LONDON — Giles Deacon has drawn on his history working with British textile manufacturers to create the first in a new series of tweeds for Purdey, the gunmaker and field sports clothing brand owned by Richemont.
The first new tweed was inspired by Tom Purdey, the company’s chief salesman in the first half of the 20th century. Purdey sold to British and European clients, but also traveled the length and breadth of America from the 1920s to the 1950s.
He believed that “clothes should be the best your pocket can afford. Let them be quiet in color and have them loose. Don’t wear light-colored shirts and bright colors — birds see about a hundred percent more than we do.”
Deacon, Purdey’s creative director, took those words to heart, creating a tweed that channeled Purdey’s quiet elegance.
“With a gregarious personality, he was a discerning man of great taste and considered a leading tweed aesthete of his time. He was a magnetic character, and this new tweed is his life — in color,” Deacon said.
He added that Purdey’s “classic and refined personal style had the versatility to take him from days outdoors in the Highlands, to infamous parties across the pond. Tom mixed in some very interesting circles. It’s this balance of sophistication and high spirits that we wanted to capture in the creation of the new house tweed.”
A close-up of the new Tom Purdey tweed developed by the brand’s creative director Giles Deacon.
Deacon and the team worked off a vast photo archive that documented Purdey’s life in the countryside, and his taste in clothes.
According to the company, Purdey’s style was very classic, but also heavily influenced by the fashion of the 1930s. By that time, tweed was more refined than the heavier fabrics that Purdey’s grandfather would have known.
The woven fabric had also become extremely fashionable, thanks in part to Purdey clients, such as the style-conscious Prince of Wales, King Edward VIII. (Purdey has received a Royal Warrant from every British Monarch since 1878.)
For game shooting, Purdey favored a dogtooth pattern, overlaid with a lighter windowpane check. The new Tom Purdey tweed has a similar look, with a base that draws on the muted tones of the Scottish landscape, the company said.
There are soft greens, heathers and browns, while a blue overcheck nods to the “blues” of Purdey’s life, from his school colors at Eton to his regimental tartan.
Developed as a bespoke fabric with Purdey’s partner mill in Hawick, Scotland, the Tom Purdey tweed combines fine woolen spun lambswool and merino wool in 21 individually colored yarns, used in 16 separate high-twist combinations.
Every meter is woven on a four-harness, classic twill construction, before being inspected and corrected by hand to ensure highest-possible quality, the company said. The fabric is then finished locally and washed using the soft, peaty waters of the Scottish Borders, in southeast Scotland, on the English border.
“Beautifully refined and as unique as the man himself, the Tom Purdey tweed would be as well suited to him, as it is to those who enjoy wearing tweed today. We look forward to seeing how our clients style the new tweed and make it their own,” Deacon said.
The limited-edition Tom Purdey tweed will be available at the brand’s Audley House boutique and at shop.purdey.com starting on Wednesday, with a personal styling service available to book.
The full-look Tom Purdey tweed includes a men’s and women’s jacket, vest, breeks — that’s Scottish for breeches, or knee-length trousers used for field sports — a tie and a hat.
There is also a cashmere-mix version for soft accessories, including a blanket, cushion and hot water bottle. Deacon said he’s already working on a second house tweed, which will be revealed in 2026.
The new Tom Purdey tweed developed by Giles Deacon for Purdey.
SARAH FARNSWORTH
Deacon joined Purdey, which holds royal warrants as gun and rifle makers to the British and other European royal families, last year and his first collection was for spring 2025.
It was packed with performance fabrics and details, including technical tweeds, fleeces and bonded seams meant to keep rain and wind at bay. There were soft touches, too, such as Nottingham lace on a white blouse.
Deacon described the collection as a “timeless, elegant, country wardrobe” for hunting, shooting and fishing types. Dog walkers and city dwellers can easily wear them, too, he said.
“It’s not about fashion, but about elegant product,” said Deacon, “and most importantly, the pieces are fit for purpose.”
Purdey was founded by James Purdey in London in 1814, and run by generations of the eponymous family. Richemont acquired Purdey in 1994, and it continues to operate from its historic home, Audley House, on South Audley Street in London.
