Brand: Ralph Lauren

Last week a friend in the industry asked me what aspect of writing Permanent Style I like the most. It is always, easily, discovering a new tailor, cloth or product that is different and inspiring. That journey from dis...

Although casual clothing is far more susceptible to fashions than tailored clothing, it is possible to organize it into certain groups, or paradigms. These groups, such as preppy clothing or workwear, often have their r...

It’s so enjoyable writing good reviews. It is valuable to write balanced, semi-critical pieces of course, and this is a core part of Permanent Style. But you always feel very conscious of the effect the criticism ...

There are several ways to define the menswear world we write about. As classic style, for instance, or about quality and craft. Also as luxury, given such quality is expensive. But one aspect that is rarely emphasised, ...

The survey we did of Spring/Summer pieces in the shops was very popular back in June. This Autumn/Winter, therefore, we thought we’d do two separate ones - the first (today) on winter knitwear, and the second on c...

Rather a contrast this to Wednesday's post on dressing for hot weather. But it's good to look ahead to Autumn (God I'm looking forward to it - the coats, the knitwear, the hats!). And it's nice to be able to write abou...

Shades of tobacco and tan are one of the loveliest things to wear in the Summer. As the weather warms up, I've put together three outfits here - all somewhere in the 5 to 7 formality range - that illustrate this. Th...

Blousons come in many shapes and sizes, but they are united by a short length, fuller body and collar. Blousons work particularly well with higher-waisted tailored trousers, and for that reason make a great casual alte...

New York is a strange town for menswear. It’s a bit of a Wild West, without the same traditions of Europe and with bespoke largely undermined by visitors from Savile Row. If there is a tradition, it is for value...

In the spirit of our recent posts on assembling outfits, here’s the process that put this one together. Originating idea: I’ve always liked the way this pale, silk tie from Ralph Lauren goes with my Rubin...

If you don’t own a shawl-collar cardigan, it’s the one sweater you should invest in this winter. No other knitwear is more versatile: its collar makes it the only style that works with T-shirts, shirts or p...

A few of the pictures of me from Pitti this year. Above, in brown tweed Caliendo jacket (more on that in a couple of weeks), Anderson & Sheppard flannels and Ralph Lauren madder-like orange handkerchief. Tweed such ...

If I have an addiction outside of tailoring, it is not shoes or ties but outerwear. Leather jackets, suede blousons, trench coats: I love the ability of such big pieces to radically change a look and a silhouette. Leathe...

I’m not great at looking after anything apart from shoes. Suits I brush down occasionally, but certainly not after every use, and knitwear rarely gets much of a look-in. In an effort to change this I recently picke...

Men are not interested in the clothing of celebrities. At the most, the endorsement of a film star, a magazine or a fashion brand is a shortcut, a sanction. A man’s number one priority is not looking stupid, and...

This has been said many times before in more abstract ways, but it deserves to be stated distinctly. It is astounding how effective Ralph Lauren has been at selling a very particular dream over the past 45 years. This wa...

In case anyone’s interested, I’m selling a few lovely things on eBay over the next few weeks – essentially ready-to-wear jackets or suits from Kilgour, Ralph Lauren Purple Label or others that have had ...

One of the main reasons that I (and I assume most other men) read blogs is to get inspiration for things to wear. Or to buy in order to wear. I know I should write more posts on the former. Ideally, every shop window sho...

During a recent conversation with Thomas Mahon of English Cut, I was interested to hear about the made-to-measure service that he is launching in India. The tailors he has hired and trained are among those that suffered ...

Apparently I’m now a pin-up for Ralph Lauren Rugby, and its sponsorship of the Tweed Run in New York. Click on the site here and scroll down to the photos from past events at the bottom....

One of my favourite colour combinations is pink and green. The pink here is pale, too pale perhaps to be portrayed accurately in the photo, but it provides a subtle field of colour for green to play on. The green tie, fr...

I’ve always liked shawl-collar cardigans. One reason is that I have a long neck, which benefits from a collar. T-shirts and round-neck sweaters tend to make me look scrawny. Shirts, polo shirts and polo-collared sw...

There is such pleasure in looking after good clothes well. One of the reasons shoes are my favourite piece of clothing is they actually get better with age: the upper shapes to your foot; perhaps more importantly, the in...

There are very few suits with which I would not naturally wear brown shoes – a deep, burnished chocolate looks better with everything from navy herringbone to grey check. But charcoal is an exception. The only othe...

A lesson today in the damage caused by not treating your shoes right; but how they can be repaired if you don’t. My friend John is very fond of shoes. But he can be a little bit careless when it comes to their main...