Few fabrics carry as much value and emotion as flannel, with its typically British softness. The French word “flanelle” is ancient, coming from the English flannel, borrowed from the Welsh “gwlanen”. Technically, it is a fabric whose plain weave is blurred by abrasion of its surface, revealing a light fluffy cover. In the 19th century, flannel was opposed to the much denser worsted twill and other gabardines. Therefore, flannel was considered lighter and more breathable, and therefore a summer fabric, which is something to smile about nowadays.
As one should never confuse the material and the way of weaving, let us specify that the flannel is a way of weaving. And which can be made of various materials, even if it is generally made of wool, or wool & cashmere. We can also find cotton flannel, in fact quite similar to moleskin.

Our elders generally hate flannel. They have the memory of a material that scratched their thighs terribly as little boys that their mothers wanted to see well wrapped up. The wool manufacturers have reacted vigorously to not let themselves be affected by artificial materials. No more scratchy wool, hello softness, and flexibility. The flannel pants obviously continue to be the alpha and omega of any self-respecting closet!

In 1915, Herbert Brown set up his “mill”, or wool factory, near Leeds. With his looms, he made solid wool fabrics sold to uniform manufacturers. During the Second World War, the manufacture of fabrics became a strategic sector for the Army, and “Brown and Sons”, the name of the time, became a recognized supplier. The family-owned English clothmaker became Alfred Brown in 1952 and still supplies the blue wool twill for the blazers of the Red Arrows pilots, the English equivalent of the Patrouille de France.

The grooms of the RMS Queen Mary were dressed in Alfred Brown wool. So were the actors of the Harry Potter film series, as Warner’s costume designers also liked their typically British fabrics of Alfred Brown Limited. A family business, close to its land and its people, working for the best tailors in the world. A beautiful story in which we at Scavini are happy to participate.

A pair of trousers is not just fabric. It also includes a belt lining, pocket linings, and buttons. And they are all Italian!

The belt lining consists of three layered fabrics. The upper band is made of Oxford cotton, and the lower band is made of undyed ecru cotton, separated by an embroidered anti-slip piping by Scavini. The pocket linings are cut from the same undyed ecru cotton. The absence of dye is the best option from a hypoallergenic perspective. It also allows for a discreet appearance of the pocket linings behind the light-colored fabrics. The belt lining and pocket linings are pre-manufactured by the Italian company FVL, founded in 1990, ensuring ISO and GOTS-certified quality standards. FVL is particularly committed to sustainability and ethical and social protocols, with continuous control of production processes and a fast and efficient traceability system.

As for the buttons, we don’t go far either, still in the Veneto region. We chose to exclusively use corozo buttons, also known as vegetable ivory, which is natural and biodegradable. Corozo is the hard, white albumen found in the seed of a tropical American palm tree. Bottonificio Padano, established in 1982, aims for the elimination of chemical pollutants and the use of increasingly natural pigments. Since 1982, all water used in production, including dyeing and tumbling, is purified and reused in a “closed loop” system, without any discharge into the environment.

Our development is accompanied by a great awareness of quality, while favoring local production, we have directed our research in Italy during the year 2021. After many months, we found a small traditional workshop south of Naples that is a blessing.

Our genius craftsman created his workshop at the age of eighteen, in the year 2000. Before that, his parents had also had their own trouser workshop. His only limitations were the space and the recruitment of seamstresses. Apart from that, what finesse, everything is possible! With our new workshop, we develop our volumes and bring a great craft aesthetic. We can work in-depth on models and details, far from the large industrial platforms.

A close collaboration that allows us – it’s very nice – to go to Italy from time to time and come back with a head full of new ideas. The keywords of a Scavini pant are now refinement, craftsmanship & localism. A very luxurious pant, cut from Italian or English fabric. The equivalent of the models of great luxury brands.