SHOP THE STORY

Levi Palmer and Matthew Harding find their niche in the essential purity of the classic shirt. With boundless potential, it is an endlessly inviting white space.

In a remarkable debut collection, Palmer//Harding creates harmony on a blank canvas, crafting emotive design for women and men.  Their design foundation includes a basic, studied formula: classic collars, bright whites and the finest Egyptian cotton. 

Their interpretation of the shirt presents unexpected charm around every corner. Beyond the clean lines, discover muslin panelling, rope threading and grosgrain collars, along with calmly blended dusty mints or a touch of contrasting grey.

A timeless piece, the shirt overflows with references, past and present and is reworked throughout the industry by designers such as Tim Soar, Paper London, Todd Lynn, Boudicca and more.

Maybe mother knew best after all:  classic tailoring rules the realm of the tasteful wardrobe investment and graceful cut cotton is indisputably flattering. With an innovative twist, here is quality to be lived in. 


Palmer//Harding Q&A

As designers how and why did the classic tailored white shirt catch your eye and inspire you?

We were initially drawn to the white shirt as we felt that it is such an important part of a wardrobe, yet it wasn't really given as much design consideration in a lot of designer ranges. A lot of our contemporaries were focusing on party dresses and evening-wear, so it seemed right to take what is widely considered a basic and elevate it to a covetable garment.

Susie Bubble recently called your pattern cutting “devastatingly mathematically complex” … Can you describe the process of evolution of your creations?

We are both very interested in the craft of constructing patterns and techniques of garment construction. We construct our shirts with a lot of consideration. Every collar, cuff, placket is carefully designed. For spring summer 12, there was a lot of intricate mathematical pleating involved to give the desired construction of our shirts. The fabric was carefully pleated in a corrugated way with rubberised metal hardware hand sewn on to separate each pleat to give a rich texture. It was sort of an exercise in controlled gathering!

You make shirts for men too. Is there a fundamental difference between men’s tailoring and women’s? Can a woman wear a man’s shirt? Should she?

There are fundamental differences in the way that we approach our menswear. We don't design our menswear range thinking of it as unisex, but women have bought and worn it as such! On the whole the menswear is more about a sense of style and classicism than the womenswear, where the shirts perhaps have more room to evolve. 

Looking forward, what is the potential of the white shirt? Where do you see it going next? 

It's surprising how freeing it is to actually limit ourselves as designers to primarily focus on one thing. Our interest in construction and craft mean that we can constantly evolve what a shirt can be.

Who alive or dead, male or female do you like to picture wearing your shirts?

Jan Strimple - she's a close friend. She was a model in the 80s, incredibly kind, knowledgeable and chic.