Wednesday, March 9, 2011

The Trouble With Shoes

Shoes, as we all kow, are a tricky thing.  They can either make or break an outfit.  Not unsurprisingly, then, the great likelihood of style impropriety makes it sensible to forgo expertise in this particular area.  Most men, I have noticed, generally rotate between 3-4 shoes annually!  But there are just a few shoe styles that I could never get into.  Here they are:

The LL Bean Boot



I know people love this boot, but they just do not look good, no matter what you wear them with.  In fact, I can't decide which is worst: Tucking the pants into the boot or wearing the pants regularly over the boot.  Both looks are rather awkward.  Please do not wear these boots.


The White-Black Saddle Shoe

Now there is nothing wrong with saddle shoes, provided that you stay away from the standard white-black variety:



These always look awkward, no matter how you wear them.  Other varieties, however, can look really, really nice:



The Wallaby Boot



As you can see, this shoe does not look good either.

Monday, March 7, 2011

The Repp Tie

It seems like every other season a style directory like GQ publishes a piece on the various styles of ties a man should own.  For my own part, I have seen fit to collect nothing but repp ties.  I have never been a fan of busy ties like plaid, madras, or checks.  Solid ties seem too bland and theme-featured ties a bit too contrarian.  The repp tie, on the other hand, is perfect in nearly every instance.  They come in all sorts of patterns and variations, making their accumulation a most worthy pursuit.  There really is no other tie a man needs when he has a sufficient number of repp ties.  And forget all that talk about cotton ties for summer and wool ties for winter.  Ties are an accessory.  That would be like telling one to wear one's gold watch only in the summer or one's ring only in the winter.  Seasonal ties are therefore an oxymoron.  The silk repp tie is the only tie that you will ever need.  Just make sure that you have plenty of them!

The Marks of Pedigree

The Unabashedly Prep blog has an interesting post on "cultured" artwork.  The author mistakenly concludes, however, that equestrian art is more consistent with the prep aesthetic than canvas portraits of distant relatives.




Anyone who has had the pleasure of visiting a home with these family portraits knows how absolutely stunning they are.  For one, they cannot be duplicated.  And secondly, they invariable have a special connection with the home in which they hang.  This makes them truly unique in a way that other "theme-featured" artwork can can never be. 

Friday, March 4, 2011

Tie Haberdashery


I love wearing either a tie bar or a collar pin with my ties.  But strangely enough, and for reasons I cannot quite articulate, I have never felt comfortable wearing these accessories at the same time.  I suppose it is because they serve different purposes.  The collar pin produces an arc at the tie knot while the tie bar helps to keep the tie firmly in place.  But practicality has never been the raison d'etre for style.  Perhaps it is because men are not supposed to wear too much "jewelry."  Whatever the reason, I still am looking for my first real encounter with someone who is wearing both.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

The J. Crew Bowery Pant in Urban Slim Fit

I, too, am a very big advocate of picture online shopping.  I feel much better about ordering something online when I have first seen it advertised on a model.  The Ralph Lauren and Rugby sites are great for this; J. Press not so much.  But these pictures, like all pictures, can be misleading.  And nowhere are they more misleading, I believe, than the J. Crew Bowery Pant (in the Urban Slim Fit).  This truly is an excellent pant at an exceptionally low price.  It is a dress pant.  It feels and looks like a professional pant, and it fits perfectly.  The leg opening and width of the pant are neither too skinny nor too wide.  And the break, for me, is perfect.  I couldn't even have my own tailor duplicate these results.  I do hope J. Crew continues experimenting with this pant.  I own nearly every color in the Bowery cotton twill and the Bowery cord (both in the urban slim fit).  I would like to see other pant styles introduced in the Bowery series such as, for example, an embroidered pant, an embroidered cord pant, a bright cord pant, a madras pant, a linen pant, and a tweed wool pant.  I can promise you now that I would patronize each variation ardently.  I have not yet had the privilege of wearing $400 pants, but at $70 these pants are simply perfect.