The house of Carrington was a storied estate overlooking the English Channel at the mouth of the River Dart. The estate was founded by socialite and wine importer Andrew Carrington. It was there on the estate, in the guest house, where his free-spirited brother, Liam Carrington, known as the black sheep of the family, lived. Although nothing alike, these brothers were thought of as the go-to-guys for parties and general turn of the 20th century fun. They both knew how to enjoy the finer things in life, albeit each in his own way.

When Andrew wasn’t hosting parties for the dignitaries of his day or drinking fine wines, he was searching the world over to save his little brother and the family name. Let’s just say that Liam had a hard time settling down.

This tale should offer the perfect introduction to one of the more unique clothing lines that we’ve come across and gives insight for the naming of the brand. House of Carrington is the umbrella of 4 lines of clothing, each offering its own style and distinct look, (including a women’s line)

Read more on the brand(s) and why House of Carrington gets Gear Patrol’s Style Correspondent’s recommendation.

Andrew Carrington is the flagship brand catering to you who do most of your shopping in specialty stores, in search for luxury and fine tailoring. Then, Legend is the the sporty side to Andrew Carrington, offering luxury golf shirts and other products to create layering of elegant sportswear. Isabelle is the women’s line of sportwear. And last but not least, Blacksheep - named after the rogue, younger brother of Andrew, fittingly named Liam. Once described by saying, “The polite called him a free spirit. The honest called him the Black Sheep”.

The Blacksheep line is perfect for the Gear Patrol reader - still found in specialty retailers but offering a less classic and more European design and fit. Exclusivity is a key for this consumer as he thrives on creating his own style (that’s most of us, right?).

So what does this mean for you? We’ve sampled the Blacksheep line and found a beautifully crafted and designed sport shirt that has everything we have come to know from top European sportswear. Mother of Pearl buttons, check. Top quality fabrics, woven in Italy, check. Modern design and fit, including trimmer shoulders and waist and a higher collar, check. As you can see from our picture, the sport shirts offered through House of Carrington Blacksheep line are of the highest quality to be worn with suits or with your favorite pair of jeans.

So we ask you, are you an Andrew or a Liam?

The Blacksheep line and other House of Carrington line can be found in retailers all across the country.

Behind The Scenes: For our more seasoned Gear Patrol readers, you may recognize the man in the above photos as Gear Patrol style correspondent Torrey McMurray himself. That’s because we’re like you. We like to know how clothing (and gear) looks on real guys, not the hand selected models in all the photos. Of course, we can’t arrange photoshoots for every product we get, but know that we certainly do try. It’s part of the Gear Patrol difference. And if that means doing an off-the-cuff photoshoot at our Copy Chief’s backyard, so be it.