Photo Credit: Damon Winter, New York Times
I had a good time reading this article from the New York Times, as it reminded me about the fun, playful side of fashion. The writer, esteemed fashion critic Guy Trebay, experimented with wearing "fresh from the runway," clothing by designers who really push the envelope. He makes several good points in this article, reflecting on how clothes can transform the way we feel. I especially enjoyed what he says toward the end of his piece:
You would hardly guess it from all the conformist stuff that fills the fashion magazines, runways and Instagram feeds, but playfulness, experimentation and instruction are also the job of fashion. What interests me most about Oscar Wilde’s famous line — “Fashion is a form of ugliness so absolutely unbearable that we have to alter it every six months!” — is its reference to temporality. Walking around Manhattan in what constitutes the style of this precise moment, I felt so squarely rooted in the present that I momentarily let go of my habitual anxieties about the future. Within six months, something just as interesting as the stuff I wore will roll around. Designers will see to that.
On page 21 of this month's Coastal View News I describe my experience working with a young man on the cusp of a career change. He is in graduate school with an internship and asked for help making his wardrobe align with this new stage in his life.
One thing I appreciated about men on the street I observed during my trip was how well their suits fit (not that I was staring!). I so appreciate the time and thought these men took in getting dressed; it's not that hard, guys!
Photo credit: npr.org
Yeah, I had to look at the word "athleisure" a few times, as well as listening to it being pronounced, before I could say it with a straight face. Athleisure is when gym and exercise clothing morph into casual/leisure wear. Think yoga pants and the wild success of Lululemon. I caught a great story on NPR the other morning about sweatpants and how they are being marketed nowadays for men (to the tune of $195!!!!!). Go here to read and/or listen to the story. I love this last part of the piece:
"As for me, I wore those Bonobos sweats to work one day. My colleague Travis Larchuk said of my look, 'It's like Monet clothes. From far away you look like a put-together person. But then close up, you can you can see that you're really schlubbing it up at work.'"
I just discovered a terrific website for men's clothing and style advice: valetmag.com. Go here to learn how to iron a shirt, how pants should fit, what kinds of hangers work best, and about dozens of other topics. I just want to make a big pot of tea and read from this site all day!
Photo credit: clubsports.com
I realize I am rather fixated on this pastry chef's book, The Sweet Life in Paris, lately, but he has so many bon mots about clothing and the French that I want to share them. Today's quote reminded me of a very funny event during my family's visit with our cousins in northern France a few years ago. Nathalie and I left our children with our husbands at a huge public pool complex while we did some shopping. When we returned, my husband Don was standing to the side of the lifeguard who appeared to be having a very lively argument with Nathalie's husband, Rudy. We later learned Don was forbidden to enter the pool in his "American style bathing suit." Fortunately, a vending machine in the changing room, sold Speedos (I kid you not) for a fair price.
From the Sweet Life in Paris by David Lebovitz:
"This is also a country where it's interdit [forbidden] to wear anything but a skimpy, religion-baring Speedo in pubic pools ' pour l'hygiene, monsieur!' If someone could explain why strapping on a slingshot-style swimsuit is so much more hygienic than a square-cut swimsuit with two extra centimeters of fabric--and why I, who have less hair on my head than many of the men have on their backs, have to wear a bathing cap--I'm all ears."
I've written before about Bonobos, a terrific online menswear company known for its chinos. Now Bonobos has opened a real bricks-and-mortar store. I read about this "walk-in online store" in the Los Angeles Times. Called a "guide shop," it is a place where customers can touch and feel the clothes, and can see how they fit and look in person before making a purchase right there.
Yes, this could be dangerous. Once J.Crew stores opened, I shopped there an awful lot. And if a Boden walk-in online store opens in Santa Barbara, I could be in trouble. Still, it's an excellent concept, and I hope other online companies will follow suit.
My Wardrobe Wisdom advice often goes unheeded by those I love most. I am talking here about my dad. He showed up in these bright red cargo shorts/knickers the other night. I suggested he try LL Bean, Lands End, the Gap. . . ANYWHERE to find some standard, normal shorts. He just laughed and said he would look into it.
My husband, on the other hand, looked so handsome as he headed off to work last week. He heeds my advice about 75% of the time. Sigh.
This week a very nice gentleman from Bonobos contacted me regarding a past post about men's pants. He let me know there is a link to Bonobos's current site that needed updating, so here it is: http://www.bonobos.com/b/mens-pants. The company's philosophy speaks to me:
The foundation of any great wardrobe is fit. It doesn’t matter how great the clothes look if they don’t fit well. And at Bonobos, we take fit seriously. From suits and shirts to pants and denim, we’ve spent years developing a range of fit options for every type of guy and every item you need in your wardrobe.
Seems it's new pants time for my husband, so this contact is a good impetus for making some purchases.
It was with some surprise that Shannon answered "yes" when I asked permission to use her husband's photo in my blog. She claims Dustin is "not a fashion person at all" so was happy to see him making an effort today. I applaud Dustin's choice of colored jeans instead of the usual blue jeans, and his terrific chukka boots (chosen by Shannon). This outfit is a great alternative to khaki pants and a white button down shirt.
Go here to read my column on page 8 in Carpinteria's Coastal View News. A Wardrobe Wisdom gift certificate for your partner or male friend can make a big difference in his life (and possibly yours)!
Image Credit: J.Crew Factory website
I relished a recent article in The New York Times about the shift in men's fashion awareness, written by Guy Trebay. For me it was a thrill to read that, "At the very least, there has been a course correction. A generation raised on the insult-to-the-eyes that was casual Fridays has suddenly discovered a novel new uniform: the suit."
Trebay's writing is hilarious and clever ("the-insult-to-the-eyes")!!! I also appreciated this phrase: "if you’ll forgive the use of a lint-covered term from the cultural sock drawer." And I loved the following sentence, not only for his take on the average man's fashion sense today, but because his writing is wonderfully descriptive: "Thus the frumpy Dockers and the men’s version of mom jeans and the oversize shirts billowing like jibs have been bagged up and shipped to Goodwill."
Somehow I had hitherto been unfamiliar with the term "saggers." This word refers to one of the biggest fashion eyesores ever: baggy jeans pulled down very low, revealing the wearer's boxer shorts. If Trebay is correct, and more men really are moving toward a desire to wear clothes that fit well and are attractive, perhaps this term will soon be obsolete. Hallelujah!
Photo Credit: GQ
Bill Cunningham from the New York Times is always insightful. I love his take on how men are dressing these days. He thinks the trend is to dress up more, and I am thrilled. Of course Santa Barbara men may never dress the way these New York City men do, but I can dream, right?
Tom Ford seems to do everything right. His designs are clean and exquisitely tailored. Ford's first film, "A Single Man," was moving and brilliantly done. He is pictured here, demonstrating how a tuxedo should be worn. We can assume he has well-cut tuxedo trousers that break at the perfect point on his perfect black shoes. So if you men receive an invitation calling for black tie, follow Tom Ford's example and do it right. For those of you who want to get the complete story on formal wear, in meticulous detail, go to The Black Tie Guide.
In late August my cousin sent me this photo--taken on the sly--of her very fashionable husband, Rainer. I kept looking at it, wondering how I could work it into a blog post. I've decided to let the picture speak for itself, along with this truism: adding color to your wardrobe makes it more interesting and shows you have confidence and style.
For a couple of weeks now I have been watching a dashing older man walk, what I assumed to be his granddaughter, to school. Both my younger daughter and I noticed the vivid colors he dressed in: red pants, pink sweaters, purple shirts. . .
Today I started to walk past him and decided at the last second to say something. "Sir, I have been noticing how wonderfully you dress." His response: "I am Italian and don't speak English." Then I said, "Of course you are Italian" meaning that Italian men tend to be bolder about wearing colors than American men. I asked if he spoke French or Spanish, and he said no, but that did not stop me from patching together a sentence in those languages, mixed with English that went something like "I love your style! I like your clothing, the colors, the combinations," before my daughter nudged me to stop.
Imagine my disappointment at not having my camera at school today. I hope he will be there next week so I can snap a photo. I think you will be impressed by his sartorial flair as well!
These are the words Bill Cunningham quoted to describe the young men he photographed during New York's fashion week. His photos are fabulous, as always, and I especially like his description of the three phases of fashion lovers: intoxicated and wildly experimental, a more toned down version of their fashion vision, and a mature fashion statement. This video slide show is filled with Cunningham's priceless, on-the-mark comments and brilliant photographs.
This is a great piece, one that I am certain will resonate with a lot of men and women. Here is one of the wise observations by the author: "But my clothes and my character aren’t competing values between which I must only pick one." I encourage you to read the entire essay.
Men tend to wear either baggy, shapeless swim trunks to the beach, or form-fitting Speedos for serious swimming. Neither is a particularly attractive option. So I am grateful for the trend in men's swimwear: a more streamlined, less sloppy style.
I just read about this trend in the New York Times and am quite delighted. Though designer Adam Brown's trunks are ridiculously high priced, I like his philosophy: "A well-made swimsuit, like a well-cut Savile Row suit, addresses anatomical shortcomings. . .It shouldn’t matter if you’re fat, thin, pear-shaped, have a big bum — it’s equally flattering." More reasonably priced copies of Brown's trunks are sure to appear in the stores this year.
It is a drag to see one guy after another at the beach in ill-fitting, too big Costco swim trunks. I say, bring on the new trend (and hope the guys buy it!).
  
I can think of a few glaring omissions from that list as well as a few names I would omit. Woody Allen? Hugh Hefner? Judging a person's style is a subjective exercise.
Nevertheless, Esquire magazine set out to name the men it considers the coolest dressers ever. You can go here to read the entire list of 75 well-dressed men. If you are a man, this list is worth perusing; in the words of Esquire, " take a few notes: there’s wisdom in these here clothes."
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