Latest Post
Tokyo: A sartorial shopping guide – 2019 Update
June 17th 2019Having recently returned from my third visit to Tokyo, I felt it would be good to add the new stores I went to and can recommend to this list. It’s a great city for shopping, particularly in the little quie...
Tokyo: A sartorial shopping guide – 2019 Update
Having recently returned from my third visit to Tokyo, I felt it would be good to add the new stores I went to and can recommend to this list. It’s a great city for shopping, particularly in the little quie...
Latest Posts
Musella-Dembech cotton suit: Style Breakdown
June 14th 2019Musella-Dembech is a tiny tailor. They’re still based in the family home, even though recently they’ve expanded to make the whole appartment a working sartoria. Their reputation, however, is rather l...
Musella-Dembech cotton suit: Style Breakdown
Musella-Dembech is a tiny tailor. They’re still based in the family home, even though recently they’ve expanded to make the whole appartment a working sartoria. Their reputation, however, is rather l...
Video: Douglas Cordeaux and Gianluca Migliarotti
June 12th 2019Why did the Japanese spend all day screaming at Douglas? How does Gianluca think Italian artisans are being dishonest? This conversation between myself, Gianluca Migliarotti of Pommella trousers, and Douglas Cordeaux of ...
Video: Douglas Cordeaux and Gianluca Migliarotti
Why did the Japanese spend all day screaming at Douglas? How does Gianluca think Italian artisans are being dishonest? This conversation between myself, Gianluca Migliarotti of Pommella trousers, and Douglas Cordeaux of ...
Ciardi jacket in gun-club from Lafayette Saltiel
June 10th 2019I was very excited when I received this jacket a month ago. Primarily because of the shoulder. Enzo Ciardi is fast becoming one of my favourite tailors. I like him, I like his roomy Neapolitan style, and everything he's ...
Ciardi jacket in gun-club from Lafayette Saltiel
I was very excited when I received this jacket a month ago. Primarily because of the shoulder. Enzo Ciardi is fast becoming one of my favourite tailors. I like him, I like his roomy Neapolitan style, and everything he's ...
The guide to summer shirt fabrics
June 7th 2019The aim of a shirt bought for summer might seem easy: to stay cool. But there are several variations here, and crossovers with styles and other functionality. This, then, is our substantive yet focused guide to buying a...
The guide to summer shirt fabrics
The aim of a shirt bought for summer might seem easy: to stay cool. But there are several variations here, and crossovers with styles and other functionality. This, then, is our substantive yet focused guide to buying a...
Which sports-jacket office are you?
June 5th 2019One of the most popular posts we’ve ever written on Permanent Style was ‘Which office are you?’, back in February 2016. It showed a spectrum of outfits from T-shirt and jeans, through knitwear and flann...
Which sports-jacket office are you?
One of the most popular posts we’ve ever written on Permanent Style was ‘Which office are you?’, back in February 2016. It showed a spectrum of outfits from T-shirt and jeans, through knitwear and flann...
Stoffa made-to-measure trousers: Review
June 3rd 2019Tailored cotton trousers are, in my experience, an absolute bastard to get right. I had my first pair made with Anderson & Sheppard seven years ago. The colour was perfect (a light stone grey), as was the cut. But th...
Stoffa made-to-measure trousers: Review
Tailored cotton trousers are, in my experience, an absolute bastard to get right. I had my first pair made with Anderson & Sheppard seven years ago. The colour was perfect (a light stone grey), as was the cut. But th...
Giving clothes a new lease of life
May 31st 2019If you love clothes, it’s not easy to resist the call of a new season. As much as you know the value of what you own, and want to wear it forever, shiny new things are tempting. The best defence, I find, is to inve...
Giving clothes a new lease of life
If you love clothes, it’s not easy to resist the call of a new season. As much as you know the value of what you own, and want to wear it forever, shiny new things are tempting. The best defence, I find, is to inve...
The Japanese Bespoke Symposium, Tokyo
May 29th 2019I was more nervous than usual at this, our first Symposium in Japan. Partly I think it was because of the speakers: sitting alongside Kamoshita-san (above) is intimidating for anyone. But mostly it was cultural. I was ve...
The Japanese Bespoke Symposium, Tokyo
I was more nervous than usual at this, our first Symposium in Japan. Partly I think it was because of the speakers: sitting alongside Kamoshita-san (above) is intimidating for anyone. But mostly it was cultural. I was ve...
Green/black linen suit, with Gieves & Hawkes
May 27th 2019Relief, and relaxation. Those are my abiding memories of this, my fitting at Gieves on a new suit. Readers commented on a previous post that it was nice to know what I was thinking and feeling during a fitting. That it f...
Green/black linen suit, with Gieves & Hawkes
Relief, and relaxation. Those are my abiding memories of this, my fitting at Gieves on a new suit. Readers commented on a previous post that it was nice to know what I was thinking and feeling during a fitting. That it f...
Fur clothing: Ethics and sustainability
May 24th 2019We recently published an article looking in depth at the sustainability of luxury, bespoke menswear, which seemed to go down well. So here is the second part of that interview, with American writer Alden Wicker. In it we...
Fur clothing: Ethics and sustainability
We recently published an article looking in depth at the sustainability of luxury, bespoke menswear, which seemed to go down well. So here is the second part of that interview, with American writer Alden Wicker. In it we...
Latest Posts Continued
Video: A conversation of cordwainers
May 22nd 2019Two weeks ago, Deborah Carre of Carreducker and I organised a talk among five very different shoemakers, to talk about how and why men are buying bespoke today. It was scheduled to coincide with London Craft Week, held i...
Video: A conversation of cordwainers
Two weeks ago, Deborah Carre of Carreducker and I organised a talk among five very different shoemakers, to talk about how and why men are buying bespoke today. It was scheduled to coincide with London Craft Week, held i...
PS shirts to try in Prologue, Bemer and Whitcomb
May 21st 2019Despite the inquiries readers often make during the pop-up, we have no plans to open a permanent shop. However, we have started working with a few friends around the world to make it easier to try on the various shirts a...
PS shirts to try in Prologue, Bemer and Whitcomb
Despite the inquiries readers often make during the pop-up, we have no plans to open a permanent shop. However, we have started working with a few friends around the world to make it easier to try on the various shirts a...
The guide to synthetic and performance cloth
May 20th 2019[This is the latest in a series of posts on Cloth that has now built into something very substantial: browse the others on the dedicated page here] The use of synthetic fibres in cloth for tailoring is generally frowne...
The guide to synthetic and performance cloth
[This is the latest in a series of posts on Cloth that has now built into something very substantial: browse the others on the dedicated page here] The use of synthetic fibres in cloth for tailoring is generally frowne...
Re-introducing, the Dartmoor polo-collar sweater!
May 17th 2019Six years ago, we began a collaboration to create a perfect polo-collar sweater, called the Dartmoor. It was made by John Smedley, was popular with readers, and sold out several times. Since then, unfortunately, Smedley ...
Re-introducing, the Dartmoor polo-collar sweater!
Six years ago, we began a collaboration to create a perfect polo-collar sweater, called the Dartmoor. It was made by John Smedley, was popular with readers, and sold out several times. Since then, unfortunately, Smedley ...
The colours and combinations of Hermes
May 15th 2019The silk and leather headquarters of Hermes are in a pretty nondescript set of white buildings just outside Lyon. Here, there are the 100m and 150m-long silk printing tables that I described in our previous post. There i...
The colours and combinations of Hermes
The silk and leather headquarters of Hermes are in a pretty nondescript set of white buildings just outside Lyon. Here, there are the 100m and 150m-long silk printing tables that I described in our previous post. There i...
England and Florence: Understated, rural style
May 13th 2019I always wondered why my friend Tommaso was such a fan of British style: he always wore tweed jackets, flannel trousers, Scottish knitwear. Even cotton Harrington jackets. His green tweed jacket from Loris Vestrucci was...
England and Florence: Understated, rural style
I always wondered why my friend Tommaso was such a fan of British style: he always wore tweed jackets, flannel trousers, Scottish knitwear. Even cotton Harrington jackets. His green tweed jacket from Loris Vestrucci was...
Featured Post
Media Symposium – The debate
June 20th 2018Our debate at the Media Symposium last week covered everything from influencers to Interview, story-telling to Supreme. It was one of the best discussions we've had, and probably the one with the broadest appeal. The aud...
Media Symposium – The debate
Our debate at the Media Symposium last week covered everything from influencers to Interview, story-telling to Supreme. It was one of the best discussions we've had, and probably the one with the broadest appeal. The aud...
Latest Posts Continued
Kathryn Sargent chalk-stripe suit: Style Breakdown
May 10th 2019Kathryn Sargent, perhaps unexpectedly, is one of the most structured and square-shouldered of the suit styles in this series. The make is most similar to Huntsman, which we featured here as a hunting jacket in their hou...
Kathryn Sargent chalk-stripe suit: Style Breakdown
Kathryn Sargent, perhaps unexpectedly, is one of the most structured and square-shouldered of the suit styles in this series. The make is most similar to Huntsman, which we featured here as a hunting jacket in their hou...
How sustainable is luxury, bespoke clothing?
May 8th 2019Sustainability might be a hot topic at the moment, but it’s one I’ve always felt has particular relevance for the Permanent Style audience. As consumers, we care more than average about clothes. We know and w...
How sustainable is luxury, bespoke clothing?
Sustainability might be a hot topic at the moment, but it’s one I’ve always felt has particular relevance for the Permanent Style audience. As consumers, we care more than average about clothes. We know and w...
Biagio Granata summer jacket: Review
May 6th 2019Two years ago, young Neapolitan tailor Biagio Granata messaged me to say he was coming to London for the first time, and would like to make me something. I had heard some good things from others, and was interested in tr...
Biagio Granata summer jacket: Review
Two years ago, young Neapolitan tailor Biagio Granata messaged me to say he was coming to London for the first time, and would like to make me something. I had heard some good things from others, and was interested in tr...
The future of media and fashion: Handcut Radio
May 3rd 2019This was a very good talk. I don't mean to sound surprised - I wasn't - but it's worth stating plainly how good this podcast interview with Aleks Cvetkovic was. It was fun - we laughed and said 'exactly!' a lot. But it w...
The future of media and fashion: Handcut Radio
This was a very good talk. I don't mean to sound surprised - I wasn't - but it's worth stating plainly how good this podcast interview with Aleks Cvetkovic was. It was fun - we laughed and said 'exactly!' a lot. But it w...
Come to the Japanese Bespoke Symposium – in T...
May 2nd 2019For all readers in Japan - or who happen to be travelling there next month - you are cordially invited to our first Symposium event in the country. The talk will take place on Wednesday, May 22nd in the Quartz Gallery, S...
Come to the Japanese Bespoke Symposium – in T...
For all readers in Japan - or who happen to be travelling there next month - you are cordially invited to our first Symposium event in the country. The talk will take place on Wednesday, May 22nd in the Quartz Gallery, S...
PS Shorts back in stock (with new khaki)
May 1st 2019A few readers have been asking in recent weeks when the shorts were coming back in stock. Fortunately, we've been rather more organised this year and they're here on May 1 rather than June 1. They're listed now on the sh...
PS Shorts back in stock (with new khaki)
A few readers have been asking in recent weeks when the shorts were coming back in stock. Fortunately, we've been rather more organised this year and they're here on May 1 rather than June 1. They're listed now on the sh...
Working with craft companies – a talk with Do...
April 30th 2019This talk is next week, so do RSVP if you want to come along. It will be in the same vein as the Sartoria Ciardi one we did this year, but here with Douglas, Gianluca and I talking about our different backgrounds, how we...
Working with craft companies – a talk with Do...
This talk is next week, so do RSVP if you want to come along. It will be in the same vein as the Sartoria Ciardi one we did this year, but here with Douglas, Gianluca and I talking about our different backgrounds, how we...
If you only had five business suits: A capsule coll...
April 29th 2019These ‘Building a Wardrobe’ pieces have now been collected into a Guide, which will expand over time. You can see the list at the right (on desktop), at the bottom of this post (on mobile) or simply o...
If you only had five business suits: A capsule coll...
These ‘Building a Wardrobe’ pieces have now been collected into a Guide, which will expand over time. You can see the list at the right (on desktop), at the bottom of this post (on mobile) or simply o...
Men need a core casual wardrobe
April 26th 2019Over the next few weeks, will be doing a few posts on creating a core wardrobe of clothes – often called a ‘capsule collection’ – to add to those already published on ties, shirts ...
Men need a core casual wardrobe
Over the next few weeks, will be doing a few posts on creating a core wardrobe of clothes – often called a ‘capsule collection’ – to add to those already published on ties, shirts ...
Our Spring/Summer Top 10, 2019
April 24th 2019Last week the weather in London turned from 12 degrees to 22 in a couple of days. It seems that what passes for the English Spring is finally here. Of course, with most shops and brands Spring/Summer collections arrived ...
Our Spring/Summer Top 10, 2019
Last week the weather in London turned from 12 degrees to 22 in a couple of days. It seems that what passes for the English Spring is finally here. Of course, with most shops and brands Spring/Summer collections arrived ...
Denim
Bryceland’s: Sawtooth shirt review and range overview
March 13th 2019One of the most enjoyable things about having Ethan in the pop-up shop last month was the opportunity to try on the full Bryceland’s range. Ethan was pretty popular with readers during the day, but there would norm...
Bryceland’s: Sawtooth shirt review and range overview
One of the most enjoyable things about having Ethan in the pop-up shop last month was the opportunity to try on the full Bryceland’s range. Ethan was pretty popular with readers during the day, but there would norm...
Amended Friday Polos in stock – and available...
December 14th 2018Thank you for waiting so patiently - particularly those on the waiting list, who were alerted to the Friday Polo's availability a couple of days ago. The Friday Polo is now back in stock, in its original four colours: na...
Amended Friday Polos in stock – and available...
Thank you for waiting so patiently - particularly those on the waiting list, who were alerted to the Friday Polo's availability a couple of days ago. The Friday Polo is now back in stock, in its original four colours: na...
The Blackhorse Lane haberdashery
November 16th 2018Blackhorse Lane Ateliers (BLA) opened their first store a couple of months ago, and I’ve been meaning to write about it since. Partly because it means customers can see the full range of BLA jeans, and try them on ...
The Blackhorse Lane haberdashery
Blackhorse Lane Ateliers (BLA) opened their first store a couple of months ago, and I’ve been meaning to write about it since. Partly because it means customers can see the full range of BLA jeans, and try them on ...
Reader Qs
Clothing Resources: Places to clean, alter and repair
September 5th 2018One of the most frequent questions I get asked on the site is where I would recommend for getting suits altered - or knitwear repaired, or shoes resoled. I’ve been meaning to create a single page with all these rec...
Clothing Resources: Places to clean, alter and repair
One of the most frequent questions I get asked on the site is where I would recommend for getting suits altered - or knitwear repaired, or shoes resoled. I’ve been meaning to create a single page with all these rec...
Do I need black shoes (and if so, which?) – R...
August 6th 2015As with many reader questions, this one evolved over several email messages back and forth. I know Joel won’t mind if I restructure that exchange into a conversation, in order to put the inquiries in the right ord...
Do I need black shoes (and if so, which?) – R...
As with many reader questions, this one evolved over several email messages back and forth. I know Joel won’t mind if I restructure that exchange into a conversation, in order to put the inquiries in the right ord...
The formality of trousers: Reader question
March 9th 2015Dear Simon, I’ve always been extremes: a worsted wool suit or denim jeans. But having had my first couple of “sports jackets” made I thought it was worth while moving up in the formality stakes with tr...
The formality of trousers: Reader question
Dear Simon, I’ve always been extremes: a worsted wool suit or denim jeans. But having had my first couple of “sports jackets” made I thought it was worth while moving up in the formality stakes with tr...
Factory Visits
Yves Salomon: re-using, remodelling fur
January 18th 2019Following our discussion before Christmas about waste in the clothing industry, I was interested to learn about the remodelling and re-use of fur at Yves Salomon. Yves Salomon is one of the best fur workshops in the worl...
Yves Salomon: re-using, remodelling fur
Following our discussion before Christmas about waste in the clothing industry, I was interested to learn about the remodelling and re-use of fur at Yves Salomon. Yves Salomon is one of the best fur workshops in the worl...
Frank Clegg, Fall River: Factory visit
January 2nd 2019It’s not hard to spot an old mill town. Mills were large buildings and needed lots of light. In Britain, this often came in through so-called sawtooth roofs: a zig-zag shape that allowed windows to be placed in the...
Frank Clegg, Fall River: Factory visit
It’s not hard to spot an old mill town. Mills were large buildings and needed lots of light. In Britain, this often came in through so-called sawtooth roofs: a zig-zag shape that allowed windows to be placed in the...
Paris: Lafayette Saltiel, Kenjiro Suzuki, Ateliers ...
September 19th 2018Samuel Gassmann Last week I was in Paris for two days, catching up with old friends and artisans, and seeing a few new ones. One of the most interesting things was an interview with Lyne Cohen Solal, the new head of the ...
Paris: Lafayette Saltiel, Kenjiro Suzuki, Ateliers ...
Samuel Gassmann Last week I was in Paris for two days, catching up with old friends and artisans, and seeing a few new ones. One of the most interesting things was an interview with Lyne Cohen Solal, the new head of the ...
Active Threads
Well, a well-made bespoke jacket probably shouldnt need sending back after its completed. Perhaps once if it changes a little whne it's been worn. Whether you send it back for changes after that is a very fuzzy area, as there will always be tiny things…
Video: Douglas Cordeaux and Gianluca Migliarotti in conversation
Read the commentsI wouldnt use metal ones as yes, they can be uncomfortable and they don't add much. Indeed, they can make the collar look a bit odd, with a hard line down the middle. I'd use plastic ones, and forego them only if you like the…
How to buy a quality shirt
Read the commentsNice jacket, well cut
Ciardi jacket in vintage gun-club tweed, from Lafayette Saltiel
Read the commentsI have two of Brent Blacks hats. Superb quality and fit. I grew up in Panama where many versions of the Ecuadorian Monte Cristi hats were sold (not made). The Brent black hats were superior to all of the offerings available in Panama. I feel…
Final panama hat from Brent Black
Read the commentsThanks Simon, notes. Looking forward your review. I have a medium rise cream cotton flat front trouser from them, the style is tight fit on the hip and whole look is quite weird from my point of view compare to other flat front trouser I…
Musella-Dembech cotton suit: Style Breakdown
Read the commentsThanks so much. I really appreciate it!
New pop-up brands announced: Adret, Prologue, Anthology
Read the comments