We're going to start with a little game that you'll enjoy, especially if you like cinema.
What do…
Tom Cruise in Jack Reacher (in both episodes):
Ryan Gosling in Drive :
Harvey Specter in the series Suits :
Henry Cavill in Superman :
Keanu Reeves in the brilliant John Wick :
Chris Pratt in Jurassic World :
Nathan Drake in the (very beautiful) Uncharted series:
Tom Cruise in the film The Mummy :
And obviously… Bruce Willis in Die Hard :
Well, it's easy, they all wear this top called henley: a knitted cotton body and a buttoned collar. Even Daniel Craig, when he leaves his house, wears one, in a photo well known to BonneGueule readers:
As you can see, the henley holds a really important place in the imagery of American films, while it is a piece that goes under the radar of our European eyes. Here is a first article which deals with the place of henley here, by Racked .
It’s a piece that we wanted to work on , we’ll explain why.
Here is our henley, in collaboration with Fleurs de Bagne.
It’s a piece that goes easily with jeans.
But first, let’s look at the place of henley in fiction and its history…
Henley is worn by the main characters in specific cases:
- it's for an action movie
- the hero lives like everyone else
- he is a simple, good and authentic man
- and obviously, he is a hero with above-average physical and intellectual abilities
Why is it such a popular piece?
What does Ben Affleck wear at 40 for an interview? A henley of course!
My personal theory on such use of henley in films is as follows:
- impossible to make heroes who are a little adventurous or who lead lives like everyone else wear dress shirts
- we must understand that these heroes do not spend too much time in front of their wardrobe
- the casual shirt is also not practical in action scenes
- you need clothing that flatters the hero's physique
- a polo shirt is too dressy and too precious, except for James Bond
- and a t-shirt would be too teenage
So obviously, in the type of comfortable, timeless piece appreciated by workwear , there is only the Henley for the upper body.
Even more surprisingly, The Cut , a major New York magazine, even published a hilarious praise of the henley with the unequivocal title: " if you don't have this type of piece, you're not a male celebrity ."
Selected pieces :
If you're a [famous] man, wearing a henley is mandatory. In everyday life, I don't know that many men who wear it, but I also know very few famous men who don't.
Everything you watch after 8 p.m. on ABC or CW has to have a henley, every action movie has at least one sweaty henley.
As Nick from Boston wrote in his review of the J.Crew henley: "I bought this as a transitional piece from cool summer nights to fall and I couldn't be happier."
The article cites Kanye West, Ryan Gosling who owns 79 (for my part, I now own three), and of course David Beckham for his underwear line at H&M:
With such an aura in the United States, how could I have missed this piece?
Especially since its history is atypical and two centuries old!
The History of Henley: From Bedroom to Rowing
The first life of henley began at the beginning of the 19th century.
Radiators do not yet exist, and while people wear thick woolen suits during the day, they need close-fitting clothing for sleeping.
We are not talking here about a "mid layer" but rather a "base layer", this layer directly in contact with the skin.
British Henley from 1880. Photo credit: Victoria & Albert Museum.
With the boom in cotton production and the industrialization of textile production, we are able to offer comfortable and affordable underwear.
And more specifically, we create one with several characteristics:
- no collar, to make it more comfortable
- a few buttons to adjust the ventilation of the room
- and a cotton knitted rather than woven, in order to have a natural stretch like on a t-shirt, rather than a nightgown
The second life of henley began in 1829 in a town called… Henley-on-Thames.
This is where the Boat Race was held for the first time in Henley, a rowing race between Cambridge and Oxford students, which is now very popular.
The henley is the official clothing for rowing competitions. Credit: History of rowing.
The meeting of this underwear and rowers will popularize henley. Indeed, athletes particularly appreciate its absence of a collar facing the wind, these buttons which allow ventilation to be adjusted, and this material which makes it easier to row.
The henley therefore became the official uniform of rowers, and this is where it began to be very popular.
It will then be worn by literally everyone: athletes, workers, soldiers, farmers, etc.
For the record, I have seen Alessandro Squarzi wearing it several times, he likes to include it in his very special outfits:
Alessandro and one of his henleys. I saw him in the evening, he was wearing a very textured one with a denim vest.
So much for the history of Henley. But now I have to tell you another one: that of our henley and the meeting between Fleurs de Bagne and BonneGueule…
Fleurs de Bagne: cutting-edge French workwear
Pitti 2017, in Florence.
Although I have just entered the show, as usual I rush to the Arc'teryx Veilance stand.
Except that at the next stand, olive-colored clothes - my favorite color - catch my attention. And above all, I hear French spoken.
And that's how I met "Mika", the founder of Fleurs de Bagne, a brand that I didn't know at all.
From aeronautics to workwear
Mika does not come from textiles. Originally, he worked in helicopter production. In 2011, alongside his job, he decided to launch a clothing brand where his passion for vintage could be fully expressed.
Because Mika is a great collector of images, books, or clothing from another era, and more particularly anything related to the prison world a long time ago.
He is interested in the clothing of workers, soldiers, sailors, and more particularly in the tattoos of convicts, a detail which is important.
A tattooed convict, who inspires Mika.
Immediately, to create his brand, he had Japanese brands in mind. He therefore wants something sharp, demanding, and where “we go all out” to use his own words.
His influences are the Japanese brand Kapital, Nigel Cabourn, Real McCoy and Mister Freedom.
What to call your brand? As I said, Mika likes vintage tattoos, "where the guys didn't know how to draw" he tells me. And all these tattoos, we poetically called them… Flowers of Bagne.
The flight of Flowers of Bagne
Full-time on his brand since 2016, Mika can now give free rein to his meticulousness. Look at how the packaging is worked, when testing a t-shirt from the “Trucs de mecs” blog :
The packaging is very, very neat. A really important detail for Mika.
Everything is made in France, with old rolls of fabric or knits that he develops himself, taking inspiration from old-fashioned French hosiery.
But Mika insists he's not just making a simple retort. He knows that certain pieces would be unwearable today, because of sleeves that are too short or cuts that are too loose.
He prefers to mix inspirations: on a garment, he will take the collar of a military jacket and create a pocket design inspired by another work jacket.
This is what I liked about this brand: this ability to dig deep into the details of the product, while having perspective to offer clothes in line with our times.
To better understand the Fleurs de Bagne approach, here are two emblematic pieces:
The commando sweater, in virgin wool, and with vintage-inspired ribbed edges, namely long enough to hold the wrist well...
…and fabric inserts from Kuroki! This is the type of unique blend that characterizes Fleurs de Bagne.
It's a jacket inspired by army clothing from the 1920s. Mika found this old roll of military fabric, and the inserts are made of military tent canvas. He pushed the detail very far since the buttons were recovered from clothes from the 50s.
Don't forget that if you live in Aix-en-Provence, Fleurs de Bagne has opened a store. It is located at 62 Rue des Cordeliers, in Aix.
So it was the perfect brand for our henley.
A Fleurs de bagne x BonneGueule henley full of details
The mesh was developed especially for us, well textured, like in the old days.
At the ribbed edges of the cuffs, there is a small set of three raised borders around it, this is also a nod to vintage.
It is knitted by a French workshop, so it is a piece 100% made in France!
The fabric at the collar is more surprising than it looks.
The collar is trimmed with a very special fabric: it is in fact an old 100% linen fabric from the 70s that Mika recovered. He is not sure where it was produced, but he thinks it was produced in France or Italy.
So you will have a 50 year old fabric around your neck!
Yes, 50 years of textiles are present in this photo!
The buttons have a story, they were developed especially for Fleurs de Bagne and they feature a discreet pattern that could go unnoticed, except that:
- the three dots are a nod to a so-called “death to cows” tattoo of the rebels
- and the dotted lines represent the dots that bad boys tattooed on their necks, in provocation to death sentences by guillotine.
At Fleurs de Bagne, attention to detail goes as far as the inscription of a symbol on the buttons.
How to wear this henley?
As I said, consider that it is a "base layer", a layer to be worn next to the skin (unlike the "mid layer"), like a white t-shirt that you put under a shirt opened.
In terms of warmth, it would be halfway between a thick t-shirt and a very light summer sweatshirt.
It’s a piece that has the same uses as a very casual/workwear shirt. It can therefore be worn with:
- a work jacket
- a military-inspired jacket
- an overshirt
- a workwear vest like our editor Jordan does
- a cardigan
- I myself have fun wearing it with a bomber jacket
- etc.
The possibilities are very numerous, and we quickly become attached to the comfort of this piece compared to a shirt, I assure you…
And if you are a workwear or vintage lover, this is a must-have piece in your wardrobe.
