Pocket Squares
The pocket garment goes by different names to different people. At Mrs Bow Tie we call our pre-sewn ones pocket squares, and the unfolded ones handkerchiefs. Both are made to order in Britain, most of them exclusive designs from our in-house team.
Pocket square or handkerchief?
A handkerchief arrives flat and you fold it yourself, which gives you complete control over how much shows and lets you change the look to suit the occasion.
We also make pre-folded pocket squares, where the fabric is folded and sewn into position in a cardboard sleeve. It isn’t for everyone, but it’s remarkably convenient for creating a uniform look across grooms and groomsmen, every pocket identical, with nobody refolding anything at the church door: or simply for the gent in a rush. Our pre-sewn squares have become a hit worldwide with sartorialist who don’t like fuss.
Fabric and print
Cotton pocket squares are the most versatile and the right weight for spring and summer. Satin handkerchiefs carry sheen and formality, which is what you want for black tie. Faux silk sits between the two, matte and lightly textured.
The range covers traditional prints, paisley handkerchiefs, polka dot pocket squares and patterned designs including animal prints, alongside plain colours from classic white for black tie through to pink, blue, green and yellow.
Choosing for a wedding
For a wedding, something subtle and romantic usually works better than a statement — a floral pocket square for a summer ceremony, or a plain colour matched to the bridesmaids and the wider palette.
This is where made to order matters. Stock ranges arrive in batches and dye lots drift, so pocket squares in the same colour bought weeks apart can be visibly different when the party lines up for photographs. Nothing here is made until you order it, so a whole wedding party comes from one run of fabric. Most designs are also available as a matching tie and bow tie in the same fabric.
Choosing for business
The opposite advice applies. A business pocket square is a small accessory meant to pack a punch, so be braver than you would be at a wedding — a design or pattern that reflects your personality rather than something that disappears into the suit.
Matching or contrasting with your tie
The conventional advice is to contrast, so the pocket square and the tie aren’t the same fabric. An orange pocket square or yellow handkerchief against a blue tie, or a paisley square with a striped tie, both do this well.
Plenty of our customers prefer to match, and for a wedding party that’s often the right call — it reads as deliberate rather than coincidental, particularly in photographs. Since we cut matching pieces from the same fabric, an exact match is genuinely exact.
How to fold it
Our pocket square fold guide covers the presidential, the puff, the two-point and several others, with step-by-step photographs. As a rule of thumb: the flat presidential fold shows the least fabric and is safest with a patterned tie, while the puff shows the most and works best against a plain suit.
Browse floral pocket squares, or see the full wedding range.