A vintage ad from 1940. In another one, they described it as a hat with the “crown slopped rakishly”.
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It has always been pretty hard to find nice ties in Seattle’s few clothing stores, and as a result I tend to experiment with quite a few different online sources instead. My most recent order was for an E.G. Cappelli made tie from ASW, which as far as I know is the only source for his ties outside of visiting the showroom in Naples.
This is my first Cappelli tie, and I’ve been pretty amazed with the construction and how easy it is to get great balanced knots with it. The color of the silk is described as “copper rose” and I’ve found it to be very versatile in my wardrobe, especially for this time of the year when I’m wearing darker colored jackets.
This particular one has a three fold construction, and is self tipped (a nice touch). The label is also very classic.
Has anyone else ever noticed that Brunello Cucinelli always has a perfectly disheveled look?
Perhaps I would look like this too, if I also sold some of the world’s most luxurious clothing. This photo is from the October 2010 issue of Men’s Ex where they visit him in Italy to tour his factories and explore the small details in his current collections (all the way down to his cashmere shoelaces).
The Engineered Garments eight piece newsboy caps have finally shipped out to stores, and are available this season in different leathers and heavy fall fabrics. Outside of Japan I’m not yet sure who is carrying them – I’ll update this post later if I find any.
Scans from an older photo spread for Paul Smith Fall/Winter 2009.
After waiting too long to order and missing out on a recent restock of Howard Yount’s wool trousers, I decided to try a pair in their new garment dyed cotton instead. The fit is similar to the wool versions, and the wine colored fabric will be perfect to pair up with other fall colors. Unlike many of the wool trousers though, these are actually in still stock.
Some of the colorful details added:
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.
