25 May 2009

Pink, part 2

Not only it is Memorial Day weekend, but I also had the pleasure of attending a friends wedding yesterday afternoon, by the seaside. All the right ingredients for this years debut of the pink pants:

I picked these up the Polo outlet for about $15 the same day I found the green pants. I guess the ghost of Lily Pulitzer was on my side that day, or something.

All morning long, I went back and forth in my mind about what to wear with them; a bow tie?, a striped shirt? Then I realized that when a man wears pink pants, his best bet is to keep the rest of the items really simple. Otherwise, it's too easy to fall into "preppy costume" territory.


So I stuck with a white shirt and navy blazer, and a summery navy and white tie in mini gingham check. For a bit of extra dash, a white square with pink and navy flowers.My favorite thing about these pants is that they're made of oxford broadcloth, almost like a shirt. Very comfortable, and a bit unusual.

The whole thing was finished off sockless, with penny loafers (of course).The tie has some interesting bits about it too. As usual, I found it for a dollar or two at a thrift store somewhere. The brand name is "Paddle" (which is funny, because it's not a rowing paddle so much as a frat house hazing paddle), and it hails from some long gone local Massachusetts store called the Country Store of Concord.The dirty little secret is: it's not silk (gasp!). That's often a deal breaker for me, but this tie is just too sharp too let such a small detail deter me from wearing it. Besides, when I dribbled a little bit of beer on it, it wiped right off with only a paper napkin.The wedding was a lot of fun. A beautiful ceremony outside in a beautiful place, followed by barbecue, beer, and live music provided by a group of my good friends. Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. H, we wish you all the best.






17 comments:

Young Fogey said...

And here we thought you were going to wear your tan suit to the wedding! I like this outfit even better.

You're absolutely right: when pushing it with something like pink pants, everything else needs to be simple and classic. Blue and white was an excellent choice. Great shoes for the outfit, too.

I, too, avoid fabrics other than silk in ties, though I have learned that sometimes, you take what's available to get a great-looking tie.

The Tyrant said...

This is really nicely put together. Excellent tie knot, great proportions, nice stark colors. One of the best combinations I've seen you post.

Toad said...

Tres sharp dud my friend. Give the wedding party my congrats.

Anonymous said...

Lilly's still alive and kickin'! ha

Anonymous said...

There's of course nothing wrong with non-silk neckties, so long as they're made of wool, cotton, or a similarly acceptable fabric.

But choosing a tie made of two disgustingly artificial fabrics leads to the unfortunate knot you have there. That plus the texture will make it obvious to anyone with taste that you're wearing a poor quality tie. I love your concept of dressing well on a budget, but a rayon/acetate tie cannot be considered good taste...

James (UK) said...

Reminds me of these "Duchamp" ties Harrods was selling a while back;

Harrods Ties by James (UK), on Flickr

Charles said...

I like those pants.

ADG said...

The entire rig is...as you would say....huge nad sturdy!

Pigtown*Design said...

Lookin' good!

C said...

Looks great Giuseppe. I really (!) love that pocket square.

Tickled Pink And Green said...

You done good. ;-)

Marcellus said...

Great job with the pink. You managed to make the look modern and not over-the-top preppy, especially by toning down the other elements.

Middle-aged Diva (Carol) said...

I love those pink pants and wish I had a pair for my fiance. Gorgeous outfit.

Anonymous said...

I would wear the oxford cloth pants in a blue...you should try an oxford cloth tie...I have one from Brooks Brothers...also definitely try out a seersucker..and a wool tie...these are great alternatives to the silk

SCO said...

I am curious about the oxford broadcloth. Could it be a light canvas? Oxford sounds awfully thin for pants. I recently bought some light blue canvas pants, so I thought it might be a similar material.

Anonymous said...

Oxford is actually a thicker material for shirts....

Giuseppe said...

Seth,

They're thicker than a shirt, but lighter than canvas. The weave is whet prompted me to call them oxford. It's very broad, with pink threads running vertically against white thread horizontally.