The Tailor & Cutter – politicians
December 30th 2011Magazine covers have come on quite a way haven’t they? Eden isn’t looking at the camera and Winston hasn’t even got his eyes open. Still, the clothes certainly deserve comment. Anthony Eden’s fastening of both ...
The Tailor & Cutter – politicians
Match in comments:
What is interesting about Eden's suits is that he combined a single-breasted peak-lapel jacket with a double-breasted waistcoat. The idea appears to be the introduction of a greater level of formality into the 3-piece si...
The Tailor & Cutter – overcoats
December 21st 2011This extract from The Tailor & Cutter from 1935 should give some ample inspiration to those considering which of the winter coats to snap up in the sales after Christmas. An interesting point to note in the styling is the prevalence of peake...
The Tailor & Cutter – overcoats
Match in comments:
If this weather keeps up (a December daytime temp of 10 celcius in Northern Europe!) I'll not be wearing an overcoat. I've already put it back into storage and I'm using a gabardine raincoat....
Christmas suggestions
December 7th 2011If you’re anything like me, Christmas shopping begins in earnest this week. Just long enough ahead to get everything done, but little enough time to inject a little panic into the process. Here are a few suggestions from a few of my favourites....
Gary Cooper: Enduring Style
November 14th 2011This is the second book of photographs I have had to review in recent weeks, the first being Anderson & Sheppard: A Style is Born. Even the packaging is the same, with both coming in the same brown canvas slip case. But the important similar...
Gary Cooper: Enduring Style
Match in comments:
Thought you might like these photos of Gary Cooper http://herringbonemallord.blogspot.com/2011/11/gary-cooper.html That is if you have not already seen them ;) Best regards...
Wearing brown accessories, at Cesare Attolini
October 19th 2011Once you become a devotee of the Italian formal tradition, and begin to wear a lot more browns in your outfit, it’s easy to go overboard. If shoes are usually brown and leather accessories always a shade of brown, a brown tie, jacket or trouser...
Wearing brown accessories, at Cesare Attolini
Match in comments:
Beautifully made, but compared to all the bespoke artisans we discuss here, hard to say it's value for money...
The window dressing of Hackett
October 14th 2011One 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 should provide such inspiration o...
The window dressing of Hackett
Match in comments:
Forgive me if this seems pernickity, but whilst I find this window style attractive, one little issue stands out and that is putting one hand into a pocket which frankly irritates me. I always look for the tailoring styl...
The philosophy of dress as expression
October 13th 2011My father in law recently reminded me, on reading elements of my book Le Snob: Tailoring, about the philosophy of RG Collingwood and male dress as expression, where clothes are a replacement for the body. Here’s a quotation: “Dres...
The philosophy of dress as expression
Match in comments:
The source is R. G. Collingwood, The Principles of Art, page 244, note....
Fashion shows are vulgar
October 4th 2011As it is the season for fashion shows, I though a little quotation from Hardy Amies might be appropriate: “Clothes are meant for private living; clothes that produce excitement and applause give the press things to write about but shock the...
How to wear a silk scarf
October 3rd 2011As the days begin to grow colder, one of the most tactile pleasures is wearing a short scarf at the neck. I’ve never taken to wearing an ascot in an open shirt collar, much as I agree with the rationale of retaining some silk at the neck; perha...
How to wear a silk scarf
Match in comments:
It can look great, with the only risk being looking a little fancy or fussy. If done in a relaxed manner, and with other clothes that aren't too fussy etc, I think it can be great...
PEN magazine: Permanent Style big in Japan
September 22nd 2011You could never refer to yourself as a style icon. But if someone else gives you the title, it’s alright to pass it on, right? Seriously, I was highly flattered to be asked to appear in the latest issue of PEN magazine, which I am told by...
PEN magazine: Permanent Style big in Japan
Match in comments:
Thanks, I certainly will. It will hopefully also be the topic of my third book, which I'm talking to publishers abou at the moment...
Going tieless; Hemingway Tailors suit
September 21st 2011Without a tie, men lose the biggest opportunity to express themselves easily in colour and pattern. But I don’t like wearing a tie every day either. The key if you’re not going to wear a tie is to add accents elsewhere, such as in a pocke...
Going tieless; Hemingway Tailors suit
Match in comments:
No, sorry Luke. I've met him once or twice but never had anything made there....
Rugby Ralph Lauren and the Tweed Run NYC
September 13th 2011Apparently 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.
Rugby Ralph Lauren and the Tweed Run NYC
Match in comments:
Those shirts that RL Rugby has in the Mens sale look good with the club collars. Does anyone know where these styles can be bought anywhere else? RL's prices are a bit steep for me....
Suit, Shirt, Tie 1: Pink and green
August 24th 2011One 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, from Neapolitan maker Isaia, is ...
Suit, Shirt, Tie 1: Pink and green
Match in comments:
Thanks, yes love those pale pink Oxford cloths...
The modern man needs a good blazer
August 17th 2011Men wear fewer suits today, as we all know. But they retain the need for a jacket, if only to appear smart or professional. Two of my friends, a doctor and a teacher, are particular examples. Their jobs do not require them to wear a suit, yet a jacke...
The modern man needs a good blazer
Match in comments:
Always keeping a very open mind, but it's not for me right now... I did have an SB made years ago and I do try them on every time I see a nice one...
Reader question: What do you wear at the weekend?
June 17th 2011You spend a lot of time talking about suits and bespoke shoes, but what do you wear at the weekend? I have trouble picturing what you put on to pop out to the newsagent. Here are a few of my favourite things. Two types of chinos: those from Albam, wh...
Reader question: What do you wear at the weekend?
Match in comments:
Ok, but I wouldn't really recommend it. A bit gimmicky and not the greatest quality...
Summer: White trousers, suede shoes, blouson
April 18th 2011I’ve had a lot of questions over the past few weeks about summer clothes, which isn’t surprising given most of Europe has been running through unseasonably warm weather. For me, the keys to casual summer style are white (or pale) trousers...
Summer: White trousers, suede shoes, blouson
Match in comments:
No they can look nice too...
Grey and blue – the classic combination
March 28th 2011I get a lot of requests for practical advice on suit/shirt/tie combinations, so I’m going to try and drop a few more in regularly over the next few months. This is a shot Andy Barnham took of me recently as stock shot for Stephen Haughton&a...
Grey and blue – the classic combination
Match in comments:
Thanks Simon. Best wishes, Andrew...
What the bathroom is for
February 25th 2011Using the bathroom (toilet, WC, pick your euphemism) in an old gentleman’s club is an absolute pleasure. Rows of sparking sinks, toiletries laid out and every sort of brush imaginable – for hair, shoes and clothes. Having made use of all ...
What the bathroom is for
Match in comments:
Nice little vivid vignette you painted there. I'm not a member of a gentleman's club, but I love a good bathroom. In my salad days as a waiter in an expensive Hotel I often popped into the luxury bathrooms to freshen up ...
Reader questions: The menswear classics
January 25th 2011Some questions are known as the menswear classics. These are the queries that columns like GQ’s Style Guy, and websites like Permanent Style, get every few weeks – no matter how many times they have been answered. What should I wear for m...
Reader questions: The menswear classics
Match in comments:
Tan shoes should really be worn with mid-grey or pale grey trousers. Or other paler colours. There's no comparison between denim and a navy suit - nigh on anything works with denim....
Learn from Beau – Simple colours and fastidious fit
January 7th 2011It would probably surprise the modern suit wearer to learn that his clothing originated with Beau Brummel, a regency dandy pictured here in a navy tailcoat and an elaborate linen cravat in a famous caricature by Richard Dighton. But you should see wh...
Learn from Beau – Simple colours and fastidious fit
Match in comments:
Can you suggest a company selling cravat for a ascot tie online?...
Materialism, not consumerism
December 29th 2010Christmas seems an appropriate time to discuss materialism. It is fashionable to characterise any attachment to material possessions as shallow. Any man interested in clothes knows the feeling of being considered superficial or – perhaps more r...
Materialism, not consumerism
Match in comments:
It's a good point Felix and we have looked at it now and again - such as the post Buy Fewer Clothes. We'll also be talking about it more during a project in January...
Ribbon shoe laces
December 22nd 2010I’ve never been a fan of Albert slippers with black tie. With a normal tux they look out of place and with a velvet jacket they drag the look back to the domestic engagement that the jacket is trying to escape from. Equally, patent shoes ha...
Wear style lightly
November 22nd 2010What observers think of as style in a man is often as much the way he carries himself. Ease creates grace, grace begets elegance. To be stylish you have to be at ease in your clothes and comfortable with what you are wearing. This is what people mean...
Wear style lightly
Match in comments:
I recall an interesting detail that comes across particularly in Bogart's films: he often wore his own suits, finding the costume department ill-suited to the characters he played. No wonder he carries his roles off so w...
Style is subtle
November 5th 2010Style speaks simply and softly. It is, as the mission statement for this site states, a matter of weaves and lengths. It is a about details and small, personal touches. It is not loud, it is not brash; it is not obvious. The wearer of a bespoke suit ...
Style is subtle
Match in comments:
Who can in such hatless days see any difference between fedoras and homburgs? A homburg looks like a quite normal hat after decades of hats being out of fashion. I would not find it suitable for a country walk but there ...
How style commentary used to be
October 15th 2010It may look pink but it’s actually red Esquire, August 1935: “We mean, of course, the shirt, which is of very light-weight batiste, with a tab collar to match. Oh, you want us to continue the success story from the previous page? ...
How style commentary used to be
Match in comments:
Re Esquire and current style writing: formerly, new ideas were showcased, with the thrust being "try it and see if it's you, or not, we're letting you know about it, though"; currently it seems the message is "wear this ...