How to layer knitwear
January 4th 2019Layering knitwear can be both stylish and practical. Practical, because it gives particular warmth on a cold day - more, usually, than a shirt under knitwear. The multiple layers are also easy to add and remove as the temperature varies. And stylish...
How to layer knitwear
Match in comments:
Oh, that's very good for me! Thank you, Simon!...
Olive-green corduroy suit – from Ettore de ...
December 28th 2018You know when you think you’re not part of a trend, and then see everyone wearing the same thing? As a clothing snob that likes to think he’s different to everyone else, it’s very annoying. I had admired Michael Hill’s green-...
Olive-green corduroy suit – from Ettore de ...
Match in comments:
Hi Antoine, Two fittings, though it would have been three if it were my first commission...
The rules and how to break them 9: Tan shoes with...
December 21st 2018The starting point for any decision about what shoes to wear with an outfit, is that they should be darker than the trousers. So with a charcoal trouser, a black shoe or very dark brown. With a mid-grey trouser, dark or mid-brown (below). ...
The rules and how to break them 9: Tan shoes with...
Match in comments:
Pleasure, thanks for letting me know...
Amended Friday Polos in stock – and availab...
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: navy, green, grey and white. Yo...
Amended Friday Polos in stock – and availab...
Match in comments:
I think it could look good, yes. I tend to wear them with softer cuts of tailoring, and that will be easier, but they can work with others - just keep the materials more casual, as you suggest...
How I dress now: The jacket/trousers uniform
November 21st 2018Eight months ago I quit my day job as a financial journalist in order to dedicate myself to Permanent Style. (Many heartfelt thanks for all the messages I’ve received since then.) This prompted an interesting question from readers: How would I...
White tie and blue shirt: Sunny formal in Sartori...
November 7th 2018Wearing a white tie with a blue shirt is something that makes perfect sense in Naples. To a certain extent, wearing sugary-pink jackets and lapis-blue tailoring makes sense too. It's just sunny so much of the time, even in winter - and that sun is s...
White tie and blue shirt: Sunny formal in Sartori...
Match in comments:
No I haven't, sorry Greg...
Video: The New York Symposium – Dressing up...
November 2nd 2018'Dressing up in a Dress-Down World' felt like a very timely subject for this Symposium, our first in New York. And particularly relevant in the US, perhaps, where there has always been a cultural aversion to dressing too smartly - in the so-called '...
Video: The New York Symposium – Dressing up...
Match in comments:
It's a royal-blue flannel. I'm not sure it's available anymore I'm afraid, but that's what you're looking for....
Introducing: The PS Bridge Coat
October 31st 2018* 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 to fill a particular ...
Introducing: The PS Bridge Coat
Match in comments:
Have you ever pressed/ironed them? All smart trousers need that, and often cord more than others, as they do tend to bag out at the knee...
Ferdinando Caraceni herringbone suit: Style break...
October 26th 2018Following on from French bespoke style with Camps de Luca, we now arrive in Milan with Ferdinando Caraceni. Milanese tailoring has quite a distinct style, with light structure overall but a strong shoulder. So while tailors from Milan will talk about...
Ferdinando Caraceni herringbone suit: Style break...
Match in comments:
If it helps, I find the opposite of square much more intuitive, and a helpful reference in contrast. The opposite of square shouldered are sloping shoulders: when the shoulders slope relatively more downwards from the he...
The New York Symposium: Speakers and audience
October 25th 2018The first Symposium we've held in New York was a great success last week - thank you to all of the 200+ people that came. The discussion was free-flowing and even funny in places, as we discussed dressing up and dressing down, for others and for our...
The New York Symposium: Speakers and audience
Match in comments:
There's never been a full review, but it has featured in some other posts, eg https://www.permanentstyle.com/2016/03/how-i-get-dressed-in-the-morning.html...
Charcoal donegal-tweed jacket – from Steven...
October 8th 2018Charcoal is a surprisingly useful colour in an odd jacket. Great with muted tones of tan, green or brown, it's also dark enough to go with lighter grey flannels. And charcoal is my favourite colour to wear with cream trousers. It tends to tone down ...
Charcoal donegal-tweed jacket – from Steven...
Match in comments:
I don't have any experience of it Lindsay. They recently hired a new cutter who is good, but that's all I know...
Jacket and jeans: vintage cashmere from Eduardo d...
September 26th 2018One of the most useful things in this day and age is a jacket that can be worn equally well with jeans and with formal, tailored trousers. I’ve talked about this in the past, but in summary I find that for a jacket to work with jeans it need...
Jacket and jeans: vintage cashmere from Eduardo d...
Match in comments:
The line of the lapel is straight, there is no belly on it (curving outwards). This is standard for Naples but not standard, for example, in London. It is a little wider than average, yes, though again that's standard in...
Should your belt match your shoes? (Or bag)
September 21st 2018This question might seem like an easy one, but I do get a lot of comments and emails about it, so I thought I’d lay it out in a post. No, in short, a leather belt and leather shoes do not have to match. But they should be closely related. So a...
Should your belt match your shoes? (Or bag)
Match in comments:
I know what you mean Markus. I actually tend to wear 1-inch ones with jeans and chinos too, because I like the look, but I can definitely see an argument there that something wider is a good partner to them as well (but ...
The rules and how to break them 8: Button a DB
August 22nd 2018This is the latest in a nice series of posts called ‘ The Rules and How to Break Them‘. Like the other Guides we have put together recently, it now has its own homepage, here. You can navigate to that page by clicking on the &...
The rules and how to break them 8: Button a DB
Match in comments:
Thanks Fabrizio, wonderfully put! (Yes yes, but better late than never)...
The summer tie
August 17th 2018I 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, rather than primary red...
The summer tie
Match in comments:
Yes exactly - subtle and restrained. A little pin dot is nice too. I see, the suit sounds nice for the occasion. In that case a silver/grey tie would be nice and formal, or you could do something like a green or yellow, ...
Summer outfits at the Huntsman dinner 2018
August 3rd 2018“The therapy I never knew I needed.” That was how one reader described our reader dinner at Huntsman last year, and this year’s was no different. Ten winning readers came to the event, with four flying in specially from Spain, Ital...
Summer outfits at the Huntsman dinner 2018
Match in comments:
Very nice to see so many people who had travelled to the event and yet managed to look so elegant; a great deal of the effort to achieve this is not always immediately obvious....
How I filter fashions
August 1st 2018Fashions sweep through the world of classic menswear on a fairly regular basis – no matter how permanent we think our tastes and styles are. I find it pays to consider each carefully, and then over time decide which of three camps it falls int...
How I filter fashions
Match in comments:
Not sure you could quite, but you're right they're very expensive. A lot of it reflects the work that's gone into them, which is why you don't see anything quite like them anywhere else....
Double-breasted cotton jacket and striped shirt
July 9th 2018When I first had this cotton jacket made, I noted that it was a tricky one to work into an outfit. The vintage cotton cloth ( more details here) is rather rough and casual, yet the cut and style are quite smart. Having it as a double-breasted jacket...
Double-breasted cotton jacket and striped shirt
Match in comments:
Good question. I think probably because that colour doesn't really look like part of a suit. Also helps that it's a DB, and the more texture the cotton has, the easier it is too...
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 audience was made up of largely ...
Media Symposium – The debate
Match in comments:
what's worse is the no socks look with those 'hidden' socks that everyone can see......
The Tailor Styles series
May 24th 2018The reviews of bespoke suits I’ve written over the years haven’t always been the same. Some included more on the experience (particularly when it was bad); some focused on the fit; others were more about style or make. Their length and ...
The Tailor Styles series
Match in comments:
Did you look at the linked article Franco? It depends on what style you want, but I list who my favourites are for different styles in there...
Hopsack and linen trousers – in humid Hong ...
May 21st 2018It 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 questions about other tailors, and th...
Hopsack and linen trousers – in humid Hong ...
Match in comments:
Ideal would be a little less strong in colour, but it will work...
Wearing warm and cold colours
April 4th 2018Taka from Liverano. Lots of colour and pattern, but overall quite cold Being able to judge the relative formality of an outfit is a key component of dressing well in modern, variable working environments. Many things contribute to this formality: Mo...
Wearing warm and cold colours
Match in comments:
I certainly would mix them together, yes, it can be an interesting combination....
Combining colours and patterns: How to dress like...
March 26th 2018This is the latest in my somewhat infrequent series on the style of my favourite people in the menswear industry. For those that want to catch up, the previous instalments have been: Personal style: How to dress like Bruce Boyer (and part ...
Combining colours and patterns: How to dress like...
Match in comments:
Excellent. He knows how to do a flow of tone from top to bottom -- for instance, light sport coat, while the dark tie leads the eye down to the dark pants. Perfect. Fullness of shirt collar/ tie width/ lapel width in har...
Unexpected texture and colour – Denim and l...
March 19th 2018I think it’s telling that the thing that makes me happiest about this outfit is the oatmeal-linen shirt, a piece made bespoke by D’Avino. I’ve been doing this for a while - trying to combine pieces of classic menswear in ways that ...
Unexpected texture and colour – Denim and l...
Match in comments:
Thank Mike, but please refrain from talking to other commenters like that. Cheers...
The Style Lookbook
March 12th 2018This was an idea that a reader suggested to me a few months ago. (Readers are the best...) It's called The Lookbook, and it's a collection of all of my outfits from the past 10 years of Permanent Style. One hundred and sixty-five outfits, all with...