Some of you may have seen the Houndstooth pattern on our limited edition T-shirts but do you know why we chose the iconic pattern which
The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been finishing up their work on the 1991 Nissan Figaro’s roof. But, while they have access to
Bridge Classic Cars are in the Daily Mail! Our adverts have been up on the Daily Mail website recently for everyone in the UK to
One of our clients stopped by last week to catch up with the team and have a look over their project which is currently in
Coming soon to the Bridge Classic Cars workshop at our Suffolk HQ is this trio of British classics! There’s a 1972 MG Midget, a 1969
It’s great when our friends send in photos of their cars! The winner of the Lotus Emira Driving Experience competition on Friday has sent us
This stunning green over white 1958 Jensen 541R has just arrived into the Bridge Classic Cars workshop at our Suffolk HQ for the team to
An amazing afternoon out deep in the heart of the Suffolk countryside! Head along to IP17 1NN to join or to take a look at
The Bridge Classic Cars paint and body team have put countless hours of hard work, skill and craft into the bodywork and paint of the
The Bridge Classic Cars team got together on a Friday night to find our latest winners for our double Lotus draw. The 1972 Lotus Elan
Some of you may have seen the Houndstooth pattern on our limited edition T-shirts but do you know why we chose the iconic pattern which has its roots going back over 1500 years and has been used in some of the most sought-after interiors? Well, we thought we would talk to you about it.
The history of houndstooth begins in Scotland with wool weavers in around 400AD. A little-known fact about the timeless pattern is that it’s apparently considered a form of tartan. Known as the ‘Border Tartan’, Houndstooth was connected to a band of settlers along the English/Scottish borders but is more widely associated with its boom in the late 19th-early 20th century. It’s also a form of camouflage! Being part of the inspiration for World War 1 dazzle paint schemes due to its angular and intersecting lines, it can make an object appear smaller or further away than it truly is.
But, where did it all start in terms of being used in modern fashion and ultimately in the interiors of some of legendary sports cars?
In the 1910s, 1920s and 1930s, the Houndstooth pattern was adopted by the upper classes as a form of ”country clothing” alongside the ever-popular Prince of Wales Check and the now infamous Tweed. After somewhat falling from favour, in the late 1940s Christian Dior would use the historic pattern in a modern way which inspired others to find its uses and applications. Houndstooth would find its way from interior design, footwear and overwear for the next 25 years in high fashion across the world. This makes sense when you think about a certain German sports car maker who wanted a more modern interior for their newest model.
In terms of its use in car interiors, the first widely accepted use of the pattern (or actually a variation on the design) was by Porsche during the production of the 356. Porsche had a series of variants of the classic houndstooth look for their interiors. This series of Houndstooth styles would be used all the way from the 1950s until the early-1970s with the famous Pepita Recaro seats. The houndstooth style inserts for Porsche would see a massive resurgence in the 1980s and 1990s, with their ”Dazzle” patterns so synonymous with the decades of excess and statements.
Even to this day, a modern Porsche 992 can be ordered with a ”houndstooth” interior, harking back to its earliest days with the pattern gracing the seats of true driving machines. World-class artisans Singer Vehicle Design also has the ability for clients to spec their bespoke 911s with a houndstooth pattern in their own unique colour.
So there you have it, the history of Houndstooth and its role in the interiors of Porsches. And now, it’s part of our history too with our limited edition Houndstooth T-Shirts.
The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been finishing up their work on the 1991 Nissan Figaro’s roof. But, while they have access to certain places they took the opportunity to get it all looking and fitting perfectly.
The team took the chance to clean up the rear window surround for the customer to blend into the new roof covering on the classic Nissan.
Now with this done, the car has been handed over to our Paint and Body team to begin machine polishing the car.
Bridge Classic Cars are in the Daily Mail! Our adverts have been up on the Daily Mail website recently for everyone in the UK to see that it is possible to win your dream car.
For your chance to win your dream classic, just head over to the Bridge Classic Cars Competitions website for your chance to enter now!
One of our clients stopped by last week to catch up with the team and have a look over their project which is currently in with our trim shop.
It’s always nice to see what else our clients have in their garages!
Coming soon to the Bridge Classic Cars workshop at our Suffolk HQ is this trio of British classics!
There’s a 1972 MG Midget, a 1969 Morris Minor 1000 and a 1971 MG B GT which will all be coming for the in-house restoration teams to inspect and assess.
Keep a look out here on the news page very soon for more about these classics!
It’s great when our friends send in photos of their cars!
The winner of the Lotus Emira Driving Experience competition on Friday has sent us some photos of his daily driver. A 2005 Lotus Elise.
It’s amazing to see the winner is a true Lotus enthusiast and really excited to get behind the wheel of the brand new Lotus Emira very soon at Hethel.
This stunning green over white 1958 Jensen 541R has just arrived into the Bridge Classic Cars workshop at our Suffolk HQ for the team to have a look at.
The team here are well-versed with the Jensen 541 family, having either restored or worked on over a dozen of the classic sports GT’s so this one is in good hands. We have been tasked with carrying out a full service on the car as well as a complete and total inspection for the owner.
The team will also investigate the possibility of some upgrades in the cabin and a thorough check of the gearbox’s operation as requested by the client.
Keep a look out on the Bridge Classic Cars news page for more very soon on the 1958 Jensen 541R.
An amazing afternoon out deep in the heart of the Suffolk countryside! Head along to IP17 1NN to join or to take a look at the amazing classics on display.
The Bridge Classic Cars paint and body team have put countless hours of hard work, skill and craft into the bodywork and paint of the 1955 Aston Martin DB2/4 MkI that when our painter Chris had finished polishing the entire car, we had to take it outside into the sun to get a proper look.
The weather had been absolutely perfect all week. A few light, playful clouds strewn across the endless blue of the Suffolk sky made the perfect lighting rig for such an amazing car. The depth of the paint, the subtlety of the colour and the bright shine of the metallic paint stopped all of the team who walked past it.
Our marketing manager, Freddie decided to grab his camera and get some photos of the stunning 1950s GT car which look incredible but it has to be seen to truly be believed.
The Bridge Classic Cars team got together on a Friday night to find our latest winners for our double Lotus draw.
The 1972 Lotus Elan +2 had been a firm favourite with the team here.
The 10th of June, the scheduled draw date, began with a quick walkaround of all of the beautiful machinery in the new competitions building. Walking past previous winners waiting for their delivery to new homes and some upcoming dream classics that we caretaker until their new owners are decided.
With our audience watching along live of our Facebook page, it was time to get down to business. Everyone waited with bated breath to find out if the wheel of fortune would fall on them.
First to be drawn was the Lotus Emira Driving Experience donated by Lotus Cars in aid of various charities. This included a tour of the new production facility, Classic Team Lotus and driving tuition by F1 hero Martin Donnelly. Checking our pre-published Entry Lists, we saw the competition wasn’t sold out entirely but using the random number generator, it was time to find out who was getting this very special first drive experience.
The first try, was an empty number. So was the second try, and the third, fourth but on the 5th random number generator we found that number 426 had been allocated to Martyn Bulbrook.
Finally, it was time to decide the winner of the 1972 Lotus Elan +2. The team reset the number generator and comments of luck and hope flooded the live stream. As Hayley pushed the button and the numbers whirred past in a frenzy, the screen lit up with the number. 1944.
Ticket number 1944 had been bought by Steven Rowat. The new owner of the beautiful 1972 Lotus Elan +2.
Bridge Classic Cars are award winning Classic Car Restoration and Maintenance specialists. Your pride and joy is in safe hands with our expert Classic Car Technicians. Take a look at our awards here.
