While we love our home city, there is no escaping the weather, as anyone who has ever been caught out by an unforeseen Scottish downpour will doubtless affirm. Necessity is the mother of invention though, and just over 200 years ago a curious young Scots chemist named Charles Macintosh chanced upon a discovery that would revolutionise the way we dress, come rain, hail, or shine.
Having abandoned his career as a merchant’s clerk aged just 19, Macintosh pursued his passion for chemistry, and it was while undertaking experiments with the chemical naphtha that he devised a pioneering process for waterproofing cotton. By 1824, Macintosh had patented this innovation, which saw him sandwich a layer of liquid rubber between two layers of fabric to create a waterproof, wearable material, and the Mac was born. Over time, the Mackintosh was steadily improved, (and the K was added to the name) with the design becoming increasingly ubiquitous – from army trench coats and railway workers uniforms, to the immaculately cut, hard-wearing wardrobe staple that is still celebrated as an icon of British fashion.
Today, the classic Mackintosh coat is made by skilled craftspeople in a process that that has remained largely unchanged for almost two centuries. The core material, cotton, is produced in Japan, before being shipped to the Mackintosh factory in Cumbernauld, Scotland, where expert pattern cutters mark up and cut out each piece ready for them to be bonded together. The pieces are then sewn, united and sealed using a rubber glue that is applied by finger – a technique that takes years to perfect but guarantees a waterproof finish.
Here’s a closer look at some of the finer details that make the Mackintosh so covetable:
Bonded Cotton
The classic Mackintosh coat is cut from bonded cotton fabric – two layers of cotton bonded together with rubber that is dyed to perfectly match the outer cotton layers so there is no show-through. The result is a fabric that is 100% waterproof.
Rubber Sealing
Each piece is sewn, sealed and lapped using a specialised rubber solution that is applied by finger, an intricate method that not only ensures that the seams are waterproof, but also makes it easier to join curved edges and corners.
Taped Seams
Water-resistant tape is applied by hand to exposed seams inside the garment, providing even further protection from the elements.
Airing Eyelets
To ensure that the coat is as breathable and comfortable as it is practical, airing eyelets are hand punched into the fabric underneath the arm during the final stages of production.
Buttons
Hand-sewn buttons add an unmistakably refined finishing touch.
