Have a Happy New Year! Be Yourself!

Happy New Year!

Harris Tweed cufflinks

It seems possible to buy almost anything made out of my favourite cloth, Harris Tweed, but I didn't expect to find cufflinks.  Here they are, bought on eBay from a seller in the Outer Hebrides (seller - ma1r1).

Grey Fox photo

I bought them with a matching tweed scarf, and could swear that I got a scent of peat fires as I opened the well-sealed package.

Video - Mr Porter - London Street Style

I love this video from Mr Porter as it includes a few older men of style - and one is a cyclist. It's good to see a company marketing quality products to a variety of ages, not just the young.

There's some nice-looking stuff in their sale. I'd go for this Ralph Lauren corduroy jacket - it would go well with jeans, brogues, Fair Isle scarf and a chocolate labrador!

Three cheers for Mr Porter.

Sales shopping - a guide for men

Now's the time for the braver man in search of style to get out to the sales to buy those designer clothes at more affordable prices.  Alternatively, of course, he can stay at home with a turkey sandwich, washing it down with the dregs of that vintage wine from Christmas Day.  

I took the plunge last year and found this tweed jacket at the Ralph Lauren sale in Chelsea at a good discount.  The fit and details are outstanding; good designer clothes are worth snapping up in the sales before they disappear.

Like most men, I hate sales shopping, but this year I shopped locally to buy a few post-Christmas essentials.  It was early and still relatively uncrowded in John Lewis and  Massimo Dutti, where I've found interesting and reasonably-priced clothes in the past.  This approach to sales shopping is recommended; target two or three shops early in the day - they will be packed later.

Anyway, I came away from Massimo Dutti with this wool, cashmere and silk waistcoat, half price. It's actually more of a sleeveless cardigan than a tailored waistcoat as the fit is a bit slouchy, so I will wear it with the bottom button done up.  Although hardly top designer wear it has, like other clothes I've bought from this shop, interesting details in the pockets and buttons so has some of the features of a pricier designer garment. In the picture I'm wearing the waistcoat with the jacket from a vintage Harris Tweed suit.

Good luck at the sales.

Be inspired by the well-dressed man

In arriving at our own fashion tastes we are inevitably influenced by a wide variety of experiences.  In a future post I will talk about the contributions to a sense of style of close relatives and friends.  Here I acknowledge the influence of famous people, living and dead, whose pictures we see in magazines, newspapers and on-line.

James Stewart

To me, one thing unites the men in these pictures.  They all look totally at ease, often while dressed quite formally.  What makes them look so comfortable in their clothes?  I wish I knew, but I'm going to guess that they all enjoy dressing well, they are totally confident in themselves and know what they like, they choose their own clothes and take an interest in them.

They are all dressed in a classical fashion and wear the clothes without any sense of self-consciousness - quite unlike many male models or men photographed in street style blogs who often appear overwhelmed by the clothes they are wearing.

Can we find inspiration here to help in our search for style in how we dress?  What do you think?  What gives a man an outstanding dress sense?

Edward, Prince of Wales

Cary Grant

Steve McQueen

Charles, Prince of Wales

David Beckham

What does a man looking for style get for Christmas?

What does a man trying to find style in middle age hope for at Christmas?

Grey Fox has been a very lucky fellow.  My post of two days ago mentioned my vintage Fair isle jersey, found and tried on with a tweed jacket.  Well, I was delighted to find a beautiful Fair Isle jersey under the Christmas tree.

My amazing wife had tried to buy one on-line from Drakes.  Finding they were out of stock she visited their shop off Jermyn Street to see what they had in stock.  Luckily they found the colour she needed (and which was out of stock on-line) hidden in a stockroom and here it is.  It is more of a tan colour than is apparent in the photograph.

It is made from a slightly coarse wool, very warm in London's unseasonably mild weather.  It is an XS, described by Drakes as a 38" - the cut is quite slim.  I presume that Drakes sell to the US market, where everyone seems much larger, as describing a 38" chest garment as XS is unusual.  Until recently a 38" would be described a medium or possibly a small, but I've never seen the size marked as extra small until now!

I love this painting of Edward, Prince of Wales and later Edward VIII who started the trend for Fair Isle sweaters in the twenties.

Merry Christmas from an old and stylish gentleman......

Photo Grey Fox

Two ties in two days

I started this blog all of two weeks ago, so to celebrate I bought two ties.

I know I've been banging on about tweed, and particularly Harris Tweed, quite a lot; but I make no apologies for that.  It seemed right that one of the ties should be Harris Tweed, and here it is with a more formal, but classic, fine-spotted burgundy silk tie.  The former was from Edinburgh Woollen Mill and the latter from a Teddington charity shop - which should I wear on Christmas Day?

Photos Grey Fox

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Tweed & Fair Isle - fusty or feisty? We can all be geography teachers now

In my recent sort through my wardrobe I came across a Fair Isle pullover that I'm pretty sure I bought in as a teenager in the early seventies from the long-missed Kensington Antique Hypermarket (there were a number of similar markets at that time that were treasure troves of sixties clothing).

I've hardly ever worn it, but it has missed the attention of our particularly voracious moths, so, influenced by the recent BBC Young James Herriot series, I thought I'd try it on (above).  The tweedy Fair Isle look reminds me of the clothes my teachers used to wear at school (yes, the geography teachers did wear tweed jackets with leather elbow patches).

Photo BBC

Photo BBC

A man of my age might be worrying about tweed and Fair Isle being too fusty* (see below), however, the look has been taken up seriously by the fashion industry, led by designers such as Ralph Lauren.  What do we think?  Fusty or no?

Here are some photos found on the web, sorry I don't know whose they are -

* fus·ty adj. fus·ti·er, fus·ti·est
1. Smelling of mildew or decay; musty.
2. Old-fashioned; antique.
[Middle English, from Old French fust, piece of wood, wine cask, from Latin fustis, stick, club.]
fusti·ly adv.
fusti·ness n

(From The Free Dictionary)

Vintage clothes for the older man? A Harris Tweed coat

Being willing to buy vintage clothes opens up a world of possibilities, as a browse of eBay or a charity shop will show.  In my search for style as middle-age tightens its grip I thought I'd give them a try (only to discover, of course, that my wardrobe is littered with clothing now considered to be vintage).

I'd seen this photograph of Audrey Hepburn and Mel Ferrer and loved the look of the tweed coat containing them both, with its oversize leather buttons.  I found this Harris Tweed coat on eBay and bought it.  It turned out to be old and a bit moth-eaten, but some tender care had made it wearable - I think!  Here it is - and no, I couldn't find a Hollywood star to share it with me for this shot!

This shot gives a better idea of the tweed's colour - the two large dark brown buttons are the originals, unfortunately I had to change them as one is missing:

Influences - real life adventure, putting fashion in perspective

What influences a man's approach to life?  Many things, of course, from childhood to more recent experiences.  I have always been fascinated by the stories of early Polar explorers.  Their efforts put our self-absorbed interest in style and fashion in perspective.

Scott's tragic and unsuccessful expedition to be first to the South Pole, only to find that he had been beaten to it by the Norwegian, Amundsen, 100 years ago.  The heroic efforts of Shackleton to rescue his team from the ice pack a few years later, making his way to South Georgia on a small boat and arranging the rescue of the remainder of his men from Elephant Island.  These were among the last heroic adventures before Europe was plunged into the senselessness of the Great War.

Scott's flag from the South Pole
Photo exceedpossibility.com

These stories are graphically and movingly told at The Heart of the Great Alone exhibition at the Royal Collection, Buckingham Palace, where I went yesterday with my son.  Although these events put the more mundane aspects of our lives in perspective, we are influenced by such memories and maybe we can aim to  live more honest and useful lives as a result.

Have a dig around your wardrobe - you may be surprised

Once a man reaches a certain age he may have been collecting clothes and accessories for some decades.  This means the he may unwittingly possess some items which have miraculously come back into fashion.  I haven't worn a tie regularly for a few years and, during an overdue sort out of my tierack, I found a few ties which are probably 20 to 30 years old, but could be worn now with little embarrassment.

Colour combinations 2 - inspiration from nature

In my last colour combinations post I mentioned blue and brown as a pairing new to me.  As a man of traditional inclination I've always stuck to conventional colours in my clothes, but now, in my search for taste in middle age, I am open to inspiration form any quarter, including nature.  How about green and purple?

These pictures of heather in full flower were take on a happy holiday in the Lake District last August - some ideas here for a tweedy tie, suit or shirt and jumper combination maybe?

Vintage wrist watches - Omega Speedmaster - history and technology

My love of watches was sparked in the early seventies when, as a schoolboy, I had a few weeks work experience at a lawyer's offices.  One of the people I worked with wore an Omega Speedmaster Professional chronograph.  I recall his showing it to me and telling me how this model was worn by astronauts on the Apollo programme.

Grey Fox photo

An Omega Speedmaster played a vital role in timing the re-entry engine burn that enabled Apollo XIII to return safely to Earth after the near-fatal explosion on board.  The Speedmaster was also the only watch worn on the surface of the Moon.  It has been used in space from the mid-sixties through to the days of the Space Shuttle.

It was many years before I owned by own Speedmaster.  I have owned, worn and sold several , but my favourite is a 1968 model identical to that worn by the Apollo astronauts.  As with other aspects of my taste in clothes and possessions  (see for example my Nigel Cabourn Tenzing jacket), the history and tradition represented by an object plays a major part in my choosing it.  The Speedmaster is a lovely watch and is a genuine tool watch - robust and beautifully made.

Photo courtesy of Ming

Spot the Speedmasters in these photos below (courtesy of NASA and the Russian Space programme).

Neil Armstrong wears a Speedmaster during training

On the Moon

Denim jeans and the middle-aged and older man

Sooner or later the middle-aged man in search of style will have to establish his position in the blue denim jeans and the older man debate.  Or so we are led to believe.  I don't think there needs to be any debate.  We can do what we like, frankly, and should ignore those who say otherwise. Most men of a certain age were wearing jeans decades ago; why should there come a time when we should stop wearing them?

Mind you, care needs to be taken, as this picture shows.  However, if there are any sartorial errors being made in this picture by Jeremy Clarkson and his colleagues I would argue that they are nothing to do with a decision to wear jeans per se.  It is more a question of how they are worn.

From the BBC

So, how should jeans be worn as we journey towards middle age and beyond?  Well, I'm going to duck that one as I intend to avoid being dictatorial on this blog.  I leave that to fashion and style experts.  I am willing to stick my neck out and say how I would wear jeans, but I do so simply to throw out ideas, not tell others how to do it.

Firstly, my jeans should fit properly, not be too baggy, long, short or tight.  Secondly, I don't wear jeans with white trainers, tennis shoes, Converse shoes etc - my personal view is that it doesn't work with an older man.  Brogues are, for me de rigeur, with jeans.  Thirdly, I wouldn't wear over-distressed jeans with holes and patches unless I have worn them out myself.  I hate artificially-induced age in objects like clothes, furniture and pictures - it's just fake, and that's bad.  I favour turn-ups on jeans - they look good with brogues.

Here are a few pictures that I rely on in evidence.  Please study them and see whether you take a similar view to me or not, then wear jeans as you want, not as others say you should.  I'm not going to say what my view is of each photo.

From The Sartorialist

From The Sartorialist

From The Sartorialist

Sorry, I don't know whom to credit for this photo

From The Sartorialist

Finally, I have been discussing blue denim jeans here, not other colours.  This picture illustrates how wearing jeans in colours other than faded blue is going to be fairly uncontentious at any age (in my view) -

From The Sartorialist

Leather buttons - how our memories influence our tastes in style and fashion as we age

A sense of style, fashion or taste is inevitably bound up with childhood memories.  I remember being fascinated as a small child by the leather buttons on adults' tweed coats and jackets.  This memory has stayed with me and has no doubt influenced my taste in clothes as I've moved into middle age.

Grey Fox photo

I have always wondered how such buttons are made and was about to get out my Swiss Army knife to take one apart (in true boyish style) when I thought it might be less destructive to use Google to find the answer.  It appears that the genuine articles are braided from leather thongs.  Here a link to some instructions should you wish to make your own!  Unfortunately many are now made from moulded or braided plastic.

My love of of tweed is enhanced by these wonderful buttons, sometimes called football buttons because they resemble an old-fashioned stitched leather football.  I have seldom seen them used with any  fabric other than tweed, although they are used on Aran knitted woollen clothing.

I recently bought a vintage Harris Tweed coat with huge leather buttons about 3cm in diameter with leather shanks, similar to those on the coat below containing both Audrey Hepburn AND Mel Ferrer.  The buttons are thick and generously domed, unlike newer buttons which have thin metal shanks and are much slimmer in profile.  

Grey Fox photo