Fashion Forward #14 - Have Yourself a Jodhpur Winter

Happy FestiChristmaHanuKwanzaa everyone and I hope that snow hasn't completely covered you yet! I've been travelling around the south of the USA, hence the lack of posts, however in the few moments that I got to surf the web, one item in Rugby.com's winter collection managed to pull me out of my winter lethargy and get me back in post writing mode.

If you remember, I wrote a post about the most interesting styles in men's pants/trousers a while back and the Jodhpur was one of them.

As I was browsing Rugby.com this break, I stumbled upon a gorgeous pair of red plaid denim jeans, woven in a jodhpur style. As far as I know, even though a lot of designers have flirted with equestrian inspired designs, Jodhpur denim jeans have not been done before. Check them out and let me know what you think!

Plaid Jodhpur Jean - $94 - Rugby.com

Vintage Sur Le Campus

I've recently started following Greensleeves to a Ground, a "très mignon" French blog that draws its inspiration from "Le BCBG mode de vie Américain". BCBG is a French acronym that stands foir bon chic bon genre or in more familiar terms, Preppy. Greensleeves' author often presents the readers with vintage photos or illustrations that showcase the old collegiate lifestyle and I thought it would be interesting to show you a vintage Sears Ad that presented the newest Campus Styles to its buyers.

1933 Sears Ad - just look at the width of those pant cuffs !

Shameless Pitch #2 - PhotoGnomics

Time for another shameless pitch, this time however for my photography website, PhotoGnomics. Ever since I bought my new DLSR, I have found myself taking multitudes of photographs and I recently felt the artistic urge to showcase them somewhere that was not my Facebook photo albums. Enjoy!

Recent visit to the amazing city of New Orleans

Meet The Hilfigers

Though Tommy Hilfiger's last campaign has been out for quite some time, a recent close-up shot revealed a Duke University decal on one of the old cars in the campaign's video (00:30)

Meet the Hilfigers takes the Tommy brand into a "new direction while respecting the brand's aesthetic" Tommy tells Women's Wear Daily. I see it more like Tommy is finally getting onto the preppy resurgence bandwagon. What I like most about the campaign, is that Tommy isn't just rehashing the old Preppy look that Ralph Lauren has been regurgitating for years but rather has reinvented it. From what I can tell, he has brought elements present in Italian style and fused them with staples of the original Prep look (The model on the right literally looks as if he was hand-picked from the streets of Firenze during Pitti Uomo.

L.L. Bean Signature - Winter 2010

I have featured L.L. Bean's new(er) Signature Collection before and I'd like you all to see their Winter 2010 Collection ad. The Signature line is a reinvention of the L.L. Bean classics that caters to the modern buyer. Plaids, earthy tones and thicker textures give this season's line a true North Eastern American feel. 

Also, Lisa Birnbach, author of True Prep, got to sit down for a short chat with the line's design directors:

Fashion Forward #13 - Badge of Preppiness

Appliques, patches, crests, badges or decals are decorative surface applications of fabric that adds dimension and texture to the background fabric. The term derives from the French word appliquer (and the Latin applicare) that means to join or attach. While its early use was most likely to strengthen worn areas or serve as a patch over holes, appliqué developed into a creative art form used by many cultures over many centuries. (Scribner Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion, Volume 1)

Nathaniel Vanderbilt Archibald, wearing the Vanderbilt Family Crest on his jacket

The resurgence of Prep culture and its increased visibility on the runways has brought back wearing crests and patches on one's belonging. It has been customary for old families to display their family crest on suit jackets (as is portrayed by Nate Archibald, a member of the Vanderbilt family on Gossip Girl) as well as Prep School and Ivy League Alums to don badges and patches from their alma maters on suit jackets, sweaters, shirts, duffel bags and nowadays even on their laptops.

Rugby is one of the handful of designer houses that has been reinterpreting preppy elements and bringing them to the general public.

True Prep author, Lisa Birnbach states that being preppy is no longer a distant, veiled and often misunderstood way of life, non-preps becoming ever more fascinated and acquainted with it than when her Official Preppy Handbook came out in 1980. As such, preppy paraphernalia is at an all time high in popularity, and sewing or gluing a preppy crest or badge on one's possessions is one easy way of adding that so desired preppy element.

Chest badges are amongst the most popular.

Placement-wise, there aren't really any rules, however, many of the appliques I've seen were placed very similar to monograms, either on the left chest-side or on the cuff of the shirt, rugby or sweater. With bags or other accessories we truly have freedom of expression, and even going over the top with the number of crests, the sizing of badges or the discordance of colours is acceptable.

A clash of two worlds, the jeans jacket and sewed-on the crest, make for an interesting combination.

Most new appliques are iron-on nowadays, however, many machine-washes or dry-cleaning the piece of clothing can make the glue wear off. The safest and more vintage-looking option is still the sewed on look but if your needle and thread skills are lacking here's a guide to help you stitch an appliqué on successfully

A different assortment of badges and crests, ranging from school-inspired to nautical

You can find some of the appliqués featured above at these different online stores:  

• New York Design Shop (definitely my favourite)
• Family Crest
• 1FerretTreasures
• Laughing Lizards

Fashion Forward #12 - Slippery Autumns

To the chagrin of many of my student peers, the North Carolinian summer has slowly lost ground to the the rainy season that is so characteristic of a Duke autumn. While most people on campus have quickly pulled out their rain boots and jackets and their light layers, there are still those who have yet to transition, if ever to their fall wardrobes. How some people can wear flip-flops in the rain and still avoid serious split-inducing slippage incidents is beyond me, not forgetting the sheer messiness of stepping into mud and puddles. I guess some feet just enjoy getting cold and dirty more than the warm "constricting "comfort of a dry shoe?!

Rainy Day on Campus, Take Ivy

Rain - Stone Tiles - Boots - I have had the misfortune of being reminded today just how unfortunate the combination can turn out to be as I, in all of my 6'4" "majesty" graciously rear-landed in front of the library. While others would be more worried about the sheer pain of impact, the possible staining of clothes or damage to one's laptop, the first thing that popped into my head was how I could augment said boots so that this would not happen again.

The basic idea is increasing traction/friction between your shoes and whatever surface you walk on, thus avoiding unfortunate aquaplaning. This can be done either by gluing a couple of no slip appliques /decals or some light sandpaper pieces to the soles of your feet, or applying a no-slip treatment to them.

Wake Up Preppies, They're Back!!

The most anticipated month of this year has come, and what better way to be woken up on a beautiful September North Carolina morning than by the UPS delivery of the 2 books we've all been waiting for!

I haven't actually had the chance to read them but from taking a few peeks at True Prep I can definitely tell you it's gorgeous and will most likely join its predecessor, The Official Preppy Handbook as one of the staples of any self-respecting prep.

 

I would really recommend getting these two amazing books either for yourself or as a gift!

Shameless Pitch - CampusSartorialist.com

Hi everyone, I hope the last month has been treating you all well. I have been extremely busy with returning to school, freshmen orientation and another project I started working on over the summer and of which I'll talk about in just a bit. Sadly, being so busy meant I have had virtually no time for writing new posts. Fear not though , as I have many great posts lined up for the last quarter of 2010. 

As for my shameless pitch, I would like to introduce everyone to a project I have been working on since July and have only launched yesterday. 

CampusSartorialist.com, is a website which I hope will walk in the footsteps of its famous counterpart ( The Sartorialist ) and will become a medium of expression for Campus fashion. Many of you have probably witnessed the invasion of, if not been guilty of wearing, Fleece/Sweatpants, Hoodies, Crocs and many other unspeakable accoutrements, however there is still hope amongst the college population and through Campus Sartorialist I hope to bring the best of college style to the surface.

In Perpetuum Effingo, CampusSartorialist's motto can be literally translated as "in perpetual formation/fashioning" and I chose it for its simple yet all-encompassing nature as well as its correlation to students perpetually evolving, adjusting and changing.

Many of you might ask why the need for another fashion website aimed at the college population, when CollegeFashionista, CollegeFashion and other blogs/websites are already popular and followed?! While I do give credit to these websites, I believe they focus too much on the sartorial aspects of campus fashion and thus miss the big picture. College campuses are ever-changing environments, where teenagers experiment and define their style as they transition from their teenage years into adulthood. It's not about what the trends in Milan are, which shade of lipstick goes best with what, but about self-expression and originality. Teruyoshi Hayashida created Take Ivy, one of the most appreciated and famous college look-books, in 1965 and while looking back at what students wore back then compared to now might seem familiar to you, these two periods of now and then are quite dissimilar. CampusSartorialist would like to become the repository of collegiate looks from around the world and specifically from within the U.S., where students living on a campus together creates a unique fashion bubble.

Taking upon this task is definitely not a one-man job and I would like to welcome any help I can get as far as photography and capturing what you think is unique amongst the college crowd. If fashion photography is your passion, I would definitely welcome any guest features as well as anyone who would like to become a long-term contributor. Your name, photos and a link to your resume/website would be added to a Contributors page, which will be made available from the main page.  

Please direct any questions, suggestions or submissions to CampusSartorialiast@gmail.com and please spread the word, follow it on google or twitter(#CampusSartorial), like it on Facebook and comment on the posts!

To a great new beginning!

Robert

Hair and Grooming #6 - A Rockabilly Exsufflation

Rockabilly, a fusion of the words rock-and-roll and hillbilly is a genre of music that originates from the South of the US which mixes elements of rock, blues, country, hillbilly boogie and bluegrass music. Part of a resurgence of retro hairstyles for men is also the quiffed variant of the 50s and 60s greaser hair. I have recently been searching for a new hairstyle and in the end I decided to go with a modern, asymmetrical, highly texturized version of the rockabilly quiff.

A vintage clip shows that the quiff is not for the faint of heart and just like its modern counterpart it requires a bit of time to get it just right.

Teddy boy rockabilly quiff hair cut 60s


Other modern variants of a quiff include longer hair in the back and on the sides that it slicked back:

NYC Socialite and Cognoscenti, Chuck Bass also dons a modern quiff

One of my absolute favourite male models, Jon Kortajarena, sporting a quiff in danish-designer Matinique's ad campaign

Lastly, the twins of Slikhaar.dk have featured this hairstyle, this example being the closest to what my hair looks like right now, on their YouTube channel:

The best brushes to achieve the quiff are round ball-tipped brushes and large ball-tipped brushes:

For styling you need a strong-hold mousse, a matte pomade or wax and if needed a strong hairspray:

Fashion Forward #11 - Ubiquitous Ties

Studying in a campus that is so reminiscing of Oxford or Cambridge, I often think how much alike my campus is to some other American staples, Disneyland or The Cheesecake Factory to name a few. Though all originally set out with the intention of becoming genuine replicas of European Universities in the case of the former two and a mix of European architecture and eclecticism for the latter two, the end product is a travesty of the original, a mere façade, veneer of vanity.

Saying that you're too busy with school to care about how you look is NOT an excuse!

The universities that are models for the American Universities, as well as many prep and boarding schools within the US still enforce some form of dress code. While many people think uniforms are means of torturous uniformization, they are nothing like that. Uniforms were first designed as a means of distinguishing students of these schools from other people living in the cities adjacent to the universities and moreover to hopefully instill school pride in the case of recognition of one's association with the school. The lack of uniforms, or in the least, of a proper dress code has brought the American student population down to the realm of exaggerated "je m'en fiche-ism". Take a walk through some of the more prestigious university campuses in the U.S. and what you will see will be nothing less than an incongruous image between the architecture that is meant to evoke high values and aspirations of academic excellence and the fleece-pant and hoodie wearing student, whose school pride sums up to nothing more than some bouts of pride during football or basketball season. What is worse is that whenever anyone tries to be more fashionable, without a preset purpose, or just for shits and giggles, as a friend of mine described it, the rest respond unfavorably and most times it's part of a defense mechanism rather than disapproval of sartorial choice.

Just putting on a navy jacket, a shirt and a tie is not even that much of a change yet it has prompted many questions like: "Oh, what's the occasion?"...well does there have to be an occasion for someone to put on a tie? The answer is No! it doesn't have to. With a resurgence of the traditional Ivy League Look, now more than ever, donning a tie in any combination uplifts your entire look and adds that special feeling that you took  a few extra minutes to get ready in the morning.

Ties come in a huge variety of colours, fabrics, cuts and patterns, however that will not be the topic of this post. What I would like to focus on instead, is the versatility of a tie, one of the few accessories that men can play and experiment with when dressing up. While there are many combinations, some of which I might not have thought of, here are the ones I think are worthy of your attention.

1. The T-Shirt and Tie

The most casual of all combos is wearing a tie, loosely knotted over a t-shirt. Though it's not exactly my personal style I have seen many guys don it in European clubs. If you decide to try it out just make sure your tie is on the slim side and not too somber looking (no wool). What's also popping up more and more these days are t-shirts that already have a tie attached permanently to them or one is just drawn on.

2. The Short Sleeved Shirt Combo

Also on the more casual side, wearing a tie with a short sleeved shirt is a funky and hip way of adding originality to your look. It's great for a summer in the city and if your work place permits it, a great summer office look. Same rules as above with regards to choosing a suitable tie.

3. Simple is not necessarily lazy: The Shirt and Tie

Now I'm pretty sure most of you are hyper-familiar with just wearing a shirt and a tie in the office or for events where a sports coat/blazer would be overkill. The rules of slim-ties apply here as well and please do tuck in your shirt. If you find there's some extra stuff hanging out, either think of something else to wear or put on a sweater to cover it up (read below). If you're not a big fan of short-sleeved shirts but you find your long-sleeved ones to be a little stifling in the summer, you can always roll up your sleeves stylishly (remember, rolling too little or too much over the elbow is not the right way to do it). 

Shirt, tie and jeans all by Dolec & Gabbana. Shoes by Calvin Klein Collection. Tie bar by Paul Stuart.

For the more daring of you, suspenders are another accessory that can enhance the almost bare look of a shirt and a tie. Keep the suspenders simple and do go with the ones that use leather tabs to attach to the pants rather than clip-ons. The Topman suspenders I introduced to you a while back make a great addition to any look

4. Wearing Vests is Tré Cool: The Tie and Vest 

Of all the casual appearances of the tie, its combination with the vest is probably the most wide-spread. Often hipster teenagers and metro guys going out are seen wearing a tie and a vest. Almost any vest works whether it was originally part of a 3-piece suit or is a fluffy down-vest.

5. Layering Up - The Rugby and the Tie

As fall descends upon the northern hemisphere and the weather gets chillier in the mornings and evenings, just a shirt won't be enough to keep you going so the art of layering comes in handy here. A simple way to keep warm is to add a rugby shirt over your shirt and add a tie for panache. Since we are no longer able to see the tie, whether or not you're wearing a slim or wide tie is of no importance anymore. A way to get creative is to step outside your tie-knotting zone and try a different knot each day, depending on your shirt's collar. You can always roll up your sleeves to complete the look and please do not forget to not pop your collar. Rugby.com has a nice selection of Rugby Shirts.

6. It's Getting Chillier, Break Out the Sweater: The Sweater and the Tie

As the temperatures plummet and a thin rugby shirt is not enough anymore, a cardiganm or sweater is a welcomed substitution. This is one of my favourite combinations as I am a big fan of sweaters, especially shawl-neck sweaters, although you can wear any type of sweater, even v-necks and crew-neck sweaters

7. Bring in the Blazers and Sport Coats: The Tie Meets the Jacket

The cherry on top, when it comes to layering is adding the final touch, the blazer, sports coat or jacket in our case. Whether you choose to wear your coat over the shirt directly or doubly layer it with a sweater or rugby is up to you as well as choosing the jacket to top everything up.

8. The Suit

Last but not least, the outfit your probably associate most with wearing a tie, the suit, will never loose its appeal and whether you're a fan of the double or single breasted suit or of peak or notch lapels, you'll still be wearing a tie to it.

I really hope you've enjoyed our little incursion into the different ways you can incorporate a tie into your daily wardrobe and that you will try to go out of your comfort zone a little next time and wear a tie. There wil definitely be some people who will ask you what the occasion is and it will get annoying, but you know what.. you feeling great is all that matters at the end of the day.

Tie Tips

- Avoid wearing clip-on ties or bow-ties, they are unproffesional.

- The front point of your tie should be just long enough to touch the waist of your pants.

- Your tie should be darker than the color of your shirt.

Food and Drinks #1 - Beers Aplenty

“A fine beer may be judged with only one sip, but it's better to be thoroughly sure.”

This Czech Proverb could not be more right and with so many types and brands of beer nowadays it's often hard, even for the most beertastic of bros to wrap his head around what makes each beer different and what exactly he likes in a beer. So many of us drink it quite often yet don't know that beer is actually a general term for more than one type of fermented beverage. Though I will never claim that I am a beer expert, I will try to sum up what everyone should know about this beverage of choice.

Beer 101


1. Power of 3

The term beer encompasses roughly 3 types of fermented beverages: Ale, Lager and least known, Lambic or Mixed Origin beers.

Ale

In short, Ales are a type of beer that ferment at warmer temperatures (60-75 F) and form a layer of foam on top, giving them the name of top-fermenting beers.

Lager

Lagers are a type of beer that ferment at temperatures averaging 50 F and contain a complex sugar, raffinose, as a byproduct of fermentation. Unlike ales, lagers ferment at the bottom, giving rise to the name bottom-fermenting beers.

Lambic

Lambics and mixed origin beers are sometimes bunched up together and forgotten, even though they are original beers that fueled the creation of a beer-brewing industry. Unlike ales and lagers where the yeast cultures used for fermentation are carefully selected, lambics and mixed origin beers are spontaneous-fermentation beers, meaning the yeasts that are involved in their fermentation are naturally occurring ones. Compared to ales and lagers, lambics cover the smallest portion of the beer market and are only manufactured in Belgium, more specifically in the region surrounding Brussels, where the yeasts that are native to the Senne (Zenne) valley are used.

 2. By the looks of it...

There are three visual characteristics that are usually observed in a beer and they are colour, clarity, and nature of the head. Colour is usually imparted by the malts used, notably the adjunct malts added to darker beers, though other ingredients may contribute to the colour of some styles such as fruit beers.

Chart of some more popular beers based in their colour

3. Aroma, Flavor and Feel

Aroma

The aroma and flavour in a beer ares formed by a combination of the malts and other fermentables used, the strength and type of hops, the alcohol, esters, and various  aromatic components formed by the yeast strain as well as other elements that may derive from the water and the brewing process. Bitterness can be measured on an International Bitterness Units scale, and in North America a number of brewers record the bitterness on this scale as IBUs.

Based on different elements that pertain to aroma and feel, similar to wine, some beers go with a certain type of dish while others with another. Use this chart if you ever want to pair beer with your food.

Feel

The feel of a beer in the mouth, both from thickness of the liquid and from carbonation, may also be considered as part of a beer's style. A sweeter beer feels thicker in the mouth. The level of carbonation (or nitrogen, in "smooth" beers) varies from one beer style to another. For some beers it may give the beer a thick and creamy feel, while for others it contributes a prickly sensation.

While wine connoisseurs are called oenophiles beer connoisseurs have no actual name although maybe the word beeroisseur might work?! Here's a chart of the terminology a beeroisseur would use to describe the bouquet of a beer

A condensed history of beer

Please enjoy the next time you open a bottle of "golden ambrosia" as some people call it!

Fashion Forward #10 - 4-Looped Belt

If you've been reading any of my posts you know by now that I am a big fan of any form of innovation when it comes to men's fashion. Browsing around Summer Is A Verb, I saw a picture of a belt the likes of which I had not seen before, and luckily there was a direct link to the manufacturer's website.

Wiley Brothers, founded in 1999, is an American-based leather handcrafts company specializing in leather belts and accessories. The "Classic 4-loop Hoof Pick Belt" is their signature product and is inspired by folding brass hoof picks used by all types of equestrians.

The 4-Loop belt retails at $145

While there is plenty of variety when it comes to Men's Belts buckles, I will never say no to something new that works and is appeasing to the eyes. The 4-Loop Belt's buckle is hand-stitched to bridle leather and hooks into one of four loops. The 4-Loop Belt is available in Black, Dark Havana, Mahogany and Light Havana and in sizes 26 to 42.

A Little More Preppy Than That

I found this hilarious spoof of Easton Corbin's "A little more country than that", sung by Lady Antebellum. Hope you guys enjoy it to and don't take it to heart as it wasn't written to offend anyone! Enjoy the song and video! Thanks to Summer Is A Verb for the link!

Etiquette #2 - Ruining The Perfect Toast

Many of you have probably attended one form or another of a social event or gathering in your lives and most likely have seen or heard someone giving a toast. Be it a wedding, christening, bar mitzvah or graduation ceremony, a toast represents the verbal affirmation of the importance of said event and as most of our social conduct, it is governed by some simple rules.

Rule #1 - Order

As with introducing people to each other, there is a set order based on seniority of importance and stepping over it is usually frowned upon. In the case of dinner parties or any other form of casual event the host is always the first to give the toast. If the host does not initiate a toast it is definitely not your duty to take initiative.

In the case of wedding receptions the duty for the first toast falls on the best man and being tipsy or drunk when giving it is bad manners. If you ever find yourself in the position of best man, save the drinks for after the speech.

Rule #2 - Initiation

One of my biggest pet peeves is people initiating a toast by tapping their glasses with one of their eating utensils. Not only is the sound annoying but the act itself is pointless and is considered very bad manners. Same goes for clearing one's throat to command attention.The proper way to initiate a toast is by standing up and holding your glass at arm's length. In smaller gatherings, this act should suffice to silence everybody, however if in the presence of a larger audience, it is acceptable to say: "May I have everyone's attention please" or "If you could all turn your attention for a moment". Don't begin speaking until everyone is looking at you and the room has quieted down. The toastee never stands up and if the toaster is further away he or she just "air clink" their glasses in sign of recognition at the end of a toast

Rule #3 - The Speech/Toast itself

Most toasts can be divided into three parts: the introduction, the oration, and the toast proper. Present in all toasts given to an audience where some might not know you, the introduction explains who you are and what your relationship to the toastee(s) is. The oration is the meat of the toast, which you will have written and learned in advance! The toast proper is the simple act of raising one's glass higher and while facing the entire group, uttering one of the  following "to X" (where X is a person's name or to a concept, e.g. "to peace," etc.) or "Cheers!" etc. 

Other Toasting Tips and Rules

Sometimes, when the toast is finished, it is proper for the recipient of the toast to stand, without drinking, and say a few words. 

If you are participating in a toast, make sure that your glass is at least 2/3 full for the toast. It is considered bad toast etiquette to toast with an empty glass. 

It is never a good idea to not participate in a toast. If you are present at the event, you should participate in any toasts given while there! 

While alcohol is the traditional drink used for toasts, any drink will do, including punch, sparkling fruit soda or even soft drinks. When a toast is over, it's never good manners to applaud. You are signifying your agreement with your actions at the toast.