What Is a Collar Stay?

Do you know what we mean by a collar stay or even a collar stiffener? The answer that most people give is, ‘no'. It is an odd response in reality, because most of us have encountered collar stays, and many of us do so on a regular basis. A collar stay is the small piece of metal or plastic located in the collar of a formal shirt. And so, those of us who wore school uniforms will be well familiar with this contraption, although not necessarily understanding what they are for, or indeed, what they are called.

The reason why these little contraptions are placed into the collar of formal shirts is simple, they are designed to ensure that they collar remains flat against the shoulder blade, and that the corners do not ride up, or flop about. Quite an ingenious little contraption then.

There are differences between types of collar stay and they tend to be related to the quality of the shirt and the professional standing of the wearer. Clearly, the better the quality of the collar stay, the better it does the job, and the svelter the wearer appears to their general public. A highflying executive, or an important actor, will want to look their best at all times, and so they are much more likely to invest in a decent set of collar stays.

In general, you can discern something of the quality of the shirt depending on whether the shirt has removable or permanent stays, the latter showing greater quality. With the very expensive shirts, found in exclusive boutiques (the likes of which the majority of people will be quietly asked to leave!) it is possible to find shirts with stays sewn in. However, the major difference between this type of permanent stay and the cheaper variation is the material from which the stays are made: in such a shop, you could expect to find silver, gold, white gold, and even platinum. Metal collar stays are generally much better at maintaining a crisp and straight colour, and are thus much better than the plastic variety.

However, the plastic stays are not as bad as you may expect, but only those that are bought as box sets. This type of stay is used on a weekly basis and exchanged when the stay begins to flag in its duty. Such styles of stays are equal to metal stays but work out more expensive in the end as they need to be bought repeatedly.

Collar stays make for a great present for an executive, or such like, because they can be personalised. They are a fantastic corporate gift and are often given to outstanding employees by their employers as a sign of gratitude to their hard work within the company.

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