At the PS pop-up that’s running from April 23-25, we’ll have a new brand as our guest for the event: Awling belts.
Awling have been around for a few years, but have grown to prominence recently due to starting to sell wholesale in various stores around the world. We first met them at Pitti this past January.
Awling, I think it’s fair to say, have also taken a while to find their style. They started with fairly plain, standard designs, but have evolved into something more distinctive. This is most evident in their buckles, which is where the design process starts. The most popular is Pilsbury (£165): a double-sided oval that twists at both ends to open up space for the prong (below).
“Everything we do now is in this vein of being unusual but subtle,” says the founder, Chris Goldstraw. “We’re working on a new model at the moment, for example, which is plaque style but hand-worked to give it a more natural feel.”
The buckles and belts are made in England, and they have that British look in the straps in particular, which are all a flat piece of thicker leather. That’s quite distinct from the more common, European style which is made up of two pieces of finer leather, with a raised section in the middle and sunk stitching along either side.
This style, sometimes called ‘lined and raised’ is so universal that it barely feels like a style at all, but British belts are traditionally thicker and more casual – often using bridle leather, an oily cowhide which (as the name suggests) originally comes from horse tack and is built primarily for strength.
(Someone like Tim Hardy in Worcestershire is a good example, or MacGregor & Michael on the bespoke side.)
“When we toured around the UK looking for manufacturers, there were lots of tiny operations making belts like this – often just one man and a shed,” says Chris. “It was hard to find anyone at scale, but eventually we found a great maker with the help of Adam who founded the bag brand Cherchbi.”
Cherchbi is a blast from the past – the last time we covered them on PS was in 2012 – but apparently they’re still around. Adam no longer runs the brand however.
Chris started off making belts that were similar to those bridle ones – wide and plain – just with an Italian leather. But over time he shifted to slimmer and unusual styles, still with a cut edge and so a flat look, but with interesting buckles like the Rowarth (£175, below), which is sort of a British version of a western belt.
“That’s been the hardest thing to be honest, finding our aesthetic, but we’re really happy with where we are now, it’s given us a clear focus for new developments,” says Chris.
It’s been interesting trying out the style with my own outfits. I got the Parwich (£175) in brass on a pebbled black leather a few months ago, and I’ve been trying it out regularly since.
The vast majority of the time I wear that European ‘lined and raised’ style of belt, even with casual outfits. They’re mostly from Rubato, one-inch wide, and I like the way the belt adds a smart touch to a T-shirt and jeans. When I go more casual it’s usually a braided leather or a western style from Silver Ostrich.
I’ve found the Parwich actually more subtle and therefore more my style than Silver Ostrich – and a nice alternative to a braided leather or suede. It has more heft than a calf leather, but still smarter than most casual belts. The colour range also fits well with modern tonal modes of dressing.
Belts is a category that can be hard to break into – everyone sells them, from multi-brand stores to shoe shops – and it’s difficult to have a point of difference without becoming too outlandish.
Awling seem to have done a good job, perhaps due to Chris’s taste level. His day job is still an architectural photographer, and he’s long had a passion for menswear alongside both architecture and photography.
“I was always into well-made clothes when I was younger,” he says. “I wanted something that would last years, both because it was quality and because it was subtler, without big logos all over it for example.
“I think a lot of that carries through into the belts we’re doing now – we’re aiming for two new buckle designs a year, something like that, and those ideas of subtle style and quality run through them all.”
Chris will have his new developments for this year – the plaque mentioned earlier and a slim 25mm model – on display at the pop-up. They won’t go sale until August.
In terms of availability elsewhere, his wholesale customers are Tailors Keep in San Francisco, Newton James in Kansas City, Mr Manners in Taipei and TWC in London. Adam at TWC only has a couple of styles, but is looking to expand that. The full range is on Awling.com.
I look forward to having Chris in the pop-up, and seeing everyone else there. All details – as with other events too – on the PS events page.
For a general guide to the styles and makes of belts, see the PS capsule guide.
