A vintage Lee ad from 1953. “Steel foreman and his family demonstrate the good looks and comfort of America’s most modern work clothes.”
Year: 2010 (page 28 of 46)
The worst of the worst or the best of the best? Not many stores are selling patchwork versions these days besides Ralph Lauren (coincidentally, there is a good one on sale now), but J.Crew and Rugby both have some slightly safer non-patchwork versions available. I only have one in my wardrobe, which is probably one too many.
Originally there were matching shorts that were sold alongside it, but I thought that might have been taking it too far. The jacket is unstructured and unlined, which is really how they should be.
A background on the fabric, from an essay written for Land’s End in 1989:
The bleeding Madras fad of the 1950’s and ’60’s, brought the world’s attention to Madras, both the cloth and the city. And in the cloth’s heyday, over 150,000 new plaid patterns were fashioned, using homemade vegetable dyes that bled, ran and blended to create a stunning effect. (“Cool” was the word we used, way back then.) Today, of course, Madras no longer bleeds, because it is dyed with man-made, color-fast dyes.
But this, really, is the only difference, between then and now, in the making of the cloth.
Continue reading more.
Alan Flusser and Off the Cuff have put together a great little iPhone application called BeSpeak, which helps in picking out colors and patterns to wear with your complexion and body type.
Hit the refresh button on the bottom to auto-generate new combos, or customize and save existing ones. I’ve seen a couple of bugs so far (it recommended a solid white tie on one of it’s auto-matches?) but overall it’s a decent tool.
For more matching ideas, here are some older scans from Men’s Ex that I posted last year: Combining Patterns
From Men’s File, issue 2. Check out the vintage boots.
J.Crew just updated its website with new arrivals, some of which is already available in their stores. My favorites are the utility shirts and the shawl collar fleece deck jacket, and other interesting items include the King of Vintage book (see my previous post), an inexpensive canvas tote, and this nautical inspired tie bar.
The catalog cover for June is also pretty good for once, and it has a sort of Monocle style photoshoot look to it.
If a typical cutaway collar shirt is not enough for you, check out the shirts from London based Oscar Udeshi (he made a name for himself when he started selling these years ago). They require a tie with a thick interlining to make the knot look right, and they’re more appropriate for contemporary styled suits.
Currently available online in both poplin and cotton twill.
Roden Gray now has their new webstore up and running. It could use a few UI improvements, but it’s not bad overall. They’re probably the first store that you should check with if you’re looking for anything from Wing + Horns or their new Blanc and Noir line.
Related post: 2nd visits Crockett and Jones, spring 2009.
Design Within Reach is now selling the new 111 Navy Chair model from Emeco, which are made entirely of recycled plastic bottles and are a more affordable version of their classic aluminum chairs. Fun idea, but I’m curious about how much they weigh – do they feel like cheap plastic lawn chairs or sturdy pieces of furniture?
Update 5/19: I was able to check these out in person today and I was very surprised by how heavy they were (17 pounds each!). Visually the only nitpick I have is that they left the small seam on the chair where the mold was split, but I suppose that fits in with its recycled plastic theme.
From amazon.com:
Franc Roddam’s terrifically energetic movie, set to music from the Who’s Quadrophenia, is–at the very least, the best film ever based on a rock album (and, yes, that includes, Tommy, Pink Floyd: The Wall, and Jesus Christ Superstar). Actually, this tale of the battle between two early ’60s youth subcultures–Mods and Rockers–in the seaside teenage wasteland of Brighton, England, isn’t so much a cinematic “version” of the Who’s 1979 double-record rock opera as it is a story based on the sequence of songs on the album.
Quadrophenia is about that crucial time in teenhood when the lion’s share of your sense of identity is tied up in the music you listen to, the clothes you wear, and the groups you hang out with. Jimmy (Phil Daniels) identifies himself with the sharp-dressing, scooter-riding Mods, who listen to American soul and British pop-rock (The Who themselves were once rather Mod). The Rockers, on the other hand, are leather-jacketed, black-booted, motorcycle-riding tough guys who listen primarily to classic American rock & roll. The film captures this minor pop-culture revolution perfectly. Look for Sting as a club-hopping slickster, who’s shameful secret is that he’s a hotel bellboy by day.
More background reading on wikipedia.
