Rules of Thirfting : A Law of Averages

Thrift shopping, and living cheaply most of the time, is something of a game without rules. There are so many vagaries to contend with, and so much chance involved that the only "rule" that's true all the time is that anything can happen at any time. After a while, you learn to see the big picture as something of a law of averages.

The suit pictured above is my own most recent acquisition. Very dressy, perhaps even a whiff out of character for me, but until now I had never seen a double breasted three piece suit in the flesh. It's like a unicorn, the stuff of legend, seen only in black and white movies. Rendered in heavy but soft nailhead flannel and replete with 1930s details, made custom for someone in the mid-90s in New York by Alan Flusser, at $100, I simply couldn't resist. 

The suit will need a bit of alterations, but there's no hurry since it's a winter cloth. The alterations it does need are a little unusual though. The trousers and vest fit perfectly, and the sleeves are just the right length, which is good as it has surgeon cuffs (working buttonholes). The odd thing is that despite the trouser waist being just right, the jacket waist needs to come in, and despite the inseam and sleeves being just right, the coat needs to be shortened by a half an inch or so. The waist is an easy, common alteration, but shortening the coat will take some work and cost some money. It's not an alteration that is always possible, as you run the risk of spoiling the coats proportions, but in this case, the buttons and pockets are set in such a way that half an inch will work. The coat has side vents which are cut deep enough to take the loss of length, and because the coat is double breasted, it has corners at the front rather than the curved edges found on a single breasted coat, making this task a little easier to accomplish.

So here's how this law of averages works. While $100 may be an incredible deal for a suit of this calibre, it is well more than what I usually pay for a second hand suit. The alterations will likely cost about $100 as well. By comparison as I write this I am wearing another thrifted suit that cost $40 and needed no alterations, and my favorite all purpose navy blazer was less than $10. You simply can't expect any kind of consistency in pricing any  more than you can expect to find a specific thing on a specific day. When taken as part of an average the cost of all my clothes, this suit is cheaper even in a sense than what I paid for it. Besides, thrift shop long enough and $200 all in becomes an expensive guilty splurge on a spectacular suit, when most other people are ready to spend as much on diffusion line "Chaps Ralph Lauren" suit, or something similarly lackluster, at a place like Kohl's. Besides, there's adventure and chance involved in thrift shopping, which for the professional cheapskate is more than half the fun. And the smarmy feeling of self satisfaction that comes with knowing that you got one over on that guy who bought his cheap suit at Kohl's is kind of priceless.

Better Isn't Always Best

Pictured above are two similar, yet very different double breasted navy blazers. The one on the left is from the Andover Shop, made of loosely woven hopsack in a classic  6x2 double breasted button stance, with four button cuffs. The one on the right is by Polo Ralph Lauren, in a denser twill weave, with a 6x2 double breasted stance rolled to the lower button. The one on the left is a recent acquisition, while the one on the right has been with me since Spring of 2012 and has been a favorite in regular rotation these last few years. Both were had for less than $10 in thrift stores.

Despite their similarities, its the differences that are most striking. The Andover Shop jacket has a more natural shoulder, while the button stance is more rigid and conservative. It has a darted silhouette, but is generally reserved. The Polo jacket has a soft extended shoulder and somewhat more "draped" chest, reminiscent of London tailoring of the 1930s. It has a more dramatic cut, yet the button stance lends it an air of casual elegance. The Andover Shop blazer has a center vent, despite being double breasted, while the Polo jacket has easy side vents.

They both have the same button stance, but they don't. The Andover Shop blazer has a hard nailed 6x2 stance, while the Polo has a soft version of the same thing. The Andover Shop jacket buttons lower, but has a more square set that the Polo jacket, which creates more of a swooping triangle without being hopelessly "90s".

Both have peaked lapels,  but the slight variations are striking. The Andover Shop blazer base very traditional peaked lapels with enough interior structure that they lay straight and flat to the chest. The Polo jacket has a more dramatic, wider lapel, with a sharper point, and less interior structure that allows it to "flop" a bit when moved. Both are size 42 regular, and both fit me well. The Andover Shop is a recent acquisition, the Polo jacket has become an old friend.

Strictly speaking, anything from the Andover Shop is inherently better than its equivalent from Polo, or is it? While it's true that the Andover Shop is a small and storied shop and Polo is a big ugly multi-national, in this case the decision is not so black and white. The Polo jacket has a slouchy nonchalance I like, tempering the formality of its double breasted cut with a certain ease. The Andover Shop has a more straight a head approach, good in its way, but less suited to the way I might wear such a blazer. For example, while I wear the Polo jacket with a shirt and tie most of the time, the other day I wore it open with a white tennis shirt and very faded jeans. It worked great, whereas the Andover Shop jacket would have failed miserably in the more casual application.

This is by no means to suggest that Polo is "better" than the Andover Shop, or vice versa. What I mean to tell you is that it's more important to find quality garments that not only fit well but are styled in a way that fit the applications in which you'll wear them. In this case, the Polo jacket was the better choice for me, for another man the clear decision would be for the Andover Shop.  What is "best" is what suits you most, whether or not it was the "better" thing to start with. Thrift stores have a way of leveling the field like that.

p.s. the last time I wore my Polo jacket into the Andover Shop, Charlie complimented it, then checked the label and muttered "goddammit" under his breath.

p.p.s. That Andover Shop blazer, among many other great items, is coming soon to the AAW Shop. Stay tuned.

Thrifting Strategy: Ralph to the Rescue

Go ahead, sit down. Some of you are not gonna like this...

Let's begin with an old style AAW run-down of the days ensemble focusing on the crass subject of the low prices I paid for all of it, you know, like I used to do in the old days: Navy pinstriped double breasted suit, recently acqured from ebay, $30; Brooks Brothers point collar shirt, $5.49; Robert Talbott tie, trade; Albert Thurston bright orange braces, new-in-box (not pictured), trade;

and a pair of black tassel loafers by W.S. Foster and Sons of London, $9.99. Total cost of outfit= $45.48.

This suit represents the end of a long trip for me. After all, I'd been wanting the very suit for about twenty years, since the first time I laid eyes on it as a teenager in the 90s. To be sure, I thankfully no longer desire most of the same things I did as a teenager, but this particular cut of Polo suit has stayed the course. Readers may remember my excitement a while back at having also acquired a navy blazer in the same cut.

Soft shoulders, some drape in the chest, and the inimitable wide, knife sharp Ralph lapel.

And of course the 6x4 double breasted front with the option to be worn at either point, a detail I have never seen on any other make of jacket. Even the staunchest of Ralph's detractors will have to admit that there is some excellent attention to detail in the better  American and Italian made lines form Polo.

Forward pleated trousers, standard issue for Ralph in those days. People like to hate on the dude, but back then the only other place offering forward pleats outside of Britain was the Andover Shop, Yes, it's true, Charlie and Ralph have things in common. In fact, for as much as Charlie likes to rail on Ralph and his minions, a complaint I fully understand, I have heard him say the Ralph and Julia Child are responsible for rescuing American middle class taste in the 1970s. I'm inclined to agree. I've spoken in Ralph's defense here before. An entire generation may have grown up with no knowledge at all of good clothing and French cooking. To think of it.

I can remember being sixteen years old and seeing ads like this one in my Dad's copies of GQ, back before that magazine had become the complete cartoon it is now. And I wanted that suit so bad, but they were expensive. Even when they turned up at Filene's Basement (the real one) they were pricey, and besides, what business does some punk-ass teenager have wearing a pinstriped suit just for the hell of it? Talk about pretension. I suppose it went hand in hand with my underage preference for Dewar's or Johnnie Walker over cans of Natural Ice. Damn, I must have been an annoying kid. All of which brings me to my point.

Thrift shopping is of course a random and haphazard thing, but if you keep at it long enough, trends begin to emerge. Just as there are current trends in clothing, such is also the case in thrift shops, the only difference being that you'll see the trends of the past. Much of what you'll find tends to be fifteen or twenty years old, with the oldest things reaching back about fifty years. There are of course exceptions, and you may find brand new items with tags or true antiques.

A lot of whats out there now is from the 90s, and a lot of that is as dated and ugly as you might imagine. But in a time when adults first began to dress wholeheartedly like children, Polo was one of the only mass market brands producing better quality clothing in cuts and styles that don't look dated today, and there's a lot of it. Sure, there's still Brooks and Press to be found, but if we're going to survive the impending "dark times" in the thrift shops, it will largely be Polo that gets us through. Then we can breathe a sigh of relief when the young men of today who were fortunate enough to be a part of the current menswear renaissance begin to donate they're old clothes. 

You can wear well made nicely tailored and styled second hand Ralph, or else wear Armani with an absurdly low buttoning point, massive shoulders, no vent and lapel gorge set two inches too low. The choice is yours.

Freedom in the Restrictions

Having written this blog some five years or so now, I sense a pattern of writers block that occurs each year just about now. Regular readers will no doubt have noticed it here recently. I suppose the paucity of posts can be attributed to a few things. No doubt setting up my "secret shop" has been very time consuming, and besides, the inherent laziness of Summer can't help  but creep in, especially when it comes to performing unpaid work. But there is one reason above all that slows the gears to a grind.

This is, as you know, a blog primarily about men's clothing. I use my own clothes almost exclusively as topics of discussion. While it's true that I have a penchant for the brightly colored so-called "go-to-hell" aestethic, clothing like that will get you only so far. It may make for good photos and fun discussion, but even I can't wear it as often as you might think I do. The fact is, from July until the weather changes to tweed, you will find me in some combination of navy jacket and tan trousers upwards of five days a week. I've written about this "sometimes uniform" before. There's really only so much you can write about it. ADG did a pretty good job recently, as is his wont, and his post caused me to shelve this one. However, a week later with little else to talk  about and not wanting so cram to much business info down the gullet, I've decided to run it anyway.

Pictured above is the line-up that is my Summer dress clothes. Three blazers probably seems like a lot to any sensible person who isn't needlessly obsessed with unnecessary clothing (ask my wife), but I need them all for different reasons. There's the linen one with white buttons, on the left, for the hottest days. There's the gossamer wool hopsack by Southwick, in the center, an indefatigable classic that is actually the lynch pin of my entire wardrobe, and there's the double-breasted, side vented number on the right, the most dashing of the group, for when a bit more formality is desired.  And then there's the tan trousers: classic flat fronts from Brooks Brothers, a very lightweight pair by Alan Rouleau of Boston, a real pair of military surplus, a fuller cut pair with forward pleats in a linen and cotton herringbone, another forward pleated pair in cotton and silk, and on, and on. Why do I need all these different versions of the same thing? Probably no good reason, but here is my justification.

Variety is a good thing, but too much of a good thing can be bad. There is a certain freedom to be found in restrictions. It's a common theory among artists of all kinds that the more limited the parameters, the more there is for expression. By removing all superfluous choice, one is free to hone in on all the little minute details that differentiate dressing well from merely dressing. A combination like a navy jacket and tan trousers is right for so many occasions, and works well with numerous combinations of shirt and tie, from very plain and formal, to bold stripes, plaids, or anything else. You can concentrate more on cut and style, opting for easy American tailoring for one occasion, with flat front trousers and soft shoulders, and more aggressive tailoring for another, opting for pleats, side vents and a stronger shoulder. You can wear this combo as easily with sharply creased slacks and a white shirt as with soft old trousers and a polo. It is all purpose, so much so that even a clotheshorse like me will continue to resort to it with great frequency and little compunction.

There is freedom min the restrictions....even if does lead to boring blogging sometimes.

p.s. don't forget about the 20% off Summer sale in the online Shop this week. 20% off everything through midnight Saturday using discount code SUMMER2013 at checkout. Locals can take advantage of 25% savings in person at the live Shop Saturday, 10 August, from 11am-2pm. 249 Elm Street, 2nd Floor, Somerville, MA (Davis Square)

A Deep Breath of Fresh Air

I don't like to jump the gun and declare Summer the first day its warm enough to leave the house without a coat. Better to ease into things. Though I did pack up a lot of heavy clothes and move out some brighter, lighter fare, I still kept a tweed handy for cold nights, preferring instead to take whiffs of Spring.  Now the whiffs have become deep breaths. Time to brighten things up...a little.

My new favorite double breasted blazer, despite the extra cloth, somehow feels more "Spring" to me than my old single breasted. With pale tan gabardine slacks it's a cinch.

An end on end shirt in royal blue with yellow stripes and a long pointed spread collar (H.Herzfeld, $5.49) and a hunter green tie with woven yellow dots (Polo, made in Italy, $1.99) that doesn't see nearly enough action are a refreshing change from my usual thick oxford button down and stripes.
Watch out. Go-To-Hell pants coming any day now.

p.s. new items in the Shop. More to come in throughout the week.

6X2::6X1 (or, Numeric Codes for Clothing Nerds)

For a long time a good double breasted navy blazer was a desire needing fulfillment in the closet of An Affordable Wardrobe. Double breasted coats of all types are harder to get "right" than single breasted coats, as so much depends on the number and placement of the front buttons. Personally, I find a 6X2 or 4X1 front to be acceptable, though I loathe the 6X1 front so popular in the 1990s. Unless of course it's a 6X2 rolled to 6X1 model. Hardcore clothing nerds will read all that coded numerology with ease. For the rest of you, I will explain.

I recently picked this coat up with the intention of selling it. I really wasn't going to keep it. For one thing, I already had a good double breasted blazer acquired not too long ago, and for another, I don't really need any of these clothes, let alone more of them. In the end, however I couldn't help it. This one fits me too well, is cut from soft but hard wearing cloth, and is drenched in too many nerdy style details to pass up. Pure Polo Ralph Lauren at it's finest, made in USA, likely mid-90s. I remember this cut from back then. I always thought it was cool, but never owned it. Soft shoulders that extend just beyond the natural shoulder, adding a whiff of English "drape"; high cut dramatic 1930s style peaked lapels; side vents; a slightly shorter skirt; and the elusive 6X2/1 button stance.

Those lapels are cut like knives, sharp. Sure, they're wide, but the softness of the cloth keeps that all in check. Besides, I happen to be of the opinion that peaked lapels on a double breasted jacket are best served on the wide side anyway.

But it's the button stance that really does the trick. 6X2 means there are six buttons on the front of which 2 are functional, as seen here. 6X1 means only one is functional. It's a style that smacks of bad 90s, because it was bad and happened in the 90s. Dated, in a bad way. Then there is this cut, rolled to one button, but with two fully functional. Inside, there are two buttons as well, thereby actually allowing the coat to be worn in either position. Additionally, the top button hole is finished on the inside, much the same way the top hole should be finished on the 3/2 single breasted cut beloved by American traditionalists everywhere. Unfortunately, this cut has become nearly impossible to find, which is a shame. I find it to be elegant and nonchalant all at once. Which is kind of what we're all supposed to be shooting for with this whole menswear bag, isn't it?

At one time, this was something of a "house cut" for Polo Ralph Lauren. Here we see the man himself sporting what is likely the very same jacket I just bought. My Honda Civic, on the other hand, offers no comparison to his 1938 Bugatti. Bet his car isn't full of paper cups from Dunkin' Donuts and plastic bags from Market Basket either. But we do have the same jacket.

As with all things Ralph, it comes from somewhere else. People malign Ralph as a thief, but I see what he does a little differently. Jesse Thorn once referred to his work as an "abstraction" of what rich people wear, and that just about nails it. This kind of thing would be really awful, if it weren't for the fact that the good stuff is really good.

Double breasted coats worn this way were actually something of a (dare I say it) trend amongst wealthy Brits and the guys who dressed like them back in the 1930s. Here we see the original model as worn by the Duke of Windsor back then. (side note: I have no time for the Duke of Windsor. I know, he's a seen as this romantic hero who abdicated his throne for "love". But in truth, he's a rich white kid of dubious political leanings who shirked his eminent responsibilities in order to remain a spoiled rich white man-child forever. But I digress, he did have nice clothes. Frankly, I have more respect for Ralph.)

I've worn this jacket a dozen times in the three weeks I've had it, I like it that much. Action shots coming soon.

6X2::6X1 Catch it if you can.

Breaking the Law

I know its wrong. I should know better. But we all slip sometimes.

I wore a double breasted blazer with a button down collar. Worst of all, I liked it, and I'll probably do it again. Yet another affront to the tender sensibilities of the sartorial nit pickers. Or is it?

Don't worry. I'm not going to use the fact that Fred Astaire was known for this in a misguided and arrogant effort to compare myself to such a sartorial giant. But when I think about it, I remember Harold Simon doing this all the time, as did a number of other men of traditional style who possessed a bit of flair back when I worked at a men's shop in high school. My point is, this wasn't so uncommon as we'd like to think. It may be against the rules, but it can add a nice quirk to an otherwise conservative outfit. In the eyes of any clothes nerd nit pickers you might run into. Truth is, 99% of people you meet won't care, or even know the difference anyway. (the jacket is double breasted with a center vent too, will the sacrilege never end?)

p.s. the Shop is stocked with new items. As for other things I should know better about, I've put up some serious heavyweight vintage Winter camping gear I just found, when any sensible store would be stocking Spring/Summer. Like they say, though, the time to buy an antique is when you find it. Lot's of seasonal stuff there too. Check it out.

Holiday Cheer

Given the fact that Christmas is a mere few days off, it occurs to me that there has been a real lack of holiday cheer around here. The reasons for that are twofold. First, it's been unseasonably warm here in Massachusetts for months. Everyone around me seems to love this, but not I. This is a clothing blog, after all, and my best stuff is the Winter goods, including my extensive collection of wool Tartan trousers, none of which have gotten any use this season. Secondly, being in retail, this season means less fun and more work for me, and little else. Good thing I've got the kids to keep me cheery.

Anyway, I did actually manage to get invited to and attend one Christmas party last weekend, so the custom holiday shirt got at least one airing:

Worn with a navy emblematic tie, and a 6x2 double breasted navy blazer. The double breasted helps keep this relatively in check, with it's high closure point. See, maybe not as silly as you thought.

Silk knot cuff links. Shiny metal would have been way too much, in an outfit that is likely already way too much.

 

Charcoal flannels and black shoes. Bright red socks at a Christmas party are de rigeur. The perfect ensemble for drinking too much Scotch and stumbling home. Ho Ho Ho!

p.s. new items in the Shop. I've been a busy little elf this month.

A Double (Breasted) Shot of Sunshine, Please

Boy has it been grey and dreary around here these past few day. That hasn't stopped me from changing  over the closet though. As I look forward to the full blast warmer months, I picked up this new find at the cleaners today:

Lately, uncharacteristically, I'm really digging on the idea of the "just right" double breasted jacket. This one here is the perfect conglomerate, taking elements I don't usually care for and combining them with those I do...kinda seamlessly.  The trouble I often have with double breasted jackets is the built up shoulder, but this piece has natural shoulders, even if it is darted.

Swelled edges, a very Traditional touch, yet the lapels are fairly wide. That's all well and good, if you ask me. Narrow lapels on a double breasted jacket are an aberration, anyway, the proportions never seem to work. All those buttons require a bit more heft up top for balance. The cloth is likely a cotton/linen/synthetic blend, tres 1960s, with little flecks of white to play up the "linen"ness of it. Of course, wrinkles would play that up even better, but I'll give this one a pass for quality of construction, cut and a perfect shade of khaki.

The two button cuff, so quintessential on our beloved 3/2 undarted jacket is a pinch unexpected here, but I'll take it. It's even got a center vent, and being from the 1960s, is cut a hair on the shorter side, which surprisingly gives it a fresher, more modern feel.

A "Madisonaire" by Varsity Town...sounds pretty fancy.I'm supposing that the "Madisonaire" label and the double breasted cut would suggest that this coat was meant for the city, a bit more urbane, as opposed to something like a tweed sack, which would be strictly campus casual. I couldn't find much on the Varsity Town brand, shy of this old ad, but they do seem like my kind of manufacturer. The Ivy League nuts must love that label. Incidentally, with "Ivy" clothes being something of a rage right now, I think someone should release a line called "College", and sell nothing but blazers and striped ties. There's a gold mine there. The kids love that stuff.

This jacket will be the kill with tropical worsted flat fronts in charcoal grey, white shirt,maybe even with (gasp!) a button down collar, black knit tie and brown suede shoes, light colored socks and a straw hat for good measure. Mark my words, kinda like this guy:

photo: the Sartorialist

True, this guy is in Milan, an his jacket more than likely does not consist of partly synthetic cloth, and that open patch ticket pocket is hard to beat, and his jacket probably cost more than most of my clothes combined,(mine was $4.99) but the concept is largely the same. (Minus a few points for the old watch-over-shirt-cuff-trick. I thought that was silly, even on the great Agnelli. Leave it to the Italians to always be at least one step overdone, myself included)

I think it's about time for a well cut double breasted jacket to make an occasional comeback. Like forward pleats, the fashion industry has been vilifying them for long enough now that they're bound to start speaking the opposite anytime now. I might be ahead of the pack with this one, not that I tend to care much for the pack and what they think. My fear is that creased jeans are the next big thing too, maybe this Fall. I won't be jumping on that one, even if I did call it.

In any case, think about giving a double breasted jacket a try. One or two in the closet is just enough to provide a shot of interest that ups your whole wardrobe.