Lighten Up!!!

Hello again!
The last few days have been quite busy for me; my wife and I welcomed a new daughter into the household, and what with accepting family and friends at home and keeping our son from feeling neglected, we haven't had much time for much else. I wanted to squeeze at least one more August post in... I have been trying to be very good about updating the site more often but I want to remain focused on quality posts rather than superficial crap that is doomed to be nothing more than uninteresting filler.
I recently purchased a new pair of sunglasses from the illustrious eBay marketplace, and an opportunity presented itself!
I think that many men go to the black frame when buying sunglasses because the black requires a little bit less thought... and, perhaps, a little bit less daring. In order to inject a little bit more color into one's outfit, however, tortoise-shell frames are excellent for lending a little bit of character to the ensemble. For people like myself that have a fair complexion, tortoise-shell frames are more flattering to the skin tone and hair color, actually brightening the skin complexion and bringing out vibrance in the hair color.
My new shades (pictured) are not tortoise-shell, but have a lovely brown and clear two-tone Rhodoid frame. These are vintage and are made by French manufacturer Selima Optique. Selima is now working in collaboration with J. Crew to offer a few styles to the lineup, the most flattering (in my opinion) being the Rivington model ($250, jcrew.com), which is available in tortoise-shell.

I like the idea of having a vintage pair of sunglasses as a unique and (most likely) one of a kind (or close to it) accessory/conversation starter. My idea behind this purchase (other than getting an amazing deal on the shades) is that these will compliment my complexion in a way that my black frames do not. I love my Persols and my Ray Bans, but it's time to add something new to the rotation.
Jazz up your accessories and go for lighter frames. They will enhance colors in your clothing and solicit others to look at your face, rather than inhibiting others' glances by wearing "security black". There is a reason that the secret service wears all black shades: it better enables them to fade into the background and maintain anonymity. Stand out. Don't blend.
If anything, take away from this post the benefit of a brown or tortoise-shell frame to a fair complexion. If you are fair-skinned and have light hair, black frames can easily wash you out, which, on this side of the matrix, is not a good thing.
Until next time,
Cheers!
-Paul

Perfect for Fall (and other seasons): The Desert Boot

Hello Again!
Another accepted school of thought (sartorially speaking of course) is the McQue theory; a rough translation is that, if Steve McQueen did it, one can't go wrong. McQueen wore Persol sunglasses, which are are beautiful testaments to handmade Italian eyewear (Jack Nicholson rocks them too) that look amazing today. The chambray shirt, mentioned in a previous post, was sported by McQueen. I would even go so far as to say that if a man wants to get a huge butterfly tattooed across his chest, this would be perfectly acceptable considering that Steve McQueen did it in Papillon. It may even be that men look so good in a killer pair of chinos and a white t-shirt simply because Steve McQueen sported the ensemble.
Well, men, today we feature another McQueenism that is as equally stylish today as it was in his time; the desert boot. Mine are made by Clark's, as were McQueen's, but a number of designers have lovely offerings today, from Tod's to J. Crew. The design of the Clark's desert boot as been virtually unchanged since 1950, and now, I shall offer my brief yet obligatory history of the shoe.
The desert boot represents Clark's very first "original" and was the brainchild of Nathan Clark, the great grandson of one of the founding Clark's brothers. He got the idea from the crepe-soled rough suede boots that English army officers had merchants make for them in the bazaars in Cairo that enabled comfortable travel through, yes, the desert. In the US we see them comonly in Fall, but the boots' design was to allow comfort in heat as well, often over uneven terrain.
The simplicity of the design of these "cheese bottom" shoes, as the Jamaicans call them, has lent itself to timeless style in a variety of climates, and can be worn with anything from jeans and a t-shirt to chinos and a shirt and tie. They have, after, been the dress code of Princeton University. McQueen is pictured wearing them on his motorcycle. I have seen hipsters wearing these lose and sockless with shorts, and I've seen them paired with more straight-laced business casual ensembles as well.
If you are looking to expand your footwear wardrobe by adding a versatile staple, I would highly recommend the desert boot. These are available in a variety of colors in suede or in beeswax leather as well at www.clarks.com.
Until next time,
Cheers!
-Paul

Mixing it Up

Many men refer to breaking up a suit as one of the cardinal sins of dressing. Wearing an orphaned suit jacket with odd trousers can look very bad when done incorrectly, but when done right can look quite nice. The suit's fabric is what makes the difference between right and wrong. Today we will focus on doing it right. Here, the same suit is used to make two different outfits.
When mixing it up, it is best to use fabrics in a plaid or a windowpane, as these patterns are ideal for sportcoats. I like windowpane, because the suit can be worn together in the office for an all-business look, but then one can ditch the tie and open the collar and head to a cocktail party. Splitting a windowpane suit up and wearing the jacket and trousers separately also lends itself to both dignified and casual looks. Here is my opinion on how to do it.
When wearing the trousers only, keep your upper half a little dressier. Wear a tie and a jacket, because the suit trousers are going to formalize the rest of your ensemble.
When wearing the jacket only, you have a little bit more lattitude to keep the rest of the outfit casual. Skip the tie, throw in a pocket square, and sport some trousers that do not combat the jacket. In both instances, the suit garment should be the only pattern; do not wear jackets and trousers with other patterns on them. You don't want to look like an optical illusion. A pattern in your shirt is ok, as long as it is different in scale (and hopefully different in type) than the pattern on your jacket or trousers.
I find that a striped shirt can look just fine (or even fantastic) with a windowpane jacket, but I would keep the shirt plain with windowpane trousers. The trousers have enough pattern on their own for the shirt to be competing with them. A subtle pattern in your tie is fine, however. Busy pants don't mean everything else has to be completely bland.
Try it out and let me know what you think!
Until next time,
Cheers!
-Paul

Uh, yeah.. regarding Chambray...

I thought a little about yesterday's post. I reread it.
I realized that one could make the assumption that I was glorifying "prison-wear". I don't want to you guys to make that mistake. Here are a couple of images that may give you some more ideas regarding the chambray shirt, including one of a guy that had the back of his screen-printed. I guess that definitely makes use of the "open-canvas" analogy!
Cheers,
Paul


(photo at 9 o'colck position via The Sartorialist)

Blue Collar Chic

In today's floundering economy the definition of chic is changing. The days of looking like you dropped a month's wages on any given outfit are over... at least for now. Roots-based clothing is re-emerging as the stylish wardrobe of the day. Looking stylish without looking like you paid to look that way is becoming common mentality, which in my opinion, is great! That's what style is all about anyway! You can't buy style; you really have to own it. Fashion is always for sale, but maintaining timeless style is what we're all here for.
Anyway... today I speak on behalf of the chambray shirt. The chambray workshirt was popular amongst Navy military personel during the second world war. The USN chambray shirt has been worn in every hull, galley, and deck on every great destroyer, carrier, and submarine for over a half a century. Since surplus military apparel was often "reappropriated", the chambray shirt popped up in the prison system as issued garb for prisoners (Clint Eastwood rocks the look below in 1979's Escape From Alcatraz) since it wore like iron and could stand up to commercial laundering. Let's also make sure not to forget Paul Newman sporting the chambray shirt in Cool Hand Luke.
The cool and soft yet durable cotton of the chambray (or Cambric) shirt made it ideal for manual labor, and it is because of this that such workers have been dubbed "blue-collar".
Today folks may still work in their chambray shirts, but designers are quickly recognizing this timeless shirt as go-to's for the season. J. Crew, Ralph Lauren, APC, GAP, French Connection... all of these labels have offerings in chambray shirting. I'm not saying that this is reason enough to get one, but the functionality is great, and designers and stylists alike know it. The chambray shirt works with chinos, jeans (although hopefully in a contrasting color denim to your shirt), and even with a skinny tie and a charcoal suit. You can enjoy playing around with it.
The fact that this particular shirt has been around for so long makes it a great wardrobe building block. Look at it as an open canvas to build upon. Mine, shown at the top of the post (and at right), is an older Ralph Lauren offering from his now defunct Double RL line, which churned out clothes of Americana and Western heritage. I like the style of the pockets and the different direction of the buttonhole stitching on the pockets. The closest thing I have seen to this today is made by J. Crew and can be seen on their website, however finding an old vintage chambray on eBay or thrifting can be much more exciting.
Look for one that's trim and tailored; I don't think that blousiness is very flattering in this style of shirt (if in any style), so go trim.
Enjoy the search! Until next time,
Cheers!
-Paul

Essentials: The Chocolate Brown Wingtip

Every man is at some point in his life going to need to make a court appearance. We all speed on occasion, right? Though unfortunate, every man is also going to have to bury somebody someday, be it a grandparent or a coworker or a friend. By the same token, almost every man is going to attend a wedding, be it his own or someone else's. We're all most certainly going to have to interview for a job (or in today's times, two jobs), as well. Because of these four inevitabilities, every man needs a pair of black captoe oxfords. Since these occasions are the only times that somber and decidedly formal black captoes enter the realm of necessity, I don't believe we need to dedicate a feature to this particular species of shoe.
I write today's article because every man also needs to have a pair of nice, rich brown wingtips. Why? Because these shoes are perfect for almost any event not listed above. Office, dinner, days off (paired with jeans), there is not another type of shoe that so easily bridges the gap between casual and formal; there is not another shoe that would be as equally accepted in a boardroom or in a bar room. These are shoes to add to one's wardrobe.
I'll spare the history lesson about the reason wingtips originally came about, but it had to do with the need for a dressy looking shoe that would disperse moisture in the boggy moors of Scotland. The design of the wingtip assisted in doing this, and those who do a little research will understand how. Our reason for the discussion today involves style, so hopefully the brief historical reference will suffice for those who may be interested. My point being; even at the time of its inception, the wingtip was designed to be a shoe that could be worn anywhere.
The shoes pictured are by Ralph Lauren and are made of very high quality leather: because of the amount of wear one can get from the brown wingtip, I would highly recommend investing in a high quality pair of shoes. Often you can expect that these will not be inexpensive, but I have found that J.Crew offers a lovely and very well-made pair of Italian leather wingtips for somewhere between $155 and $168, which is a bargain for a high-quality shoe.
I would consider the chocolate brown wingtip to be another wardrobe staple, and I hope you find a fantastic pair. Soon.
Until next time,
Cheers!
-Paul

P-Dubb's Endorsement: The Plaque Belt

Yeah, that's me. P-Dubb. That was my handle from my years as a deejay. Another lifetime.
Any-hoo, today I am assigning the title of "staple" to the monogramable plaque belt. Pictured above is an offering by J. Crew, available only from their catalog or online (not in stores). They call it their "English Leather Plaque Belt." This is the version that I own, and at $55, I felt that this slide-buckle belt was a must have. I love the old English vibe of this style belt. I almost want to spit-shine the damn thing before I go out on the town in it. I haven't had it engraved, and I don't know that I will. If I do, it would be kinda groovy to have an expletive engraved on it for fun. Just to see how many people lean in to read it...
These belts can be found from different sources: I think that J. Crew's rendition offers a nice value. Also pictured (below) is Ralph Lauren's version that looks virtually identical (as in... could have been made by the same silversmith identical), but his buckle alone sells for $150, sans leather. Steep.
The versatility of this belt is wonderful. Dress it up with a suit or dress it down with jeans and boat shoes. The options are plentiful, and because of this, I dubb this item, the english leather plaque belt, a wardrobe staple.
Until next time,
Cheers!
-Paul