Swipe Apparel is not happy with clothes only serving one function.
It is not enough for cotton, wool and polyester to keep you warm from the elements or keep aspects of your geeky self covered for good measure. The folks at Swipe Apparel want clothing to do things, to help us out with our everyday needs and challenges. And what better place to start that than with a tie?
I love it that the first offering from this material-based startup is a necktie. I can not think of a piece of clothing that serves less function than a tie. It isn't there to make sure your shirt stays around your neck, it just hangs there like a businessman's noose that we all keep wearing because that is what they give away free when you buy a suit. Or, for the far more important reason - everyone else is wearing one, so I should too.
Thoughts on traditional ties aside, the team at Swipe has now given the common neck tie a purpose. After testing a wide range of materials on touch screens they have found the best cleaning fabric they can and cleverly integrated it into the backs of their ties. They have turned the tie into a smartphone screen cleaner. I don't know how many of those little cloths I have lost, but when I am shirted up I no longer have to worry.
It is a nice little solution to the issue of the dirty screen and the material is hidden comfortably behind the aesthetic front of the silk tie. The tie does actually clean my iPhone and iPad screens really well and is handy for those moments when the sun is at the wrong angle and you need to get rid of those smudges.
All the ties from Swipe are handmade. I look forward to seeing what they turn their functional minds to next in the world of apparel.
