Tender is a one man brand based in England and the founder William Kroll continues to make beautiful clothes inspired by the history of durable workwear with a contemporary style.

What we appreciate when it comes to the aesthetics of Tender is that the appearance may look simple at first, but William is always adding smart and interesting details to the garments, combined with interesting textiles that feel great to wear. As far as possible all products are produced in England, from the weaving of the fabrics to cutting and sewing.

The Monk Hat is intended to be one that the great pianist Thelonious Monk would have appreciated. Loosely based on the hat Monk is wearing in a picture used for the cover of the 1969 album Monk Plays Duke, this hat is cut with six panels, meeting at a short knitted cotton bootlace tassle. The hat is fully lined with cotton calico and has an internal cotton herringbone band.

Made of Tender’s 16oz blue-line selvage denim is custom-woven in Japan and shipped to the UK loomstate, to be cut and sewn directly. Ring-spun unbleached American cotton is rope dyed with 25 dips of pure indigo, with no back tinting or sulphur, giving an exceptionally dark blue-black fabric which fades beautifully with wear. The yarn is heavily starched during the weaving process, so it arrives quite stiff and will soften considerably as it ages. Because it has not been pre-skewed, the yarn unwinds with washing, causing the clothing to twist and shape to the body.

Achilles' Heel Indigo Dyed. In Ancient Greek myth, the goddess Thetis dipped her baby Achilles into the waters of the magical river Styx, which divided the worlds of the living and the dead, to make him invulnerable. Achilles grew up to be a great warrior who was protected in battle by the magic of the water. He was eventually killed by Paris who shot him in the heel with an arrow. The heel was the place where his mother had gripped him as a baby, and was the only part not to be touched by the water. Achilles’ Heel garments are hand dyed in Kojima by William’s indigo teacher. Each garment is dip dyed in indigo, but a certain part of the garment is gripped tight so that it does not touch the indigo dye, and shows the original fabric underneath, just like Achilles’ Heel.

- Tender Type 802 Monk Hat 16 oz Selvage Denim Achilles' Heel Indigo Dyed
- 100% cotton
- Indigo Dyed
- Made in England