Take off your hat indoors (The sliding scale of e...
Imagine how delighted I was, dear reader, to find that a subject I wanted to write on - etiquette in clothing behaviour - exists on a sliding scale of commonality. I love a sliding scale. Whether it's formality, colour or craft, I love explaining h...
Take off your hat indoors (The sliding scale of e...
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I live in Minneapolis, Minnesota, but also have a cabin in a more rural part of the center of the state. While I always take my hat off indoors and when seated at a table, I noticed over the weekend (recalling this artic...
Introducing: The suede cap
The hat I wear most when it’s cold is the PS Watch Cap - I have four and wear them constantly during the winter, given my lack of hair means I always need something on top. But when it’s a little wet I also regularly wear a suede flat c...
Introducing: The suede cap
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If you have a 58 and it works for you then I'd go for that rather than a 56 Yash...
Ralph Lauren cap: How great things age
There have been a few companies popping up in recent years making higher-end baseball caps. Both the plain, dull, luxury ones that became a trend in the wake of Succession, and ones that look exactly like a traditional cap, just higher quality. For...
Ralph Lauren cap: How great things age
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yes...
A. Marchesan, Stockholm: Curated Period Menswear
By Manish Puri There’s not exactly a shortage of quality secondhand and vintage stores in Stockholm. Take a stroll along Hornsgatan for example - a busy road running through the Södermalm neighbourhood - and within just a few hundred metr...
A. Marchesan, Stockholm: Curated Period Menswear
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Hi Dario I had a similar dilemma when buying my coat from A. Marchesan. The advice a friend gave me was to not fixate on the secondhand price, but think about how much a new coat of similar style and quality would cost. ...
The bowler hat in the fifties: My grandfatherR...
When we cleared out my grandparents’ house last year, we discovered an article my grandfather had written about bowler hats in the late 1950s. I've written about him before, publishing an interview in 2012 that talked about what it was like t...
The bowler hat in the fifties: My grandfatherR...
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Yes, brown would be...
Reader Profile: Ben (and the community of menswear)
I met Ben at our recent pop-up party, and liked what he was wearing (first outfit below). We got to talking and I discovered his interesting background - always good, as I’d like these profiles to explore different types of PS reader - and his...
Reader Profile: Ben (and the community of menswear)
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Every time I read one of these, I learn something new. He’s got a phenomenal command of color and proportion. Really sharp dresser....
On baseball caps – and logos in general
Baseball caps are, in many ways, the lazy option for headwear. They’re ubiquitous, they’re cheap and they go with everything. I completely understand those that fight the good fight for brimmed hats, and feel it necessary to attack ball ...
On baseball caps – and logos in general
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It is, thank you. Interesting how terms change, in that only a few years ago I think a dad cap was just a baseball cap. I guess the only issue with a taller, more structured cap is that the style is rather different, les...
The Cromford fur hat: Shearling for deep winter
A few weeks ago, just before Christmas when it was suddenly freezing in London, I was in Cromford talking to them about offcuts. The shearling coats we’ve done over the past three years have been pleasingly received - the olive double-breasted...
The Cromford fur hat: Shearling for deep winter
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Brown suede from Trunk...
New colours in the Arran scarf and PS watch caps
The popular PS Watch Caps and exclusive Arran scarves from Begg & Co - introduced last year - have just been restocked on the PS Shop, with two additional colours. It was a real struggle last year to get things in on time, with delays not ju...
New colours in the Arran scarf and PS watch caps
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Thanks Alex, lovely to hear. I remove mine usually, but I don't see it as a big thing either way...
Holiday snaps 2022: Illustrating versatile packing
In recent weeks you may have noticed comments have not been published quite as quickly as normal. That’s because I’ve been on holiday - in the north of Portugal, where my wife’s family is from. It’s a beautiful part of the w...
Holiday snaps 2022: Illustrating versatile packing
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Looking very chic here , you prove that sometimes less is more...
Rain: Cap and cordovan, or felt and suede
This may be a little niche, but it’s something that often stresses me out in the morning, so hopefully it will be of some use to others. My plans for what to wear on a particular day usually don’t account for rain. I might be going int...
Rain: Cap and cordovan, or felt and suede
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Hi Craig, I find the Rider's good for warmer weather, hence the shots of me wearing it with just a T-shirt underneath. For umbrellas, anything from a quality maker will be good, perhaps Swaine or James Smith...
The Spring Top 10: Fun, paper and lavender
It’s that time of the year again. Brands have been receiving all the spring clothing they ordered last year, even though they weren’t quite sure whether it would arrive, or be swallowed by an unexpected lockdown. So rejoice, there are n...
The Spring Top 10: Fun, paper and lavender
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Regarding Trumpers. Apart from ordering a tub of Almond Shaving Cream which is utterly superb and highly concentrated in a very generous 200g tub... probably the best value of all the prestige London barbers, I asked for...
Reader profile: Andy
This is Andy. A long-time reader and customer, Andy had led, shall we say, an interesting life. Currently a hydrographic surveyor, he has also been a pilot, a mountaineer, and dabbles as a model (fashion and life). He is passionate about clothing, ...
Reader profile: Andy
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Thanks Willie my man. Appreciate your comments mate, I'll have to give you a big hug as you are sitting only about 10 feet away from me in the offline room just now. Top hat and goggles - Its the way to go and of course,...
I have Gay Talese’s hat
Gay Talese. In a different hat By Tom Mastronardi "The story I’m about to relate is true; it really happened, just a few short years ago, before Covid upended the simple everyday pleasure of running into someone you know on the street and havi...
I have Gay Talese’s hat
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I'm pleased you continue to enjoy it Robert. And yes I agree, I enjoy dressing so much more now than I did when I was younger...
Christmas gift list 2021: Shawls, soap and Swan S...
It’s that time of the year again. So, with both apologies and thanks to readers that bemoaned the lack of this list last year, these are just a few of my favourite things... In these lists we try to go beyond menswear into other beautiful, cra...
Christmas gift list 2021: Shawls, soap and Swan S...
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Hi Simon. This is very helpful indeed. Dry clean it will be. Thanks. Yash...
The custom-block service, from Optimo
Over the past year or so, Optimo has been developing a unique bespoke hat programme, where a personal ‘block’ is made for each customer. Most Optimo hats are already made to order, so customers pick their felt, their crown style and the...
The custom-block service, from Optimo
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I've never really looked at this James, as I don't wear black tie that often, and even less often think about the head gear, given that will not be on display (rather like a silk scarf) at the event itself. I'd imagine a...
Hats with coats: A sliding scale
I’m often asked which hats work best with different types of coat. In fact, it often comes up at this time of year - I guess when unexpected showers are more of a hazard. The sliding scale of formality with hats is pretty intuitive: a fedora i...
Hats with coats: A sliding scale
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Insightful breakdown of hat and coat pairings, balancing style and practicality beautifully. Loved the sliding scale concept, making fashion choices feel intuitive and refined....
The complete capsule: Prices, budgets and timelines
Our ‘complete capsule’ article last month went down particularly well with readers. Setting out a concentrated, versatile wardrobe, I think it provided both a good starting point for new readers and a way for older ones to realise gaps in...
The complete capsule: Prices, budgets and timelines
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I'd say the Armoury things are a little higher in the budget, you're paying for the shop and service partly. Whether MTO or MTM works for you depends a lot on body fit that it's hard to judge remotely though...
The hats of author Ned Brown
In our recent article on Wellema , much of the conversation in the comments centred around the relevance and wearability of hats today. So I thought it would be interesting to look into the habits and collection of a reader, in this case author and...
The hats of author Ned Brown
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Worth & Worth moved to Bowery, of all places. I haven't been to the shop yet....
Wellema bespoke felt hat: Review
This is my first hat from Cody Wellema, the LA-based craftsman that we covered the background on a couple of weeks ago. A hat from Cody is an investment - something that is truly made to last for years, and to be cleaned, reblocked and looked after....
Wellema bespoke felt hat: Review
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Many thanks Simon. Yes I think that will work better....
The quality and style of Wellema hats
Everyone you speak to about Cody Wellema (above) agrees on two things. That he’s a lovely, lovely man. And that his hats are top notch. I can certainly attest to the former - and the latter I’ll cover when I review the hat I’m hav...
The quality and style of Wellema hats
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Yes it was horrible to hear. There is a good GuFundMe page raising money for Cody and his family....
Baseball cap, white jeans and Ivy: Pick and choose
There are five elements I want to talk about in this outfit. Five. And I’ll take them all separately - because you can easily change one, or only like one. There’s no need to lift an outfit (or, give it the thumbs up/down) as a whole. ...
Baseball cap, white jeans and Ivy: Pick and choose
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Wool. Shetland is a type of wool (of sheep)...
Video: What makes a quality hat?
In a comment on our recent video covering suit alterations, a reader complimented my questioning of Davide - saying I was putting the questions the viewer was thinking. I was really chuffed at that. As someone who spent most of their professional c...
Video: What makes a quality hat?
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Yes it could, though I'd probably start with a sisal one, or perhaps at least a brown band and slightly smaller shape...
PS Watch Caps back in stock
The Permanent Style Watch Cap is finally available again, in the popular navy and mid-grey. Although the grey we did originally was well received, a lot of people commented that something a shade darker - more the colour of classic flannels - would ...
PS Watch Caps back in stock
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60cm, but there's a lot of give in these - I find they can fit down to a 56, and certainly up to 61 or 62. When you try it on, if you do, please make sure to wear it as I do in the images - low in the front, high in the ...
The Optimo hat factory, Chicago
Optimo hats in Chicago has to be the prettiest factory I’ve ever been to. Over the years I have been to some impressive ones: Hermes, Loro Piana, Zegna. But they’re grand, sweeping, sometimes in sculpted countryside. Optimo is small an...
The Optimo hat factory, Chicago
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Simon, I had always heard great things about Optimo but never personally met anyone who was a customer or seen their work. Therefore, thank you for the firsthand report of your experiences. I don’t ever see myself as a...
