 24. If you're in the area, go see!

The final throes of pampering

I am nearing the end of my supply of neckties from Pamper Him, the short-lived Chicago venture that made perfectly-shaped ties out of printed silk charmeuse from Exotic Silks. This tie is an alternate colorway of the first Pamper Him tie featured here in 2006.

Catching up

I had a busy week and fell behind on the blog, but here I am again. The tie for Monday, October 2, is another Exotic Silks tie from Pamper Him of Chicago. The silk satin is a real joy to handle, the shape is perfect, the knot effortless. I think there are six Pamper Him ties in my permanent collection, which I am now getting a chance to rewear, as they have not been blogged yet, and they are new to my new workplace.

Pampered

Here is my seventh and penultimate tie from Pamper Him of Chicago. The fabric came from Exotic Silks, and features a freeform polygon tile print which is similar to, but predates, Tim Biskup's direction in art for the last few years. My only quibble with these ties is the bar tack (the knotted loop of thread that holds the two sides of the tie together in back, at the bottom): it is of black thread, which shows through light-colored silk, sort of like an ingrown hair. White thread would have solved that problem.

Transatlantic pampering

By a happy coincidence, the colors in this psychedelic print tie by Pamper Him of Chicago match up very nicely with the colors in my multi-striped shirt from Moss in the UK. Whether it is tasteful to wear such a bold freeform pattern over a striped foundation is quite another matter, and one that does not overly concern me (obviously).

Retro Modern

Today's tie is a big retro print from Exotic Silks, made into a perfectly-shaped tie by Pamper Him of Chicago. Similar patterns can be found in Jenn Ski's Pod Series of giclee prints.