 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Detachable collar" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(October 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Adetachable collar or afalse collar is ashirtcollar separate from the shirt, fastened to it by studs. The collar is usually made of a different fabric from the shirt, in which case it is almost always white, and, being unattached to the shirt, can bestarched to a hard cardboard-like consistency.
.jpg)
The local history ofTroy, New York attributes the invention of the detachable collar in 1827 to Hannah Montague, who wished to avoid washing her husband's shirts when only the collars were dirty. She cut off the collars and attached lengths of fabric tape so that they could be tied around the neck of the collarless shirt. This meant that collars could be washed independently, saving time and labour. The Rev. Ebenezer Brown, a businessman in town, proceeded to commercialize the concept. The manufacture of detachable collars and the associated shirts became a significant industry in Troy.[1]
It was later that the benefit of being able tostarch the collars became apparent, and for a short time, various other parts of the shirt, such as the front and cuffs, were also made detachable and treated to rigid stiffness. As more emphasis started to be placed on comfort in clothing this practice declined, and the stiff collar is the last surviving use of such heavily starched cotton in daywear. Today afull dress shirt (worn withwhite tie and occasionallyblack tie) still has a stiff (but attached) front and cuffs to accompany the stiff detachable collar.
The collar is attached to the shirt by a pair of studs like those shown to the left. The shirt has atunic collar, a short upright band of fabric with a hole at the back and one on each side at the front. The stiff collar is attached at the back before the shirt is donned (and the tie placed under the collar for aturndown collar), then the shirt is put on, after which the front stud is pushed through the collar to fasten it.
Detachable collars are often used bybarristers in the UK, Ireland and Canada, many of whom wear awing collar when in court to allow the use ofbands. On the way to and from court, a turndown collar and tie are worn. Another common use of detachable collars now is aclerical collar (or "Roman Collar"), though these are now often made from flexible plastic for ease of washing, and are not always now attached in the traditional way with studs. Also, atEton College, all pupils wear stiff collars, mostly turndown collars, while students in positions of authority wear 'stick-ups', which includes a wing collar.[2]
Outside these situations, detachable collars are less common. Stiff collars in particular with daywear in the 21st century are generally rare, but if one is worn, it is usually a turndown collar, thoughmorning dress is seen still with a wing collar. Older styles, such as the imperial collar (a high collar with no wings last popular with theEdwardians), are not frequently seen now. A more common use of detachable collars is with eveningwear, in which case a high wing collar is worn in America although turndown collars are preferred for black-tie in Britain as perEdward VIII.
To starch a collar, it must be rinsed in boiling water to remove any starch, then laundered as normal. After soaking in a concentrated warm starch solution, it is left until nearly dry, thenironed until hard. While ironing, the shape is added by curling, or using a collar press.
