Wearing Labour Day After White

So we've all heard our parents say it, or at least we should have, if our parents had any inclination of the duties of fashion, "don't wear white after labour day!" We may have questioned it silently, but has anyone actually delved in to the reason why? If you grew up in the New England States then the reason is no surprise to you, there were more than 7 months within the year where white isn't acceptable.

The adage dates back some years, I don't know how many exactly, but let's say long long ago, sometime in the distant future. Labour Day marked more than a day off of work, if you lived not in the South, it meant the first day of Fall or Autumn, or true North, Winter. With those months came muggy, rainy days, dredging mud and salty, dirt filled walking paths. Based on that information alone, white was most absurd a color selection if not being adorned as a dress shirt. But none of that happens here so why do we adhere to such a non-regional concept?

So I have given it some thought and my final date of appropriate removal of white is after Halloween! Here is why. The month of September for us relatively warm and with the passing Hurricanes behind us in late August we have no pending threats of rain for at least 1 month. The highs in September average 93 and the low's 79 with approximately 10% of the month experiencing precipitation. The reason white is so popular a summer color is primarily due to its light weight feel and fall, and the brilliance of cleanliness it exudes. If we can maintain that desire to stay cool in hot temperatures, then why not acquiesce?! 

October marks the start of High School Soccer Season here in Louisiana, and if I know anything about High School Soccer, the games are cold and wet! So with November bringing us Thanksgiving, which is hit or miss for warm or cold weather, I think October makes an ideal month for habiliment transition. The temperatures begin to lull to a cool 70/60 and hopefully lower. 

I hereby extend a formal request to prolong the date of white clothing departure from the Southern region until November One! All in favor say "I", all oppossed, go away!

Retired & Hired

Donald Pliner Embossed Jimmy

So here we are, in that inevitable time of the year. Summer is upon us in the most horrid of fashions, although today it was quite nice out. In a series of unfortunate circumstances, or so they seemed at the time, I was forced to retire some of my more coveted articles of my wardrobe. Most notable are my Moreschi Deer Skin Monk Straps! You may remember them from a shoe shine video a month or so ago. (I am assuming I have blog readers). In that retirement also came 2 dress slacks navy and brown, 2 Chelsea Boots Brown & Stone/Navy and one of the more indelible pieces, Donald Pliner Jimmy's.


So the quest began to find suitable replacements for the continuation of a stylistic wardrobe that offered style & fashion in both form and functionality. The slacks were easy, I am huge fan of Jos A Bank dress slacks, so as soon as a sale hit I was on it. Recent purchase, Navy Executive Dress Slacks MSRP $225, sale price $44.99. The shoes have been a bit more difficult. Thus far I have not successfully found a Bordeaux Oxford or Monk Strap that fits Style and Budget, even if I remove budget, style is still elusive.

Other nominees however, to push forward with the journey are quite brilliant in their representation. In the Oxford Category we have the following:

Mezlan Endicott

Gravati Full Brogue Wing Tips

Allen Edmonds Strands Full Brogue Cap Toe

There is never a time when expanding your shoe collection is a bad idea. In fact, multiple pair of the same shoes can be highly recommended. If the company represents more style than fashion it's not so much imperative to double up, but in a fashion forward company of less stylistic quality but maintaining desirable proportions of aesthetics it may be in your best interest to purchase more than one. I am, to this day, regretting not purchasing more than 1 pair of Donald Pliner Radley-61's. I have owned these shoes for 10 years and although they still look great, there will come a day...

Pic of the Week

iCuff, the smart cuff! 

I am thinking of having all my shirts hemmed so that my watch is always accessible, I started with this shirt and I think I like it.

Pic's O' The Day

Jeremy Zenon in a dashing pair of Donald Pliner's

Me in a startling summer Saddle Shoe by Ralph Lauren

Two great summer looks, two completely different styles.

Es OC K Es

Maven Men's Wear

On a recent Twitter @mention by my good friend @Pele1410 I was pleasantly introduced to the company mention on the left of this page. Maven Men's Wear is one of the newest haberdashery's to grace the Greater Lafayette area. I had the fortunate pleasure to meet the owner Christina Barbier and we were inclined to share fanciful stories for our shared love of the industry. To whit the weather became almost insufferable and held me in her store for far longer than anticipated; be that as it may, it proved most worthy of the time spent.

Office Photo

On a more frequent account of stores I attend, I dropped in to my beloved F Camalo Men's Clothier for a gander at a pair of Gravati Shoes I have been eyeing, and with my 29th birthday approaching I thought it'd be a novel idea to pick my pleasure in birthday shoes. On my way out I spied these little diddies of brilliance. A deep grey Marcoliani dress sock with hot pink polka dots. I was smitten by the design and furthermore, intrigued by the option to take them home. It wasn't long before they adorned an outfit accordingly.

Remember, never be afraid to wear brilliance. Anyone can wear a great suit, but never shy away from the accouterments's that separate you from the masses. Often times, it's found in a sock.

What's Poplin Seersucker?

The Poplin

Seersucker

 There's no doubt about it, summer is here. We have crested what is to be the final days of cool fronts & cool mornings for quite some time, that is however if you excuse the hail storm that came through last Monday!

Though the weather may be as it chooses, we are still called by either social obligation or painstaking desire to attend the same solemnities as they come about. And despite the heat people still think it a grand idea to get married in the beauty of the season's sun. So shall it be, some good people came up with a great solution to stay cool in the summer, and for the more formal occasions, still look great.

The Poplin Suit is nothing new to our culture. Poplin was first recorded in Avignon, France around the late 1400's. It derived its name from the word "papeline" given by the papal residence of Avignon itself. Poplin found its original use in men's daily garments, shorts and sports shirts mainly. But in the realm of fashionable innovation it was utilized later for more formal needs. If I am not mistaken, one of the original Poplin Suit manufacturer's in America was Brook's Brothers.

An interesting history forgoes the existence of Seersucker in the mainstay of the traditional gentlemen's summer wardrobe! Until the 1920's Seersucker was worn by poor southerners to beat the heat. In an attempt at reverse snobbery, a group of college graduates wore it to a graduation. Now it is the staple to a true summer wardrobe. The weave of the suit is what makes it seersucker, there is some speculation to the name, that it derives from a Hindi & Urdu translation of a Persian word meaning "milk and sugar". It goes on to discuss the relationship between smoothness and textured feel much like that of milk and sugar. Be that as it may, if a wedding calls, or any other carousal beckons in the heat of the southern Spring & Summer, go light but stay classy.

New Arrivals

Cole Haan Colton Nubuck Suede

The wardrobe is expanding, the style is curving with a slight rise in the form of fashion. Be that as it may, there is no perennial dictum mandating any facet of shoe ware that would consider these purchases trivial. Despite them coming at great opportunities both in time and in price, I have found myself smitten by their establishment of residence in my closet.

One of the first anomalies to note is the brand of shoe. I thought for certain I had finished with the line of Cole Haan. When I first started my trek to style Cole Haan was there to greet me. I spent the lot of my money acquiring what I thought was the height of shoedom. I was later introduced to many other lines, more prestigious lines, that left me desiring a more hand-crafted shoe. I left the Cole Haan line in search of accolade of Italian fashion moguls. My quest led me to Gravati, Donald Pliner, Romano Martegani, Canali, Toschi, Martin Dingman and many others. As life comes full circle...

Cole Haan Paul Chukka Boot

                                                         It was not an intentional purchase to return to Cole Haan, it was a matter of a sleepless night searching for great shoes. I had not owned a pair of Chukka Boots and thought the new craze of jean wear would intrigue, and a what is intrigue without action to satiate.

Tan/Cream SeerSucker Pattern

As for the Colton Suede Cream beauties, that was a, last minute I need to go to sleep but these shoes are tugging at me, purchase. What's a wardrobe without cream suede shoes for the next Yachting party you are invited too?! A nice Taupe/Brown or Brown/Cream SeerSucker Suit with a donning pair of suede shoes to match, brilliant says I.



A few websites I have recently found quite useful:
www.BerenShoes.com
www.Pelleline.com

But remember, if you can, support your local retailer's like:
F Camalo
Moseley & Hollard
Steve's Clothier
Partner's
Gentry



                                                                             

It's Just a Shoe

This picture arrived in my email from my beloved sister who seems to know the very way to my heart. As it turns out, Prada is allowing personal color customization of their latest Spring shoe line. Their forward progressive ideology is pining at my soul to become yet again a patron of the fine stylistic establishment. Hats off to you Prada, this is by way of great innovation Prada may find themselves back in the forefront Milan and Paris.

Enjoy!

It's In the Socks

There is much to be said about wearing dress socks everyday. I get text messages quite frequently about why peoples feet smell after a long days work? Most peoples initial diagnosis is because their feet sweat, nervous foot syndrome we shall call it! Well that is true, but your arm pits and thigh perspire throughout the day, with that reasoning we should all stink by lunch time, at least in the summer months. The key element of course is hygiene, bathing properly and washing efficiently. But that is not the only thing. Most people use the wrong soap for their skin type or perspiration needs, not going to get in to that now, but suffice it to say the soap you use does make a difference. I don't use the same soap for my feet as I do for the rest of my body all the time but I take precautions for my feet perspiration.

I wear dress socks everyday, and not once has my wife complained about my feet smelling. The secret, I wear white cotton socks underneath all of my dress socks. It is for the same reason we wear cotton shirts under our daily wear habiliments, so the skin can breathe. Cotton has the best breathing availability of all the fabrics on the market, second only to linen, but linen is too abrasive although wool is another winner, if you can get it in an undye'd white. But yeah, white cotton socks. In addition to the breath-ability, it also adds comfort to my daily commute. When your sweaty foot merges with the dyes and materials of a sock, well it's like adding one more hydrogen atom to a Methyl!

Note, wearing a beautiful suit is one thing, but the superfluous additions make it everything. Don't be scared of a dress sock that is "out of the norm". Just be cognizant about when you wear them. 

It Was Cold That Day

    

I woke up on Thursday morning knowing full well the course of my day. I truffled painfully out of bed and mossy'd along to the closet down the hall. When the door opened I felt the full extent of the outdoor freeze. It was cold, and for some reason that excited me. I rummaged through my tops, matched a few with sweaters and settled on slacks and shoes, but then when I turned to head to the restroom to shave and do my morning personal hygiene, I saw this coat! It had to be worn. I immediately scrapped my present habiliments and went for a cashmere sweater and built the outfit around a brown Wool trench coat, and a cashmere sweater. It was a great day for heavy coating, I wore a small bop cap but it was removed after several hours of travel.

The coat is a 100% Heavy Wool w/ Silk Lining Luciana Barbera
The Shirt is a Jos. A Bank Button Down w/ Company embroidery
The Cashmere sweater is courtesy of Pronto Uomo
Slacks, 96% Wool 4% Cashmere Jos. A Bank
Shoes, Monk Strap Bourdeaux Moreschi Deer Skin
Socks were a navy/sky knee high Marcoliani  

Back To Basics

Christmas always brings about something special... my favorite outfit of the year! This one really was special, not that it's the best outfit ever but the clothing that I was able to acquire to make it all possible. The acrimonious shirt beneath the scarf is a lambskin over shirt. The company is VLuxe by Lucky Nahum, he was a designer from New York. I have owned some of his clothing before, a few pieces still around, but in 2008 he went out of business as he was a few years ahead of his time. This shirt was designed to be worn as a shirt over a shirt but not to be referenced as a jacket. The scarf is a 100% cashmere blend by Jos. A Bank, the earth tone adds a brilliancy of dimensional colors. The slacks are a very traditional seer sucker pattern blue and white and the million dollar hit were I finally acquired my very first pair of Moreschi shoes, these are a deer skin monk strap in bourdeaux!

On another note, I have gained a new blog to document my running as I have lost the direction of this website some time ago. You can find my running documentaries at Claimyourjourney.com/Blogs and just look for me! That's if you're interested. I want to bring this blog back to the basics of its inception, Fashion!

1/2 Dozen One Way, 6 Another

It's half a dozen one way, six another. Your wardrobe doesn't need to be flooded with clothing wherein only certain ties can go with certain shirts, or certain shirts can go with certain slacks. I think that association to the foundation of anyone's wardrobe is all too common, and grossly misguided. I have found my self at times trying to pair or bundle or match different items in stores and once that dynamic has been committed to a static selection, your mind predestines that clothing to always be as it is there. But a mere change in color can change the approach of an entire ensemble. In these pictures here you have a summer, spring-esque appeal for a bright and sunny day, while the other photo leaves the outfit a bit more conservative, more appealing to the gravitas of a serious or not quite as charismatic situation as its counterpart. I think at the end of the day, it's all about perception, or perceived value. I am not a conservative dresser, I find my style in the individualism and charisma of my fashion, yet it is my success of those parts that allow me to call it "style". 

Light & Bright

"The difference between fashion and style is quality" - Giorgio Armani. I've always said that having a lot of inexpensive clothes is not near as important as having a few quality pieces that cost a little bit more. Style will always be the staple of success, substantially more than mere fashion statements ever will. I don't have as extensive a wardrobe as my friends may think, it's just established with the finest clothes my small pocket book can afford. I focus strictly on style and make sure I can interchange many of my slacks and shirts, but it all starts with one piece. I have pictured this shirt 3 times on this blog, it's a pink and white striped Ghirardelli. When waking this morning I decided to take the opportunity to play with a few color schemes I had been surmising over the past few days. Considering the heat I wanted to stay cool, but I didn't want to sacrifice aesthetics, so the quest was on. The slacks were a no brainer, had to be a wool/linen blend, although a pure 120's or 150's wool would have been quite alright. These are a deep grey with a very light very faint brown pin stripe. The tie is a newly acquired Burberry with myriad of colors and patterns. Truthfully I've wanted to see the turquoise and red plaid against a pink-esque striped shirt for long time, I just never had the exact schemes in the same closet at the same time... until now. The shoes are Romano Martegani Pisa (if you don't own a pair of Romano Martegani's, I beseech you to acquire a pair, seriously, you will call me and thank me, in fact, if you call me I will go with...). The belt is Stefano Corsini, a direct color match to the shoes which is sometimes difficult to do, and the socks are a wool and linen blended Canali gray and brown. I wanted bright and light and I think it was accomplished. I stayed relatively cool all day and looked great. This photo was taken today while walking up to my parents house courtesy of my loving wife. But there is more to staying cool and dry than picking the right habiliments, it starts with proper hygiene, choosing the right deodorant and lathering with the right soap. Outside of that it takes the correct under shirt, I prefer the "A" frame knit (commonly known as the wife beater). 

Back In Black

"Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginable, and black is the epitome of consistency." Although I can't take credit for the quote as I am not Oscar Wilde, I can take credit for letting people know how to avoid the mundanity of wearing black as it is a color that is member to every man's wardrobe. One faux pas of fashion is avoiding black jeans, posh, if you like them buy them but wear them colorfully. I own two pair of black shoes, a beautiful pair of leather lace up Mezlan's, and these black Tony Lama 13" boots. When getting dressed to go to dinner this evening I wasn't sure what to wear, so it was off to the bat cave. I had not worn these casual Gardeur jeans (a fair trade cotton company), compliments of F Camalo, in quite some time so they were a definite. Now the challenge was set, I needed to keep it casual, but not cliché. I thought of a polo, but that was too safe, I thought of a solid V neck t-shirt but that was too consistent (although it's a great look for anyone) then came the shoe dilemma, as in... which pair to wear! I knew I wasn't going to wear the Mezlan's albeit a gorgeous shoe, dare I even say I thought of wearing flip flops, that's just a cop out for such an occasion. So that left the Tony Lama's... okay, let's see how that looks, loved it. So the shirt was left to choose and what you see is a very interesting piece, not in that it's a rare or some off brand piece (it's an Equilibrio), but in it's pattern. I chose a blue and white and black paisley button down. I wasn't sure how it was going to pan out, but at the end of the night I liked it. It really brought color to a colorless ensemble. I don't think it merits an additional pair of black jeans or even justifies wearing black on a daily basis, but if you find yourself having to wear black, remember, it doesn't have to look like you're wearing black.

PS - Eden wore the yellow for effect.

Diversify! Multiply! Necktie?

In many venerable professions, such as law and banking, the necktie remains an everyday ingredient of life, but even in those vocations, it is no longer taken for granted as an obligatory part of circadian dress code. Neckties, however remain one of the defining factors of the dress codes for many social occasions. Is it a black tie or white tie event? Must you wear a tie to a funeral? Thus, learning which tie to wear and how to tie it - in a variety of knots - remains one of the rituals of training for the gentlemanly life.

Ever wondered why the "dimple pinch" is such a coveted refinement to the aesthetics of the necktie? Not only does it offer a very beautiful and refined finish, it also keeps the tie itself from over wrinkling while being worn.

When selecting a necktie to wear, I think it all important to have a few directives in mind. Keep in mind these are very rudimentary scenarios but I believe they need to be addressed. First, don't wear a skinny tie, it's dumb... jj, actually I've become quite a fan of the skinny tie, but I digress.

I'll brief firstly on the proper length of a tied necktie. At the end of a brilliant pull, your tie should very delicately touch the top of your waist band, if you happen to have a button or two showing or pershaps the tip of the tie extends past the belt buckle or nearer the zipper of the trousers, retie... don't ever under any circumstance think it's ok to tuck your tie in to your waist band, you will be burned at the stake for this offense. When selecting a tie, please be cognizant of your color coordination, just because you think a tie should go with your suit or sports coat doesn't always mean it does. I am pictured here being very risque with my selection but screw you I look good. But Mark has a bit more of a sophisticated look carefully selecting a tie that complimented his suit in a most amazing fashion. As most anyone who knows me knows, I am major advocate of style, but as I have said many times before fashion has it's place. Don't be afraid to play with colors and designs, it's fun! Also, if you can't be creative, call me.

Ok, so I think I wrote all of this to get to these pictures...

 The bow-tie, my favorite neck line habiliment, probably because it's the most challenging to accrue, holds so much class and so much nostalgia and I am feared that it is losing its place in style and certainly becoming lost to my generation. Here to the come back of the bow-tie. There is not much to say about the bow-tie, just know that if your wear one, wear it strongly, and proudly; wear it passionately and charismatically. I don't think it possible to be unhappy in a bow-tie.

In Stride...

PS - I know these pics are kind of dated, but they are some of favorite.