All in The Details: The Right Seersucker

I've wanted a seersucker suit for as long as I've know what one was, maybe for about 25 years now. Just this past week, patience and persistence were rewarded in the form of a classic old one by Brooks Brothers, had via ebay for $62. Given the limited time and occasion for wearing seersucker, I guess it's ironic that I paid more for this than I do for most of my other harder wearing, more useful clothes. But if we take an average, I'm still doing alright.

Seersucker is one of the most difficult things to buy vintage or used. Simply put, the cloth is just too lightweight to last. Finding one in this good shape, complete, is a real treat. But whether you're buying your seersucker new or vintage, it's important to know the details and be sure you're getting the good stuff. Not all seersucker is created equal. The first rule is of course to make sure you're getting all cotton. This is easier with new clothes as poly blend seersucker has pretty much fallen out of common use, but many old garments from the 60s and 70s were made of blended fabrics. Besides the fact that polyester is gross 90% of the time, using it in seersucker is downright antithetical to the point of the garment. Cotton wrinkles and breaths well, which is exactly what you want in a suit that you wear on a hot day.

Construction is important too. A seersucker suit should never be fully lined, again because that antithetical to the point. Reasonable suits will only have partial lining. The best kind, like the one I was lucky enough to grab, are partially "buggy" lined in their own fabric rather than a synthetic liner. Again, this adds to the breathability of the jacket and keeps it lightweight. This one has 1/8 lining at the shoulders and unlined sleeves. The shoulders are unpadded, and there is no canvas or other structural material in the coat, so it's like wearing a shirt. Yet for all that, it's well made enough that it still has the shape of a suit jacket. As you might guess, that's harder to do than just reproducing a stock jacket pattern and just using seersucker cloth, but it makes the suit what it is even more that the fabric itself.

Patch pockets are a must. Internal pockets will require additional structural material inside, and we already decided that's not what we want here.

Trousers can be either flat front or pleated depending on your own taste, but make sure they're a little roomy in the legs. This pair is relatively conservative but on the loose side. Remember, it's hot outside and you're already wearing a suit, probably by choice. Do yourself a favor and don't wear a tight one.

Accessories should be laid back here to. A surcingle or ribbon belt is a cardinal sin with any other suit, with the exception maybe of Summer poplin, but it's right at home with seersucker's laid back vibe.

Same goes for penny loafers: never with a suit, except seersucker. White bucks are of course a standard, but can be a bit much, even for me. Southerners pull it off with aplomb, but in all honesty on a Northerner and combined with a bow tie, I saw Pee Wee Herman looking back from the mirror. Brown shoes it is. And don't forget your socks. You do have suit on after all, and I don't care what magazines you've been reading, suits need socks. I thought these yellow ones did the job nicely, but argyle in bright colors, another general sin with a suit, work well too.

I can't say it enough, but dressing well is all in the details. Even if most people don't think they notice, they do. Others may not know what it is about your clothes that makes them look just a bit better than the average guy, but you'll know and they'll sense it. Pay attention to the small stuff.

p.s. Before one of you reminds me of that time I broke every rule and concept I just laid down here, allow me to beat you to it. We live and we learn, don't we.

All In The Details

Wearing clothes is fun for me. That could explain my penchant for a lot of things that would be too much for many people. Bright colors and crazy patchwork are the height of fun dressing, but it only works if you know how to ground yourself in understatement from time to time. I am in no way advocating boring dress, because "understated" and "drab" don't necessarily have to be the same thing.

Few outfits could be more classic than a navy blazer, grey trousers and burgundy tie, as seen here. What keep this extremely simple combination from drabness lies all in the details.

The importance of a good navy blazer in a man's wardrobe can't be understated (correction: overstated-ed.). I wear mine with some frequency, and as such have three: two single breasted, one lightweight and one Winter weight, and a double breasted.This one is an upgrade for me, replacing my old flannel one.Hand made in a Madison Avenue tailor shop once upon a time, the construction is beautiful. Internet homework turned up nothing on Virgil Carducci. Anybody know anything about him?

Like the suit that was mentioned in the last post, this jacket has a great combination of mostly European details, but it works great with my existing largely American based wardrobe. Notable is the shoulder, which is roped in a very Italian style, but has a natural slope.

Patch and flap pockets are more American, but a ticket pocket is a nice unexpected touch.

Hand finished button holes and edge stitching. This thing is the real deal. Side vents, of course.

The fabric is incredibly soft to the hand, likely at least partly cashmere. It's thick and warm, but breaths well. Closer inspection reveals a herringbone weave, it's navy shade being achieved through a weave of royal blue and black threads, giving it a richer navy shade when seen under artificial light. I traded a new-with-tags Gloverall duffel coat for this, and I couldn't be happier with the results of the bargain.

A striped shirt by Polo ($5.99) adds a bit of punch. The undone button down collar is, admittedly, a hopeless affectation, but don't forget that I'm a guy who wears jacket and tie by choice only, so who cares? I wouldn't try this in an office job, but then again I don't have one. A burgundy grenadine tie by Brooks Brothers was $1.99 well spent.

The trousers are Andover Shop mid grey flannels, with side tabs and forward pleats, worn without braces.

With all these European details, these classic American penny loafers and yellow socks are suddenly incongruous, but why not?

So much about dressing well for men lies in the details, but it's even truer when keeping things relatively quiet. Finding little ways to set off a relatively conservative ensemble can be a challenge, but it's also a lot of fun. Just remember to do this stuff for yourself, and not to impress others, because you'll probably be the only person who notices or cares.

The Classicist

It's no good dressing up in costume, following some set of rules by rote when choosing one's clothes in the morning. Still, it doesn't hurt now and then to stick to the letter of the (Ivy,Trad,Preppy, whatever) law, as it were.

Beautiful weather Saturday, crisp, cool and sunny, saw the first of the season's tweed. This lightweight number in brown micro-herringbone is a perfect transition, very much tweed but not too heavy. Vintage 1960s, soft shoulders, two button cuffs, undarted front with a perfect 3/2 roll.

From The Coop of Harvard Square. It's possible, if not likely, that this was once a suit. But I think it holds up nicely on its own. I can't remember exactly what I paid for it, but I'm sure it was less than $10.

What better to wear with it than a repp striped tie and an oxford cloth button down shirt with blue pencil stripes? I'd been in need of some new shirts recently, and just last week I came across four in my size for $3.99 each at a thrift shop, old ones from Lands' End, two white, one with blue and yellow check, and this one. Once upon a time, Lands' End made must-iron shirts with unlined collars that had a roll to rival the best of the, I wish they still made these.

The tie is an old Brooks Brothers Irish twill in a wool and silk blend, picked up over the Summer for $1.99. I've been waiting on this tie for a while, and I have a feeling it will quickly become a regular in my rotation.

Military issue khakis, starched and pressed, the real deal, courtesy of Zach at Newton Street Vintage, yellow socks acquired in the Infamous Trip to the Outlets, and brown penny loafers. What else? The loafers are made in USA by Dexter. They may not be Bass Weejuns, but the styling and quality are identical. Not bad for $6.99.

This Italian silk pocket square may not be for everyone, but I think it gives the whole just enough flair to keep it out of full 1960s campus costume territory.

When in doubt, stick to the classics. There's a good reason why this stuff  continues to stick around...at least for now.

First of the Season (Old Favorites)

I love a big fat pair of light grey flannel pants, and I revel in the first days cold enough to warrant them:

I am constantly compelled to pair these burly pants with bright yellow socks (see here, here, and here, here too...and those are just the instances comitted to the internet). Big fat wool to keep us warm, bright yellow to remind us that the sun doesn't stop shining in the cold, even if it does set much sooner.

Happy Autmn, everybody...finally!

24 November: Correction, "Autumn".