News and Information

The majority of our umbrellas and walking sticks are suitable to have an engraved tip cup or collar fitted.

Engraving is perfect for adding a personal touch to your umbrella, marking a special occasion or making a gift extra special. 

To order, simply select “tip cup engraved” or “collar engraved” in product options and enter the desired text exactly as you would like to have it engraved. If the umbrella you wish to purchase comes with a tip cup but you would prefer your engraving to be on a collar you can place your order through our bespoke umbrellas section.

A collar is a metal band fitted around the handle of an umbrella or walking stick.

Collars provide an additional opportunity to personalise your umbrella by offering three different materials to choose from, as well as the possibility to add engravings.

Materials

Collars are available in Rolled Gold, Nickel, and Hallmarked Silver.

Our sterling silver collar is the top of the range and comes with a 925 proof stamp. As any other silver material, this type of collar will tarnish over time but its shine can easily be restored by polishing it with a silver cloth. Thanks to its hallmarked date letter, Silver Collars can be helpful when dating old umbrellas.  

Nickel collars offer the brilliant look of silver without the need for maintenance as nickel does not require polishing.

If you prefer a gold finish then our 9ct rolled gold collar will be the perfect addition to your new umbrella.

Left to right: Rolled Gold Collar, Hallmarked Silver Collar and Nickel Collar

How are collars fitted?

Our collars come in large sheets of each material which are cut to size, engraved (if required), rolled, bevelled, glued and then pinned to the handle. 

Fox Umbrellas offers two different types of bands to secure umbrellas when not in use: elastic bands (E.Bands) and made/material bands (M.Bands).

E.Bands are made from elastic and are very forgiving when furling an umbrella (rolling the umbrella up after use).  Most customers find the E.Band the simplest to use on a day-to-day basis.  Over time, E.Bands may need replacing as like all elasticated material they eventually stretch with wear, however, replacement E.Bands are readily available from our factory. E.bands come as standard for our tube umbrellas. 

E.Bands with made tabs are elastic bands with hand sewn tabs and are offered on our GS, MS and RS ranges. 

A Made Band (M.Band) is made to measure from the same material as the canopy.  In order to secure the M.Band correctly, the umbrella would need to be furled neatly. The advantage a M.Band has over an E.Band is that it will not stretch/perish with age.

Telescopic umbrellas have Made Bands with velcro as standard.

Umbrellas with Made Bands can be ordered in the bespoke umbrellas section on our online shop. 

We frequently receive enquires from customers who wish to know whether their umbrella is suitable for restoration or repairs. Maybe they inherited a family heirloom, found a long-lost umbrella in the loft, managed to bag a bargain on a vintage piece or simply damaged their Fox Umbrella when out and about…

The good news is that we are usually able to repair our umbrellas and most of the time the repairs are cost effective when compared to the price of purchasing a new umbrella!

… what about other brands?

We are happy to repair other umbrella makes as long as we have the correct parts to carry out the work needed.

If your umbrella was made in England chances are that we will be able to repair it, however, mass-produced umbrellas made abroad are rarely a fit for our components. In any case, we are always open to have a look and confirm if a repair is possible.

To have your umbrella assessed for repairs all you need to do is email a few pictures and once we see them, we should be able to identify the umbrella, its age, condition and any obvious issues requiring attention. With this we will provide you with an idea of the repair costs and instructions on how to send your umbrella to our factory in Shirley.

We do not believe in a disposable society. With the right care and precautions, your Fox Umbrella will last for many years to come!