There are a few new things up on jcrew.com today, including this fair isle knit tie. Apparently made here in the U.S.
Other interesting pieces include corduroy shirts and a down parka (maybe a good alternative to one of those Nigel Cabourn parkas, if you don’t want to spend $2k).
Update: There are now some extra Mister Freedom pieces, the return of the deck jacket and the new chiller vest.
Apparently TIME magazine has a public archive of old articles on their website and it was fun searching through them for familiar topics:
Manhattanites in plaid flannel shirts and crepe-soled leather boots are hiking down Fifth Avenue. Students in goose-down vests and baggy sweatpants are trekking through Harvard Square. Dudes in lumber jackets are hanging out in Beverly Hills. Few of these folks have a clue how to swing a fly rod or an ax. But they do know that outdoor gear designed for the backwoods has come in from the cold for wear everywhere.
That was written in 1976, but reads like it could have been from yesterday.
Here Comes the Preppie Look, written in 1980. The quote from the Cable Car Clothiers manager is great.
Out with the baggy jeans, the chinoiserie, the gypsy queen regalia. In with the snappy blue blazers and tweed hacking jackets, button-down Oxford-cloth shirts and Shetland sweaters, khaki slacks and tartan skirts. This summer and fall, the fashion-conscious woman will be wearing exactly what the fashion-unconscious woman has been wearing for decades. It is currently labeled the Preppie Look, though the style has also been known as Ivy League, Town and Country, Brooks Brothers or—in England —County. Mother would approve…
…The vogue is not tied to any individual designer. Indeed, in some ways it represents a rebellion against duds that bear big-name labels. Says Armond Suacci, manager of Cable Car Clothiers in San Francisco: “Preppie people do not need designers because they already have taste in clothing.”
A Ralph Lauren piece from 1986 – Selling a Dream of Elegance and the Good Life. He was on the cover of that issue.
Fashion Designer Ralph Lauren grew up a long way from all the things he really admired: hand-tailored clothes, manor houses, sports cars, fine horses and manicured lawns. But call it a yearning process: as an outsider to that world, Bronx-born Lauren dreamed up his own brand of gentility and style. Now he has managed to create an image and a company that have nearly cornered the market for supplying today’s would-be Gatsbys. Shunning hipness and flamboyance, Lauren cultivates the up-and-coming customer’s appreciation for things and dreams that last.
A profile on L.L. Bean (the man himself) in 1962 – What No One Else Has As Good As
Wives v. Boots. Founder and autocratic boss of this Down-East Abercrombie & Fitch is L. L. (for Leon Leonwood) Bean, 90, a crusty Yankee who is more woodsman than businessman. Bean still works vigorously each day in a glassed-in office amidst the production line, is proud of the fact that he has bagged 35 deer in his lifetime. (“That’s a lot of deer, son. You can get only one a year, you know.”) He personally edits each entry in the Bean mail-order catalogue, and his spare, disarming style has been used in advertising textbooks as exemplary of what direct-mail selling should be. Sample: “Most hunters and fishermen smoke. For a long time we searched for an outstanding pipe. This pipe is the result.”
Some other interesting pieces:
– The Brick-Red Look
– Back to Braces
– The Regimental Tie
Brooks Brothers has been selling more and more jackets in their popular Fitzgerald cut and this season included one in a tweedy herringbone wool. Unlike the newer unstructured jackets, these have some very light shoulder padding – probably needed for the weight of wool, lest you end up with some very odd looking shoulders. Fully lined and slim fitting, these are are a considerable step up from J.Crew’s sportcoats.
These deserve to be posted twice. From Free & Easy September 2009.
A copy of The Ivy Look finally arrived last week and I’ve been studying it continually since. The authors describe it best from the forward:
Think of this book as Ivy League: The Director’s Cut. An entirely personal edit of what we consider to be the very best bits – the main styles, the sharp dressers and the major retailers.
The surprisingly small book is full of great illustrations, ads, and pictures exploring different parts of the Ivy look and the icons that popularized them. Definitely pick it up if you find these things interesting.
Some favorite quotes I found:
Brooks Brothers was something else; in the heart of New York, it was a vast, oak paneled emporium full to bursting point with the finest Ivy clothing, pared down and laid out on tables to be viewed as though works of art. To me there were just that, each label sewn in in every garments that Brooks Brothers sold carried the words ‘Made in USA’, as reassuring to seekers of the Ivy look as an authenticated painting signed by Picasso.
– Graham Marsh
It is a wardrobe that bestows tradition and elegance upon those who were not born into backgrounds of tradition and elegance. It’s a quiet, decidedly un-flashly way communicating an appreciation for clothes with a connection to the great moments of twentieth century culture. It still means a lot to me that Miles Davis wore Bass Weejuns. I feel like I am part of that tradition. I am following in his footsteps.
– JP Gaul
Previous post: Reviews for The Ivy Look
The split-toe shoes – a great alternative to plain toe bluchers or wingtips and also good shoes to pair with a fall wardrobe. Brooks Brothers currently has some marked down under their Peal & Co line.
A scan from Last, volume 13. The Edward Green Dover model is perfection.
Here’s an unusual but interesting combination of a sportcoat and trousers in different colored corduroy. This is the first of a series from Fantastic Man, which will be about how to wear clothing in “particular” ways.
If you’re looking to pick up a pair of sturdy and basic knit gloves this winter, check out the ones from Barbour. While not soft, the wool that Barbour uses is heavy and thick, and they’re something that you’d expect to find issued to the military. Being 100% wool, they’re also ideal for outdoor activities like fishing (wool will still help you keep warm when wet).
Orvis has both versions available for under $20 each: the regular type (also on sale), and the fingerless.
The chamois cloth shirt has been a longtime favorite among outdoorsmen – made from soft sueded cotton (think flannel), they are ideal for layering in cold weather and are about as warm as wool. Just don’t get them wet. Some newer ones for consideration this season:
An LL Bean chamois cloth shirt in the Signature line catalog. Their copy says that it was first introduced in 1933, but I’ve seen references that state that LL Bean first introduced chamois cloth shirts around 1927-28 – perhaps they’re referring to a particular version of the shirt? The design has supposedly not changed much over the years.
Update: Here’s an explanation on the difference in years (click on the chamois cloth shirt image).
Made of thick brushed cotton to mimic the supple feel of chamois leather, ”Bean’s Leatherette Shirt” first appeared in a Fall 1927 catalog. Five years later it returned as the Chamois Cloth Shirt, and as Leon Leonwood told his customers, ”This is the shirt I personally use on all my hunting and fishing trips.”
In the coming decades L.L.Bean would introduce dozens of chamois shirts, varying the styling and colors slightly to keep up with changing times. This model harks back to the original.
So, same shirt, but with a different name.
J.Crew’s new version in their utility shirt cut, it’s much better fitting if you’re not looking for an overshirt.
Old magazine ads for chamois cloth shirts – just about all outdoor clothing companies made them.
Still under the radar, Garment Reproduction of Workers is a small line based out of Japan. Much of the clothing is workwear inspired, particularly with influences from early 20th century Europe. Pieces are made in either France or Japan, and utilize vintage deadstock fabrics, buttons, and clasps.
Some online stores which carry it (proxy still needed): Starling, Arch, Cotyle
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