The cartridge bag: A small eccentricity

Posted on by Simon Crompton

The cartridge bag: A small eccentricity

Friday, March 31st 2023Tags:
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Over the past few months, I’ve been enjoying wearing this vintage cartridge bag as an occasional day bag - for when I don’t need to carry a computer or other bulky things. 

It started when a reader asked about a crossbody bag he could carry to work. My initial reaction was to suggest that he shouldn’t - that it wouldn’t look that smart (he was dressing smartly) and would damage whatever clothes sat underneath the strap, being rubbed at constantly. 

I stand by that advice - I think men tend to revert to a backpack or similar out of functionality and even laziness, and once they have the freedom of both hands, find it hard to go back. 

We should guard against prioritising functionality too highly. It can be a slippery slope that leads to the abandonment of much that is pleasurable in clothing, certainly elegant clothing. We end up with a short, lifeless, plastic coat rather than a long, stylish woollen one. 

However, this doesn’t mean that a bag worn on the shoulder can’t be good or look good. It’s just a lot better if it’s lightweight - so not shortening the life of the coat underneath - and fits with the required formality. 

I wear this old cartridge bag mostly with my raglan coats. Worn with the grey-herringbone donegal above, it seems to have a similar level of casualness, and be sympathetic in terms of craft and texture. 

In the bag I carry an assortment of small items: phone, wallet, keys, headphones, hat, notebook, pen. Perhaps a little snack. Most could go in the pockets of a coat, but it would struggle to contain them all, and it’s nice not to have all those pockets all filled. 

The only thing that occasionally makes it back into the coat is my phone, just because these days it is out so frequently: to pay for the train, to buy a coffee, to check the train times, to send a message, to check the calendar etc. 

The cartridge bag can actually swing round very easily, and be accessed on the chest. The flap is designed for that - when used for shooting, it would sit open under the arm to give ready access to the cartridges. 

But the frequency with which I need my phone makes even this a little too fussy. And I’m not about to adopt the street-style look of wearing a bum bag (for the American audience, fanny pack) across my chest the whole time. 

I have worn the bag with a tailored coat, like my Ciardi ulster below. That works OK, though only with the collar up and I wouldn’t do so with a smarter coat, like a navy or charcoal. 

With more rural outerwear like the Wax Walker, the bag is almost too on the nose, and it doesn’t work with something more rugged like a horsehide jacket. 

So it’s not proving that versatile; not something for that reader that wanted an everyday workhorse. But as an accessory, an interesting alternative in an age when casualisation has robbed us of so many accessories, I think it’s nice, and certainly practical. 

There’s no shortage of old and new cartridge bags out there. Most hunting-related companies make one, and they differ in terms of materials rather than design. 

Vintage ones can be picked up on eBay for £40 or £50, though the cheap ones are often in split, coated leathers that look very plasticky. Watch for one that has attractive signs of age, without actually falling apart. Linings are often the first things to go. 

Being the leather nerd that I am, I wanted one in traditional pigskin and solid brass, at the perfect point of having a beautiful patina but still all its stitching. I also wasn’t prepared to wait months for the right one to come up on eBay.

For all these things I know I have to pay, and Bentley’s had the perfect one. It cost me over £400, but I knew I’d value everything I was paying for, and I could find a good home for it if the style didn’t work out. 

This model was not just beautiful in its patina, with subtle variety of texture and colour on every side, but it also had an unusually wide strap - which to my eye looks more masculine. The strap does have an oil stain, but I’ve since spoken makers that could remake it at some point if I wished. 

On the subject of masculinity, I find it interesting how much more rugged this bag feels than the handbags offered by many women’s brands, despite them being a similar shape. It can only be a matter of the materials and their evident use - tough things used in a rough manner - yet it feels so different.

The other association is of course shooting, which I have no interest in and don’t especially like. But a casual survey so far has found that people only have that association if they are familiar with country pursuits, and others just assume it is related to some kind of outdoors activity, as likely fishing as hunting. 

It may well be that in years to come, I look back at this little experiment and shake my head indulgently. 

I’ve been doing this long enough now to know such things can be exciting in the moment - because they’re new, because they’re different - but for those very same reasons don't last. I’d put things like my Baudin glasses, my Corthay Wilfrids and an Hermes Twilly into that category. 

But so far so good. The bag is beautiful (try taking something like this into a leather atelier and see how they pore over it). It doesn’t have the weight of responsibility of being a daily item, more an occasional one. And it’s not big or bright or showy, unlike those Wilfrids. Just a little eccentric.  

The Squarzi capsule: How to dress like Alessandro 

Posted on by Simon Crompton

 

Alessandro Squarzi has a reputation as a good dresser, and usually looks appealingly stylish yet relaxed. 

Yet the way he currently dresses is actually very straightforward, and I think can be a lesson to guys everywhere – in how to keep things simple, develop a capsule of high-quality pieces that reflects your personality, and play around largely at the edges, with outerwear, jewellery and accessories. 

Alessandro and I have talked a few times over the years about this, but only briefly. And as often seems to be the case, I’ve never talked on PS about his style, despite how much it has influenced my off-duty clothing. 

So for the latest in our ‘How to dress like‘ series, I talked to Alessandro again, and thought more systematically about his wardrobe. 

 

 

1. On the bottom – blue or white jeans 

Alessandro nearly always wears mid-blue or white jeans. “Although I’ve changed in my physical appearance over the years, I haven’t really changed my style,” he says. “It is clear that I prefer to wear five-pocket denim pants or white jeans and over I choose between coats, jackets, leather jackets and sweatshirts.”

Mid-blue jeans, of course, are the most versatile of all casual trousers, and pretty ubiquitous. But at the same time, they’re something you can refine and have a deep love of, as Alessandro does. Once you appreciate the beauty of blue denim, a good pair never looks the same as another. It’s a subtle beauty, like the best PS ones.

White jeans are then the slightly more unusual, perhaps a slightly more fashion alternative. Certainly less common. 

 

 

2. On top – T-shirts and chambray shirts

On the top it’s nearly always a white T-shirt, which is easy, universal, and as a colour flatters most people (though it does look particularly nice if you always have a tan).

Worn with the blue jeans, it’s everyman. Worn with white jeans (perhaps separated by a belt or at least under another layer) it’s more of a look. Alessandro swaps between both. 

Then there’s a chambray workshirt. Worn over the top of the T-shirt, or worn on its own in summer, in an easy style and the pale blue that goes with everything.

 

 

3. With navy, grey, olive layers

Alessandro likes to layer. “I always try to mix something vintage to my outfits and I really like to make layers overlap and play with them. For example, I might wear a T-shirt with an alpaca cardigan, over a beautiful shirt or a US Navy service shirt and that over a jacket.”

Because the bases above are so versatile, almost anything works over the top. But still the outer layers are mostly from a narrow range: navy knits, grey sweats, blue denim and olive drab. 

 

 

4. And either suede loafers or canvas trainers

The footwear is pretty consistent as well: suede loafers (usually Edward Green) or canvas trainers (usually Mr Fliks). Both very easy relaxed styles.  

I think the way Alessandro wears his loafers, actually, is a good example of how much they can dress up an outfit – as we talked about previously. 

“I have an archive of six thousand vintage garments, yet in the end I always fall back on the same things,” he says. “Probably because you get to a maturity for which you do things for yourself and no longer for others.”

Throughout our interview, by the way, the language barrier stood in the way of specific, example-driven responses, and extended discussions. But hopefully the comments give a decent idea of the attitude.

 

 

5. Make it personal with jewellery and accessories

Jewellery and other accessories make this core wardrobe more personal. Alessandro wears a lot of silver-turqoise jewellery and other bracelets, and of course has visible tattoos. 

You don’t have to like either, though, to appreciate the principle of expressing yourself in this kind of area. It might simply be your choice of watch, or one piece of jewellery that means a lot, but it’s effective, less showy for being often hidden, and can be swapped or taken off between one outfit and another. 

I particularly like the way Alessandro wears dress watches like his Patek golden ellipse with the denim elsewhere. It has the same effect as the loafers of adding a a finer, smarter element.

 

 

6. And experiment around the edges

I remembered Alessandro wearing quite a lot of unusual pieces – cowboy hats, bright-red parkas – but looking through the imagery, these are rare and usually worn with the versatile capsule set out above. 

Even when there’s something like a Hawaiian shirt in summer, it’s sandwiched between the familiar jeans, loafers, white tee and army shirt. 

It’s a lot easier to swap in a Buffalo-check overshirt or a camel polo coat when you know what’s going on beneath is consistent and versatile. 

“I never really decide the day before what to wear,” says Alessandro. “Generally when I wake up in the morning, I don’t even look if it’s raining or there’s sun, and I dress according to what at that moment makes me feel better.”

 

 

Of course, Alessandro wears other things as well. His feed is full of exceptions. But there is a pretty consistent core, and the point is that core is easy and practical. It’s a nice option for a casual equivalent to the navy blazer, grey trousers and white/blue shirts we’re all familiar with from formal clothing. 

I know one reader who, for his casual clothing, asks his local shop to just give him anything and everything Squarzi wears. I wouldn’t go that far, but I can see why he finds it so appealing. It’s rare for a casual wardrobe to look so good and yet usually so understated. 

Top image and cowboy hat image, courtesy of Edward Green. All other images, from @alessandrosquarzi or @fortela_

 

 

New pink and green-stripe oxford shirts

Posted on by Simon Crompton

New pink and green-stripe oxford shirts

Monday, March 27th 2023Tags:
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Two new stripes in the PS Oxford shirt have been added to the shop today: a light pink and a pale green.

As is often the case with PS products, they have been chosen as particularly understated, easy-to-wear styles. 

The pink is the same as that used in the plain-pink PS Oxford, but subtler with its alternating white. The green is a pale mint, and could even be mistaken for light blue or grey until the viewer gets a little closer. 

I find them fresh, Spring-y options good with both tailoring and denim. 

Before going into colour combinations, however, I should remind new readers of how the PS Oxford fabric is different to any other - as we’ve had a few questions about that in recent months. 

The PS fabric was developed to replicate the feel of classic-Ivy oxford shirts: a little heavier, a little slubbier, wearing in and getting softer with every wash. 

This is what an oxford button down used to be, back when they were seen as sports wear - very different to the fine, dressy oxfords brands now offer and which dominate swatch books for bespoke. 

PS Oxford cloth uses a 2/90 yarn in the weft, which is pretty fine, but a thicker 1/10 in the warp. This creates variation in the texture, and is why it softens as it's worn. 

This is different to, say, Mercer & Sons oxfords, which are still two ply both ways. And to the American Oxford cloth offered by Thomas Mason - both good cloths, but using finer yarn. 

PS Oxford fabric was developed initially as just cut lengths, for readers to use for bespoke, but later made into shirts too. It is exclusive to Permanent Style. Full details here.

So, back to the colours. 

I don’t think pink will be an issue for most PS readers. Even those that brought up associations on Manish’s recent article might find it a safe choice. As Manish spelt out, a washed-out pink like this is great with navy and grey, black and blue, green and brown. In a pale version like this, it’s up there among the most versatile shirt colours. 

Green is instinctively harder. I doubt many readers own a green dress shirt, despite Miles Davis’s very effective marketing on the cover of Milestones. 

However, a green and white stripe is much easier, and as I’ve played with it over the past few months, I’ve found I like it with almost as many colours as pink. 

The important thing is that it goes with your basics: denim, as shown here, plus navy and grey. Use it to add interest under a navy jacket, especially without neckwear, or wear it with a grey suit and a brown-striped club tie. 

A pale green is also great with dark brown - like the Rubato chinos for example, or my WW Chan tweed jacket. And it works with beige, looking especially fresh in that combination. 

In the images here, I’m wearing the pink stripe with a new jacket from Sartoria Ciardi - pale-grey herringbone cashmere, Holland & Sherry 11oz (9219011), dark-brown high-twist trousers from Paolo Martorano (Drapers Ascot 18056) and Piccadilly loafers from Edward Green (black Utah leather). 

The green stripe is shown with a pair of seventies vintage 501s, Alden snuff-suede LHS loafers, and sunglasses from Connolly. The cardigan is a new colour of the PS Indulgent Shawl, a dark brown, which will be available this Autumn. 

Below is a close-up of that dark brown with the green, and of it with a navy coat (my Ettore de Cesare). 

With all of these, the stripe is a nice way to add interest to an outfit that otherwise has few accessories - no tie, no pocket handkerchief. 

Here are a few other points on the oxfords, to try and anticipate questions.

On these new shirts:

  • The cloth is available in 2m cut lengths, as well as the finished shirts
  • The white in the stripe is white, not cream, unlike the blue striped PS Oxford
  • A quick restock has been planned for, so if any size is sold out, do add yourself to the waiting list and you won't have to wait long

On the other shirts:

  • The white oxford shirts and cloth will be available early next month. The blue stripe and plain blue are being woven and will take a week or two longer 
  • The yellow and the pink won’t immediately be restocked, as the new stripes are taking their place for the moment
  • As with all the oxfords, there is a little shrinkage, about 2-3%, and the shirts are cut a little larger to account for this
  • The Lighter Everyday Denim fabric is also back in stock
  • All other information about the shirts and cloth should be on their respective product pages. If they’re not, do leave a question below or email the support team ([email protected])

Finally, a little green-shirt inspiration to show how well it can go with browns, beige, yellow and navy. 

RM Williams Craftsman boots: Review

Posted on by Simon Crompton

RM Williams Craftsman boots: Review

Friday, March 24th 2023Tags:
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Over the past few months I’ve been trying out a pair of RM Williams boots, driven by the fact I know so many people who swear by them, and because it’s nice to celebrate a craft company in a different part of the world such as Australia.

I’ve found them (the Comfort Craftsman) just as comfortable as everyone said, and liked the style more than I thought I would. I would never normally wear a square-toed boot, but the shape is very subtle, and actually more elegant than the round-toed options.

The quality of the boot, however, is not really on a par with the other makers we cover. There are plastic heel and toe stiffeners, a fibreglass shank, and the other materials are not the same quality as, for example, Crockett & Jones. 

The fact the boots have no seam on the side is part of their lore: it was something the founder introduced to reduce irritation on the foot. But of course, the reason high-end boots have seams is that they’re using smaller skins than RM Williams - it’s much easier not to have seams when you’re working with a yearling animal or older. Plus I’ve never found those seams irritating on my other boots. 

Still, I can certainly see the appeal of RM Williams now, and their attitude to repair and care is admirable. They have become more expensive in recent years, but price relative price heavily depends on where you are in the world - a comparative UK or US maker is much more expensive outside those countries.

The boot I tried was the Comfort Craftsman in dark-brown suede. It was a UK size 9, which is pretty much my regular boot size, and an Australian G width, which seemed comparable to the E I normally wear in the UK, though it’s meant to be a little narrower. 

Most UK stockists such as Trunk have the G width, though RMW itself also offers a wider, H width. Kudos to RMW for offering two widths in the UK as standard, and a big range of sizes at least in Australia.

I chose dark-brown suede because it’s the material I find the most versatile, but you’ll also notice quality difference less in suede, usually, than in leather. Certainly something like the yearling-leather RMW boot will not take polish or ever look as fine as a Northampton equivalent. 

Of course, most people wearing RMW boots do not want to be as dressy as that fine, polished calf, but I’d still prefer the suede or perhaps even pull-up leather to the RMW yearling (below). Northampton shoes have probably spoilt me in that regard. 

RM Williams boots are known for their comfort, and particularly the Comfort Craftsman with its padded insole. I can vouch for that, and that they required no breaking in. 

It’s not the natural-feeling softness you’d have with a top-end calf leather lining, or the kind of support that would come from a last that gave you really good arch support (like the Alden modified last, on me) given it’s foam padding, but it’s still effective. 

With a suede boot it’s these kinds of places where you notice the difference in quality of materials - and that goes for the rubber soles too, which are relatively thick and cumbersome. 

I should emphasise again that when I say ‘relative’ I mean relative to the average brands we feature on PS, which are perhaps best typified by Crocketts in the UK and Alden in the US. So if that’s the benchmark, how does RM Williams compare on price? 

RMW has certainly got more expensive since it was acquired by LVMH in 2016 (it’s currently owned by the Tattarang investment group). A pair of these boots in the UK will cost you £430, and Crocketts seems like a better buy (all else being equal) at £470 for its Chelsea 8 (below). 

But, in Australia the Comfort Craftsman is A$649 (£355) and Crocketts are A$1295 (£710), which definitely pushes things in RM Williams’s favour. 

In the end - like those that buy Alden in the UK - price and value aren’t the top priority for UK customers of RM Williams.

They buy for the look, because they like the brand, and because there is no obvious equivalent. The square-toed Craftsman really is surprisingly elegant for a casual boot, while the Gardener looks really nice for a very hard-wearing, round-toed, weather-proof boot. 

RM Williams boots also last a long time because they have a good line in repairs. They reheel and resole as a matter of course, and will also replace the lining, tugs and elastic gussets - everything save the upper. 

The factory in Adelaide usually does this work, although when I spoke to the team late last year, they were training a group to do resoles and reheels in the UK. The shipping cost to Adelaide and lead time (about three months) was becoming inefficient otherwise. 

I really liked my boots, even though I wouldn’t actually wear them - and will find a good home among friends for my pair. 

Thing is, for a suede boot I’d always go to a Northampton maker; even for a waxed boot my Govan from Edward Green are much nicer (and much more expensive). I’d wear Alden for a casual style, Viberg for a real workboot, even a roper boot for the style. RM Williams just doesn’t fill a gap I have in terms of style and value. 

However, I’m glad I’ve tried the Craftsman for a good while, and understand the appeal. 

I’ve got inside the head of the friend who wears a Gardener every day with wide-legged chinos, and  the other who wears his Craftsman with his skinny jeans every single day to work. I shall try and convince my brother (who lives in Australia) that he should get a pair, because they will be good value and perfectly suit his lifestyle. 

I’d recommend them to many people - just not myself. 

Clothes shown: PS Reversible Suede jacket, Real McCoy's sweatshirt, Rubato jeans, PS watch cap

Celebrating local dress: My travels and Afghan Style

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Celebrating local dress: My travels and Afghan Style

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Wednesday, March 22nd 2023Tags:
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During the launch of Robert Spangle's book Afghan Style recently in London, I had a chance to catch up with Rob about what he found so inspirational about dress in Afghanistan. 

He mentioned the silhouettes, the texture of different local materials and colour variation - how expressive each seemed, within often fairly limited styles. 

It brought back memories of my own travels in northern Pakistan and western China, both close neighbours of areas Rob had been. I backpacked a lot in my twenties, and one particularly memorable trip took me from Beijing to Islamabad, travelling by land across the north of China via Urumqi, then down into Pakistan over the Karakoram. 

I travelled with my father, and remember it fondly. It's easily the longest time the two of us have spent together on our own. But my strongest memories are of the people we met, who were unfailingly friendly and hospitable, particularly in Pakistan. 

Looking back on it now, they were also well dressed - expressively and individually. 

Unlike many people working in menswear, I have no good 'origin story'. It is a disappointment to every interviewer. 

I wasn't inspired by a father or grandfather. I didn't insist on wearing a three-piece suit to school. I didn't care about clothes until suits were a requirement of working in an office. 

So travelling around Asia back then, the clothes largely passed me by. We would see Pakistani men all wearing their own interpretations of the shalwar kameez, in different shades, with different accessories, with or without a rolled pakol cap, and it would be no more interesting to me than the landscape or architecture. 

Looking back on some of my photos though (above and below), I was clearly struck at some level by the colours in the clothing.

Children were always the brightest and most varied. Families couldn’t afford embroidered or printed fabrics, but they could dye them bold colours - reds, yellows and greens. 

Among the stone houses and dun-coloured hills, these blocks of colour stood out like gems. 

Men were more traditionally and plainly dressed in the north of Pakistan, where most of these photos were taken, than down in Islamabad or Rawalpindi. But I loved the tonal combinations - a dirty cream shalwar kameez, a dark-brown woollen waistcoat, an earth-coloured pakol. They were earthy, practical and cool. 

That’s one very gentleman below, arguing with my father about something or other. I think those loose woollen waistcoats must have stayed in my subconscious somewhere, because I immediately thought of them when I wrote about a Connolly cardigan here last year. 

I don’t think it’s too much of a stretch to see inspiration from these kinds of clothing in brands we know and love, particularly given how influenced I know Agyesh at Stoffa is by India, and Adam at Adret also is by his travels. 

The other colour that comes back to me strongly is that worn by the monks at Labrang in China. 

Although theoretically dressed in a uniform of maroon with occasional punch of a yellow hat, in practice the robes varied between individuals, perhaps due to different dyes and ages of the garments. 

The result was that you saw every shade of red, purple and pink, often mixed together in the same outfit: red robes, purple cloak, pink sash. Again, although clothes were not the obsession they are for me now, I liked these colours enough to buy my own asymmetric jacket in a rough local wool. 

The point I would take from this (and one of the many I take from Rob’s book) is that it’s easy to focus on the compact swirl of international fashion - packaged for us by the echo chamber of social media - at the expense of rich local traditions. 

I always want more writing in books like Afghan Style. I’m just quite a literary, word-driven person. But Rob does include some nice observations, such as the way modern additions to traditional clothing in Afghanistan indicate a person’s age or allegiances. 

A tailored jacket dates a man to the Russian occupation, when such western clothing was first introduced. A military jacket, or more likely vest, suggests an involvement with the Taliban and more recent conflicts. The adoption of a particular striped chapan shows the influence of ex-President Hamid Karzai (eg below). 

I find this fascinating, and it makes me want to pick up similar regional nuances - perhaps comparing older men in different European cities, or spotting the appearances of traditional clothing in Japan, where I’ll be travelling soon.

Afghan Style (shots above and below) is a great insight into that, and I’d certainly recommend it. 

The photography is great - many leagues, of course, above my blurry snaps - but the real fascination for me is the people Rob picked, why he did so, and thinking about that by either analysing the image or reading the captions. 

I like, too, the fact that Rob divides the book up into sections entitled texture, silhouette and colour - even when he’s shooting villagers in a remote corner of Afghanistan, he’s always thinking menswear. 

Afghan Style is available online from www.ObserverCollection.com for the US/worldwide, and www.editionsodyssee.com in the EU

It is also available in the following stores:

  • Trunk (UK)
  • Picto La Comete
  • Actes Sud (Arles)
  • La Nouvelle Chambre Claire (Paris)
  • Filigranes (Paris)
  • 7l Settelile (Paris)
  • La Pharmacie des Ames (Paris)
  • Mendo (Amsterdam)

There's a nice interview with Rob about the book on Agnes Select here

Tonal layering with black jeans: Comfy, drapey, easy

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Tonal layering with black jeans: Comfy, drapey, easy

Monday, March 20th 2023Tags:
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This outfit I wore last week really tickled me - I think primarily for its combination of T-shirt and tailoring. 

Working the two together in some way (as in this, perhaps Summer equivalent) is often an effective way to achieve the ‘casual chic’ style we’ve talked about in the past.

It’s also a style I think a lot of guys can explore that want to dress up in an office where no one wears tailoring, and it’s one of three styles that I find now define how I dress: tailoring for smarter occasions, casual chic for the middle, jeans/Ivy for the weekend. 

The last context is our idea of a ‘cold colour’ or muted, tonal wardrobe. This outfit adds two suggestions: the idea that black jeans can work well - in much the way as white jeans - and the effectiveness of taupe alongside black.

OK, let’s try and put that casual-chic idea a different way - a more emotional one.

The outfit just felt great. It felt relaxed, but elegant. It looks dressed up, but incredibly easy to wear, to live and work in. 

You’re basically just wearing a T-shirt and jeans, with easy loafers. There’s a cardigan around the shoulders that’s as comfortable as a dressing gown (well, maybe one of those short smoking-jacket ones), and then an outer layer draped over the top. It’s all soft and flowy. 

You could wrap yourself up simply if it gets cold, by buttoning the coat and popping the collar. Or you could fasten the cardigan and flip its collar too, to coddle the neck. There are no scarves, gloves or other accessories. It’s so clean. 

Of course, much of the pleasure of menswear is in accessories. I’m not dissing accessories. However, there is something very lovely about carrying the bare minimum - particularly when I have, perhaps, humped two bags of clothes into town the previous day. 

Ok, let’s get back to some details. How is it executed? 

A reader in our recent Awards recommended a video series by womenswear stylist Alyssa Beltempo. I’ve been watching a few and love how much women analyse clothes. Men often say women look effortlessly stylish, but there’s usually a lot going on below the surface. Like a swan. 

Let’s try and break down these details using some of her keywords.

  • Colour
    • Our cold, tonal wardrobe hinges on using muted colours alongside the greyscale (black, grey, white). So the white tee and black jeans really benefit from the colour of the taupe coat and of the cordovan loafers.
    • The shade of those colours is crucial; a warmer, yellower taupe or a stronger, richer burgundy would kill it. 
  • Proportion, silhouette
    • The fact the T-shirt is tucked in is key: if it was tucked out, the style would be much more slouchy. It also slices the outfit in two - a top and a bottom - and emphasises the waist.
    • The belt accentuates that, creating a focal point and some visual interest.
    • The proportions are well balanced. The jeans are not skinny, but neither are they vintage big-boy chinos. It matches the coat, which is roomy but not oversized.
  • Mood
    • Those womenswear stylists use terms like ‘playful’ and ‘sexy’. Men are usually more comfortable with plainer language: subtle, smart. But often we're trying to describe the same thing: how the outfit feels to the person wearing it and to people seeing it. 
    • To me, this feels relaxed because the clothes are relaxed and draped. Even when the coat is buttoned, there's volume in the chest and in the back. 
    • They feel relaxed because they feel comfortable: they’re largely soft, textured fabrics. 
    • And the textures and the colours are subdued; nothing is hard or bright or shiny.

That was nice. I felt relaxed just writing it. 

Other noteworthy things: the collar being down, something we’ve touched in recent articles. Great as a popped collar is, with a scarf or shawl running underneath I also love the clean look of it down. 

We all know how flattering shawl-collar cardigans can be, and how much they enhance a T-shirt. Their usual downside is they’re bulky under outerwear - a relatively fine one like this is a nice way to wear it more widely.

And then there are the black jeans: from Bryceland’s, reviewed last week. Although not the dark grey of most washed black denim, I’m finding them surprisingly versatile. Specifically:

  • They work with black shoes, brown-suede ones and color-8 cordovan. That’s as versatile as most trousers. Other blacks, such as cord or linen, can struggle with brown suede
  • On top they’re great with tonal colours (white, cream, grey), with muted/dark ones (taupe, beige, dark olive, dark brown), with pale pinks and yellows, and OK with navy. Again a wide range
  • Despite the popularity of black jeans among women, they remain relatively unusual on men. So they're a nice alternative to indigo or mid-blue, and not as stark as white.

Below is the outfit from the jeans review. With both of them, I find it enormously satisfying that they’re simple yet look (to me) elegant and distinctive. 

With this non-coat outfit my attention goes to the balance between the fit of the jeans - slim but comfortable, a flattering rise - the fit of the Rubato knit - shorter, bigger, tapered - and the little touches of colour that stop it all being monochrome - the colour 8 loafer, rather than black, the navy bandana.  

Here’s hoping my feelings have come across clearly and accurately. I’ve certainly taken enough different swings at it. 

Clothes details:

  • Bryceland’s 933 black jeans, size 32
  • Alden full-strap loafers in color-8 cordovan, Aberdeen last
  • PS Tapered Tee, large
  • Anderson & Sheppard lambswool/cashmere cardigan, large (44)
  • Rubato lambswool sweater (old size large)
  • Rubato black alligator belt with brass buckle
  • JLC Reverso watch in yellow gold, with black alligator strap
  • Hermes navy silk bandana
  • Sartoria Ciardi bespoke overcoat in Holland & Sherry ‘British Warm’ cloth

Photography: Jamie Ferguson

Rifugio’s old villa

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Rifugio’s old villa

Friday, March 17th 2023Tags:
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On a surprisingly warm, sunny day last January we visited the Art Deco villa that is Alfredo Rifugio's headquarters in Naples.

It’s not what you expect for an Italian workshop. While there are lots of beautiful little tailors and cordwainers around Italy, most large ateliers and factories are relatively new, in industrial estates or otherwise highly functional.

They’re more like Paolo Scafora or Enzo Bonafé, or the Kiton complex not far away from here: post-war establishments without the centuries-old buildings that are more common in the UK.

It seemed like Rifugio was going to be similar, as we approached along a motorway offshoot, past Pompeii and then stopping outside a newsagent to examine Google Maps.

Shirtmaker Luca Avitabile was driving us, which was nice of him, and he peered at his phone as he tried to find the entrance. It was down a cobbled side street, apparently, between low brick walls hung with foliage.

The reason for the unusual location is that the Rifugio headquarters is actually an old villa - two people unconnected with the company still live there in apartments. 

Surrounded by tall palms, it has a fountain, a small garden and murals. Seagulls from the Mediterranean wheel overhead. 

The location was chosen partly for its convenience: Alfredo Rifugio lives five minutes in one direction, Alfonso Rifugio five in the other. The rest of the company has gradually filled it up over time. 

That team is still relatively small though: 25 employees, five of which are members of the family. 

There is a cutting room, a sewing room, a storage room and a showroom, plus a couple of offices. The sewing room is largest, with perhaps a dozen work stations, but everything else feels very residential in scale.  

This is perhaps surprising, given Rifugio’s reputation. They’re probably the biggest name for luxury leather and suede in the south of Italy, and even though leather is a small industry here compared to the north, they do make for many luxury brands. 

That said, not as many as they used to. Not because the company has shrunk, but because - like many manufacturers we’ve covered in the past 15 years - it's switched business model. 

A few years before Covid, all Rifugio did was white label work, making jackets for others to put their name on. There’s still some of that, but it’s a tiny proportion - we only saw one other brand on our tour. 

For consumers like you, the nice thing is this creates a direct connection between the workshop - as described and illustrated here - and the Rifugio product, whether at stockists or during a trunk show. There’s a clear link between maker and customer.

There’s a list of current stockists at the bottom of this article, by the way, as on our original article on Rifugio in 2019 (which includes more background on the company). Rifugio are about to re-start MTM trunk shows under their name too. 

I often get questions from readers asking to compare the quality of leather-jacket makers: Rifugio for example with Cromford, The Real McCoy’s or Chapal. 

I understand where this is coming from, but it’s a little like comparing a bespoke blazer with a melton pea coat: the biggest difference between those two is type and style, not quality. 

The Real McCoy’s and Seraphin in Paris, for example, make very different types of jacket, with very different leathers. Someone like Cromford sits in the middle, pushing to neither the extremes of hardiness or lightweight luxury. 

Rifugio is firmly at the light, luxury end of the spectrum. The suedes are the softest and lightest you can buy; the shearlings feel just as soft. These are not jackets built for any kind of hard wear, but they're beautiful and more than a little luxe. 

Exhibit A: the riotously orange suede shown above; you’re not going to see that anywhere near Cromford or Real McCoy’s.

Exhibit B: the visible pick stitching on the edges and seams of Rifugio jackets, which I have to say I like only when it’s subtle. 

And last, Exhibit C: my guilty pleasure, the thing I would never wear but secretly long to be the kind of person, in the kind of place, that would: matte-finish alligator. 

My God that jacket was beautiful. The textural variation in the different sizes and types of the scales; the enveloping warmth of the beaver lining, like your upper body has been wrapped in its own radiator-cum-cocoon. But I’d never wear it, and I’d likely be mugged anywhere outside of Mayfair if I did. 

On the subject of hand finishing (from a couple of paragraphs ago), I didn’t realise how much of the internal parts of a Rifugio jacket are also put together by hand: attaching the sleeve, sewing the lining of the armhole and the cuff. 

This is impressive given it’s so hidden - the opposite of the pick stitching. It’s the kind of handwork you get on a top-level ready-made suit, like hand-attaching a collar.

Among other models, Rifugio do some nice blazers, though mostly in the short/slim style of contemporary Naples; the take on a Harrington was extraordinarily light. And there was a gorgeous white calf. Incredibly impractical, but then there is history to white leather at Rifugio: they once made a piece on request for Pope John Paul II. He used it for skiing and hiking.

Main stockists are listed below, most of whom also offer MTM. Rifugio will be restarting their own trunk shows for MTM this year, in London, New York, Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo and Geneva, with jackets starting at €2800. You can see ready-made prices on alfredorifugio.com

  • Michael Jondral - Hannover
  • Oger - Amsterdam/Rotterdam/The Hague
  • Just One - Madrid
  • L’Officine - Paris
  • Dantendorfer - Wien/Innsbruck/Salzburg
  • Lutz - Vinkeveen
  • Sobs - Koln
  • HS Fashion - Eindhoven
  • Sovrano - Dusseldorf
  • De Filippo Uomo - Koblenz
  • Joris Lammers - Hertogenbosch
  • Hartung - Copenaghen
  • Schito Store - Zurich
  • Montulet - Maastricht
  • Degand - Bruxelles
  • Runggaldier - Merano
  • Donati - Perugia
  • Guarini - Pescara
  • Direct Tailoring - Bruxelles
  • Cellini Signature - Doha
  • Mario Zell - Baghdad
  • Medallion - Beijin/Shanghai
  • Isetan Men - Tokyo
  • Mitsukoshi - Tokyo
  • Takashimaya - Tokyo/Osaka
  • Wako - Tokyo
  • Marco Cimmino - Palm Beach
  • Sartoria Pardi - Mexico City
  • Solito -Mexico City
  • Senator - Tajikistan

Bryceland’s black unsanforised jeans: Review

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Bryceland’s black unsanforised jeans: Review

Wednesday, March 15th 2023Tags:
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These are the first jeans I've had from Bryceland's, and I've been absolutely loving them - for the fit, the colour and the denim. 

But I was a little nervous about buying them, as I'd never had unsanforised denim before. Given I know this will be a concern of readers, and it's where my journey started, let's deal with that issue first. 

Unsanforised denim will usually shrink more than sanforised, but also mould and shape to your body more. Most raw denim is sanforised to some extent, and doesn’t shrink as much.

The fear, of course, is that you buy the wrong size, it shrinks a bit more or less than you expect, and you end up with jeans you don't like. 

Brycelands try to help in two ways - by listing the jean measurements before and after a first wash, and by selling jeans that have already been washed. So you can buy them with the shrink taken out, or indeed try a washed pair and then buy the unsanforised, knowing how they'll shrink.  

This is what I did, and found the process pretty straightforward. 

I noted the measurements on the website, and thought I'd be a 32 or a 33. I then tried on washed pairs in the store and found the 32 a little big snug, the 33 a little bit loose. 

Going off the team's advice, that the denim would stretch to fit, I took the 32 and they have proved to be perfect.

They were a little tight when first washed, but within half a hour of wearing had grown out to the size they needed to be. And of course this is the point of unsanforised denim: 'shrink to fit' means not just that it will shrink down, but that it will also then stretch again if required. 

After three washes, my jeans now measure 83cm on the waist, which is closer to a washed 33 than a 32 on the Brycelands measurements. They have effectively grown a half inch where they needed it.  

Unsanforised denim, like raw denim, has this advantage of fitting to you, fades more, and usually has a more characterful, hand-woven feel (the sanforising process can flatten out some of that character).

But there's no point having any of those things if they aren't ones you'll appreciate. If they're not, just get a washed pair. (When I say appreciate, by the way, I don't mean enjoying telling other people about them - that doesn't count.)

Elsewhere, the jeans are also a great fit. The rise is fairly high without being up around the natural waist - we could call it a high mid-rise - and bigger in the back than the front. 

It’s generous through the hips, noticeably curving around them before tapering through the legs - unlike most old 501s, which are very straight through there (my only fit issue I have with vintage ones). 

The leg line is then slim, but not as much as I thought it would be. The chart says a 20.1cm hem, I measure mine at 20.8 (there will always be small differences) and most of my dress trousers have a 20cm hem. That taper through from the knee also makes them look more generous elsewhere. 

It’s the same fit in the top half, by the way, as the first Bryceland’s jeans, the indigo 133; it just tapers more. They are working on an indigo jean in this cut, but it won’t be ready until the Autumn. 

The other significant thing about the Bryceland’s black denim is that it has black yarn in the warp and the weft, where most mainstream jeans use white and black.

The effect is that the jeans are very black - blacker than the jeans you’re used to seeing from mainstream brands, which are virtually mid-grey after they’ve been washed. 

They will fade, and mine have already done so after three washes, as you can see from the close-up images. They will also eventually turn a mid-grey, as shown on the Bryceland’s site. But it will take a lot longer, so for a good while they will be more like the colour of mine. 

I like this colour, and in fact I’ve found them the easiest thing to wear of all the black pieces I’ve added to my wardrobe. But they are not the grey jeans many people want when they say black, and won’t work in the same way. I particularly like how friends wear navy with their black jeans, for example - almost like a denim version of grey flannel - and these jeans won’t give that look. 

On the subject of colour, Ethan would not wash these jeans as quickly and as frequently as I have (or indeed as Kenji has). 

Doing so gives up a fair bit of the personal fading that comes with wearing denim from raw - the whiskering, the honeycombing. But while I’m happy to give that time with an indigo jean, I just found the raw black too dark to enjoy wearing, so wasn’t going to get them to that state. 

From that point of view, there was less point me buying the unwashed version, but I have also enjoyed how the denim has adapted. (Plus it’s a useful thing to try out for all those unsure PS readers.)

The jeans can be hemmed in store, by the way, as Ben now has the chainstitch machine fully up and running. 

Clothes shown:

Read more about advice on wearing and washing raw denim here. 

To whisper with your clothes – or why I’m fascinated by old Italian industrialists

Posted on by Simon Crompton

To whisper with your clothes – or why I’m fascinated by old Italian industrialists

Monday, March 13th 2023Tags:
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By Andreas Weinas

This headline might be one of the more confusing ones to have appeared on Permanent Style, but bear with me. Simon reached out to me at the beginning of the year, asking if I wanted to do a piece on PS about something I found particularly interesting at the moment.

I wanted to reflect on the subject, so I took a few days during my winter holiday and decided a certain counter-reaction strikes me as the most inspiring thing in menswear going into 2023.

After Covid I think we can all agree that formality has declined, in both the workplace and most of our personal life. Some fear the tie is near extinction and the jet set playboy of 2023 is wearing nothing but Brunello Cucinelli sweatpants, rather than Caraceni suits. Then there’s the celebrity influence, where the red carpet seems to be the most extreme it's ever been. In some ways the only options seem to be to scream with your outfit or give up completely.

Don’t get me wrong, this is not a conservative rant, blindly arguing for more formal dressing and the resurrection of the tie; the trends have been positive too.

In many ways, these movements have opened up the potential for more personality and creativity, certainly compared to the more restrictive nature of dressing by the ‘rules’ I encountered when I started writing about menswear 15 years ago. I constantly find inspiration in the likes of Ethan Newton or my friend Milad Abedi, both excellent examples of personal style that is aware of, but not restricted by the concept of rules.

My own style is no exception. I experiment with my tailored clothing more frequently these days, making use of knitwear or eccentric accessories rather than the more traditional shirt and tie game. A mint-green knit or even jacket, for example, a heavy western shirt under a jacket, or tonal looks like an all-black outfit.

However, in the past couple of months I've noticed a shift in what gets me going. I've been obsessing over vintage double-breasted suits and jackets from Polo (or Purple Label) Ralph Lauren (with more structure and fullness than any of my existing suits), my ties are back in rotation, and I don’t feel restricted by dressing up anymore.

It was during research on a certain Italian style icon (he may or may not have worn his watch on the outside of his shirt) that I realised how much I enjoy the subtle style of the old industrialists. Despite the formality of their suits, they always had that casual air that everyone seems to crave these days.

They’d wear a grey flannel suit and a light blue button-down shirt; if they wore a tie it would be a wool or cashmere, always a matte finish; and the shoes were most likely brown suede. Men like Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, Matteo Marzotto, Franco Minucci and perhaps more than anyone, the late Sergio Loro Piana (below).

You may well say “people wear this type of clothing all the time, what makes their suits so special?”. I think it’s all in the details. The choice of quality Goodyear-welted shoes over cemented faux-leather options, for example. The attention to fit and comfort you get in a properly constructed jacket, rather than the fused suit jackets worn with slim jeans that dominate the workspace here in Stockholm.

I think another aspect of the traditional industrialist’s elegance is the transition between formal and casual.

In almost every casual outfit, there would be a contrast in formality. The polo shirts were paired with sports coats, for example, the chunky roll necks were worn with sleek loafers, and even the jeans were a fuller cut that could compliment a cashmere or linen jacket. And perhaps most importantly, every garment looks like it’s been a treasured piece in the wardrobe for the better part of a decade.

I think a similar philosophy can be applied to the formal suits. Whether the suits were cut in London, Milan, Florence or Naples, they always had a sense of ease.

I remember the first time I was introduced to the term ‘Stile Inglese’ - Italian interpretation of classic British style - and realised how well the two sartorial concepts can be combined. Heavier British flannels like Fox Brothers in a softer Italian construction, for example, combined with OCBD shirts, single cuffs and suede loafers - rather than collar stays, French cuffs and black oxfords.

I’ll give you a few examples of modern men that I think are doing this in their style today. Jake Grantham (above, top), who I don’t think I've ever seen wear shiny shoes, combines elegant and natural colours, often in matte textures, without ever looking dull or boring.

Another is Dag Granath of Saman Amel (above, bottom). Most readers are probably aware of Dag's attention to detail from Saman Amel communications and look books, but Dag's personal style is even more stripped down: jeans, cordovan loafers, a navy jacket and a crisp shirt; it reminds me of how designers used to dress in the past.

A third example is Auro Montanari (above and below), or John Goldberger as many will know him from the watch community. Auro is an older gentleman but dresses with the same playful elegance as these other modern men. His bespoke sports coats are often worn with western shirts, soft slippers and a casual scarf, but then of course some of the finest vintage Cartier watches the world has ever seen.

With all these gentlemen, old and new, the best way I can describe the feeling they give me is that they whisper with their clothing. And like ASMR it gives me the chills. In a good way.

The next talk with Rubato, and pop-up shop updates

Posted on by Simon Crompton

The next talk with Rubato, and pop-up shop updates

Friday, March 10th 2023Tags:
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I’m pleased to say that the next in our series of talks at Mortimer House will be with Oliver and Carl from Rubato, on March 31st.

These events have a really nice atmosphere, with everyone milling around, browsing the products and chatting to the speaker(s) and each other. Then we normally hang around for a afterwards couple of beers as well, often picking up on topics from the talk. 

I’m sure readers will be interested to hear about how and why Oliver and Carl founded Rubato, but they’re also very thoughtful about style in general - some of the most interesting discussions I’ve had recently have been with them over dinner, about the links between art and style, or modern trends around comfort and simplicity. 

As per usual, the event will start at 6:30pm, with the talk itself beginning at 7pm. Please RSVP to [email protected] if you would like to attend - it’s essential so we have names on the door. 

That talk will be on the Friday of our pop-up on Savile Row - the week when Permanent Style will be there with its products, alongside Rubato. 

As a result we won’t do an opening party for the pop-up (two parties in three days seems a little emuch!) But we will be doing some more events in the coming months, so there’ll be no lack of opportunities to socialise. Details soon.

There are also some updates on the pop-up. The dates, first, to confirm are:

  • Fox (next week): 13-18 March, Monday to Saturday (opening times on their site)
  • Marrkt and Abbots: 23-25 March, Thursday to Saturday
  • Permanent Style and Rubato: 29 March-April 1, Wednesday to Saturday
  • L.E.J: April 17-May 13 (four weeks)

And the updates and details: 

  • Fox will be running a series of events during their week, as well as an archive sale throughout. They can all be seen in detail on the Merchant Fox website. Opening times vary there too.
  • Marrkt will have a small collection of my clothes again, alongside their pre-owned clothing, and I’ll be there on the Thursday for questions about them.
  • Abbots pre-owned shoes will be joining Marrkt for the duration, which brings in a good range of Goodyear-welted shoes, all refurbished for sale. Their site is here.
  • Rubato will have stock and try-ons: pretty much all things available to try-on, just not rollnecks; and stock in most things, just not always every size and every colour. They also have new launches: outerwear and a new colour of the officer’s chino (a nice paler khaki) plus the cardigans etc they just launched online
  • L.E.J have had to delay their pop-up dates so stock has time to arrive. So just note the opening is two weeks later, although the whole event is still running for four weeks. 

I think that’s it, though any questions please do ask. I've tried both the Rubato cardigans (below) and the new trouser colour if anyone has any questions about those.

Looking forward to seeing everybody.

Paolo Martorano bespoke hopsack jacket: Review

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Paolo Martorano bespoke hopsack jacket: Review

Wednesday, March 8th 2023Tags:
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This bespoke jacket was made for me by Paolo Martorano, the tailor in New York I first covered in 2020. 

It’s particularly significant because of the dearth of bespoke tailors in the US. Although many tailors travel to the US from the UK and Europe, and some now also have full-time bases in New York - Huntsman, Cad Thom Sweeney - for such a big country with many bespoke customers, there are surprisingly few tailors. To an extent it illustrates the importance to such crafts of tradition and a support network. 

There are some, such as Leonard Logsdail, and we’ve covered them in detail on an article here. The comments on that piece, by the way, are just as useful as the article itself. 

But homegrown tailors remain rare, and so I know American readers will be keen to know what I thought of Paolo’s work, now I was having something made.

The answer is that I think the fit and quality are very good. Certainly on a par with a lot of English tailors, and both more consistent and better finished than some of the cheaper options from, for example, Naples. 

We had three fittings in total (one in London, two in New York) and I think there’s a slight issue we need to work on next time in the closeness of the back and/or armhole. I’m not technical enough to know what the issue is - but I know how it feels and, more importantly, know enough to know what I don’t know. 

However, this is a small quibble. The jacket has beautiful, clearly bespoke shape, from the high and close-fitting collar, through the shape of the chest and into the waist and skirt. It is real bespoke (unlike some US offerings) and shows that in every part of the way it is executed. 

The material is a black, cashmere-mix hopsack. I have many things to say about this choice, but one that should be flagged early is it’s difficult to photograph. 

Put in direct light, it looks wrinkled where it isn’t; put in shadow, you can barely see the shape. Alex and I tried, and this is the best you’re going to get. As I always say though, the images are merely illustrative - there to illustrate written points - and any attempt to judge the fit purely from them is a fool’s errand. 

The other things I have to say about the cloth are more fun, less technical. 

The hopsack is beautiful, soft to the touch but without apparently sacrificing much of the sharpness of a regular hopsack. Paolo was wearing one when we met, and it convinced me to choose that over a regular navy merino. Unfortunately it was a vintage length and no other mill offers a cashmere-blend hopsack as far as I'm aware. 

The colour choice I’m less sure about. Of course, I’ve plunged headlong into black in recent years, and this does seem like a natural extension. But I have the feeling my black tweed might be easier to wear. 

Plus the navy mesh jacket I have from Ettore de Cesare does need to be replaced - it was my first piece from him and isn’t really a style I’d pick now, even if it wasn’t pretty tight. 

I went into colours I like with black jackets on that tweed article, so won’t go through them all again here, but some of them don’t work as well with the sharp hopsack - the browns and greens in more casual materials like corduroy, for example. 

Paolo, by the way, disagrees with me here and thinks black is just as versatile as navy, with the bonus of being less pedestrian. The latter might be driven the greater popularity of navy blazers in the US, compared to the UK; but the former is just a style difference: Paolo would wear this with dark jeans and with cords and chukkas, where I wouldn't.

But returning to Paolo (above). When we had our first fitting in London, I was a little concerned. 

The jacket was cut big, almost everywhere, with the intention to get the balance right and then take it in everywhere. I always emphasise that tailors operate in different ways and the only thing that matters is what works for them, but you’re always a little assured when the fit is close from the very start. 

Fortunately it all worked out, and when we met in New York you could see the jacket had that perfect balance - when you unbutton it, the two sides stay hanging close together (a matter of balance front and back as much as left and right). 

I should also say that Paolo made me a pair of trousers right after that first fitting, and they were superb. Actually, two - he wanted to show me his usual style, which is high rise, double pleated, wider in the leg and with a lapped side seam. 

Those fit well, but weren’t my style. They’ve gone to a good home, while the other pair - in a four-ply high-twist grey/brown from Drapers’ Ascot bunch - will be worn a lot this summer.  

The shape of the jacket is really lovely, which of course is partly driven by Paolo’s house style and partly by my preferences. 

The shoulder is wide, just off my natural shoulder point. There is padding, but only to square the shoulder, not to lift it - there is no padding at the neck, it’s gradually added as you move towards the sleevehead. 

The lapel is wide but not dramatically so (perhaps not noticeable even, to most people), with a little belly. The notch is set a little lower than most ready-made brands, but not to the point of being stylised; I like the fact the gorge points squarely at the shoulder, not the chest or the ears.

There is a little drape in the chest, as Paolo likes, but the fit through the back is quite close, again as Paolo likes. We let this out a little bit after our final fitting, but as I mentioned earlier on, it might need a little bit more.

It’s understandable that a bespoke tailor wants to cut a clean back. It looks so much nicer, especially when the jacket is going to be photographed and pored over in public. But really the style of a bespoke garment is in the shape of the back and chest, the gentle waist suppression and kick into the skirt. It’s not worth sacrificing comfort for that back to be a little closer to the skin. 

The finishing is of a very high standard. Fine buttonholes, lovely taste in the choice of buttons. Though I’m not sure I’d have a pen pocket next time, just because it makes the cut in the cloth through the inbreast pocket more obvious. 

Paolo, as with most people in New York, is not a cutter but works with a dedicated cutter and coatmaker, and I met the cutter during my second fitting - it’s lovely to see the gentle little arguments between people when they discuss the subtleties of bespoke. 

The cutter spent most of his career working with Rafael Raffaelli, and we talked about the influence of different traditions on New York tailoring - many of whom saw Savile Row as the zenith, but came from Italy and had their own traditions too. Many liked a particularly low, droopy gorge for instance. 

They all had to be versatile though, and this gentleman had also worked for Bill Fioravanti, who liked a shoulder that was very different to Raffaelli: “So padded! You could play [American] football in them!” in his words.

Paolo feels that there is a new American tradition to be forged here: something that is definitely not Neapolitan, but not Savile Row either, building on that Italian/New York look that the city's tailors became known for, but updated and refined.

Paolo has moved showrooms since our first visit, though still in the same building. It’s a nice, cosy apartment: you walk through a office hung with fittings (always check out the fittings for inspiration) into the fitting room. 

He’s also still accompanied by Tom Mastronardi, which is a bonus. Tom was with Paolo at Paul Stuart and has excellent taste - I don’t dress in the same style of tailoring as him, but would still always take his advice. Few tailors have someone good like that. 

I don’t think it’s likely I’ll be using Paolo a lot going forward, just because the location makes it inconvenient and he’s not offering something dramatically different to tailors in the UK. 

But then, that’s not what US readers want anyway. They’ll want a good, real bespoke tailor in the US that makes a suit that brings out the full potential of bespoke. And on this evidence, that’s what Paolo Martorano does. 

Cloth is a vintage Super 150s/cashmere hopsack from Standeven. From a current bunch, Paolo would use Drapers 'Jackets & Solaire' bunch for hopsack, though there is no cashmere blend.

Price was $5200 including VAT, which is the starting price for a jacket. Suits start at $7500, trousers $2200. 

Red Rabbit pin and black rayon scarf from Bryceland's. Cotton/linen shirt from D'Avino, grey flannel trousers from Whitcomb & Shaftesbury.

www.paolostyle.com. Below, Paolo with guitarist John Pizzarelli

Wearing pink: Tips and combinations

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Wearing pink: Tips and combinations

Monday, March 6th 2023Tags:
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By Manish Puri

“That was the day I learned how dangerous a color can be. That a boy could be knocked off that shade and made to reckon his trespass. Even if color is nothing but what the light reveals, that nothing has laws, and a boy on a pink bike must learn, above all else, the law of gravity.”

So writes Little Dog (the narrator of Ocean Vuong’s fantastic debut novel On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous) in a letter to his mother. Even without knowing the specifics of what happened that day, we get it. What lengths have we all gone to, and what expression have we denied ourselves, to avoid becoming the subject of playground taunts?

I didn’t wear pink growing up and so didn’t for most of my adult life – it’s that simple. And for what? To unwittingly preserve an arbitrary distinction that retailers use to flog more baby clothes? (“The more you individualize clothing, the more you can sell,” says Jo B. Paoletti, author of Pink and Blue: Telling the Girls From the Boys in America).

It wasn’t always this way. Pink has long been a colour sported by the fashionable male; considered to be a shade of red, it shared that colour’s association with power, war and wealth (importing cochineal dye from Mexico in the 16th century wasn’t cheap). It’s only in the latter half of the 20th century that pink and femininity have become intertwined.

I’d like to use this article to help redress that balance slightly, because, worn well, pink is a terrific addition to any man’s wardrobe - it’s fun, flattering and exudes confidence. We’ll look at colour combinations that I think are particularly good, and check out some examples of pink tailoring.

When wearing pink, I think it’s also instructive to consider Simon’s article on subtle vs showy. Because pink is often bright, bold, and distinct, and frequently works best with high contrast looks, it can position an outfit towards the showier end of the spectrum. But I’ll talk about ways we soften that, and look in detail at a subtler shade of pink that is one of my absolute favourite colours.

My hope is that this article inspires readers to embrace pink, and help them to escape those childhood fears.

Pink and white

Whenever I’m uncertain as to how to best incorporate a new, unusual, or strong colour into my wardrobe I start by pairing it with neutrals: white, black, and grey.

We’ll look at each of these in turn, starting with white, which contrasts brilliantly with those pinks that are light, bright, and sugary. Pinks that remind you of candy floss, strawberry lemonade, and Hubba Bubba.

Both Jason Jules and I have paired sherbet-y jumpers with white/off-white denim above, while Kenji Cheung (shown top) has opted for smart trousers, in keeping with his tailored jacket. This is a super fresh and crisp combination, but it does shift the focus onto the pink garment.

The contrast between the two colours doesn’t have to be quite so stark; a soft pink (which is often a little easier to wear) can sit perfectly with a milky knitted polo, a tan, and Gwyneth Paltrow.

Inspired by the above, may I also proffer the swim short as a gentle entrée to wearing pink, because, with all due respect, when you or I spend a day at the beach ain’t nobody there to check out our trunks.

This knowledge should empower even the most conservative of town-and-country dressers to throw caution to the sea-breeze; if nobody bats an eyelid at psychedelic Bermuda shorts, animal prints or a brand name emblazoned across the crotch, then a gentle pink is unlikely to cause a stir.

Pink and black

In recent years, Simon has written more and more about black as it returns from its menswear exile. Above, Scott Fraser shows how black and pink can form the chicest of unions. The key is that the trousers are paler than the two jumpers above. Were they not, I suspect the pairing would be much more lurid.

Considering Scott’s outfit alongside Austin Butler’s Elvis (below) also helps to illuminate something of a Russian Doll concept - the spectrum within a spectrum.

Both looks are identical in their use of colour (pale pink and black with accents of white), and both have a certain Rockabilly flair. But Scott’s clothes have no pattern, no silky textures, harmony between the upper and lower proportions, and a clear colour-blocked structure. Next to Elvis, Scott’s notionally showy ensemble appears positively subtle.

It’s these careful distinctions that separate an outfit I would wear in a second, from one I would wear for a second.

Pink and grey

Simon has written tirelessly about the versatility of grey trousers - heck, his article on a five trouser wardrobe had as many as four pairs of grey in there! In a sense, grey trousers are like me in the local pub at 10:30pm: happy to make friends with just about anyone.

Here grey offers a lovely balance to the pink. New York label Stoffa excels in tonal and tone-matching outfits and the two images above (taken from the Summer 2021 lookbook) show how different greys on the bottom harmonise with the two pinks on the body.

The shirt on the right is a pale peach (orangey/pink) and so gets paired with a pale grey. The t-shirt on the left is a richer berry pink and the shorts are a deeper grey-blue colour.

Pink and blue

Whilst a saturated pink and navy is a combination that can work, personally I find the two colours a little strong next to one another. I also think I may have seen the colours used at one wedding too many to turn to it instinctively. With navy, it helps if the pink itself is a paler shade (like the PS pink oxford shirt).

To my eye, pink is more pleasing with paler blues – washed denim instead of raw indigo, and well-worn oxford cloth button downs.

I also find knitwear to be a great way of incorporating pink (and other bold colours) into an outfit – that’s especially true of brushed jumpers (such as the J Press knit on the right) where the fuzzy texture helps soften the colour slightly.

Pink and green

My final thought on embracing pink as a showy colour is to consider it in one of my favourite combinations, with green. This is a natural blend in every sense that delivers a high visual impact thanks to the colours’ complementary nature (this colour wheel tool is a lot of fun to play with).

Above is a photo of my friends Zeena and Zack on their wedding day. Since the Queen’s passing, Zeena may well be the owner of the world’s largest pink wardrobe and is a staunch advocate of the colour’s mood-boosting powers. And so, it was no surprise to any of her guests that her wedding lehenga was a symphony of pinks, set off by Zack’s pastel green shawl and ivory sherwani.

Of course, us Indians are partial to a bit of pink - upon seeing Norman Parkinson’s iconic 1956 British Vogue shoot in India, Diana Vreeland famously commented “how clever of you Mr Parkinson to know that pink is the navy blue of India" - but, even so, I think this is a particularly stunning combination.

Above, Gerardo Cavaliere of Sartoria Giuliva offers a characteristically idiosyncratic take: a lavender pink jacket paired with pistachio trousers. I’m a big fan of how Gerardo puts together striking outfits - slightly offbeat but always tasteful.

And then below him, Nicholas Walter mixes a bright pink V-neck with forest green brushed cotton trousers (and a delightful jacket the colour of Gerardo’s dog - which I’m almost certain is a coincidence).

If the idea of a pink-green combination intrigues, but you find these looks a little punchy, perhaps consider the forest green trousers with a pink-and-white striped shirt, or an ecru pair of jeans, a soft pink t-shirt, and a jungle jacket.

On the subject of shirts, one of Simon’s very earliest posts extolled the virtues of a pink shirt while lamenting the hesitance of his colleagues to try one. I couldn’t agree more and reckon a pink shirt (striped or solid) is one of the easiest (and most flattering) ways for anyone to get a wink of pink into their wardrobe.

The subtle pink

If, despite my best efforts, you remain dubious that pink is for you, can I play one more card? The subtle pink. Commonly referred to as dusty or dusky pink, it’s what comes from mixing pink with grey, brown, or even a little indigo/violet. This combination makes the colour a little cooler, darker, and easier to incorporate into tonal outfits - qualities that should reassure you we’re back on tailor firma.

Take Adam Roger’s vintage mock neck above - were he to tire of gazing enigmatically into the distance, stand up and walk off the photo, I could envisage the outfit finished with charcoal flannels, indigo jeans, or chocolate corduroys (trousers I’d wager are already in the closets of many a reader).

In fact brown, and brown-toned earth colours, is a fantastic companion to this colour.

In the first image above, I’ve worn a mock neck similar to Adam’s (from his Adret label) with taupe flannels and The Anthology x JKF Man collaboration tweed; that the jacket has ripples of pink through it is a welcome echo, but the combination works equally well without.

Next are Gerardo and an image from Brioni’s Spring ‘23 collection. Both looks use a teddy bear brown to infuse warmth and richness. Interestingly, both also employ a contrasting neckerchief to prevent the look from becoming too anodyne – a neat hack for any tonal outfit.

The final comparison above shows the same knit shirt (from Yuri & Yuri) worn two ways. On the right, for the Permanent Style reader profile series, I lent hard into brown tones. However, on the left, Will Field draws out the purple in this shade of dusty pink by layering it under a navy blazer. Replacing my chore jacket with Will’s blazer would result in a classic outfit but with a twist.

Pink tailoring

Most of the looks so far have used pink in quite a casual way. However, I think there’s a case to be made that pink tailoring can be subtle. Or at least lassoed and dragged toward subtlety through a judicious selection of accompanying garments.

I can hear you now: “Are you out of your pink Barbie-sized brain, Manish?!” Alas, you’d not be the first person to say that. For, in many ways, the pink suit is the antithesis of sartorial sobriety.

One of the 20th century’s finest literary works The Great Gatsby invokes the pink suit to underline the parvenu status of Jay Gatsby. "An Oxford man...like hell he is! He wears a pink suit" snorts Gatsby’s antagonist Tom Buchanan.

In Baz Luhrmann’s 2013 film adaptation of the novel, the costume designers position Gatsby even further towards the showy end of the spectrum. The white pinstripe in the cloth, the pink and white striped shirt, the blood red and salmon tie, and (off-photo) the tan and chocolate spectator shoes all lend Gatsby the air of a man oozing style but not taste (at least when measured against the standards of New York’s old-money set).

But let’s look at some examples of modern pink tailoring that I think work well.

Above we have jackets in three different luminance’s (four if you count Kenji’s at the summit of this article), some even brighter and bolder in colour than the Gatsby suit, that have all been tamed by the wearer’s monochromatic pairings.

The cloth choice can help here too. The second two jackets above and Simon’s Orazio Luciano jacket are all made from corduroy – a material whose corrugated surface has the magical property of muting colour.

Manish is @The_Daily_Mirror on Instagram

Wedding photography courtesy of The Shannons Photography

PS readers’ Customer Service Award 2023: Anglo-Italian

Posted on by Simon Crompton

PS readers’ Customer Service Award 2023: Anglo-Italian

Friday, March 3rd 2023Tags:
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Results of the Readers Awards 2023:

  • Best customer service: Anglo-Italian. Runners-up: Anderson & Sheppard, The Armoury
  • Best product: Private White VC. Runner-up: Anglo-Italian
  • Best styling: Drake's. Runner-up: Rubato
  • Best artisan: Corcos. Runner-up: Ciardi

Whenever Jake (Grantham, Anglo-Italian founder) and I talk, we seem to return to themes around British retail, and running small businesses. 

Last time we went for a pint the topic was retail in the sixties: the burst of new stores like Granny Takes a Trip and others around the King’s Road. I believe he was reading a book on it at the time. 

I have to say I don’t find it as interesting as he does. Although we both agree that people in menswear should have more awareness of what came before them - a realisation that Dougie Hayward was doing no-padding shoulders before any of us were born - the things that interest us from these periods in the past are different. 

I’m mostly taken with aesthetics, with style. The things I'll find interesting from that era will be something like the use of suede, or mixed-gender clothing. I'm the same whether it's 50s sportswear, 80s Armani, or 90s J Crew. 

Not that Jake doesn’t love that stuff too. The stack of reading material in Anglo-Italian might be the most visually stimulating in any store. 

But the thing we always come back to when we talk - and argue about, usually - is the business side of retail, the entrepreneurship. 

Why were people like the British chef Marco Pierre White so successful? Or another hero of his, Terence Conran (below)? What drove them and how did they achieve what they did?

This might seem like a random inspiration for a menswear brand, but if you’re looking for it, there are a few parallels. 

The extent to which menswear brands simply copy things from the past, for example. Not just blatant things like ripping off Loro Piana Open Walks, but more nuanced questions like the use of Native American patterns, or mimicking another tailor’s lapel shape. 

Marco Pierre White (below) talked consistently through his career about his relationship to French cuisine and this tension - how he saw himself as channelling the tradition but also guarding it, in service to it. Few brands today are as honest or modest. (Japanese craftsmen being the obvious exception.)

However, from our conversations I’d say that the most direct link between chefs like White and fashion is how they ran their restaurants.

A restaurant run by a well-known chef is seen as an extension of their personality. Not just the recipes, but the direct management of the cooking, the service and everything around it.

Many chefs these days have multiple restaurants, even franchises, and White himself became an owner/operator after his retirement. But if a chef has one restaurant, we have an expectation that everything is part of their persona - and that was certainly true of White. 

The same should be true of clothing shops. We expect a particular vision from the founders or designers as to what clothes should be like, how they think people can look good. 

Yet with the majority of brands, there is very little of that. Certainly with the staff, and how things are sold, but even with the products themselves - with most mainstream fashion, you’d struggle to see an identity running through it all.

Jake thinks more shops should be run like this, and I tend to agree. I also think it’s a reason so many Permanent Style readers voted for Anglo-Italian as the best customer service brand this year. 

The team of people that now work in the Anglo store (above) don’t all have the same background - not the standard couple of years of retail experience, or the fanboy type that just wants to be close to the brand, but doesn’t perhaps understand the gruelling side of retail. 

Yet the customer service is always consistent, always good. The atmosphere in the shop is always a friendly one, professional but relaxed. In the words of one reader: “You get the impression that absolutely nothing is too much trouble, even with a relative novice, like myself, asking what I’m sure are some pretty dumb questions!”

Another said in the poll: “I find them relaxed and friendly (shout out to Martin and Jeremy in particular). Happy to chat, give advice…talk with your significant other while you try things on. The vibe in the store perfectly matches the vibe they are trying to create with their clothes.”

Note that the staff are always named individually: Andrew also gets a mention in another vote. There are few stores today where customers would do that, but it used to be much more common. 

Jake just takes retail very seriously. I’ve heard him (I promise he didn’t know I was listening) describe what he did as “running a shop in Marylebone”. You could certainly see some false modesty in there, but I find it significant that it’s the shop he focuses on - not which industry, or owning a business.

I know that’s one reason he finds inspiration in chefs like Marco Pierre White. Although, actually, in another way I think this underplays things. 

Because much as chefs can be great at getting everyone to do things how they want, they can struggle to delegate responsibility - for exactly the same reason. This is often the struggle menswear brands have when they grow too: founders struggle to duplicate themselves, to train people to be just as good as they are at communicating the product, and trusting them to do so. 

The most impressive thing about Anglo-Italian might be how much people like Martin and Andrew make the experience feel the same even when Jake isn’t there. 

Not that Jake’s any good at giving up control. He even worked his wedding day - something he’d definitely say today was a failing. But the size of the business today means that he can’t always be there, and in the view of PS readers he’s clearly done a good job at training people to take his place. 

Well done to everyone at Anglo, and to every other shop (Anderson & Sheppard, The Armoury) that drew similar praise for its quality of retail experience. There should be more shops with that kind of personality.

This year when it came to covering the PS Reader awards I decided to only write about one category in depth - this one. 

That made sense to me because the people that did well in other categories (quality, style, bespoke) were familiar names where I couldn’t see something we hadn’t covered. I completely agree on Rubato styling, or Private White quality, but I think I’ve written about them enough. 

I love the awards and enjoy reading all the nominations (all 20,000 words!) but wasn’t sure they needed another three in-depth articles. If you think that’s wrong, or there’s an angle you would have liked to have seen covered, please let me know. 

Introducing: The PS Undershirt

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Introducing: The PS Undershirt

Wednesday, March 1st 2023Tags:
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For the past five years or so, I’ve been wearing Hamilton & Hare’s tubular T-shirts under things. 

They’re what I wear underneath knitwear, what I wear under a shirt, even what I sleep in. They’re the best fine-cotton tee I’ve ever worn, partly due to the raw material, but also the seamless construction with its sportswear-like panels. 

I have a couple that have been worn over a hundred times, and they’ve aged well: not lost their shape, not lost softness or handle. 

However, there were a couple of things I always wanted to improve. The first was that to get the right fit in the body, I had to take a size Small, which was a rather close fit around the shoulders. 

The second was the neckline, which is a little low, particularly at the back. I couldn’t get that nice line of white showing above knitwear, and I didn’t find the profile at the back flattering. 

It didn’t occur to me to try and change these things, however, until I saw how popular the PS Tapered T-shirts were last year. They’ve sold through again and again - so I thought it would be nice to try and produce a perfect version of the other model of tee I wear. 

This is the new collaboration that was flagged up in our round-up of of Spring/Summer products a few weeks ago: the PS Undershirt. 

I’m pleased with how well it fits in with everything else. The T-shirt is something I’ve worn and mentioned on PS for years, and it's what I’d wear under the Cashmere Rugby or Dartmoor (if I wanted the neckline to show) plus the only thing fine enough to wear under the upcoming Finest Crewneck. 

However, I should make it clear that this T-shirt can be worn on its own as well, if you want to. It doesn’t look strange or transparent - simply like a lightweight tee. I tend to prefer heavier, Japanese-style T-shirts when I’m wearing one on its own, but I know some readers (particularly in hot countries) will be different.

This also means, importantly, that if you’re wearing it under a sweater, there’s nothing preventing you taking that sweater off (unlike a vest or Henley-style undershirt). 

So what makes this such a good undershirt? 

First is the fine, open-weave cotton of the body. This is highly breathable, and its lightness is a big part of the reason I can wear it and completely forget I have it on. 

The material fits closely to start with, but then grows, adapting to your body. This type of stretch is something you find in a lot of good undershirts - such as the Lee Kung Man undershirts from Bryceland’s for example, the only one I’ve found as comfortable.

That stretch was part of the reason I wanted to change the sizing compared to the H&H version. I found a Medium became too big in the body for me, so I had to size down to a Small, but with a 39-inch chest and 34-inch waist, I’m not really a small. 

So on our version, I took the body fit of the Small and paired it with the shoulders of the Medium. This feels more like a regular fit to me now - certainly, the kind of fit readers will be used to from PS shirts and knitwear. 

The Undershirt then has panels of a pique mesh cotton running up the side body, which add breathability and remove the side seams. It’s an interesting addition, as this construction technique is really only used elsewhere on sportswear - with football tops for example. 

The panels are very subtle - as you can see in the image above. You’d barely notice them if they weren’t pointed out, which again is why it doesn’t look odd if you wear it on its own. 

The bottom of the T-shirt is finished with a ribbed hem. This gives it some grip, but there’s no gathering or elasticity - it sits flush with the body. I’ve had tees in the past that had this, from Iron Heart for example, but the ribbing was tighter and it kind of crimped the hem, which didn’t look great. 

Hamilton & Hare also put the care instructions on the inside of that hem, reducing the number of labels needed inside.

The neckline has been changed to be closer to that of our Tapered Tee. 

I know a lot of readers will be familiar with that fit now, but if anyone isn’t you can see it on the original article here, as well of course in the images today. It’s relatively high, in the back and front, but without being tight. I have a pretty big head (60cm) and it goes over easily.

In terms of sleepwear, I’ve never really liked pyjamas - I find they pull as soon as move or turn, and ride up. I have some nice ones from Anderson & Sheppard, but I put them on in the morning, for the hour and a half between getting up and my first opportunity to have a shower. 

I sleep in underwear, with perhaps a merino T-shirt (old Private White ones) in the Winter but Hamilton & Hare ones the rest of the time. Everyone is different of course, but if anyone wears a T-shirt at night, they might find this the most comfortable version. And in fact if they wear nothing on top they might even like it too, as they’re unlikely to even notice it. 

I really hope you like the shirt, and it becomes as much a go-to for you as it is for me. 

I do like the look of a T-shirt under a shirt these days (above, as discussed previously) and this is the only one that I find works well. It's almost as long as the shirt itself, fits snug to the body but grows where it needs it, and doesn't ride up out of the trousers as a result.

And when I put on a sweater the rest of the time - any sweater, but particularly something slimmer like a Colhay’s or finer like a Smedley - this is always what I wear. 

The Undershirt is available on the PS Shop now, price £55 (including VAT).

Product details:

  • 100% fine cotton
  • Tubular knit, with no body seams
  • Flat, forward seams on the shoulders 
  • Mesh pique panels in the side body
  • Ribbed hem

Fit details:

  • Body fits slightly slim, but grows as you wear it, adapting to size
  • As a result, can fit up to two inches larger in width than shown in the chart below; will feel snug when first worn
  • Simon wears a Medium and has a 39-inch chest, a 34-inch waist
  • In the images, it has been worn it all day and loosened to size
  • Long in the body, designed to be tucked in and stay that way

 

Small Medium Large Extra large
Chest width 47cm 50 53 56
Hem width 45.5 48.5 51.5 54.5
Back length 68 70 72 74
Neck width 18 19 20 21
Bicep width 18 19 20 21

Navy knit shown: Fender II from SNS Herning at John Simons. Tailoring outfit: PS chambray shirt and Sartoria Ciardi jacket, in detail here.

Reader profile: Simon

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Reader profile: Simon

Monday, February 27th 2023Tags:
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Simon is only our second reader profile from outside the UK. He lives in New York, although when we talk on the phone he’s actually in Washington DC, having just landed on the red eye from Arizona. 

Simon travels a lot. He’s a journalist and his travels drive a lot of his wardrobe, which has to be practical off camera but also presentable on it. Although this can be restrictive, it’s also introduced him to many little shops and brands, from Miami to Belfast.

Having met at our pop-up shop in New York last year, it was great to have the time to talk to Simon more - about his time as a DJ, about menswear silhouettes, and about comfortable shoes for the (slightly) older man.

Outfit 1: 

  • Jumper: The Real McCoy’s
  • Linen knit shirt: The Real McCoy’s
  • Socks: Rototo
  • Trousers: P44s, The Real McCoy’s
  • Trainers: New Balance

Tell us about the kind of journalism you do, Simon.

Well I worked for many years in the UK for Panorama, as an investigative reporter. After that I was the current affairs correspondent on The One Show for a white. And now I work for Al Jazeera in the US - I’m the senior reporter on the investigation team. So a lot of moving around, a lot of interviews. 

Can you wear clothes like the ones pictured on the job? 

The casual pieces like this first outfit, sure. The job has two phases really: on screen and off screen. During the off-screen part I can wear what I want, things that are very me. 

I can’t wear clothes that take too much preparation - shirts that need ironing, trousers that need pressing - because it’s just not practical. But I dress in very functional clothes anyway, so it’s easy. I’d wear the outfit shown here for a coffee in the morning in New York, but also yesterday walking around in Arizona. 

And when you’re on screen?

If I know I’ll be doing interviews on screen, or a stand up, then I’ll wear something smarter - but also that doesn’t stand out. I think most journalists would agree that the aim with your clothing there is to not distract from anything you’re saying. 

I remember in the days when I was doing The One Show - where it would be two days of travelling, two days of shooting on screen - I drifted into a kind of Ivy League look: chinos, button-down shirt, jumper. It was anonymous. The shirt would have been OrSlow, the jumper from Scotland, but it would be very simple.

The clothes you’re wearing here are a little more characterful than that, though. 

True, and sometimes I might tone it down a little. Yesterday I was wearing these same Margaret Howell trousers with just a navy jumper and some Alden loafers, for example. 

But actually I find as I get older - I’m turning 50 this year - I can wear more interesting things. I think if I’d worn white trousers like this 20 years ago, it would have been seen as more of a fashion choice, but it doesn’t now. Part of it might be that I’m just more comfortable in those clothes - they are very much me, they suit who I am, and I’m used to them. 

Are the trainers part of that journey too? 

Yes, partly. I used to wear Converse all the time - high tops, low tops, with everything. But walking around New York all day I eventually felt the effect of having no support at all - it was killing my back. 

And these felt like a good compromise - they’re not the hyper-cool trainer that an ad exec wears, to try and look down with the kids. But they’re not the old person’s comfort-is-everything trainer either: the kind of thing a politician wears to a conference.

Outfit 2

  • Flannel suit: Drake’s
  • Denim shirt: Vintage, from Front General
  • Undershirt: Vintage, from Front General
  • Pocket handkerchief: RRL
  • Socks: Drake’s
  • Shoes: Black-scotchgrain longwings, Alden

How did you get into more classic, crafted menswear?

That was a function of travel. My work has meant that I’ve lived in DC, Belfast, travelled almost everywhere around the world. And in each place I found different styles, was exposed to new things. 

I remember walking into The Bureau in Belfast, and seeing a raft of brands I hadn’t seen anywhere else. Then Oi Polloi in Manchester. In Florence I discovered vintage places, and little menswear shops that you couldn’t buy anywhere else. This was partly before social media too, pre-2010 or so, when there was much less awareness.

I remember when I first found your website, I was surprised that everyone knew about these brands - that it was a much bigger world than I’d realised. 

Do you still seek out these kinds of places when you travel?

Yes, absolutely. The great thing about the internet is that now when I know I’m travelling somewhere, I’ll look up whether there’s a nice little vintage shop I can visit. 

So there’s a great vintage shop in Denver I went to as part of a work trip for example - La Lovely I think it’s called. There’s Supply & Advise in Miami, that’s great. And when I lived in Brooklyn I’d go to Front General, where this shirt and undershirt are from. 

Last year I went to Tokyo for the fifteenth time, and no matter how many times I go there I always discover something new - some cities are just built like that, so big and so set up for small retail. 

This second outfit is smarter - is this the kind of thing you wear today when you’re on screen? 

Smarter than this really - this Drake’s suit but with a shirt and tie. Although, wearing a tie on TV now almost seems like too much: because so few people wear them, wearing one might stand out more than not wearing one. 

I wear this suit with a tie when I’m giving speeches at conferences though, and the night before these shots were taken I wore it to an awards ceremony in New York, with the same denim shirt and handkerchief, because you can be a little bit more expressive there. 

Outfit 3:

  • M65 field jacket: Vintage, The Vintage Showroom
  • Trousers: Margaret Howell painter trousers 
  • Beanie: Drake’s
  • Jumper: Margaret Howell
  • Boots: Alden Indy boots
  • Bag: Vintage

The M65 here looks great, where was it from? 

From The Vintage Showroom in London, back when they had the store. So much of my knowledge about clothes comes from talking to managers of vintage stores, who 99% of the time are incredibly helpful and friendly. 

I actually got stuck in London during Covid, and The Vintage Showroom was one of the only shops that was open. It was about 100 metres from the Air BnB where I was staying, so I used to pop in most mornings and just have a chat. 

They had a first model M65 and I’d always wanted one. It’s hard for me to find vintage though, being a bigger guy. Everything is always too small. So when I tried this one and it fit perfectly, it was a done deal, no brainer. I love vintage sweatshirts too, but during their 50 years of existence they’ve all been washed a thousand times, and now they’re all tiny. 

How did you get into vintage clothing?

My interest has come and gone over the years. The first time was probably when I was growing up in the mid-eighties: the fashion was Lacoste and Lyle & Scott knits, with Sta Prest trousers, but a lot of people would seek out earlier, unusual versions of the knits in bright, lurid colours.

Then when I was 18 and 19, I was DJ’ing and the music was funk, Northern Soul. Everyone there would dress in vintage from the fifties. They’d wear white-collar shirts, vests, leather jackets, all from vintage markets around London. I didn’t wear most of it because it felt like costume to me when it was all together, but I saw it and appreciated it, and adopted the odd piece. 

In my twenties vintage wasn’t really consideration, it was new brands - Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein - and I was working too hard to really think about clothing much. But then vintage came back around in my thirties, just because I saw more people wearing it, things you couldn’t get in normal shops. 

I vividly remember seeing this older guy sitting on a bench in New York, wearing an amazing, thick suede overshirt with a red beanie. It looked about 100 years old. I tried to find something similar everywhere, but without any luck. 

I have been eyeing one in Drake’s, but it’s $2000! Maybe one of these days. With the red beanie that would certainly be a very current look.  

It sounds like you’ve honed your taste over the years. 

Yeah, I think when I was younger I would be very influenced by every shop I went into - it would be about trying to wear what they were offering. Today I have a much clearer idea of what I like and what suits me, so it’s more a case of going into a shop and seeing what interesting things work with that. 

Is the bag vintage as well? 

Yes. A while ago I went to Brimfield, this big antiques market upstate. I didn’t find anything there, but on the way back I dropped into a vintage shop in Sag Harbour, on Long Island, and found this great old bag. 

Do you think you suit bigger pieces like that, as a bigger guy?

I never thought about it actually, but you’re probably right. People do comment that it’s the biggest bag like that they’ve seen, but it never feels big to me - probably because of my height. I need to repair it actually, I’ve done that a few times with an old pilot’s bag of mine, and this needs some attention too.

It also reminds me of a benefit I find in sites like yours: explaining why things work and don’t. I don’t read guides to learn how to dress, but now and again one of them will explain something well. In this case, it reminds me of a point I read that clothes are a lot about silhouette - this scale of bag works with the silhouette of my shape and the kind of clothes I wear. 

I remember years ago I bought a big Stetson hat, and thought I looked a million dollars in it. I wore it in LA - carrying it on my lap on the plane from New York. But when I walked into a bar I saw another guy wearing one too, and it looked so much better on him - a billion dollars! I realised the proportions just didn’t work on me. 

It now sits on top of a wardrobe in my house, and makes a great ornament. 

Thanks Simon, a pleasure and hopefully see you in New York in the Autumn. 

Sounds great Simon, looking forward to it.

Photography: Christopher Fenimore

Ettore de Cesare bespoke navy overcoat

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Ettore de Cesare bespoke navy overcoat

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Friday, February 24th 2023Tags:
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This overcoat from Ettore de Cesare in Naples has been featured before, in the style feature a couple of weeks ago talking about silk scarves and shades of navy. 

However, there have been a few comments recently that readers appreciate articles on new commissions, even if I’ve used the tailor before and effectively reviewed their work. 

I can see how it serves as a focus for current thoughts on a category of bespoke tailoring, such as overcoats today. I might make one a year, for example, and covering it is a useful jumping-off point for discussions of how one’s wardrobe evolves, or changing views on value - or simply a place where readers can ask all the questions they have right now about coats. 

So here’s a little review of this new coat from Ettore, followed by more general points. 

Ettore de Cesare is a solid technician. All the pieces I’ve had from him have fit well from the start, and this coat was no exception. 

The main things I look for at the first fitting are inevitably the ones where I know tailors have difficulties. They include a clean drop at the top of the sleeve, which isn’t always easy with my rounded shoulders; the right side of the garment (my right) as my lower right shoulder can make the balance hard; and a close fit on the collar, which makes a big difference on my slightly long neck. 

Ettore nailed all these things. Of course, he has an established pattern for me now, but that was true with the first coat six years ago too. 

I’ve included some straight-on photos below to illustrate. The only thing I’d want to improve would be lifting up the shoulders at the back, although bear in mind I like a lot of fullness in the back of a coat: there’s nothing worse than trying to get on a coat over a jacket when the fit is just a bit too tight. 

Of course, this style of Ulster coat also deliberately has fullness visibly gathered into the waist, whatever form of pleat or fold it’s done with.

Where Ettore and I often differ is style. His default with a jacket with a high gorge, a shorter length and a close fit. The more contemporary end of the Neapolitan style spectrum. 

Fortunately we’ve established that this isn’t my style now, and again, fittings run well as a result. The amount of comfort I like has been noted - not just mentally, but I’m sure somewhere physically on the patterns. 

Style issues did rear their head again with this coat, however, due in part to a lack of communication, and in part the lack of examples to try on.

I could see most aspects of the style of the coat at the fitting - the height of the waist button, the amount of overlap, the line of the lapel. But as is often the case, we were drawing on the position and angle of the gorge - and therefore the shape of the collar. 

The gorge line on the final result was more downward-sloping than I expected, certainly compared to other Ulster-style coats. Look at my Liverano or Ciardi versions, and you can see the difference. 

When the collar is up, this just means there is a slightly smaller, slightly more pointed shape around the chin. But when it’s down I think the shape of the collar rather stands out, and I do wear coats more with the collar down these days - usually with a scarf, with a smarter outfit. 

Unlike other overcoats, Ettore also included a button on the cuff of the coat. It’s not a big thing, but had I known it was going to be there I would have gone without. I think it looks a little lost next to the big turn-back cuff. 

The top set of buttons on the front were also set quite far apart, but that of course can be changed. 

Overall, while I like the coat, it’s a reminder of the point I made in my first piece on my favourite tailors: whenever possible see an example of the thing you’re going to commission, especially if it’s a DB or overcoat, where design choices make such a difference. 

The material, on the other hand, was absolutely perfect: a Fox Brothers 20oz merino in a midnight herringbone (CT12). Deliberately a little lighter in weight than some of my others, but dense and with a lovely drape.

My other navy DB coat, a cashmere from Cifonelli, is still great but isn’t quite as versatile this will be. Not just because of the visible finishing on the Cifonelli, but because that cashmere makes it too formal (for me) to look good with jeans. 

Although I’ve never worn that Cifonelli heavily - given it’s never been my only coat - I still think the cashmere has aged pretty well. But this wool will be better, and have that versatility of style. 

That’s illustrated by the outfit here. Even thought it’s fairly smart (the navy jacket and trousers detailed previously here) the old Ralph Lauren cap sits better with this coat than with the luxe Cifonelli. Contrast is intended, but not quite that much. 

Other things to note are the suede that Ettore often uses on his clothing, and I have here in black on my undercollar. 

And on the flip side, I think it’s fair to say Ettore’s finishing is not quite as good as some Neapolitans, and certainly not at the level of the English, French or Milanese. That lapel buttonhole is about average for Naples, with some finer and longer.

We took these shots one evening in Naples, by the way, on the waterfront after a busy day visiting factories. I think the details come out enough, but if anything isn’t clear please do ask. 

Seeing them again reminds me how great a DB overcoat like this looks in use, in motion, with hands in pockets and even in trouser pockets. Static poses just never do it justice. 

Ettore de Cesare travels to London regularly, usually using the Holland & Sherry showrooms, now in a bigger space on Savile Row. 

The overcoat cost £3500, which is Ettore’s starting price for all wool coats. Jackets start at £2500. You can see where they’re made, in Ettore’s Neapolitan workshop, from our visit here. 

www.ettoredecesare.it

Introducing: The new Reversible Suede Bomber

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Introducing: The new Reversible Suede Bomber

Wednesday, February 22nd 2023Tags:
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The new version of our reversible suede bomber jacket - reversible so you can turn it inside out at the first hint of rain - is finally here. 

Much as I liked the previous version, the process of designing the Linen Harrington - essentially from scratch - was more personal and I think led to something that was unique, as well as highly functional and modern. 

So I wanted to go through that process with the suede jacket, and these changes to both proportion and design were not something we could do under the Valstarino banner. So Valstar and PS parted friends, and I began the process of creating something different. 

Functionally, this suede jacket is basically the same as the previous iteration. It’s just as luxurious, just as versatile, and swaps from suede outer to water-resistant inner in the same way. You pull the arms through, then push through as many buttons as you need.  

But design wise, it is significantly different. It has a raglan shoulder with prominent seams. There is no elastic at the neck, only the waist. There are plunge pockets on the outer layer, with patches on the inside. And the suede is heavier, giving it a satisfying feel.

Taking those points one at a time, the raglan shoulders create an easier body shape for a lot of people to wear over a variety of weights of clothing; but actually, the reason I like them in the suede is primarily a design one. In a dark, matte material like this, they provide a nice focus, something that is distinctive but subtle. 

We’ve retained the scalloped yoke on the back of the jacket from the Linen Harrington, and I like that for the same reason. The horizontal line across the back is very flattering, as well as creating another point of interest. 

Using suede at the neck instead of ribbing also picks up a point from the Harrington (just without the extended closure). I find it more comfortable to wear without the elastication, and it creates a cleaner, more elegant look. 

The use of plunge pockets on the outside (rather than rectangular patches) is also more streamlined. You’d think sporty raglan sleeves and a cleaner look elsewhere could be contradictory, but they sit very nicely together. (Indeed, the original A1 design design has the opposite combination.)

Having patch pockets on the inside of the jacket is also more functional than our previous iteration of this jacket, which had plunge pockets on the inside. With this version, those patches inside are effectively normal inbreast pockets, just lower, and still look good when the jacket is reversed.

The fit of the new jacket is more similar to the Linen Harrington too, in that it is blousier in the body, creating a nice flattering shape in the chest and back, sitting above a neat waist. 

However, the sizing is not exactly the same. I would expect readers to wear much thicker layers under the suede jacket, so a Medium in that comes up rather bigger than a Medium in the linen. 

To help everyone understand this, and illustrate the difference, I’ve taken shots here in both a Small (size 3) and a Medium (4). I would take a Medium, as I do in the Harrington, but that doesn’t mean everyone else will - I like to layer thick knitwear under mine, such as heavy roll neck, but others may not. 

The shots of the jacket above are all in a Small. Lower down this article are shots in a Medium (in the sweatshirt). Directly below this paragraph are photos of both sizes, with the Small on the left and the Medium on the right. It's important to bear in mind, however, that a neater fit will very often look better when static, less so when moving.

Click on the images to enlarge and zoom.

Personally, I think a larger fit is more relaxed and elegant, but I know people are difference - it is a question of style as well as layering. And both can look great, as hopefully the more styled images everywhere else attest. 

For anyone that doesn’t know, I’m six foot (183cm) with a 39 inch (99cm) chest, a 34 inch (86cm) waist and weigh 12.5 stone (79kg). As ever, the most effective way to tell your size, though, is to compare the measurements of an actual jacket in the table below, to something similar you already own. 

Turning to materials, I'd say the suede of the new jacket is roughly 15% heavier than previous versions. This is not enough to make it functionally different - I still wear it the same times of the year, in the same weather - but it gives it a little more substance, which I find satisfying. 

The colour of the suede is dark brown, a touch darker than our previous iteration and a touch colder (deliberately), but still that most versatile of menswear colours. The shade shown varies a little with light and shadow, direct and reflected sun, but the shot below is accurate if readers want a specific reference. 

The lining of the jacket is still a highly water-resistant polyamide. Over many different versions of this jacket I’ve found this is a nice combination of weight, breathability and rain-resistance. 

It feels like a regular jacket lining (not stiff or less comfortable to wear) and is easy to slip on and off. But when reversed, there is still enough protection for a good walk in the rain.

As described previously, the point of the Reversible Suede Jacket is not that you use it as a waterproof, deliberately going out into a downpour. Rather it makes a suede jacket more functional, enabling you to wear it without any fear that it could start raining. It removes that fear. 

On the topic of weather, I’m pleased we’ve finally managed to get the jacket out (so many delays, everywhere) at the perfect time of year to wear it. 

Right now is when I start transitioning from long winter coats to shorter ones such as this suede. Maybe with a heavier knit underneath to start with; maybe with a hat and scarf. But the weather now (in the UK) is perfect. 

Like the look below: a heavy sweatshirt (Real McCoy’s Ball Park) with jeans, boots, and a cashmere PS watch cap. Casual but still well dressed. 

The other look shown here, at the top of the article, is intended to demonstrate how smart the bomber can go. 

The combination of tailored wool trousers, neat cashmere crewneck and leather loafers is a nice example of something smart that doesn’t involve tailoring - casual chic, as I’ve accurately or inaccurately called it in the past. 

Just because you’re not wearing a suit and tie doesn’t mean you can’t look elegant.

Of course, the fact both top and bottom are shades of grey makes it a tiny bit more unusual; navy or cream on top would be more conventional. And separating those shades of grey with a belt makes a big difference. 

All things we’ve talked about in recent months. All things that are probably now operating at the level of the subconscious. 

As mentioned earlier, with this grey/grey outfit I’m wearing a Small. With the sweatshirt and jeans it’s a Medium. 

At the very bottom of the article, though, I’ve included a few images of the previous iterations of the jacket. This is purely to remind readers (or show more recent joiners) other ways in which I like to wear one. The jacket in these shots is in all cases a variation on the Valstarino, not this new version. 

Product details: 

  • The Reversible Suede Jacket is available on the Permanent Style shop now, here.
  • The cost is £1125 plus VAT. The increase is unfortunately a reflection of rising costs in everything from raw material to labour to energy. But nothing else. As ever, it is well priced and I think very good value for money. 
  • The jacket will also be sold by the makers, Private White VC, but not for a week or so. 
  • The suede is reverse goatskin, with a thickness of 0.5/0.6mm
  • The lining is water-resistant polyamide
  • The buttons are the unpolished, two-button, buffalo-horn buttons used on all PS outerwear
  • In terms of care, cleaning of suede is easier than most people think - see video here for details. 

Sizing details:

  • As mentioned above, the jacket comes up a little large, to reflect how I like to wear it as well as potential layering. 
  • Have a look at the comparison images to see how a Small and Medium fit on me, and use the table below to compare them to a jacket you already own (always the best option, if you can).

Sizing table:

X-Small (2) Small (3) Medium (4) Large (5) X-Large (6) XX-Large (7)
Chest width 53cm 55.5 59 62.5 66 69.5
Back length 66 66.5 67.5 68.5 69.5 70.5
Ribbing width 38.5 41 44.5 48 51.5 55
Sleeve length 83 83.5 85 86.5 88 89.5

Body length: From bottom of neck to bottom of jacket, including rib

Sleeve length: From bottom of neck, along raglan seam on top of arm, to end of sleeve including rib

Ribbing width: When ribbing at bottom of jacket is relaxed, stretches to 10cm greater

Note: images below are of previous iterations of the jacket, and are included merely for styling. The design has now changed.

Video: Jamie Ferguson on photography and style

Posted on by Simon Crompton

 

This was really fun. I guess it’s always easier interviewing someone you know well, but there’s also a temptation there to just chat – to forget the perhaps more significant topics you had wanted to discuss. 

I think we got a nice balance. There are a few laughs about Jamie’s bright shoes, but also some serious ones about how he got into photography, the kind of shots that bring him the most pleasure, and whether he could ever style anyone other than himself. 

I hope you enjoy it. We had the support of Bucherer Certified Pre-Owned watches this time, who brought along a selection of interesting models that readers had great fun talking about before the talk started. Having them on board means we can carry on doing this series for a good while, so thanks to them. 

 

 

This is the third in a series of talks that have taken place at Mortimer House, with an audience of around 50 or 60 readers. The first one with Tony Sylvester delved into subcultures, while the second with Ethan Newton talked about how Bryceland’s has developed. 

In this video I am wearing my brown corduroy suit – the jacket having been made by Sartoria Ciardi and the trousers by Whitcomb & Shaftesbury – with a white PS Oxford shirt and a black knitted-silk tie. The loafers are the Greenwich tassel from Edward Green, in black cordovan.

 

Day in, day out: On uniform dressing and travel

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Day in, day out: On uniform dressing and travel

Friday, February 17th 2023Tags:
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Charcoal trousers from a suit, with tweed jacket swapped in

By Emilie Hawtin

Developing a personal uniform is a common goal for those that are into clothing, I find. It has the twin benefits of being personal yet easy, distinctive yet versatile.

Where some people want depth and variety in their wardrobe, and dress for mood, others strive for consistency. To my surprise I’ve become one of the uniformists.

It can sound unappealing to those that aspire to, for example, visit every tailor in Naples. But I have to say it gave me great pleasure when I arrived for Pitti Uomo last month to breeze past menswear aficionados struggling with their Rimowas on the cobblestones, with just hand luggage. That feeling, and a head free of decisions, was worth every one of the shirts left behind.

 

Jacket from linen suit, with brown trousers

For years I thought uniforms were reserved for iconoclasts like Tom Wolfe, Giorgio Armani, Wes Anderson or Jarvis Cocker. Their refusal to change their clothes was a sophisticated form of art, their self-knowledge an act of rebellion.

That changed when I had a linen suit made a few years ago (jacket pictured above). It’s not what you would think would wear easily, but I found incredibly easy to wear.

In fact, you might feel you’ve seen this before, and you probably have – in the piece I wrote for Permanent Style last year. The suit is the same, but the topic different; which of course just shows what a useful, much-loved uniform it has become.

 

The longer length and high, central vent

Developing a uniform is different for everyone, but I start with a perfectly fitting base. For me that’s a suit silhouette that’s loose fitting with a longer jacket, a high back vent (above) and slightly tapered side-tab trousers, here the Clementina suit from J.Mueser.

This ivory linen I wear as a suit, but also rotate in trousers - brown, green and beige. Then in the winter months I swap the linen for wool - charcoal-grey or navy blue - and rotate in tweed or herringbone jackets. Mine, in the same cut, is shown at the top of this article and below.

 

The grey wool suit, in a more dressy combination

With that established, you can play with shirts, scarves and pocket squares, socks and shoes. I think these expressive layers can add dimension to every man’s wardrobe, as well as mine. 

For daytime I stick to Speciale 324 point-collar shirts in cheerful blue and ivory, which have a very slight silky feel and rounded cuff, or thin-striped shirts in neutrals like brown and beige.

And for a change of pace I might try a cord Western. I prefer soft ivory to stark white, which I think is more elegant and more flattering.

 

Shirt and scarf options ready for packing

Accessories on top of a base like this are easy, a delight.

I carry an array of patterned neck scarves from Charvet, Drake’s, old YSL, eBay, plus some navy bandanas (above). They change the mood and are featherweight for travel.

I always have extras in my bag (a Chiarastella Cattana olive tote I borrow from my partner David) – on a daily basis. Scarves are a point of visual flair and stand out against a solid suit.

For dressier occasions I wear a Charvet men’s tuxedo shirt, understated cuff links, and more scarves or ribbon neckties to create a particularly Ralph Lauren look (shown above, seated).

I enjoy Bombas men’s dress socks (good weight, stay upright and surprisingly warm) and Speciale 324 silks. I find a classic wool suit paired with boldly colored socks in purple, red or yellow very appealing and attractive on men. But when in doubt, I go with brown.

 

The shoe options - a range of looks, but all black

Shoes are simple: Friulane velvet slippers, a pair of suede loafers from Baudoin & Lange, Belgian loafers, and a pair of opera pumps in black calf that work well with suits, tuxedos or with jeans. These shoes are all comfortable, nuanced, dressy, timeless, and have a certain worldly flair.

Many of these are black editions of otherwise preppy shoes – something I think of as ‘goth prep’. They bring a touch of rebellion to East-Coast traditional style and it works with Belgians, opera pumps, desert boots or penny loafers.

Velvet Fruilane slippers are incredibly utilitarian and stylish. They bring diversity and are made for European cobblestones, beaches, black tie, linen suits, wool trousers, jeans and all four seasons. I can’t say that about any other shoe. It’s fun to collect them from different Italian regions, and I often pick up a pair in Florence.

In Venice, I go to Piedaterre, which makes my favourite style with an elongated toe and last. Brown velvet makes an ongoing appearance and emerald green changes the game. These add an easy feeling to my suits and I find them flattering on all men and women.

 

An example of a full bag, including what I'll be wearing

Of course, part of the point of writing this is that I think these key pieces and my approach to dressing overall can easily translate to a man’s wardrobe.

That’s largely because they’re sourced from men’s brands and tailors. As a woman, I eschew menswear ‘rules’ and experiment with the classics. But any man can also wear a charcoal grey suit and rotate in western, striped or tuxedo shirts as well as patterned pocket squares.

I think they should also be encouraged to wear a suit in the first place. If you feel overdressed that’s a good sign. (Although maybe save any pinstripes for later.)

 

The linen jacket with white jeans

I find uniform dressing particularly personal as, almost by definition, it’s something that reflects the wearer more than anything else. Often the wearer will have cycled through countless other genres over the years, before settling on something that feels like them - that feels like home.

Ease is the gift of uniform dressing. Although we all admire the sophisticated layers worn by Italian tailors and Japanese buyers at Pitti, it’s often their sense of ease that is most appealing – and transcends any trends.

Uniform dressing is for those who know what they like, can admit what they don’t, and have the confidence to wear a variation of the same thing every day. With self-knowledge and discipline, you arrive at a world of fewer, finer things. You require less and yet communicate so much more.

Emilie Hawtin is an editorial director and style commentator, based in New York.

 

The linen jacket with green trousers

Expressing yourself: How to dress like Milad Abedi

Posted on by Simon Crompton

 

The photographer Milad Abedi is someone whose style I’ve liked for a long time, but in a quiet way. Whenever we’ve shot together I’ve been interested in what he’s wearing and found something I liked, but he wasn’t the first person I thought about for PS series like this.

That changed when we spent more time together on a trip to Rome last year, and talked more. Although we dress a little differently, we have very similar views on a lot of aspects of style. Milad just tends to push the boat out a little more, wants to experiment and isn’t afraid to – even wants to – stand out. 

As readers have commented, this is often a nice aspect of these ‘How to dress like’ articles. Unlike the Reader Profiles, the people featured are from the menswear industry. They often dress in more unusual, more unique ways. It’s less likely you’d dress in the same way, but more likely that they’ll suggest new ideas.

 

 

Outfit 1: Working unusual pieces

  • Ball cap: Vintage RL Polo Sport
  • Jacket: Vintage Schott NYC, Made in USA
  • Knitwear: Eidos honeycomb knit
  • Trousers: Bespoke from Zaremba, in heavy Fox Flannel
  • Boots: Barbanera

PS: This seems like a good example of your style to start with. Much of this pretty classic – the cream flannel, the suede jacket and boots – but you went for a fringed western jacket rather than something more conventional.

Milad: Yes, I tend to like more unusual and eccentric pieces of clothing like this. I think too often guys are scared and say things like ‘I couldn’t pull that off’, but don’t give them a chance. My attitude is I could wear almost anything if I can find the right way to do it.

For example, I saw Tony [Sylvester] with leopard-print Grecian slippers a while back. I don’t necessarily dress like him, and I wouldn’t wear them that way, but I liked them as individual pieces and I was sure I’d sfind ways to incorporate them into my wardrobe. They turned out to be one of my most used pair of shoes and I wear them with everything, from black tie to pyjamas at home.

Would you be limited by things like skin colour, or proportion?

Those would be my only limitations pretty much, and my usual starting point when deciding on new pieces, besides price! If a colour works on me, or if it has the right proportions for my kind of frame.

That was how I first got into classic menswear actually. Not because I wanted to dress up in a suit and tie, but because I wanted to find trousers that worked for my build – that didn’t mean my thighs rubbed together and the crotch blew out.

So I discovered things like pleats, a full cut and a high rise, and It made a big difference. This further reinforced my thoughts about what good design is, and form following function.

 

 

Outfit 2: Working

  • Ball cap: Vintage RL Polo Sport
  • Jacket: Private White VC wax Twin Track
  • Jeans: Cream selvedge Berg & Berg denim
  • Boots: Morjas

This shot was taken when you were on location shooting for Ralph Lauren. How much does your occupation shape what you wear?

A lot! I spend so much time travelling that clothes have to be versatile, and then I’ll be shooting for a lot of the time, so they have to be somewhat practical. I do make sacrifices though.

Today I’m shooting with you but I’m wearing black-suede loafers, because I have a black-tie dinner on Wednesday – for this trip I needed shoes that could work for both.

I often find the key to packing well and quickly is colour palette – decide you’re going to wear cream, black and camel during the week, and then everything in those colours work together. Or only take black or brown shoes, just in different styles for different occasions.

It’s not all function though and I’m happy to wear less practical things if it makes me feel better about how I present myself. For example, today I’m wearing your camel overcoat from The Anthology, which isn’t the most practical thing for shooting. But I don’t mind if it gets on the ground a bit. I’ll brush it down and like the signs of wear.

And on that shoot with Ralph Lauren, I remember someone noted I was shooting in white jeans, even lying down in the grass. But they’re jeans – I’ll wash them at 60 degrees when I get home and they’ll be fine.

 

 

Outfit 3: Proportion

  • Ball cap: John Deere Merch
  • Suit: MTM Caruso
  • Knitwear: Berg & Berg
  • Shoes: Novesta

I know comfort is important to you too – is that driven by what you do, or is it more a personal preference?

It’s a combination of both, and it’s only a realisation I’ve come to over time. There was a time when I was wearing those close-fitting suits, which look fine when you’re standing in a mirror, not moving. Like a mannequin in a window with the jacket pinned at the back.

But it doesn’t work when you want to do something. I like the outfit above, but the suit is a good example: it was too tight in the sleeves and the thighs and the only reason it worked was because of the soft fabric. I’m bending my arm a lot when I work, and I don’t want to have to repress the sleeves every day. In fact, feeling fabric resistance around my forearms when moving is something I hate with a passion

But even if you’re not a photographer, I think a bigger fit there is better. Sleeves for instance don’t look big when they’re by your side – an extra 2cm or 3cm doesn’t make much of a difference in silhouette. But it does make it easier for you to live and move.

Do you think attitude to fit is changing?

100%! And of course, it’s been different in the past too. If you look at those old Armani ads, the clothes do often look too big, a little boxy with a low button; but when someone’s moving in them, they look amazing – the way they drape and flow.

Compare that to a tight suit in a ‘modern’ cut. It’s fine when you’re standing stock still, but as soon as you move it clings and rides up.

But you like that suit and outfit otherwise?

Absolutely, the colours are great, and that material was one Loro Piana did, a camel Gobi Gold I think, which had this great texture. They don’t do it anymore unfortunately. A real shame, as it’s the best cord I’ve seen and I would really love to have a version that fits properly.

Often texture and silhouette are the two things I look for in clothing, and I find most inspiring.

 

 

Outfit 4: Accessories

  • Sunglasses: Vintage Tom Ford
  • Suit: Bespoke, The Anthology
  • Shirt: Eton
  • Belt: Silver Ostrich

This feels like a good example of something which would not be unusual, were it not for the little things you’ve put it with – the sunglasses and the belt.

That’s fair. They’re high-waisted Hollywood trousers, but otherwise it’s just a brown suit and blue-striped shirt. The glasses and the western belt are the more eccentric additions.

It’s easiest to do this with outerwear and accessories of course – things at the edges that you can swap around. And I’m never going to wear full-on western clothing with a cowboy hat and everything else – it’s too limiting. You become the guy in the cowboy hat. The point of playing around is to find what you like, rather than completely copying something else.

Do you think your hair and beard – and perhaps height – make it easier to wear unusual things?

Perhaps a little. I haven’t always had them and it’s possible to dress much more conservatively, but you can wear bigger frames like this for example more easily – the proportions are more in line. They do limit me a little though, the few times when I need to dress conservatively. I think it looks a little off with a navy business suit and tie for example.

 

 

Outfit 5: Black and brown

  • Beanie: Berg & Berg
  • Knitear: Eidos honeycomb knit
  • Coat: Berg & Berg
  • Belt: Silver Ostrich Belts
  • Jeans: Berg & Berg

I see you wearing this coat a lot, why do you like it so much?

It’s proven very versatile. It’s a simple raglan, but the check has both brown and black so it works with brown and black shoes, which is obviously helpful. I’ve even worn it with black tie.

I struggle a little with roll necks like the one here – because of my beard they get pushed down. I need to find some good mock necks instead.

Just as we said at the beginning, the colour combinations and styles are pretty classic, but you’ve got little touches in there – the knit tucked into the jeans, the belt and rings, a bright beanie.

Yeah good point, and today with my polo coat I’m wearing the same beanie!

I think PS readers get quite quickly to the stage of dressing simply and well, but it’s harder to give advice on being experimental and expressing yourself. What would you say?

I think just try things, that’s the only way. If you like a piece invest in it, and workshop an outfit. Men are mostly the same, if they get some validation – from a girlfriend or a compliment from someone they meet – it will give them a lot of confidence.

Realistically, that’s helped me over the years. I find myself in places where I get a lot of validation from people who I look up to, other creatives or stylists. It helps a lot – and of course, makes it easier to not give a f**k about criticism!

 

Tobacco, black and white (some T-shirts in stock)

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Tobacco, black and white (some T-shirts in stock)

Monday, February 13th 2023Tags:
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You know that feeling when you realise a new purchase unleashes potential in an old, beloved garment? Like getting a yellow oxford and realising it doesn’t just look good with jeans, but also with your favourite herringbone jacket?

OK, I’m going to assume at least some of you do. Well, I was playing around with outfits to show the PS black Tapered T-shirt with last month; they were going to be restocked and I realised we’d never photographed the black. 

When I wear black I instinctively put it with similarly dark colours - dark brown, dark olive - or very muted ones - pale denim, cold beige. I wouldn’t naturally think it would work with tobacco. 

But then I remembered an image I’d saved from an old shoot, where the female model is wearing white jeans, a black T-shirt and a tobacco-suede jacket. So I tried the PS tee with my much-loved Connolly shirt-jacket and presto! What a lovely combination. 

Exciting too, because as I said it opens up possibilities. You start to think: would a black sweatshirt look good as well? Would a black knit be too dark? And how about black jeans? Would they both work with my Himel Bros? (The answers were yes, no, yes and yes respectively.) 

It’s such a nice feeling - like you’ve acquired not just one piece of clothing, but also 20% of a bunch of others. 

A reader mentioned recently that they like behind-the-scenes articles, such as how products are developed, or how I think through outfits.

This is one way. Given the task of finding pleasing ways to wear a new piece of clothing, I start with the obvious and easy, progress to the more unusual, and shoot off on various tangents when one combination suggests another.

The clothes are laid out on the bed, usually. Ones that seem promising are tried on (you can’t do that with everything, it just takes too long), and if they pass that test they’re recorded with a selfie. 

These are kept on file, in a folder on my phone. Which is backed up by Google on some super-server somewhere. At some point I might actually get around to categorising all of these so they’re browsable. 

I don’t go through this process every morning, mind. That would count as obsession. Only when there’s something new to photograph for an article or a product launch. 

Most other days it’s just a case of trying out one idea, knocking it around until I decide it works. Or it doesn’t, and I revert to something standard.

The easiest combinations are those like today’s black, white and tobacco, because they’re an extension to something I already wear - just replacing the standard mid-grey layer I’d usually wear under a jacket with this washed-out black. 

It’s like another twig on an existing branch, on the tree of my personal style. Or something. 

OK, returning to the more concrete part of this piece: this is the black PS Tapered T-shirt, which was restocked over the weekend along with white and navy.

The vast majority of the T-shirts went to the waiting list, but there are still some available. Also, quite a few readers bought two sizes in order to check their sizing, so if you're size isn't available it's worth adding yourself to the waiting list, as we'll get a few back.

On the black tee, it's definitely a washed black - like a pair of old black jeans, not a black knit - which I find makes it easier to wear. The contrast with white/ecru jeans is not as stark. It’s softer against the face.

The navy is also a washed navy, as should be clear from the images. Not a classic-menswear dark navy. The white is off-white. 

And for those that haven't had one of the Tapered T-shirts before, what’s special about them? 

Well, the idea is they combine the quality and weight of circular-knitted Japanese T-shirts, with a fit that is tapered and therefore much more standard. It’s the style of a tee you’re used to, from a Sunspel or a Uniqlo, but made to the level way as a heritage T-shirt - with all its character, strength and drape. 

As I described at length when we launched the T-shirts last year, I’ve always loved Japanese circular-knitted T-shirts - by comparison mainstream tees can feel flimsy, almost like underwear. 

The problem is they’re usually cut in a traditional (‘authentic’) shape, which is short and square. If you’re remotely slim, they’re not very flattering. Proportions do vary, but brands can’t do anything about the fact that the body is one piece, like a tube. 

So we make the T-shirts in the same way as those heritage pieces, but afterwards cut a seam in the sides, to give them a more regular shape. 

Importantly - at least to me - the collar is also high in the back, which I find more flattering than a traditional T-shirt. It’s the only reason I like wearing most sweatshirts without a shirt underneath: a sweatshirt will often be low at the back, but the tee fills in that space. 

Many of the brands we like on PS recognise this and cut their knits higher at the back of the neck - Adret, Colhay’s, Rubato - but those are jumpers. With sweatshirts it’s much rarer. 

Oh, and as promised we are still working on a grey version of the T-shirt. But as with a lot of production at the moment, there have been delays and delays. It will be months before that’s available I'm afraid.

Other information on the Tapered T-shirt:

  • Made for us in Osaka by the brand Allevol. Allevol tees are nice, but have a different body fit and collar shape
  • They use high-grade raw American cotton, which is spun in Japan into 14-count yarn (most high-street T-shirts are around half that, as well as of course using lower quality fibre). 
  • The material is knitted slowly on vintage circular machines, referred to as Taimaru. These are similar to loopwheel machines, but tend to create a denser material and a richer feel. 
  • The T-shirts have a bound collar: a separate piece of material which uses three lines of stitching to attach it to the body. This stops the collar stretching out over time - compare it to a mainstream T-shirt, and it’s remarkable how flimsy the latter feels. To avoid the collar being too stiff or bulky, the last line of stitching is on the body, attaching only to the collar on the inside. 

Care:

  • Treat like a dress shirt: wash cool and hang to dry. Do not tumble dry
  • The material can feel a little stiff after washing, depending on the machine and detergent. But it should soften as soon as it is worn
  • Being dense and malleable, the material has some natural stretch. So after washing don’t be afraid to give it a little stretch one way or the other, to gently add length or width. 
  • This is the same thing denim does after its washed, coming in a little and then going out as it’s worn again, adapting to the body. Doing this reshaping after washing is just accelerating that process.

Sizing:

  • The T-shirts fit like any regular tee in the body (from Sunspel for example) which all have a slight taper
  • The only difference you will notice is that the chest is a little larger, and the shoulder seam slightly dropped. Both of which I find quite flattering
  • In the images above, I am wearing a Large
  • However, I could also wear a Medium - I like the Large for a slightly oversized look, and the nice thing about the taper is that it doesn’t look too big. In the images below I’m wearing a Medium. Taka is wearing a Small
X-small Small Medium Large X-large XX-large
Chest (pit to pit) 49cm 52 55 58 60 63
Hem (bottom width) 44 47 50 53 55 58
Length (from back neck) 60 62 64 66 68 70

As mentioned in the article, please do add yourself to the waiting list if your size is not available, as we will have exchanges. And apologies there weren't more - we ordered the maximum available. In Japan as in most places at the moment, high-end production is having capacity issues

Pictured sharing a joke with the lovely, always smiling Lorenzo Cifonelli. Below with Taka of Allevol and Clutch Cafe

For the other clothes featured, please see the launch article here, or ask in the comments for details

 

The Simone Abbarchi workshop, in a little street, outside Florence

Posted on by Simon Crompton

The Simone Abbarchi workshop, in a little street, outside Florence

Friday, February 10th 2023Tags:
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I know shirtmaker Simone Abbarchi has a lot of PS customers in London and New York. They might like to know - and see - where their shirts are made. 

It’s a little workshop about 10 minutes drive outside of Florence. Simone arrives every morning at 8:00, and leaves at 1:00 to drive to the shop in town. Most of his appointments are booked for the afternoon.

The street outside is busy, narrow and old, with a narrow little pavement and cars shuttling up and down. The front door opens straight into the workroom.

There, six women are conducting every stage of the shirtmaking process, with roughly one each. In front of us a younger employee is preparing fabric that has come in from Canclini, Thomas Mason and elsewhere. To the left, collars are being cut, then bodies assembled. In the middle, the final product is pressed and folded. 

It’s clean, organised and very manual. Everyone knows their place; the process skips along as we watch. But there’s very little automation. 

Perhaps the embodiment of this is Simone’s filing system, in his little office behind the atelier. Patterns and records there are organised into binders, which are then allocated to locations. Long-time customers even have their purchases organised into personal binders. 

That’s one below, from a particularly long-term client in New York. Each shirt has a little snippet of the cloth beside it, with notes on the style and the fit. “He is always surprised when I know what he ordered, when, and how he has changed,” says Simone. 

The makers have been with Simone for varying lengths of the time, with new ones joining as the business has grown. The longest - now in charge of pressing and quality control - was the first employee back in the mid-nineties. 

“Over time each has recommended a friend, who recommended another, and they all helped train the new,” Simone says. “It has to be that way, because there’s no shirtmaking school near here. You really only have that for leather in Florence.”

This is in contrast to Naples, where the brands that prioritise handwork in particular - Kiton, Attolini - have their own schools, and there is enough demand that there are dozens of shirtmakers working at home, that work can be sent out to. 

D’Avino’s workshop, for example, just outside Naples, is a similar size but surrounded by such workers. Simone needs to be more self-sufficient. 

Simone started with shirts out of passion - he had no training, no family members in the trade. He simply loved the style of shirts and found a shirtmaker who could help make them. 

Growth has been slow but consistent, always focused on visiting just New York and London. He opened his first workshop in 2000, then the shop in Florence, then this larger workshop in 2012. It’s a solid operation, and one he likes the size of. 

Bespoke customers often ask why artisans don’t do more trunk shows when there is demand -  why they don’t want the business. The reason is usually that they don’t want to run that scale of operation, because it would change the nature of the job. There would be more time managing people, rather than products; and more time spent travelling rather than in the workshop.

When someone runs a business that was built on passion, they usually don’t want to change the the day-to-day experience of it, because it was the reason they started in the first place.

In Simone’s workshop, the day-to-day life of production continues around us, as we chat.

Alex, the photographer, is busy picking up little details - the kind of things you find in every office or factory, that people add incrementally to their workspaces, adding personality.

He also starts to notice the embroidery on Simone’s shirts, which is impressive for an operation that doesn’t use much hand sewing elsewhere. There are delicate initials, names, and even designs that customers have sketched themselves and sent in. That’s one of them below, with the original drawing alongside the finished result. 

There are many pleasures to having your shirts made by an artisan. They include the relationship you establish over time, which would rarely happen with a shop assistant; the personalisation of orders and superior better fit; and the ability to repair or alter the things you have made, making them more long-lasting and sustainable.

But it’s also nice - more human, perhaps - to know they’re made in little workshops like this rather than in a big, volume-driven factory. 

You can picture it when you receive your order. You know it’s a little workshop with character and personality, in a busy little street on the outskirts of Florence, where new and ancient buildings rub shoulders, and a little team of six people arrive each day to go through the process of sewing things together for you. 

Illustrating that is the greatest pleasure of these factory visits. 

Simone Abbarchi offers made to measure and bespoke shirts, with the latter involving more changes to both fit and design. They cost €165 and €210 respectively. He visits London and New York twice a year. 

More on him and my reviews of his shirts over the years, here. 

Photography: Alex Natt

 

What makes a quality sweatshirt?

Posted on by Simon Crompton

What makes a quality sweatshirt?

Wednesday, February 8th 2023Tags:
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Sweatshirts vary hugely in price, from £20 at a fast-fashion brand to well over £200 from a specialist Japanese maker. 

And even though the price difference is that large among brands we cover - say Merz b Schwnen at £130 and The Real McCoy’s around £180 - that’s a big percentage difference.

So what accounts for it? What goes into a good sweatshirt and what should you spend your money on?

It’s not an easy area, most obviously because the choice between a finer and coarser material - unlike with suits or shirts - is a rather subjective one. 

French terry: The fabric

Let’s start with the basics. Sweatshirt material is what’s referred to as French terry (different from plain terry, associated with towelling and perhaps towelling shirts). It has a soft pile on the outside and small loops on the inside. The latter is referred to as loopback (different to loopwheel, which is a particular, circular method of knitting). 

Some of the cheapest sweatshirts are not French terry - they are simple jersey, like a T-shirt. “To be honest, I wouldn’t even call this a sweatshirt,” says one maker I talked for this piece. “It’s just a long-sleeved tee.”

French terry is made from multiple layers of yarn, and has that soft and stretchy, yet substantial and dense feeling you associate with a sweatshirt, but don’t with a tee. It’s the kind of basic difference you can feel quite easily. 

Although the back of some sweatshirts (good and bad) is brushed to make them softer and warmer, you can still see the loops of material, just fluffier (below).

Pure cotton: The fibre

Some cheap sweatshirts are also partly synthetic, such as polyester. This is pretty much always a money-saving move and should be avoided. 

As with the point above about T-shirt v sweatshirt material, you know the difference between the two in terms of how they feel, as you probably own outerwear that is synthetic. You don’t really want that in something soft like a sweatshirt. 

You do find polyester in some highly regarded sweatshirt brands such as Camber, the American workwear brand. I own a Camber hoodie and it’s great - the material is so tough it’s basically outerwear, and is often too hot to wear indoors. 

But the same effect can be achieved with pure cotton, it just has to be woven more densely. Something like the Ball Park sweats from The Real McCoy’s are like that - the outer layer of yarn is woven to be tougher and more wind-resistant. That’s also the reason why Camber sweats are so much cheaper, and more used for actual workwear. 

Loopwheel and not: The knitting

Loophweel (above) is an old-fashioned method of knitting that was used for all sweats in the 1950s and earlier. It knits particularly slowly, with vintage ones the slowest of all, making only about one metre of fabric an hour. This creates a low fabric tension, which is why loopwheel knits always feel more stretchy and open. 

Being loopwheeled is a general sign of quality, but it also creates a specific type of knit, which not everyone wants for every design. If you want a denser sweat, as mentioned above, then you might want to a slightly more modern machine. 

These would still knit in a tubular fashion however, and as a result have no side seams. Like loopwheel, this is also a fairly useful rule of thumb for quality.                                                                                         

There’s also reverse weave, which is best known for Champion sweats and was created to reduce shrinkage in length. That’s less of an issue today though, and with old pieces the more significant factor is usually the dramatic size of the body and sleeve.

Balance and character: The layers

As mentioned earlier, aspects of cotton that we’re used to from smarter clothing - fineness, staple length - aren’t necessarily useful guides with sweatshirts. If you used a very fine cotton on a sweat, you’d end up with something that was quite light and silky, which probably isn’t what you want. Great vintage pieces also use both types. 

However, there is something subtle with sweatshirt material, which is that different yarns are used for the surface, an intermediate layer, and the back. These are varied depending on what effect you want - for example, it’s only the surface layer that you make denser to get that tough, weather-resistant layer we talked about above. 

“Essentially, a cheap sweatshirt will be made out of the same yarn on at least two layers,” explains a designer I spoke to. “They do this because it’s cheaper - they only need one type of yarn, and can buy it in larger volumes.”

A high-end sweat will play with those layers to get a different effect. The outer layer creates the visual effect and the feel, the hand. The middle layer is about volume, and preventing twisting. The underside is about volume too, but also softness on the skin, and warmth retention.

Different sweats will have different combinations - and this is the point that differentiates a lot of high-end sweats, as well as types from a single brand. 

Still, all cheaper sweats that use the same yarn throughout will have a similar feel: flat, without any body or density. Someone technical people would say they have less ‘character’ and you can see what they mean in the rather lifeless handle, like a single piece of pressed-flat material. 

Details: The design and manufacture

Then there are numerous little manufacturing points, such as flatlocked seams and the make of the collar, where the aim is normally to stop it stretching out over time. 

The ‘V’ shape on the front, and sometimes back, of the sweatshirt was intended to allow it to stretch while not affecting the collar, as well as to absorb sweat. Some people also love an extended cuff, which on a brand like Spalding finishes in a point up the inside seam. 

Most of these I'd put down to design preference, however, and on Permanent Style it’s probably important to emphasise that you shouldn't focus on quality to the exclusion of design, such as length, body fit and collar height. 

I love the quality of my Ball Park sweatshirt, but the prime reason I prefer it to my old Merz ones is the body length, which is that much shorter (and shrinks a little after the first wash). The body fit and high hood are the things I like most about my Camber. 

What would I buy?

Alongside those sweats from Real McCoy’s, Merz b Schwanen and Camber, I own ones from Loopwheeler, Toys McCoy and RRL, as well as vintage pieces from the 1980s (Champion) and 1950s. In the past I’ve owned Warehouse, Cushman and of course various cheaper brands when I was younger. 

My favourites are probably Real McCoy’s and Warehouse, with the difference largely being the point of balance between layers, rather than an obvious quality one. Warehouse feels a little softer and spongier to me, and I find I prefer the McCoy’s mix, so I sold my Warehouse. My Ball Park grey is the one I wear the most. 

I love the Loopwheeler hoodie I bought in Japan, but find the body is longer than ideal. Conversely, I have a RRL crewneck that I love, but for the colour of the melange and the exaggerated body fit. 

If I were advising a reader, I’d say pay towards the top end of the range, because you need very few sweatshirts - I wear my grey five times as much as any other - and because it’s a small difference in price. 

But I'd repeat two points about not focusing too much on quality:

- Just as much difference is between types of sweats - weight, balance, brushing, fineness - as it is anything objective that could be called quality, so you may just prefer a particular feel.

- Fit and style will always be more important, here as in everything. Make sure you put them first.

Spring/Summer 23 on the PS shop

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Spring/Summer 23 on the PS shop

Monday, February 6th 2023
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Hello everyone,

As has now become customary, I'd like to give you an insight into what’s coming up in the next six months on the shop. 

Of course we can’t detail everything in advance, but we wanted to give you a rundown on what’s confirmed so you are aware of timings and can plan accordingly. 

We currently have a slight delay on PS Oxford shirts, so please let us know if you would like us to open a pre-order so you can secure yours when they arrive in late Spring. Until a decision is made there, you can sign up to the waiting list on the product pages. 

We have tried to be as accurate as possible with the dates below, but please allow some slight variation on the release. There may also be one or two new launches which have yet to be confirmed and will fall into this season.

As ever, any questions can be addressed to [email protected]. Thank you.

January

February

  • Tapered T-shirt - Restock mid-month
  • Reversible suede bomber - Launch midmonth
  • Finest Crewneck - Relaunch
  • Dartmoor - Restock, plus new black 
  • Oxford shirts - New stripe colours
  • New product launch, to be announced

March

  • Finest Polo - Restock, with new colour to be announced
  • Bullskin Tote - Restock

April

  • Preorder: Indulgent Shawl Cardigan - All previous colours, plus one new

May

  • PS Overshirts - Restock
  • PS Shorts - Restock
  • Linen Harrington - Restock

The cream linen fabric used for my suit here, which we had hoped to make available for this Spring/Summer, will unfortunately not be available. The mill wasn't able to reproduce it in time.

Please let us know if there anything here you’re not sure about, or if this list reminds you that there’s anything you would like to see in the future (product or colour wise).

Pitti A/W 2023: Too many negronis, too few makers

Posted on by Simon Crompton

Pitti A/W 2023: Too many negronis, too few makers

Friday, February 3rd 2023Tags:
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By Tony Sylvester

It’s been three long years since I last shuffled along the cobbled streets of Florence, winding my way to the Fortezza Da Basso, the medieval castle that hosts Pitti Uomo, the international menswear trade fair.

Without stating the obvious, much has happened in the intervening time, that was far more important than the business of menswear. And, of exponentially greater consequence than the secondary aspect of Pitti, the activity that brings the fair to the world’s attention - the peacockery and general ‘sausaging about’, as my friend Aleks refers to it.

I missed out on what some would consider the glory days of Pitti, first landing in the Tuscan capital about a decade ago, slap bang in the middle of the peacock era. This period was a gross exaggeration of the quite honest phenomenon that street-style photographers like Scott Schuman and Tommy Ton had started capturing a few years prior. Their shots of visiting industry personalities and some of Florence’s local chaps milling around or seated upon the infamous curved wall made for genuinely inspiring viewing.

By the time I had enough status and responsibility in the world of menswear to attend myself, this had led to a comical explosion of wannabes and sartorial tourists, seemingly only there to get photographed and with a negligible connection to the day-to-day business of the fair.

By the mid 2010s, the outfits they wore had become louder and more attention grabbing, yet somehow more homogenised - a new orthodoxy had taken hold. The fits were tighter, the checks louder, the colour palette brighter. It was a contradictory mashing of two directions of the time: a newfound appreciation for the heritage of ‘classic’ menswear and the slimmed-down silhouette of the Hedi Slimane suit.

Unfortunately for all concerned, this hybrid ended up as the de facto look for the era. It was not uncommon to see two hats perched on heads, pocket squares festooned from multiple pockets (on the same outfit) and foot-long feathers protruding from hat bands.

This coquetry also obscured the fact that for industry professionals, part of the fun of going to Pitti is still the pomp and spectacle. It’s what separates it from other trade shows. Even if you consider your own style to be a little more elevated or natural than the parading popinjays, choosing your best outfits on the off chance of being snapped and papped has always had its charms.

And for a lot of attendees, there is a vital practical element too. For a small brand that relies on self-generated marketing, it presents an opportunity for recognition and a showcase to the fashion press, which can then be reposted and recirculated on your own channels.

Armchair pundits are often unaware of the actual work being conducted at the fair. At its pre-Covid height, there were something like 1,200 brands and 21,000 buyers in attendance from around the world.

I made the decision to skip the last few installments. With a downturn in brands showing and worldwide travel severely depleted, it didn’t seem worth it. Those who did make the effort reported back on a half empty fair and closed halls, with very little in the way of actual business getting done. In this void, the socialising aspects appeared to be ramped up to new heights and the fair looked in serious danger of losing its focus and purpose, becoming just another stop off for wealthy folks on the European holiday circuit.

I went this time with some very specific goals in mind. Firstly to help Bryceland’s with their AW23 buys from suppliers, and with the secondary function of looking for new makers for future AWMS products.

The first task was straightforward - Ethan and Kenji have a very clear idea of what they need, who makes it, and what colours and styles work for their brand. The second proved much more elusive alas. While most of the big players were back in force, fresher, newer brands were thin on the ground. Unfortunately for me, I found there to be particularly few manufacturers of interest.

Amongst the malaise and disappointment, a couple of bright lights did shine forth from newer, younger labels.

One that was brand new to me was Nashville and Los Angeles-based Savas. Historically focusing on bespoke and made-to-order leather jackets, founder Savannah Yarborough was launching a new ready-to-wear range. Resolutely rock ‘n’ roll in origin, the models had pleasingly warm tones of suede and calfskin, taking clear inspiration from cowboy shirt and trucker-jacket silhouettes.

Of particular resonance to me was the Trapp; a longer, Mao-collared style with half-belted back that appeared to marry a safari jacket and Bavarian Janker (above). On the footwear side, I could also absolutely see myself in the asymmetrically cut Letta mule in black hair-on-hide. A nice alternative to the Grecians and Opera Pumps I favour in the summer.

The other highlight was catching up with my old friends at P. Le Moult (below). Based in Vienna, Praline and Harry have been at the forefront of the ‘loungewear as outerwear’ concept since way before lockdown threw it into vogue. Their Orient Express collection of robes, nightshirts and pyjamas affixes Hussar frogging to stout jewel-toned and dark-cotton twills and silks, and I put in an order for a navy work jacket with gold knots.

Finally, the other half of Pitti: the daily looks.

The first day, I was excited to show off my latest commission from Fred Nieddu and Zoe Yates at Taillour, made in a deadstock buffalo plaid that I bought off Pendleton’s old eBay store almost 15 years ago. I believe it was made for Filson, for a Japanese collection.

An unorthodox choice for a sports coat, in both colour and weight, it is a heavy beast - heavier than most English overcoat cloths. But remembering the bitterness of Pittis past, I thought it would do away for the need of a coat. The unseasonal warmth had other ideas though, and made it almost too wieldy for the occasion.

The idea for the jacket came from a couple of sources. When Engineered Garments’ Daiki Suzuki was at the helm of Woolrich Woolen Mills, he presented what many consider to be the greatest collection of the Tumblr / #Fuckyeahmenswear era in AW10’s Hunting Noir, which relied heavily on a similar palette of black with bright blue. Around the same time, J Press, under Mark McNairy’s guiding hand, sold a sack jacket in red buffalo plaid complete with hand warmer pockets.

With a jacket carrying this much information, I felt it best to pare down the rest of the outfit with a simpatico, quieter palette. Alongside my AWMS black beret, I wore Taillour bespoke charcoal flannels, the Brycelands RAF rollneck in black, blue sunglasses based on Max Pittion’s Politician shape made by General Eyewear, and some vintage black RM Williams Craftsman boots on Dainite soles. While not for everyone, I was extremely happy with the overall look.

 

Day two saw another Taillour-related choice in the shape of Bryceland’s brand new Easy Jacket, developed with Nieddu for the launch of the new Bryceland’s London store.

An unlined and unvented jacket with shirt cuffs and patch pockets, it is designed to take the same place in your wardrobe as a Teba, or a French work jacket, but with a little touch of 50s West Coast Americana. I went for the navy wool twill from Abraham Moon with brass buttons, and wore it with a midweight burgundy rollneck from Smedley, white HBT deck pants and hand-knitted watch cap (both from Brycelands) and JM Weston 180 loafers in black lizard.

The last day was also a travel day, so comfort was the overriding theme; nothing that new or fancy was employed.

I took the opportunity to wear the new AWMS beret sample in a nice inky blue; a vintage Ralph Lauren duffle coat in a blue and green plaid with a pleasing ankle length, a navy fisherman’s jumper from Labour & Wait and my trusty spruce green ‘Andrew’ pleated cords- more vintage Ralph. This was the closest to my day-to-day clobber out of the three days, though the Easy Jacket is also becoming a firm fave.

And like that, the whirlwind was over for another season. Being back in Florence really brought home what I missed about the place, as well as that sense of what the fair is lacking in makers.

With apologies to Dickens (and you the reader), we can call it the Tale Of Two Pittis - the work and the social. It would be hypocritical of me to bemoan the endless stream of Negronis, but hopefully next time, they’ll feel more like the reward of a day’s work well done.