Brand: caliendo

I’ve known Ben for a long time now. He worked round the corner from me during my journalism days, and we were both customers of visiting artisans like Elia Caliendo and Simone Abbarchi. We even did a shoot together fo...

A couple of weeks ago, when our little Indian summer here in the UK came to an end, I started the process of switching my wardrobe around for colder weather.  I keep winter sweaters, roll necks, coats and heavy tweeds ...

  A cream jacket is more useful than you might think.  Certainly, I’ve found myself using this one from Jean-Manuel Moreau more than I expected since I received it earlier in the year.   This post describes, an...

  Last week I explained why I find the knit polo shirt to be such a fundamental part of my summer wardrobe.  This week, I’m using that polo and a pair of cream linen trousers as the basis for three different look...

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 flannels, up to ...

  In recent years I’ve done an increasing amount of personal consultancy, meeting readers in person to answer their questions rather than just here on the website. I don’t really advertise it because I don’t h...

* For updates and stock please see the shop page*   Of all the things I’ve developed or helped develop over the past few years, the PS Trench Coat was one of the most satisfying. That was partly because it seemed...

I don’t tend to wear brightly coloured ties. Too often they’re brash and loud, where a dark simple tie would be more tasteful. The only time I’ve regularly worn them is in unusual colours like lime green, rath...

It was really lovely being back in Hong Kong last week, after a few years away. The talk we Lorenzo Cifonelli and I did at Attire House worked well - more a conversation than an interview, with Lorenzo asking me questio...

The much-loved Friday Polos, which I design and produce with shirtmaker Luca Avitabile in Naples, are back in stock . Thank you to everyone that has been waiting so patiently. As per usual, we have produced them in four...

Although I love rich, natural colours (particularly in Autumn) I've always been fascinated by the subtleties of monochrome dressing.  It has such strong style, and yet there is so little too it. It's striking and unu...

Thank you everyone that responded to my ‘You are the interviewer’ post a couple of weeks ago. The number of variety of questions was staggering, and I will try to answer as many as I can over the coming weeks. It ma...

  As mentioned on my ‘What I pack’ post, I’ve been travelling a lot in high heat recently. There was Pitti in Florence, where the temperature topped out at 37 degrees. Naples in July was very similar. And Pugl...

  In some ways, summer trousers are more challenging than jackets in terms of cloth, and therefore more interesting. Trousers present the challenge of having something cool, but with enough body or crispness to hang...

This is a nice exercise in combining summery, pale colours. The challenge is being light and pale overall, while retaining enough contrast between shirt, jacket and trousers - both in colour and texture.  The startin...

Naples has the biggest concentration of high-end handmade menswear in the world. Although not so much for shoes, for tailoring and shirtmaking this is the motherlode, with hundreds of tailors in the city and surrounding ...

In recent months a few readers have asked for a breakdown of how I built my wardrobe - my plans, my process and my lessons learned. Doing so across all types of garment and even styles would produce a very long, unwield...

Dear Simon,  I recently read your 2014 article, ' The staples of a good wardrobe' and was wondering how you would modify it for warmer climes like Hong Kong and Singapore? Grey flannel isn’t a great option for most...

These things always seem to come in bunches.  First Esquire named me in a top 10 and now Plaza Uomo have published their latest edition, with a profile of me as the cover story.  Plaza is a Swedish fashion magazine,...

I have been included in a list of the Top 10 most influential men in fashion by Esquire. Which is nice.  You can read the full article and a short interview here.  I dislike the term 'influencer' - frankly if that's ...

If styled right, a cap is a wonderfully useful accessory. Not as formal as a fedora, yet not as casual as a beanie, it can bridge a greater range of outfits than any other hat. When the temperature is in single figures,...

Last month we talked about how small changes in the proportions of a double-breasted jacket can have a radical effect on its style - and therefore on the people or situations it suits.  This week I've used five of my o...

Those on the Drake’s mailing list may have seen this outfit on Friday, accompanying an article on their new trouser range. To fill in the details: the olive Drake’s chinos were worn with a white lightweight pique-co...

  A reader recently commented that the site could do with some more practical pieces about putting clothes together – rather than commissioning them. I am deeply appreciative of such feedback. I do try to keep...

I've always found cotton very appealing for summer suits, but historically haven't had much luck with them. I had a navy one made by Choppin & Lodge, but the make was really too English and structured for the mate...