The Old Casual

It really is amazing to think about how the definition of the word "casual" as it applies to our modes of dress has changed so drastically in so little time. I'm not going to complain that things are generally more comfortable for people these days, because I'm glad to wear jeans and sweaters to drop the kids off at school and go to the supermarket. Nor am I going to wax rhapsodic about some bygone era that I know of only through movies and books and pine for a time that was done before my birth. But I will trot out what used to be considered casual dress on a Saturday afternoon  now and then.

Dark shirts are not something to be used lightly with a jacket and tie, but it can be done. I've written on this before. I usually wear this shirt alone with khakis or jeans, but given its color scheme in navy, hunter green, and gold, it can take a tie sometimes. I think the trick is to remember what casual used to mean, and stick with tweeds and other textured, soft fabrics. I'm sure that the combination pictured above will garner wailing and gnashing of teeth from the purists for both the use of a dark shirt and the overt four pattern combination, but so be it. I find it to be a nice change of pace now and then from the standard light colored shirt. And as much as we lament the loss of stricter codes of dress, not having one gives me the freedom to wear this if I want to, and that's not all bad. Besides, it is Saturday.



Charcoal grey whipcord trousers with deep forward pleats from the Andover Shop held up with braces complete things. On the feet, argyle socks and cordovan longwings, outside a tan cashmere coat, brown corduroy cap and brown leather gloves.

The old casual lives somewhere between the new super-casual and dress clothing, so tread lightly. It's not for everyone, and even if you can pull this off I suggest using this trick sparingly. But it is fun when it comes off well. 

Brown in Town

Since we had such a vigorous discussion on wearing "brown in town", I thought the timing was perfect to share this gem of an item I've been sitting on for some time now.

A vintage tweed suit made of cloth so thick the garment weighs almost as much as I do. No tags, but my educated guess says this is the real deal from England, likely made in the late 1940s or 1950s. Actual country clothing, the kind of brown most definitely not intended for town, though if this were staying with me I'd be hard pressed not to wear it twice a week all Winter despite the concrete beneath my shoes.

It's dificult to do justice to thos fabric in words and pictures. A heavy tweed the likes of which is rarely seen these days, in a barley corn weave of tan and brow. A classic English overcheck in red and burnt orange runs trhough it, as well as a good dose of turquoise, yes turquoise, threads. Outstanding.

All the English details are there : side vents, structured shoulders, a nipped waist, three button cuffs with the bottom two functional, and hacking pockets with the pattern perfectly aligned.

The trousers have a high waist with a 14 inch rise, and a pretty serious fishtail back, combined with 1 3/4 inch cuffs (turn ups) and a relatively narrow 8 1/2 inch leg opening.

A button fly with a heavy steel hook at the top, forward plaets and brace buttons finish the job. The fishtail is a full four inches higher than the front waist band. This is a serious garment, a relic of a manner of dress which I see rapidly disappearing in my own lifetime.

The suit is a 42 long with a 37 waist an 31 1/2 inch inseam. If it fits you, visit the Ebay auction by way of the link in the sidebar and it can be yours. If, like me, it doesn't fit you, drool over it and wish it did. May its next owner combine it with a tattersall shirt, wool tie, high top perforated wing tip boots, a rifle, dogs, a flask of single malt and some dreary, damp weather.  Auction ends 12 December.

p.s. many new items hitting the shop soon. Stay tuned.

p.p.s. more of the usual jibber jabber to come, less shameless salesmanship.

p.p.p.s. despite what the arcane rules may state, if you have an iconoclastic streek you can wear this "in town".  I know I would.







Tweed Twice

A brown and tan herringbone tweed jacket in soft. luxurious wool, natural shoulders, two button darted front, braided leather buttons, half lined, and a tie in brown tweed with red, yellow, and orange flecks, square end, vintage 1960s Rooster for Yale Co-op. The leftovers of the Top Shelf Flea. (No one bought these??? C'mon fellas, get on the stick.) Seen with a brushed twill shirt with spread collar in rust, hunter green, and black tattersall check on cream ground by Ralphie ($4.99), collar pin worn as tie pin from the Andover Shop, and an ecru pocket square I've had since Simon's.

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Below, 8 wale cords in "cinnamon" and brown cotton socks with olive and rust checks, both by Lands' End in some crazy end of season feeding frenzy,  Brown suede split toe Allen Edmonds "Bradley", had for a song.

You can't beat Autumn for richness of texture and color. Dress for the season. It's more fun that way.



A Rare Find

Finding well made classic clothing from old guard American brands is difficult enough. Turning up a vintage handmade piece from "across the pond" is nearly impossible...nearly.

In posting new items for sale in the Shop this evening, I decided that this piece deserved its own post here. After it's sold, I don't want the memory of it to fade, it's that good. So consider this post, much like my posts on vintage formal wear (here, here and here) one for posterity.

What you see here is a real tweed jacket, the kind that makes every other tweed jacket you've seen or owned seem like child's play. A real piece of British country clothing, most likely actually worn by its original owner in the British countryside. My best educated guess dates this coat in the early 1960s, but it may as well be brand new for how well it's held up. Note the tailoring. Moderate shoulders with a nipped waist and soft three button front. Not our American 3/2 stance, but certainly tailored to the center button.

Super heavy bullet proof brown herringbone tweed, the kind of stuff you don't see anymore outside of Britain. Narrow lapels with rounded corners, popular in the early 1960s, are one of the clues to its age.

Shallow side vents are another.

Real horn buttons. The two button cuff is a bit unusual for English clothes, but spot on for this "casual" jacket.

By Gieves Limited of London. The final clue. Not only does this confirm the obvious fact of this garments quality, but it proves that it was made no later than 1974, the year Gieves Limited bought Hawkes and Co. of No. 1 Savile Row to form Gieves & Hawkes. If you're a 38 short, this ones for you.

Just one of the things I dig out of that old church store in Maine. Much more of it can be found now in the Shop.

Another Whiff of Spring

Just warm enough today to leave the Barbour at home. Good thing, too. With this mild Winter we just had, that coat has seen a lot of use, and it's just possible that I might i fact be sick of wearing it just now.

The bright orange stripe in this Ben Silver repp tie ($1.99) may be small, but it goes a long way to lifting this relatively staid combination of blue check shirt and brown tweed jacket out of the doldrums. A whiff of Spring, just a whiff...

Cotton khakis make an early appearance. For many, khakis are a go-to year round trouser, but I find them to be too light in Winter, even when temps are unseasonably warm. Now that they're out of the closet, they'll likely make multiple appearances each week until they go away again.

The scarf and gloves I carried in my tote bag as extra protection against late night chill have been supplanted by a light wool crew neck in crazy orange ($1.00) one of my new favorite items. Another whiff of Spring? Or is this sweater a deep breath? Either way, I love it.

If this ensemble looks familiar, it may be that you've seen something like it before:

Bill (my trusty suit form) wore it to the Drill Hall Flea Market recently. Is it mild schizophrenia to be influenced by oneself in sartorial choices? Or merely unforgivable narcissism?

This outfit combines warm elements with lighter ones, drab colors and bright ones, in a way that pays heed to both the time of year and the weather of the day. I say something like this every year in early Spring (and again in early Autumn): transitional dressing can often be the most difficult to maneuver, but also the most fun.