evolving style

“Following the rules can be good, but do so for your own reasons. Question everything.”

fromsqualortoballer:

On Sleeve Length

Over the past couple of years my sense of style has taken several distinct turns. I think this is very normal for someone who is young on their journey into men’s clothing and I imagine that my tastes will continue to  develop over time. One change that I’ve noticed in particular is my opinion on jacket sleeve length.

When I was first learning about tailored clothing I was slavishly committed to “the rules.” For this reason, I was always adamant on showing a healthy amount of shirt cuff under my suits and jackets in order to “let them know” that I was a stylish man. I was quick to pass judgement on those who wore their sleeves at or past their cuffs; if only they knew the mistake they were making!

As I spent more time thinking about the topic and learned from more purchases I began to question the meaning behind my sleeve length manifesto. Why is it that we are told to “show some cuff”? After some reflection I was able to think of two reasons for this behavior. The first reason is the obvious one: shirt cuffs provide contrast. If you are wearing a shirt and suit of different colors (and I hope you are) the small slice of shirt provides some much-needed contrast, especially if the suit you’re wearing is a solid color. This is similar to the effect of a simple pocket square neatly tucked into a breast pocket with a TV fold; a small amount of contrast aids in breaking up a large canvas.

The second reason came to me after wearing tailored clothing more often. I found that the shirt cuff gave me a helpful amount of gradation between my jacket sleeves and wrist. As a textbook ectomorph I dislike the stark contrast created between my small wrists and the much larger opening of the jacket sleeve. A shirt cuff nicely splits the difference and eases the transition from suit to skin. I found this to be a very compelling reason as to why I felt the need to keep suit sleeves away from my wrists.

Once I began to think of this rule in my own terms and not as a GQ commandment I started to reevaluate the way I approached it. If the reason for showing cuffs is not to prove that “you get it” but to instead complete a holistic look then perhaps a more subtle approach would be beneficial. I experimented with different sleeve lengths and quickly found that, as with most things in life, less is more. A sliver of shirt peeking out from under a sleeve effectively succeeds in the points above, but does so in a way that does not detract from the whole look (in the way that 1/2”-1” of shirt cuff might). Discovering my own reasons for following this rule has help solidify my preferences and made me more confident in what I look for.

Following the rules can be good, but do so for your own reasons. Question everything.

Buy this Polo Ralph Lauren Donegal tweed sports coat from The Thrifty Gent on eBay if you’re a 40/41. If the shoulders weren’t too wide (18.5”) it would be mine already.

The coat hits all the #menswear sweet spots: trim cut, ticket pocket, dual vent. Can you go wrong?

Oh, and readers of his blog get 20% off if they mention it in their comments on ‘Make an Offer.’ Finally, he’s selling stuff in order to fund the costs of adoption, so it’s a worthy endeavour.

The colour of the jacket….

I’ll take a whole suit, please.

drakes-london:

Navy Double Breasted Linen with Patch Pockets 

Light Blue Fine Stripe Cotton

Orange Knitted Cotton

Habotai Silk Paisley 

"We all get ideas and cues from other people to build our own personal styles. For some it may be a work in progress and others may be content with whatever their own looks may be. Some may resemble well-known memes or seem too overtly camera-friendly, but I for one am not willing to pass negative judgment on someone for that without knowing their intentions or daily routines."

Downeast and Out

Distilling part of the argument I made in my post Progress & Preservation.

Progress & Preservation

The Silentist wrote a piece asserting his opposition to sneakers with suits. He’s extending a position I noted in the second of two posts I made on the subject. A Fistful of Style has offered his own rejoinder. 

I would like to take this very practical topic to a more conceptual place. Specifically, I want to consider the role of two opposing tendencies in style/fashion. On the one hand, there’s what I would call progression, on the other’s there preservation. Progression involves introducing change and moving away from tradition. Preservation involves stability and a reinforcement of tradition. I’m trying to present the concepts without any overt normative assessment as I consider both important forces within menswear. In fact, I think it is the tension between them that ensures change itself is coherent. If I’m being upfront, I would consider myself more of a progressionist, favouring experimentation that pushes and crosses the boundaries of traditional style. Kiyoshi - The Silentist - is more of a preservationist, an assessment I’m quite certain he would agree with. 

I consider it indisputable that style changes. If you watch Downton Abbey, then you saw how the tuxedo was considered by some to be an unwelcome casual step away from traditional white tie. Yet, the rules of aristocratic dress were, at that time, less than 100 years old, having come about with Beau Brummell’s influence on the future King George IV and the aristocracy that surrounded him. Prior to that, the aristocracy wore quite audacious and ornate costumes to demonstrate their wealth and leisure. By the 1950s, as depicted in the excellent BBC series The Hour, the tuxedo was the required dress for a man attending dinner in an aristocratic household. The clothing worn to lunch by those at the home would have given the Dowager Countess a heart attack. Although white tie and morning dress remain the height of formal mens attire, they are almost entirely restricted to the vestiges of the aristocracy, with barely two generations of British aristocrats having actually donned such outfits on a regular basis.

As the world changes it only makes sense that style changes with it. Yet, I do not wish for menswear to be radically and unhesitatingly transformed. Everyone likes to say that there are ‘no rules’ in menswear and it is true, if by rules we mean something akin to a sport’s rulebook. Instead, menswear has covert ‘rules.’ It would be a lot easier if we could all just buy the handbook. Instead, there is a learning process, figuring out what works and what is acceptable. The basis for acceptance is judgement by the community. This judgement is not arbitrary. In fact, it is built up from years of experience that includes buying and wearing the clothes, putting together outfits, learning about materials, colour combinations, use of texture, proportion, cut. However, it also includes engaging with others, both in and outside the community. Or, rather, communities, as there are multiple arenas were we have our clothes judged and where we judge others. Perhaps you were lucky enough to learn from your father, whom you still try to impress. Or, you might have very strict requirements on your dress from your place of work. Or, you might be a member of styleforum, trying to earn a kudos from Manton or Spoo. Or, maybe you post wiwt shots on Tumblr in pursuit of the official #menswear tag, or a reblog from This Fits. Let’s also not under-estimate the effect of an envious glance or compliment from someone outside the community. Menswear is, as with many things in life, about fitting in. And, contrary to those who insist that you should dress solely for yourself, I think it’s okay to dress for a community. The assessment of peers is important and it should be important.

The menswear community exists in multiple parts and they do not all accord with one another. Yet, there are many commonly held ideas about what constitutes ‘classic’ menswear. I saw it espoused most clearly and effectively in a now disappeared series by F. Corbera (voxsartoria on Tumblr) on putting together coherent outfits. These commonly held ideas form the basis for the menswear tradition and it is to this tradition that The Silentist is appealing in his rejection of sneakers and suits. Of course, it is entirely possible for traditionalists to have their own disagreements about what is and is not traditional. To see such interesting and informative nitpicking in action, read the CBD WAYWRN: An Experiment thread on styleforum. Yet, they will largely close ranks in defence of tradition when confronted with those transgressing the ‘rules.’ In fact, the existence of the CBD thread is in response to what many in the forums considered excessive transgression in the standard ‘What Are You Wearing Right Now?’ thread. These preservationists will have all sorts of arguments for why such transgressions are undesirable, unappealing, or incoherent. Yet, such transgressions will continue to occur as the progressionists play at the boundaries and occasionally stray well outside them. 

So, we have these two groups: the preservationists appealing to the coherence captured by the ‘rules’ of tradition, and the progressionists who introduce new elements to the traditional combinations, including additions by subtraction. While I consider myself a progressionist, and I like to play at the boundaries, I’m grateful for the preservationists who pull in the other direction. They help ensure that the evolution of menswear does not gather excessive speed and careen out of control. They maintain a needed degree of order and discipline while the progressionists introduce the changes that can keep menswear new and exciting. Without preservation there ceases to be a tradition beyond which progression can occur. The preservationists actually impose order on the change itself.

On the specific matter of suits and sneakers, I disagree with Kiyoshi about how formal a suit must be. I think it is actually a fairly recent thing that suits are considered inherently formal. A lord traipsing about the country in full tweed with breeks and a pair of wellington boots would not have been considered to be wearing anything formal. These days, those of us living in urban areas have little reason to wander through bogs. We do, however, have reason to hang out on the streets, in coffee shops, on patios. I think there is no reason a full linen or cotton suit with unstructured shoulders would be inappropriate in such a setting. In fact, one of the secrets of suit wearing is that it is actually a fairly lazy way to dress. The bulk of the outfit has already been decided for you. When you’re not wearing a suit, properly pairing a jacket and trousers is perhaps the hardest part of putting together an outfit. So, it is easy to toss on a casual suit. Further, as Alex at AFoS pointed out, sneakers have long shed their athletic origins. I think the gap between a truly casual suit and the proper style of sneaker is far smaller than Kiyoshi thinks it is. Yet, I’m thankful for his pushback against the pairing. Not least because I know, when it comes time to fight against the pairing of blazers with sweatpants, he’ll be right there beside me. 

Note: CBD stands for ‘conservative business dress’

Relaxing

This chunky wool sweater is one of my favourite articles of clothing. I wear it at some point almost every single day. 

"Fashion stands in opposition to the organic. It couples the living body to the inorganic world."

Walter Benjamin, The Arcades Project.

Relaxing

I took this photo last night after an evening of solo movie watching. I’m wearing what I wear about 20% of my downtime; a bunny hug. Bunny hug is the Saskatchewan name for hooded sweatshirt. I have no idea where the name came from, but I work to hold onto it as an identifying regionalism. 

I bought this particular bunny hug at an Unsane concert in 1998.

Oh, and the thing on my head? We Canadians call it a toque.

Sneakers with Casual Suits, Take 2

I received responses to my recent post on sneakers with casual suits from three of the most thoughtful and stylish members of the Tumblr menswear community. I thought I’d share those comments to contribute to a conversation about the look.

The first comes from Edwin Zee, who said:

I think it can be a well put together look if done right. I don’t enjoy the look as much when people wear shoes like New Balances, but when done with something like Vans or Jack Purcells and no tie, I think the casualness of it all looks great.

He then followed up with a link to what he said is a favourite example of the look.

The next comment came from Kiyoshi at The Silentist:

I’ve never thought it looked good. Looked immature to me. There’s so many nice, real dress shoes out there that I can’t see why you’d wear sneakers with a suit.

Finally, Aliotsy from This Fits wrote:

I think a suit with sneakers can be done, but it’s incredibly hard to pull off because every element needs to be just right. Tried once and made a fool of myself in public. I think the suit would be best in cotton and a less-serious color—say air force blue instead of true navy. Probably with patch pockets. I’d substitute a heather grey long-sleeve polo for a dress shirt, and all-white classic sneakers. Even with all those elements in place, I’d say most guys still couldn’t pull it off.

There is disagreement among the three, which we should not mistake for conflict, as I’m quite certain their share a mutual respect. Although contemporary political discourse may indicate otherwise, it is possible for adults to hold contrary positions and engage in non-combative dialogue. Ultimately, the stakes are low so there is no reason to get overly worked up about this. 

Kiyoshi takes a hard line against the look. Aliotsy believes it can work, but within quite specific, and restricted, limits. While Edwin does not explicitly cite as many limits, he too thinks it has to be done right, citing certain sneakers that work and others that do not.

As my original post indicates, I’m more in agreement with Edwin and Aliotsy. I’ve certainly seen the look work. That said, I completely understand where Kiyoshi is coming from. Perhaps my take is that I’m not sure that it’s always wrong to look immature[1].  

Sneakers with suits are definitely a no go for certain situations. But, perhaps they could be another way to do ‘business casual’? Just recently Jeff at Thrifty Gent noted that his workplace has finally capitulated to ‘business casual,’ which will make it hard for him to justify wearing a suit to the office. But, why should trousers and odd jackets monopolize the tailored clothes approach to business casual? It would obviously depend on the workplace, and not being in the work world, it is difficult for me to comment on this. 

I also agree that there are plenty of very nice dress shoes out there. But, there are plenty of very nice trousers. Why would one ever wear denim? As with jeans, sneakers do something different. They twist the look. While they twist it to an immature register that Kiyoshi finds unappealing, I think that is part of the appeal of the look for me.

I applaud Aliotsy for him for trying the look, even if it was a failure. I’d be interested to see his take as I’ll bet it was not as bad as he thinks. I question whether the limits on the combination are as strict as he suggests. It certainly makes sense that sneakers would look wildly incoherent with a flannel or other winter suiting material. They also need to be paired with something more casual, although this can be expressed through details other than patch pockets. Even more than patch pockets, I’d say the shoulders need to be lightly padded. I’d also have a hard time buying the look with a double breasted jacket. 

That said, I think they could work with a tie, while Edwin suggests one should be tieless if wearing sneakers with a suit. I have a hard time with ‘suit sans tie.’ I cannot get past the image of douche-y businessmen out after work. Obviously a tie works against the casualness of the sneakers. But, I the tie can be made much, much more casual than in its current popular estimation. The coherence of neckwear has a range of formality, so it would have to be the right material to work, with knit perhaps the obvious choice.

Edwin also suggests a relatively narrow range of possible sneakers, disavowing the popular New Balance with suit look that might be associated with the Mr. Porter[http://www.mrporter.com/journal] or Four Pins[http://four-pins.com/] crowds. I think this combination is perhaps the most overtly ‘incoherent’ because the shoes themselves are so much louder and sporty looking, while the stripped down aesthetic of Vans or Cons is more subtle - even if in red - and explicitly about style, rather than sport. I have seen NB paired with suits in ways I appreciated, but it does generally have the equivalent feel of the woman with her heels in her handbag. It strikes me as an incomplete look, rather than a consciously insouciant twist on the suit. That said, the sneakers I’m currently interested in are Onitsuka Tigers by Asics, which lay aesthetically between the NB and Vans/Cons. I want a pair for summer wear, but they may make it more difficult to pull off this sneakers with suit look.

The conversation continues….

[1] In fact, if I wanted to be snotty, I would link to a picture or two of The Silentist mugging for the camera in a manner some might characterize as immature and claim that he is also not totally opposed to immaturity.

Sneakers with Casual Suits

??? !!! ???

I’m very torn about the sneakers with casual suits look; very, very torn. I really like the idea of it. It’s a cheeky mix; one that plays with and against our ideas of both sneakers and suits. Suits are, in the popular esteem, the height of daywear formality. Businessmen and bankers wear suits. Of course, those of us interested in menswear know otherwise. We know how suits can span the gamut from traditional city appropriate navy worsted to the most casual of country tweeds, with many possible degrees in between. Yet, in many places, regardless of the colour, material and pattern of the cloth, wearing a suit will immediately signal a degree of formality for the casual viewer. Sneakers, on the other hand, are perhaps the ultimate symbol of youthful casual wear. Intended, in theory, for athletic use, worn on the street they speak of comfort above all else. Somewhat paradoxically, given the athletic origins, they almost signal a laziness; but, one the viewer is envious of. People rarely look uncomfortable in sneakers, while the association of suits and discomfort is a well worn, cliched trope.

Given these two divergent meanings associated with suits and sneakers, they ought not work. They ought to be incoherent, in the extreme. As the combination has come around on my dash I’ve instinctively scoffed, turning my nose up, declaring myself above such things. Yet, I’m not above admitting that a part of me has also admired the look. Done well, it just looks good. The combination properly dresses down the suit, making crystal clear that a suit can be worn casually. It strikes me as a more modern way to do so than to invoke the English countryside, which would be, quite frankly, a costume if worn in most urban settings. Instead, the sneaker and suit look has a urban casual feel to it. It also signals that comfort is possible in a suit.

The suit, with sneakers, has a youthfulness to it. When young men wear suits they risk appearing contrived and precocious. Pairing a suit with sneakers immediately undermines that, subverting any conservativeness associated with suit wearing. 

So, the question I ask myself is if I could pull it off. I wonder if I’m already too old to really wear sneakers with a suit. Urban casual suiting is definitely my style. But, I worry that on someone my age, the sneakers would look contrived. I also worry that the look really only works on lithe men and sneakers would just look silly on my large frame. 

It’s not a look I can currently experiment with as I lack the appropriate sneakers, since it is obvious that not just any sneakers will do. The sneakers that appear to work all have a vintage look and the only sneakers I own are for actually going to the gym (so, obviously, rarely get worn). The classic look of the sneakers lends itself to the cheekiness of the combination, as they defy the idea that suit wearing is part of a bygone era, specifically invoking a bygone era through the sneakers as well. 

I’ll continue to watch my dash for examples of the sneaker-suit look in order to discern if the variables at play could work in my favour. Time will tell if I fall for a ‘trend du jour’ or participate in a playful twist on classic menswear.

There’s always room for a little maximalism.

A take on two Knottery ties

I love The Knottery. Their taste levels are excellent. Most of the ties are appropriately subdued, while they’ll also push at some boundaries, offering some unexpected colours and designs. All their ties make a statement, some more quietly than others. Their price point is also ideal for those just beginning to explore their style. I own six of their ties.

The two ties shown above I received for Xmas from my girls. One of them I love, one of them I’m ambivalent about.

The expression ‘you get what you pay for’ is a popular one in the #menswear arena. However, I think it’s a somewhat problematic adage for those who wish to take their time developing a style. An important part of the process is separating the wheat from the chaff at every price point. Of course, a tie that is a very good deal at $50 will simply not compare to a quality tie that costs $200. That said, you can also be spending a $150 premium for the brand name attached to a level of quality available at $50.

I think Knottery ties tend to be very good deals. Dropping a comparable amount on a tie from Target or Mens Warehouse would get you something much inferior, not to mention much less stylish. Unfortunately, I’ve also learned some of the truth to the adage ‘you get what you pay for.’ 

To cut to the chase: I think their knit ties are an incredibly deal and highly recommend them. I cannot, however, currently recommend their seven-fold ties. At least, not if you’re expecting to truly experience the beauty that is the seven-fold tie.

I’m quite enamoured of the three knit ties I’ve gotten from The Knottery. They knot and drape very nicely. They’re not as crunchy as the more expensive knit I own, which is unfortunate. But, at $25 for the solids and $35 for the dotteds, they’re practically a steal. That is why I asked for one for Xmas, despite already owning two.

The seven-fold I received from The Knottery is the fourth seven-fold in my tie collection. The others I’ve purchased off eBay or Style Forum, which  means I’ve never paid anything approaching full retail for them, despite the fact that one is a Barbera and another a Kiton. The thing I love about them is their 3-dimensionality. The ties have a robustness, despite being incredibly light. Although both the Barbera and Kiton are lined, it is minimal. I knew the moment I touched the Knottery’s seven-fold that it was a pale comparison. 

I can hear the scoffs as people wonder what I was expecting. I was expecting a good deal, which are to be found if you put in the time. Unfortunately, I can’t suggest that the seven-folds from The Knottery constitute such a deal. To begin with, the moment you pick the tie up, the lining makes itself known to you. Most obviously, the tie has been pressed flat, against the edges of my high quality seven-folds which are rounder and deeper. Secondly, as can be seen in the second picture, the silk has a slight pucker to it, which was incredibly disappointing. 

The seven-fold still knots very nicely and it is in my regular rotation, providing a colour and pattern I appreciate and which fits into my wardrobe. However, I will not be adding any more seven-folds from The Knottery to my tie collection. More silks, on the other hand? Certainly.

blandlettuce asked: So how do you take your photos?

I started answering this once already and my computer crashed before I completed the answer. Since Tumblr doesn’t allow you to save your draft of answers to questions, all I wrote disappeared.

Anyway, on to the question.

Thanks for asking, Punchingdrums. Before I got into menswear my primary hobby was photography. I started out doing street style with some pretensions to becoming a photographer. Eventually I got more interested in external lighting and what it allowed you to do. When you take command of the light you can really change the appearance of a picture, even as all the content remains the same. For anyone interested in this, I cannot recommend highly enough the lighting website Strobist. I don’t do anything crazy with my lighting, but knowing how to light really informs the where, when and how of my fit shots. 

My standard set-up is very simple. I have a DSLR that I mount on a tripod. It’s connected to my laptop and I control the camera through EOS Utility for Canon. I have a single flash, but I generally point it up at the ceiling or at the wall between 30 and 60 degrees behind the camera. When you bounce the light you effectively turn your flash into a much bigger light source. This reduces the harshness of the shadows you get. Typically, a poor or unimpressive fit shot is one where the person obviously has the flash pointed directly at themselves. If they’re standing near a wall, there is invariably a harsh shadow the closely follows the line of their body. The lighting is very uneven and distracting. 

Recently, I’ve been experimenting with other lighting sources including multiple lamps. The point is to change how the variable intensities of light and dark created by the different sources change the shape of the objects being photographed; in this case, me. 

The one take-away piece of advice I’d leave for everyone doing fit pics is to bounce their flash. If you can bounce your flash off a white ceiling, you’re going to get a nice, even light that works very well for your standard fit pics.

Wearing patterns

Three patterns plus a bold texture. The pattern on the suit is very, very subtle while that of the shirt and pocket square are much bolder, which is why I think it works. I’m not sure if ‘bold’ is the right way to describe the texture of the tie, but I’m also not sure what adjective would be more appropriate.

Meatball Tailoring in Practice

Whoa.

girouxmcisaak:

 I know that I’ve not been posting very much lately.  A combination of other hobbies, a lack of thrifting, and honestly, a lack of drive to do alterations have collided and resulted in very little in terms of fit pictures or articles.  I haven’t stopped caring about what I wear; I still make sure to dress well, but I just haven’t bought or done much in terms of new material for you all.

As I alluded to Monday, I have been working on a little project to get my creative juices going again.  Just so I don’t get too long winded yet, I’ll just tell you what I did.

 

I made a denim jacket.  Out of a pair of pants.

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