The Plaid of Christmas Past

While sorting through some photos looking for ones for what I thought might be a new post, I stumbled across a number of Tartan drenched vanity shots from Christmas week, and decided that timeliness, or lack of it, should be no deterrent in discussing them. I sure do like the old Scottish weave.

I think I took this photo for a post about understatement in holiday dress. However, upon review I can see that their is nothing understated about this. Big bad black watch plaid, splashed across a flannel jacket, which is actually half of a suit, wide 1970s lapels and all. True, a white square and solid navy blue wool tie may have had the chance to hold things in check, but the by now infamous custom shirt and collar pin have other things to say about it.

This ensemble, for a night on the job Christmas Eve is far more traditional, and perhaps wearable. A knitted merino wool vest in goldenrod and a lightly hued tartan Viyella tie actually are anchored this time with a navy flannel blazer and charcoal slacks.

Christmas Day, on the other hand, is no time to mess around. What else is a guy going to do with a pair of pants such as these? Don't half step with this stuff. Wear them like you mean it, behave as though such garments are completely normal, and get down on the floor to assist two children still clad in their pyjamas mid-afternoon in the construction of a new model train set. Because thats what holidays, and plaid pants, are for.

Happy New Year.

The Holiday Shirt

The results are in on my most recent foray into the world of so-called "online custom" tailoring, and this time they are relatively favorable. I have to say I'm mostly pleased with the execution of my idea for a dress shirt for holiday parties:

Bright red tartan with a spread collar and French cuffs. Unconventional, of course. But when any maker's size 15 1/2 x 33 shirt fits reasonably well, as it does me, there's no point in having something as mundane as a white shirt made. I plan on wearing this with an emblematic or simple striped tie, grey flannel trousers, and either navy blazer or tweed jacket for festive occasions. I'd say something like "Christmas parties", but having two kids and working night hours in retail, the holiday season rarely has anything to do with parties and celebrations for me (Scrooge).

When ordering the shirt, the first line of questioning involves height, weight and general body type.  Following that is a more detailed set of measurements. In each case, a guess is entered for you, and I was surprised to note that in every case the guess was within a 1/2 inch of my entry. So far, so good.

Choosing fabric is always the hardest part with these things. Actually touching the fabric from which your garment will be produced beforehand is a key step in the actual custom process, sorely lacking in the online experience. It will always be a gamble. In this particular case I won, with a nice mid weight cotton poplin.

The shirt was delivered in just over two weeks, lickety split. That's kinda crazy, but true.

This thing fits me beautifully. The eight button front and extra long tails insure it won't come untucked. The collar is rigid and slightly high, as an English style spread should be. The French cuffs fit close without being restrictive. The buttons are pretty good, maybe not top notch, and the pattern matching in places, particularly the sleeve plackets, leaves a pinch to be desired. The button holes are stitched in white, where a color better matching the pattern such as red would have been preferred. Then again, had I paid for it the shirt would only have cost $54, cheapest I've seen yet for something like this, and cheaper by far than many ready made options. I guess that makes this a bargain, especially when one considers what Ralph will sell you for $165.

And you thought my shirt was way out of bounds. At least it's not pleated. Though I will freely admit that if there were any chance at all I'd be donning the black tie for any reason this month, I'd be lusting after this one, too. But I bet I'd have Tailor4Less make me one for $54 before I'd pay that kind of scratch. To be sure, an atrocious waste of money in either case, but a fella can dream, can't he?

Now all I need is a good party or two to attend. Anyone want to move their bash from Friday or Saturday to a Monday or Tuesday night when I'm not working late? (lousy retail Christmas season...grumble, grumble).