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Thrifty Kids, Part 2

The Boy has a good sense of occasion, and always knows when to look his best. Like most six year old boys, he spends a great deal of time in t-shirts, jeans, and sweatpants, getting dirty as a boy should. But when it comes to dressing well, his tastes are particular. He tends to keep things classic, as we can see by his navy blazer, white shirt, and striped knit tie. The pearl grey Homburg hat is vintage 1960s, in unworn condition, a very small men's size. I initially purchased it to sell it, but when he insisted I let him keep it, there was no denying him.

Thrift shopping has a way of meeting your needs after a while if you stick with it. The boy is rapidly outgrowing his navy blazer, but I did turn up a better fitting jacket in  navy tweed with real leather buttons...

Made in USA by Brooks Brothers. $2.99 at an undisclosed thrift shop. Like father, like son.

Thrifty Kids, Part 1

My lovely girl knocks it out of the park with her hipster/preppy style. It's a cute look, especially on a girl not yet four years old. But then again, she can wear anything.

A deep purple quilted vest from Lands' End by way of thrift shop, a bold navy gingham shirt, and a handmade sweater in heavy kelly green wool, vintage in the first place, now also a hand-me-down from her older brother. Go preppy androgyny!

Button cute red shoes, white socks and skinny jeans...

with a bonus navy and red surcingle belt with navy leather fittings and a brass buckle, also now a

hand-me-down from big brother. I don;t remember exact pricing, but it all (except the socks)came from thrift stores. The whole rig couldn't have cost more than $15. Crewcuts be damned. Kudos to Mrs. G. for assembling the outfit. I only contributed the vest.

If you have kids, then you're a fool not to shop in thrift stores. They me be a gold mine of fine menswear for those persistent enough to dig, but they are easy pickings when it comes to the kids. Kids outgrow stuff, quick. This means that not only is it silly to pay full whack for things they're not going to wear much, but also that thrift shops tend to be full of stuff that hasn't been worn much. And then there's all the clothing gifts that didn't fit because Grandma always buys stuff three sizes too big that gets donated new, tags and all. Most kids clothes I see at thrift shops are $5 or less. Besides, how else are you going to get your kids that worn in East Coast look if some of the stuff isn't, you know, worn in?

p.s. new items available now in The Shop.

New Life for Old Shirts

This shirt is an old favorite, and clearly it has seen its fair share of use. The collar and cuffs are badly frayed, as are the tips of the collar, and the shirt has shrunk with repeated washing. As much as I don't mind, or even revel in, some proper wear and tear, I must admit that this garments time has come. Having seen the end of its usefulness, donation to the thrift shops is no longer an option. I suppose I could use it as a dust cloth or something. However...

By simply cutting a 16" square out of the back panel, with a little creative folding we have a quick-and-dirty pocket square. Recycling is cool.

Closet Diving

Our friends over at Thrift Store Runway are having another contest. You may remember, I judged for them in the past, awarding five lucky winners a cash prize for showing us great style for $50 or less. The new contest gives you and a friend a chance to win.

Raid someones closet. A buddy, a relative, doesn't matter, though my own personal advice would be that older folks are likely to have better and cooler stuff on the hangers. Put together a look using their vintage pieces. If chosen, both you and the owner of the clothing will receive a cash prize of $250, and a donation of $100 will be made to the thrift store of your choice. Win/win, I'd say. Entries will be accepted through 16 January. Details here.

Alternative Black Tie

I wanted to go somewhere wearing this....

...but instead I stayed home and wore this.

(Tuxedo t-shirt gift of the Boy and the Girl. Mrs. G says they absolutley insisted)

I'm not going to get all sappy about the meaning of things and say that all this silly stuff about clothes doesn't matter, because I really believe it does. However, it's never a bad thing to have little reminders to keep things in proper persepctive. My family is happy and healthy, and I have a lot to be grateful for. So what if I spent New Years Eve in a tux t-shirt.

Happy New Year.

p.s. after much neglect, the Shop has a lot of new items in it today. As though you haven't spent enough money in the last few weeks....

The Virtues of Patience (or Bang for the Buck)

I recently found the opportunity to wear a new/old shirt that had been hanging in my closet for some time. Made in Italy of very fine cotton, a bargain for $5.49:

Note how nicely pressed it is, courtesy of the Rowenta iron Santa saw fit to bring me. More on the later.

I couldn't find out much about this "Louie" label, but my gut tells me it was a house line from Louis Boston. It's Italian, clearly expensive, and in keeping with the overall style of the clothing that came out of that store in the 90s.

It's touched with all the little details you might expect to find on a custom shirt, like these reinforced tabs at the shirt tails,

nicely rounded cuffs, and very thick buttons.

The contrast club collar is appropriately short, though the collar band is fairly wide, giving it a bit of a 90s look, but in a very Alan Flusser kind of way that I can happily accept.

So, what's this got to do with patience? Readers may remember that back in December of 2009 I received my first made to measure shirt from online outfit Deo Veritas. That shirt, with it's contrast button down collar and three button contrast cuffs, caused no end of stink amongst the commenters who rightly pegged me for a rube. But I liked that shirt and still do. If I weren't an inch bigger in the waist than I was then I'd still wear it. Shortly following, I ordered two more. They arrived in January of 2010. Both were ordered with contrast club collars, and both arrived with a collar round at the tips and long in the points. Not exactly what I or many of you would call a club collar, they too sparked no end of comment. While ironing the shirt pictured today, it occurred to me that this is more what I was after when I placed that second order with Deo Veritas. A similar shirt, in blue and white stripes, but with a better cut club collar and a roomier fit. Back then, I preferred closer fitting shirts, but the older I get the more I appreciate some room to move. Not to take anything away from my experiences with Deo Veritas. The service and quality were great, and I would still recommend them to anyone that asks.

The point, which I'm sure I've made before, is that too much thrift shopping will spoil you. After years of having committed myself to the effort and time commitment, I know that almost anything I want will turn up eventually, even something as unusual as a striped shirt with contrast club collar and round cuffs. It makes it hard to pay full whack for anything after a while. The shirt I had made for $75 languishes now in my closet, while it's $5 replacement will enter the regular rotation. As this photo of laundry drying in the shower proves, blue and white shirts are a silly thing to by at high prices:

So here come the bad advice. What about a gift certificate? Christmas having just passed, I'm sure many of you have some to spend, and the fact that you read this blog means there is a likelihood that you were given that gift certificate because someone knows you're just too damn picky to be given clothing as a gift. When given no choice but to pick out new things, how does one use free money most effectively? I'm of the belief that gift certificates may be best spent on some sort of crazy frivolity, something you would never sensibly by yourself. 

Despite being a fully grown man, my parents still insist on giving me money in an envelope for my birthday. I have long since given up on politely scoffing at the act, and instead accept it graciously and then use it to pay some bill or other. This year, that money was presented in the form of a gift certificate to the Andover Shop (filled out on the old Royal typewriter no less). My father said " now you have to spend it on yourself. Maybe you can go get some new shirts." Well, I just proveed that new shirts are a wasted opportunity. What about that doeskin navy blazer by Southwick I've been eyeing? A good, solid choice, and investment to last me years no doubt. But then good friend and fellow veteran thrift shopper Zach pointed out " The chances of you finding a nice Southwick blazer in 42 regular at a thrift shop are pretty good. Get something crazy." And he's right. Something like pink cords with the wales set horizontally, forward pleats and side tabs, that's more like it.

Nothing allows for a heavy dose of frivolity now and then like a lifetime of patient cheapness.

p.s. my apologies for my recent absence. Call it a self imposed Christmas vacation. I needed it, trust me.

p.p.s. look for a revamp of the Shop next week, after my self imposed Christmas vacation ends.