Fabrics for Summer

Summer temperatures call for fabrics that breathe. The wind shouldn't be whistling through your jacket when the temperatures are below freezing, but mohair, fresco (along with its imitators like Holland & Sherry's CrispAire), and linen help keep a man cool as the thermometer climbs. Each of them will keep you cooler than a tropical worsted, and each has its negatives. So does worsted, for that matter.

Mohair is the hair of an Angora goat. It's got a bit of sheen to it, which makes it a good fabric for a warm weather dinner jacket or a navy blue suit, and a tendency to crack if it's not blended with wool, but it stays crisp in the heat. Ten ounce cloth that's 30% or 40% mohair makes a cool wearing suit that drapes well. Higher proportions of mohair may show an ufortunate tendency to wilt in the rain.

Fresco is a rough-to-the-hand open weave worsted that's trademarked by the parent company of weaver J&J Minnis, provider of the good stuff. 14 ounces used to be the weight of a standard summer suit fifty years ago. Today I like ten, though it's available in eight (the eight doesn't drape as well, wrinkles more easily and is only a touch cooler). If you're a fan of high Super number worsteds, fresco may feel a bit rough until you get used to it but in compensation it has the additional benefit of rubbing any excess hair from your legs so you look better in a bathing suit.

And finally there's linen, woven from the plant. I prefer the Irish version in 14 ounce weight. Holland & Sherry makes some of the best. The negative to linen is that it rumples, though the heavier weights work to minimize that. Better suited for a walk through the park than a seat in the board room.