Bespoke shoes are a luxury for me, rather than the norm.  Unlike bespoke tailoring - which I will always buy over RTW as long as I can afford to - I’m quite happy with a shoe wardrobe which is mostly ready-made.  This can put more pressure on bes...

There are many badly dressed people at Pitti. There are also people like Luca Rubinacci, Lino Ieluzzi, Ignatious Joseph and others - one-man brands - that benefitted hugely from being shot by Scott Schuman and need to be there to maintain that profil...

  France is blessed with some of the finest makers of leather jackets in the world.There are very few around Europe that retain their own manufacturing; and of those, most are low-volume makers that stand out for their traditional production method...

Man, I love the pop-up shop. It's being going so long now that I know exactly what it will be like, and I look forward to the atmosphere, the chats, and the conversations with readers. It's exciting putting your products out carefully on display. It ...

Permanent Style is a global authority on classic and luxury menswear. One of the biggest such sites in the world, it receives up to 600,000 page views every month, and is read by over 1 million unique users every year. Founded by professiona...

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...

Dear Simon, In a couple of months time I will be 21. This is clearly an important time in one's life, in my case particularly as I will also be undertaking the purchase of my first bespoke suit. As a regular reader of your blog I'm seeking your advi...

Ed, London: I just bought a pair of boots and was considering putting rubber soles on top of the leather ones, to make them harder wearing and more suited to the rain and the snow. Is this a good idea?Pearse, London: With the weather being the way it...

Dear Mr CromptonMy name is Francisco Gomez, from Colombia. I recently stumbled upon your blog and have become an avid reader of it, since I have always loved all things related to clothing, accessories etc.I am currently in the process of having my f...

Hello, I'm a new reader of your blog, and I must say I'm enjoying it thoroughly. As I read it, I realised that I had a question I haven't found a good answer to and it’s been bothering me no end: what is the best way to store one’s pocket square...

Michael, Atlanta: I’m a long time reader and have greatly enjoyed your posts, and have even more enjoyed applying their message. I’m about a year away from my wedding and am looking to have a suit made for it. I am looking at either a black with...

Colours that go with tan Dear Simon, I'm getting stuck putting an outfit together, and what it comes down to is the socks.   I'm wearing a mid-grey worsted wool suit with a sky-blue shirt and regimental tie of burgundy and navy stripes...

By Manish Puri. This article is the second in a series dealing with my personal experiences of having bespoke/MTM clothes made over the last six years. The first covered some of my tips for working with tailors, while this piece focuses on the lesson...

This cashmere coat from Cifonelli, which I've had now for nine years, is similar in many ways to the two coats we’ve covered previously in this series - from Ciardi and from Liverano. There are some technical differences, however, which makes the...

This is the second of two videos we made recently talking through what to pack for travel. The first suggested clothes for a three-day trip - basically wearing one outfit and packing another, but with every piece interchangeable. This second one expa...

Nothing is more rewarding than seeing how PS readers engage with requests and ideas.  In an age of ever-quicker, ever-shallower content - where everyone advises you to write only the short, social and sharable - you all take the time to contribute....

In recent years I’ve done an increasing amount of personal consultancy, meeting readers in person to answer their questions rather than just here on the website. I don’t really advertise it because I don’t have much capacity, and most peopl...

  As with many reader questions, this one evolved over several email messages back and forth. I know Joel won’t mind if I restructure that exchange into a conversation, in order to put the inquiries in the right order. And add a little narrative....

As mentioned in my original post about this reader competition, our aim was to explore the different forms formalwear can take today. Men will always have a need to dress up, in order to appear appropriately for a smarter, more important and more f...

In this next installment of posts responding to reader questions (see original list here), I will try to answer those about my life outside Permanent Style. Now, some readers have asked why I answer these questions, and indeed why readers put them....

*Note: The competition is now closed, and the winner will be announced soon. Please feel free to carry on filling out the survey, but you will no longer be entered into the competition* Permanent Style has always been about the readers.  Word of mou...

Hi Simon,First of all let me say I'm a massive fan of your blog. In fact I've even cancelled my GQ subscription because of your blog. Doesn't mean you should start charging us though! I was wondering if you could do a post on how to carry your suit w...

Dear Simon,Many thanks for the invaluable resource of your blog when it comes to style. I started reading a month or so ago and am taking pleasure in devouring the wealth of information there is on classic sartorial menswear.However, the occasions on...

A typical ensemble at Trunk ClothiersDear Simon,My name is David and I have been a fan of your work for quite a while now. As an undergraduate business student at Northeastern University (Boston, MA), I have gradually realised a passion for good styl...

The best of both worlds? An Alfred Sargent ArmfieldDear Simon,I have a quick question regarding black shoes that I thought you might be able to help with. I'm thinking of investing in a good pair of versatile black shoes that I can wear for business ...