Style icons: The Cincinnati Kid
January 17th 2009“I’ll see your two thousand and raise you five thousand.” Gasps around the room. The Cincinnati Kid leans back in his chair, hand on chin. Is that a knitted tie he’s wearing? It’s so hard to tell in black and white. &ldq...
Style icons: The Cincinnati Kid
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A good point Anirudh. The Logical Waistcoat is not necessarily exclusive of being costume (think cowboys). But it seems to work for the gentleman here - after all, it must be hard to handle your bird in a cockfight if yo...
Kilgour: The only modern innovator
January 15th 2009I’ve had a couple of requests for the full version of the Kilgour article I wrote for Spice magazine. So here it is: In the past five years, Kilgour has been one of the few designers in London that has demonstrated genuine and consistent in...
Kilgour: The only modern innovator
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the news is that carlo brandelli have left kilgour, what a shame... apparently, the new owners wants to focus on bespoke whereas brandelli was keen to develop the ready-to-wear (unsurprising, given the reception he got a...
The formality of colours – in shirts
January 9th 2009In previous postings, I have explained why different aspects of a suit make it more formal. Broadly speaking, a material that is smoother, darker and plainer will be more formal. A dark navy worsted is smarter in all three ways than a mid-grey checke...
The formality of colours – in shirts
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Yes, that would be formal and perhaps a little anachronistic. At the least, a strong style. It could be with button or French cuffs, but if worn formally should be French...
Density of pattern, part 2
January 2nd 2009In the first part of this exercise in density, I was only able to cover the main points about combining patterns in your shirt, suit and tie. The lessons there can be summarised as: • Patterns next to each other should be of different sizes and ...
Density of pattern, part 2
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Generations: Dressing well instinctively
December 31st 2008I hope everyone had a great Christmas. Mine, spent in Dorset with my extended family, had one sartorial highpoint – the instinctively stylish dressing of my grandparents. On Christmas Day, they were the best-dressed people there (by my traditio...
Generations: Dressing well instinctively
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Density of pattern
December 23rd 2008Before you decide anything in the morning about what you’re going to wear, consider density of pattern. Ok, maybe select your suit first. But then, before reaching for the shirt, look at the pattern of your suit and consider it. Is there a patt...
Density of pattern
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He is. I believe the suit is a grey flannel...
The lawyer background
December 21st 2008British lawyers have a penchant for a particular suit/shirt combination that allows them to sport brightly coloured ‘fun’ ties. It’s an object of derision but holds lessons for all of us. A while ago I wrote about the Italian backgr...
The lawyer background
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Cheers Casey. I'm not sure there's a combination that would work with any shirt, but a navy or dark-brown jacket would certainly the safest. And then yes, you're on the right lines with the tie - perhaps the brown rather...
Christmas presents: Buy the luxury you can afford
December 17th 2008Anyone out there trying to find a Christmas present for myself or gentlemen like me should bear two things in mind: buy the best you can afford, and buy pieces that last. No matter how little you have to spend on someone’s Christmas present, yo...
Christmas presents: Buy the luxury you can afford
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Excellent suggestions all. MOP collarbones? Who knew? Beautiful! I've worn brass ones for years, but am almost out as I used to give them away when I noticed a colleague's collar flaying away....
Reader question: Fashion and age
December 14th 2008Nigel, London: How would you recommend that a slightly older man with an interest in youth-driven fashion incorporates this into his daily attire? Jeans, for example – some are so skinny they make you look even older than you are. Men’s s...
Reader question: Fashion and age
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Converse trainers with a suit? PLEASE....
Reader question: How stylish am I?
December 12th 2008Rob, London: I’ve recently started reading your blog and am struck by the universe of style that I am totally oblivious to. On a scale of one to ten (one = no style, ten = very stylish), where do I rank and why? I’ve known Rob and worked ...
Reader question: How stylish am I?
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Dear Simon, I am aware of the Roman, Milanese and Neapolitan style. Can you classify Matteo Marzotto's suit? Do you happen to know who his tailor(s) is/are?...
The waistcoat as jacket
December 5th 2008This is an addendum to The Waistcoat Theory, that personal hobbyhorse of mine that attempts to solve the problem of men taking their suit jackets off indoors, and undermining all the aesthetic advantages of a suit as a result. I won’t repeat th...
The waistcoat as jacket
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Oh good, lovely to hear that Yuta...
The rules and how to break them 3: White after La...
November 30th 2008Do not wear white after Labor Day. Of all the rules, not wearing white after Labor Day in the US is the most disconnected from its intention. Yet it is fervently followed. Wearing white attracts the ire of many people who would otherwise have no opin...
The rules and how to break them 3: White after La...
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Whenever you think the season suits it really Sean, which is a question of the date, the weather and perhaps the trees. I wouldn't try and pick any particular date, but as September comes I guess you start asking when it...
Sweater colours for autumn
November 26th 2008Winter provides a new outlet for the man interested in expressing himself through colour in his clothes. A sweater underneath a jacket, particularly with a suit, provides a very different pop of colour in an outfit – larger yet also more restra...
Sweater colours for autumn
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Almost anything - grey is the most versatile colour when it comes to combinations. Start with dark green, burgundy or purple. Which looks best with the suit or blazer will depend a lot on the shade of grey. See what you ...
The enigma of Flusser
November 17th 2008Alan Flusser knows a lot about style. Anyone who has read his books knows that, and knows that he has a gift for communicating his knowledge (though I would say that he had a better editor on Dressing the Man, which has a lot less flowery prose than ...
The enigma of Flusser
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16 Guest Comments » I’m curious why most of these style “gurus” fail to mention or follow the first rule in my style book: get your body in decent SHAPE!!! I can’t keep my eyes off of his turkey neck. It throws ...
British style genius: The country look
November 9th 2008The roots of British style in the functional garb of hunting and working in the country are obvious. But one easily forgets the broader and longer roots of these traditions. So many pieces of modern British clothing originate in country wear. The cen...
British style genius: The country look
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The Country Look is a timeless and classic....
The pleasures of traditional dress
November 6th 2008Oman has not been anything more than a small fishing and trading hub for long. Although historically a powerful port – crucial for the route between Europe and India – it only began to grow significantly this century with the discovery of...
The pleasures of traditional dress
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Reader comments: Hello from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. I was just out shopping the other day and I was discussing with my friends how easy it must be for Saudis to dress in the morning. Just pull out a white robe, throw on th...
Two very different jackets and jeans
November 4th 2008When a jacket-and-jeans combination works well, it is one of the most stylish outfits a man can wear, successfully bridging the casual and the formal, and merging the best elements of both. It is, however, hard to get right. As mentioned in a previou...
Two very different jackets and jeans
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Will do thank you....
Ah, the Esquire Big Black Book
October 29th 2008Ok, so it’s time to balance things up. In a previous post I reviewed a style programme only available in the UK. Now it’s time for a magazine you can only get in the US. Last year I chanced across the Esquire Big Black Book while in New Y...
Ah, the Esquire Big Black Book
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They're going to do 2 a year - spring/summer and autumn/winter. But Men's Vogue just announced it's being cut back. It started as a supplement to Vogue, went to a 10 times a year magazine in its own right, and is now dro...
Buenos Aires style
October 25th 2008I was fortunate enough to be in Buenos Aires last week for work, and was able to appreciate a city renowned for its style as well as its steak. Argentine men have much of the casual, easy style of their south European cousins. A photo sent to me of a...
Buenos Aires style
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Hi. I am traveling to Bs As for New Year. I'd like to know if you could recommend some shoe shops for leather balmorals or adelaides, and if you have an idea of the price range. Thanks....
The colours of autumn
October 23rd 2008Summer was heralded for me in a subtle, sophisticated way by the palate of Paul Stuart, as reported in previous post A Fresher Take on Summer. In that article I compared the subtlty and still unusual colour combinations of Paul Stuart with the bolder...
The struggle to innovate in menswear
October 9th 2008It’s rare that traditional menswear retailers are genuinely innovative. A few designers have their odd quirks, and many fluctuate with the (fashion) seasons. But a precious small number actually change the way people look at jackets, shirts and...
The struggle to innovate in menswear
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Re:Siong Chin But does the fashion world create the innovation or does the fashion world merely scavenge what utility has brought about? And does this require a deeper examination of what exactly the 'fashion world' is? ...
The meaning of harmony
October 1st 2008A pocket handkerchief should harmonise with a man’s shirt and general ensemble. But not many men understand what harmony means. Let me put it like this. It is a similar conundrum to which colour of tie you should wear, but is also a little like...
The meaning of harmony
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Simon, I think this jacket shows how the jacket cuff size should be in relation to the shirt cuff. Elegant. S...
Spectrum-spanning combinations
September 29th 2008At a certain point, dressing with a fondness and knowledge of traditional men’s clothing can become staid. I have referred to this previously as the point at which style becomes costume. The instant you start wearing a bowtie with your tweed ja...
Spectrum-spanning combinations
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It's a good point. Women often tell me they feel the same with everything they wear! Try to stick to basics with your casual wear too, and then experiment around it. Get some slim, well-fitting jeans, brown shoes, oxford...
I want to browse your brand
September 22nd 2008One wise old editor at my company is sceptical about websites. Whenever he gets into a discussion about redesigning, upgrading or reformulating a magazine’s site, he always asks “do you really want a website?” This is, of course, a ...
I want to browse your brand
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I completely agree.. and with a talented photographer, the medium of the internet need not be a hackneyed, washed out representation of the real thing. Given that I'm rather distant from many shops of this nature, my pot...
The rules and how to break them 2: Brown in town
September 19th 2008Rule 2: Do not wear brown in town. It’s worth repeating my maxim from the first instalment in this series: “Rules are there for a reason, but there is nothing wrong with breaking them. These statements are not contradictory. Once you unde...
The rules and how to break them 2: Brown in town
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I think that could look nice, but it would be more of a luxe look. Also not a big fan of the breast pocket...