Permanent Style

Assisi double-breasted summer suit: Review

Posted on 20/05/202420/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

This suit from Korean tailor Assisi has already been teased a couple of times on PS. Once during the fitting process in Seoul, where it frankly looked impossibly clean. And once when I wore it for our summer drinks in the Burlington Arcade.

No suit ever looks quite as clean as that fitting, at least as soon as it is worn for a bit, and the wearer is striding around rather than standing stock still. The sharp high-twist wool from Drapers - the Ascot four-ply - also helped.

But I’m very happy with the suit. It’s a beautiful style, well fitted, and I’ve been enjoying wearing it even more than I thought I would - in both the ways shown here: open-necked and occasionally unbuttoned, with a linen shirt and suede loafers; and formally with a tie and sharp oxford. It could do a wedding and a smart garden party as easily as a sunny day about town.

In my first review of Assisi, I subtly challenged Dabin and Min Soo to achieve the same great fit in a lightweight summer cloth. They’ve certainly achieved that.

With the first tweed jacket (above), there was a bit of debate backwards and forwards about shoulder width and lapel size. We had one fitting in Florence and two in Japan where it was discussed.

I should have just left it up to them, because Dabin always looks wonderful in his double-breasteds and this suit has a slightly more balanced, pleasing style this time, when they’ve made all the choices.

It’s still a roomy fit, like the tweed, but not so much that you could wear any thickness of sweater underneath. It’s drapey, making it very comfortable and also making it cooler (something often forgotten in the discussion of summer tailoring).

And I love the style. It’s the antithesis of the tight-and-short noughties look, the one that originated with the growth of Italian modernist brands in the nineties, dominated the growth of menswear from 2008 onwards, and which still hangs around to a boring degree.

This is larger, more eighties but also more 1930s. I’m sure all the vintage fans will be happy about this - and perhaps take the prompt to wear the same cut of tailoring but in an unfussy style.

The keyword for me is balanced. The lapel is wide but not too wide - pointing to the shoulder but not flying off it. The buttoning point is balanced too - I tend towards pushing this a little lower these days, but the proportions here are great and that’s the most important thing. It’s more moderate, and less likely to date as a result.

The trousers are higher rise and pleated. This isn’t my normal style, but I already have trousers in that style in a similar cloth from this Cornacchia suit, so it was an opportunity to experiment a bit.

I like the fact that when you wear a belt with this kind of rise, the body is shortened and therefore proportionately widened, yet the trouser height doesn’t look too old-fashioned because the belt covers the top inch or so. For those that like higher-rise trousers, wearing a belt like this is a good option.

Those two shots above also show how good the finishing is on this suit. You can see the little bar tacks on the pleats of the trousers, and the pick stitching around the coin pocket above it. A friend in Korea told me recently that the biggest change in the past 10 years has been how much the sewing among local tailors has improved - not the style or fit, but the fineness of the work.

That finishing is evident on the fineness of the jets on the pockets as well; see previous article here for how and why that can be a good indicator of the quality of work.

If I have any quibble at all, it’s a small one about the roping of the sleevehead on one side. I love the naturalness of the shoulder, finishing in a soft and subtle roping. But there’s one point on the left shoulder where perhaps the fullness could be smoother. A small thing and also very fixable.

The buttons, by the way, are a pale mushroomy corozo. The more standard choice might have been a dark-brown horn (blond horn can be nice but more for a jacket). But I like how the greyish shade has worked. It makes it a touch smarter perhaps, but that’s all.

In the tieless outfit shown, the suit is worn with a white linen shirt from D’Avino, a Rubato brown-suede belt and Piccadilly brown-suede loafers from Edward Green. The sunglasses are from Clan Milano, via Connolly.

The tie in the other outfit is from Shibumi (an old style, no longer available) and the shoes are my bespoke black wingtips from Cleverley. There’s something pleasingly old-world about the way that chiselled shoe looks with the wider, cuffed trouser leg.

At our summer drinks, I wore a brown Drake’s tie (woven silk again) with my dark-brown Yohei Fukuda oxfords (shown below).

I’m still in the early stages of working out what combinations I like, and so naturally starting simply and conservatively. In the future I look forward to trying the suit with other things, such as a pink shirt or perhaps a black one.

Assisi have moved spaces in Seoul by the way, so I’ve included a few shots of the new atelier below. I never visited the first one, which was shown on our introductory article on them, but it looked like it had a similar vibe: modernist, clean and quiet.

The fitting room is particularly nice, as you have windows on three sides that look down the hill to the river, as well as up the steep streets around.

Since our first article on Assisi, their popularity has grown and they are now travelling to New York as well as to Singapore, Bangkok and Sydney in Asia. There are no current plans to visit the UK regularly, unfortunately.

Trunk shows are conducted through The Decorum in Singapore and Bangkok and through The Finery Company in Sydney.

Bespoke suits start at $2,950 and jackets $2,300. The cloth shown is Drapers four-ply, from the Ascot bunch. Code 18050, 370g.

Assisi also offer an MTO service, with prices $2,360 for a suit and $1,840 for a jacket. This is made exactly the same as bespoke, but to a ready-made block with no fitting, just selection of style and cloth. It still has to be commissioned at a trunk show or in Seoul.

For those that have enjoyed our ‘walkie talkie’ videos recently on Instagram, I will also do one in this suit, to show it in motion.

Introducing: The Suede Overshirt

Posted on 17/05/202417/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

A few readers have asked over the years about a suede overshirt on PS - particularly following the series of articles we did this time last year, on jacket substitutes like overshirts, chores and tebas.

So when we visited the suede workshop Rifugio in Naples last year (above), I began the process of talking to them about making an overshirt together. I had known Rifugio through the designer brands they made for, but that was my first exposure to their own work, and it was impressive.

From the start, we had two key requirements. One, we wanted to use the finest suede available. We knew this would make the overshirt expensive, but it was the quality Rifugio made for those designers, and I wanted to offer the same thing to readers.

And two, I wanted the same design and sizing as the linen overshirt with Luca Avitabile. This was because readers like that design so much - with its clean look but hidden pockets - but also because it meant sizing would be easy. Hundreds of readers already own a linen overshirt, so they would know exactly how the suede would fit and function.

Fortunately Luca and Alfonso Rifugio knew each other, so the collaboration was straightforward. Patterns were shared and a prototype created.

I’ve been wearing that prototype and the production sample that followed a lot in the past couple of months. One thing I’ve learnt is that the shirt is pretty versatile, from cool weather to hot.

You can wear it in the manner above, with a cashmere crewneck underneath, jeans and boots, and it works as a functional spring outer layer. Or, you can wear it with just a T-shirt, linen trousers and loafers, and it’s good for summer.

Not the height of summer of course - not 30+ degrees - but it will probably be at least two months before we get to those temperatures in the UK, perhaps even more. There’s a lot of this ‘transitional’ weather to come, and then in the autumn as well.

I was also really pleased with the colour. I wanted something that could be versatile, as we’d initially be offering it in just one. The first prototype was a pale sand, and that wasn’t right. For the second sample, I chose a light brown, and that turned out more tobacco-like than I expected.

But as I started to wear this colour - pictured - the more I liked it. It’s more muted than the tobacco you normally see in menswear (and than the Linen Overshirts) and darker too.

A good illustration is that while the Suede Overshirt works well with the denim, grey and olive shown in the outfits in this article, it’s also very cool with black. I wore it last weekend with a white T-shirt, black jeans and black loafers, and it was great. A more orange-y colour would have looked stark, and a little cheap.

Aside from that outfit - which I can shoot later in the summer or perhaps include in some socials - I wanted to show today that the overshirt was nice with denim and cotton, with jeans and tailored trousers, and with neutrals and colour.

So the outfit above is green high-twist trousers, a blue/white shirt, brown suede loafers and a conker-coloured tote. You can see how nice the tobacco is with these autumnal tones.

But the other warm-weather outfit is all neutrals - white and beige, below. Again a stronger tobacco colour would look stark and even a little cheap in this kind of outfit.

The overshirt has all the nice details of the Linen Overshirt:

Deep, flapped chest pockets
Hand pockets that are hidden discreetly below
Internal patch pocket on the hip (above)
Variegated horn buttons
Shirt cuffs, enabling them to be rolled back in warmer weather (below)
A collar that looks good up or down, and folds elegantly forward at the ends when up

The only changes to the linen overshirt are that the box pleat has been removed (as it didn’t work that well in suede) and the hips have been enlarged slightly (as they stick more there than the linen).

The buttonholes, collar and so on are not sewn by hand, but the work throughout is fine and precise - the level of work you’d expect for this quality of material. I particularly like the way the top of the pockets and the seam above them are finished (top image).

The Suede Overshirt is available on the PS shop now. The price is £1550 plus VAT, which is a step above most products we offer, but great value in the same way - the finest suede simply costs this much, as you can see from similar products at Purple Label, Attolini or others.

We haven’t made that many, as it’s a bit of an experiment, so if you are sure you want one I’d go for it now rather than waiting for another restock to save on shipping. I do want it to be something we continue to sell though - so as long as this batch goes well, we will offer it again.

The size chart is included on the product page, though as I said it’s the same as the Linen Overshirt, with the exception of that little increase in the hips.

Any questions, as ever, please ask in the comments.

Restocked: Undershirt and shorts

In the spirit of having fewer shop emails, we're also using this opportunity to let readers know that two products have just been restocked in the PS Shop: the PS undershirt and shorts.

The undershirt

Sadly, the brand we originally developed this product with, Hamilton & Hare, is no longer in business. But we have managed to talk to the original factory and are now offering exactly the same product ourselves. It's the same lightweight, naturally stretchy cotton, made in a sports-style seamless construction. Full details on it here.

The PS short

A bit of a perennial this one. The style has evolved over the years, but has always been popular. Made by Rota in Italy, it was designed to be an average, everyday short, just with some little sartorial touches like pleats and turn-ups. This year only the navy and the khaki have been restocked, as the olive cloth was not available. Double pleats were also popular last year, so we've stuck with those.

Other updates:

Linen Harrington - Restocked in navy, and with new Art du Lin brown colour (below)

Dartmoor and Finest Crewneck - Restocked in cream and grey, and navy and dark grey, respectively

Oxford shirts and cloth - Restocked in white, blue, blue stripe, green stripe and pink stripe

T-shirts - Later this month

Chambray and denim shirts - Later this month

Making shoes for King Charles: Tony Gaziano video

Posted on 15/05/202417/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

Forgive me for leading with the story of the shoes Gaziano & Girling made for His Majesty Charles III. It isn't the main thing we discussed in this interview with Tony Gaziano, but I know it will be the one that gets the most attention.

That comes about 19 minutes into the talk, but before and after we cover many interesting things including:

Why Tony thinks design is the missing element in a lot of bespoke shoemaking
Why the shoes have become so much more expensive
Why he couldn't survive without Dean Girling (audience question, right at the end)

I knew it was going to be a fun talk when Tony took the piss out of my baldness, with only a few seconds gone. And so it proved - enjoyable, entertaining, informative. This was one of our best talks in this series. I hope you enjoy it too.

Thank you very much to Tony Gaziano and his team, to Mortimer House and to all the lovely readers who attended. It was a lovely evening, and we'll try and do another one soon.

There's now a little archive of these interviews. They are, in case you missed any of them:

Anda Rowland of Anderson & Sheppard, on changing the tailoring house
Luke Walker of LEJ, on the crossover between fashion and classic menswear
Rubato, on their brand and style
Tony Sylvester, on style and subcultures
Ethan Newton, on the evolution of Bryceland’s
Jamie Ferguson, on his career in photography

Permanent Style summer drinks in the Burlington Arcade: Pictures

Posted on 13/05/202413/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

Last Thursday we held a really lovely event in the Burlington Arcade.

It hadn't occured to me at the time how ballsy it was to announce them as ‘summer drinks’ when we sent out the invites, given the event was only in early May. But it did actually feel like the first day of summer, with clear skies and a balmy warmth.

London is such a pleasant place when the weather is like this, and it was lovely standing outside the Arcade gates, welcoming readers and friends.

The Arcade is big - sometimes you forget how big, how long - but we had over 352 RSVPs, and the whole place felt full of music and chatter, from Justerini & Brooks serving champagne at one end to Begg & Co serving cocktails at the other. It was a real celebration of summer, and of course of clothing.

A big part of the enjoyment for me was seeing the various outfits, and so while I’ve shared a few general photos, I particularly wanted to include shots of those. Rather like our 15-year Anniversary party, it was core to the conversation - something every guest and reader was interested in.

Those pictures are below. The only other thing I’ll say is a huge thank you to the Burlington Arcade, and to all the shops that stayed open for us. That added a whole other aspect to the evening as well.

See you all next time.

Simon

Paris: A menswear shopping guide – 2024 update

Posted on 10/05/202412/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

Quite a lot has changed in the five years since we last updated this Paris shopping guide (and yes, I know just as much as changed elsewhere – we will also update the others!).

Kenjiro Suzuki has left, the Viaduc des Arts has drifted, and the experiment that was the 16th Arrondissement menswear has ended. Holiday has closed, Beige has moved and Le Vif is in the process of trying to find a new space. It was great while it lasted, but Beige in particular looks very at home in its quiet Left Bank location.

It’s not all bad either – Husbands has expanded, opening its second shop in St Germain not too far from Beige, and Super Stitch, which we originally met in the basement of Holiday, now has its own proper shop.

It’s nice, because in the past 30 years Paris has generally seemed to suffer more than other international cities, with a few big shops like Old England and Arnys closing even as London managed to hold onto most of its traditional outfitters on the back of tourism.

Paris has some real gems, some old and some new. Below are 31 we recommend, together with particular explanations why. They are roughly arranged into similar groups, though outright categorisation proved beyond us.

As ever, feel free to add your own suggestions in the comments below. There are always more out there.

1 Beige Habilleur
www.beige-habilleur.com, 86 Rue Bonaparte

Beige Habilleur is one of the best multibrand stores anywhere. The way I judge that is that a multibrand store should have a clear identity – a clear view on the world – even as it stocks clothes made by others. The buy, the collaborations, the styling should all speak to that identity and make you want to visit to experience it, rather than just because it’s your local stockist of a particular brand.

Beige also has the feeling of a little neighbourhood shop – perhaps like some in Marylebone in London. The brands carried include Justo Gimeno teba jackets, Smedley polos, Jamieson’s knits and Quoddy or Paraboot shoes. They all add up to a relaxed but elegant view on modern urban clothing.

2 Anatomica
anatomica.fr, 14 Rue du Bourg Tibourg

I mentioned Anatomica in the Tokyo shopping guide recently, and the French branch has a similar aesthetic, mixing its own workwear-inspired designs with external brands.

There is more emphasis here on the shoes though, and Alden models on their ‘modified’ last. This wide last has become associated with Anatomica over the years, and is specifically designed for the most comfortable fit. Warning: your current shoe size will be no kind of guide here.

Fit is a general obsession of director Pierre Fournier and designer Kinji Teramoto, and the clothing has a similar ideal of ‘proper’ fit that enables movement, whether it’s a close-fitting waistcoat or a loose coat.

Read the dedicated article on Anatomica here.

3 Husbands
www.husbands-paris.com, 57 Rue de Richelieu and 1 Rue de l’Abbaye

Husbands has a look. That’s pretty obvious when you meet Nicolas Gabard, the owner. Nicolas’s mission is to make tailoring sexy. To show how a love of suits doesn’t have to preclude cowboy shirts or black boots. To demonstrate the drama of an old-fashioned Aquascutum raincoat, tightly belted, collar up.

And yet there are elements of the style that everyone will find appealing – whether it’s the cavalry-twill used for the navy blazers, which is achingly sharp; the proportions of a camel wrap coat; or fisherman’s sweaters with buttons on the shoulder seam that are actually designed to be used. An antidote to anyone bored with conventional tailoring.

Read the dedicated article on Husbands here.

4 Jean-Manuel Moreau
@jeanmanuelmoreau, 3 Rue Chambiges

Jean-Manuel Moreau offers made-to-measure shirts and Neapolitan tailoring, plus a scattering of accessories and shoes. The tailoring is made by Orazio Luciano, but to Jean-Manuel’s block – which has a slightly wider, rounder lapel, more open foreparts and lower buttoning point. And the shirts are by Mazzarelli. You can see my review of the tailoring here.

Interestingly, Moreau is the only shop in Paris offering Neapolitan tailoring at this level, which makes him a destination for businessmen gradually shifting away from the stiff suits into more casual suits and separates. Importantly, Jean-Manuel also uses a local Parisian tailor for alterations and adjustments – which makes the offering both more reliable and speedier.

See the dedicated article on Jean-Manuel here.

5 Cinabre
www.cinabre-paris.com, 14 Cité Bergère

Cinabre is best known as a maker of ties and handkerchiefs. They have their own atelier in France making them, and supply the French President, Emmanuel Macron. But in the past year they’ve expanded into a new, bigger shop and added two hotel suites in the upper floors.

The result is beautiful, and more a concept than a retail shop. You enter through a tent, the check-in is inside the boutique. The rooms upstairs are full of beautiful fabrics that menswear fans will appreciate, often made in collaboration with French heritage producers.

The range of clothing, meanwhile, is expanding into dressing gowns, dinner jackets and shirts. Often quite idiosyncratic, but always lovely and nearly always made in France.

6 Charvet
www.charvet.com, 28 Place Vendôme

Quite simply one of the most beautiful menswear shops in the world. A lovely ground floor stacked with accessories, and upper floors of shirtings and bespoke tailoring. There are very few single-brand, single-location shops left of this type in the world.

Much of the style is not to my taste, but the shirts are beautiful and everything exquisitely made. (There are also other shirtmakers if you’re looking further afield, particularly Lucca and Courtot.)

Read my experience of having a bespoke Charvet shirt made here and an interview with Jean-Claude Colban here

7 Mes Chaussettes Rouges
www.meschaussettesrouges.com, 9 Rue César Franck

Mes Chaussettes Rouges has expanded considerably in the last few years, going from an online operation to a proper shop, and then making its own bespoke socks onsite. They are still one of the best suppliers of fine dress socks in Europe, and if you like your socks, the shop is a wonderful place to visit.

See the dedicated article on MCR here.

8 Chato Lufsen

chatolufsen.shop, 41 Rue de Verneuil

Christophe of Chato Lufsen is a vintage collector of Arnys in particular, but also Hermes and other luxury brands. In recent years however, he has become better known for his versions of old Arnys designs, such as the Bores. These often reinterpret the old slouchy mandarin-collar jacket into something more modern, while still being super relaxed and comfortable.

Read the dedicated article on Chato Lufsen here, Tony’s review of his jacket here and my review of mine here.

9 Jinji
jinji.fr, 22 Rue des Canettes

Jinji is a good location for workwear fans, with many of the familiar Japanese names like The Real McCoy’s, Full Count and Warehouse stocked here. But there are also some more fashion-led makers like Kapital, some British standards like Sunspel, and a scattering of products made under the Jinji name, which are perennially interesting.

Essentially, Jinji has enough of its own view on things to be worth a visit even if you’re already familiar with a lot of those Japanese brands. My personal favourite is a jacket they made out of an old Navajo blanket, which I bought and repaired, and covered here.

10 Super Stitch
superstitchmfg.com, 13 Rue Racine

We first saw Super Stitch when they were in the basement below Holiday, largely doing repairs and alterations on jeans. They now have their own store in St Germain, offering their own line of jeans, denim shirts and denim jackets – as well as the repairs and alterations. The make is absolutely superb, the work of a denim obsessive.

11 Brut (and Le Vif)
brut-clothing.com, 3 Rue Réaumur
@le.vif.boutique

Le Vif was one of my favourite vintage stores in the world, so hopefully it will find a permanent store location soon, having closed the space in the 16th arrondissement.

Paris generally is good on vintage and second-hand clothing, certainly compared to London, and the flea markets are always worth diving into. A good shop was Brut Clothing, though they have evolved in the past few years and do quite a lot of their own clothing now, often using deadstock garments or fabrics. Worth a look for both.

See the dedicated article on Brut here

12 Harpo
www.harpo-paris.com, 19 Rue de Turbigo

Harpo is not that well known in the menswear space, but it ticks many of the boxes for a Permanent Style reader: craft, authenticity, a classic style, and family owned.

It sells jewellery and other crafts made by Native Americans such as the Navajo, Hopi and Zuni. It’s been there since 1971, founded by Gerard ‘Harpo’ Nadaud, and run today by him and his three daughters: Dorothée, Valentine and Ella. If this kind of jewellery is your style, you won’t find anywhere better outside the US.

See dedicated article on Harpo here

13 Maison Bonnet and Ingenieur Chevallier
www.maisonbonnet.com, 5 Rue des Petits Champs
ingenieurchevallier.com, 17 Rue des Pyramides and 16 Rue du Vertbois

Bonnet is one of the finest makers of eyewear in the world, only doing bespoke and at the highest level. They are particularly known for their stock of tortoiseshell, but the value really is in the tight, enthusiastic team and the skill of design and fitting. Beautiful frames, lovely people.

Bonnet also recently bought an old, storied Parisian maker called Ingenieur Chevallier and turned it into a concept between ready-made and bespoke glasses. There are designs by the Bonnet team but also from other brands, and they can all be ordered in different sizes, before being comprehensively adapted to the face – with files, pliers, whatever is required. A real step above most modern ready-made eyewear.

14 Hosoi
www.hosoiparis.com, 37 bis, Rue de Montreuil

Satoru Hosoi is an Hermes-trained leather craftsman working in the Cour de l’industrie: a set of courtyards in the Faubourg Saint Antoine district that houses around 50 different artisans. His work is absolutely exquisite, with no corner cut including (very unusually) making all his own hardware.

As detailed in the dedicated article we did on Hosoi here, his designs are the things that will attract people in particular, and are worth a visit to see alone. He also does trunk shows in his native Japan.

15 Cifonelli and Camps de Luca
www.cifonelli.com, 31 Rue Marbeuf
campsdeluca.com, 16 Rue de la Paix

Paris has a small but very good bespoke tailoring scene. The best-known houses are Cifonelli (now clearly the biggest), Camps de Luca (which recently moved) and Smalto (also has a rather gaudy RTW line). I recommend the first two most highly.

Cifonelli also recently moved into a large space for its ready-to-wear clothing. The style is a little luxe for me, but the quality is consistently high and worth a look if that’s your style.

16 Berluti bespoke
www.berluti.com, 9 Rue du Faubourg St Honoré

The Berluti empire is by no means unique to Paris. But it is where the bespoke tailoring and shoemaking are located, with the former a takeover of the old Arnys workshop, and the shoemaking expanded with a few finely chosen names. If either appeals, then, Paris is the place to go for consultations and fittings. (And try to forget the sad demise of Arnys itself, which might well have been top of this list had it still existed.)

17 Corthay, Aubercy, John Lobb
www.corthay.com, 1 Rue Volney
www.dimitribottier.com, 14 Rue Chauveau-Lagarde
www.aubercy.com, 34 Rue Vivienne
www.johnlobb.com, 21 Rue Boissy d’Anglas

Paris has a strong contingent of shoemakers, although mostly part of bigger houses. There is Berluti, there is John Lobb Paris (part of Hermes) and there is Massaro (part of Chanel). The two most highly recommended however are Corthay, which has a large RTW line but still does bespoke, and Aubercy, which has a smaller one.

18 Philippe Atienza, Serge Amoruso and Samuel Gassman
www.philippeatienzabottier.com, 53 Avenue Daumesnil
@serge_amoruso, 37 Avenue Daumesnil
samuelgassmann.com, 1 rue Charlemagne

There used to be a lovely little grouping of these makers on Avenue Daumesnil, in what was called the Viaduc des Arts. Most are still there, but Samuel Gassman has moved and is planning to move again in October 2024. Philippe has moved his workshop to Provence but still does appointments in the same location. And Michel Heurtault has also moved to the countryside but does appointments are Maison Fayet (see below).

Philippe Atienza is a bespoke shoemaker who also has a ready-made line made to the same quality level as bespoke. The shop is worth a visit for his collection of vintage shoemaking machinery alone.

A little further down the street is leather specialist Serge Amoruso, who makes eclectic designs of wallets, bags and holders for everything from golf clubs to guitars. He is particularly known for strong colours and exotic leathers.

Finally, Samuel Gassman who hand makes cufflinks and jewellery. Quirky and original, Samuel’s work is carried by several shops (like Cinabre) and department stores

See dedicated articles here: Atienza, Amoruso

19 Galerie Fayet
www.galerie-fayet.com, 34 Passage Jouffroy

Michel Heurtault makes perhaps the finest umbrellas in the world, largely bespoke and largely women’s, but with lovely men’s examples too. He used to have a workshop in the Viaduc des Arts but is now based in the countryside. Fortunately, he now sells through Galerie Fayet and makes appointments there. Fayet also offers a beautiful range of canes and walking sticks.

See dedicated article on Michel Heurtault here

20 Lafayette Saltiel Drapiers
lafayette-saltiel.com, 11 Rue d’Uzès

Cloth agent Lafayette Saltiel Drapiers has become well-known for its stock of vintage cloth (just under 20,000 metres). They are the agent for most English and Italian mills in France, and have been for many years. In that time they’ve built up this vintage collection – largely because, given their big office, they simply have room to.

Virgil and Pierre are enthusiastic and knowledgeable, and I recommend stopping by. Although this remains a very small part of their business, they love talking about and showing off their vintage cloth.

21 Chapal and Seraphin
chapal.fr, 244 Rue de Rivoli
www.seraphin-france.com, 57 Quai de Valmy

Paris boasts two of the best makers of leather jackets in the world. Chapal is an old name that was made famous for flying jackets (supplying both French and US airforces) and still has its own tannery. Ignore the jeans, T-shirts and goggles and focus on the authentically detailed USAAF and A2 models.

Seraphin is a more regular luxury brand, but making all the leather itself in Paris as well as supplying several designers. They’re not really open to the public, but sometimes they will allow visitors on request.

See dedicated articles here: Chapal, Seraphin

22 Camille Fournet and Lavabre Cadet
www.camillefournet.com, 5 Rue Cambon
lavabrecadet.com, 5 Rue Cambon

Camille Fournet makes great leather watch straps – something Paris has a surfeit of, with Jean Rousseau and Atelier du Bracelet Parisien among others. Fournet has also taken over running the glovemaker Lavabre Cadet, and both are now in the shop on Rue Cambon.

See dedicated article on Lavabre Cadet here

23 Hermes
www.hermes.com, 24 Rue du Faubourg St Honoré

Hermes, of course, is in most large cities in the world. But the flagship at 24 Rue du Faubourg St Honoré deserves a pilgrimage – rather like the Rhinelander Mansion in New York, or Armani in Milan. A towering temple to the leather and silk expert, and given how small the runs are of some pieces, there will always be something you haven’t seen elsewhere.

Others:

L’Officine – Multibrand store selling mostly Neapolitan RTW. Avino, Sannino, Rifugio, Scafora etc

Daniel Levy – Bespoke shirtmaker. Comes recommended but I haven’t been able to see and/or try

Vieux Campeur / Young Hiker – The first is a Parisian institution for outdoor clothing, with shops across several blocks. The second is a trendy upstart playing off the name, in the Palais Royale gardens. Both have their own appeal

Artumes & Co – Country-driven brand by the ex-Arnys designer Dominique Lelys

Berteil – Perhaps best thought of as the French Cordings, quite an institution but very traditional and not the highest quality

Maison Gabriel – Unstructured tailoring, ready-made and made-to-measure, plus sartorial accessories

And flagships….
This guide is more about clothing, but it’s worth mentioning that Paris also has the flagships of many top-end perfume and luggage brands, such as Caron, Goyard and others. Oh and I always go into 45R, but that’s just because there is no outlet in London.

Introducing: The Art du Lin Harrington

Posted on 08/05/202408/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

A particular linen developed by Solbiati has generated a fair bit of buzz in the last couple of years. Finished with a matte effect and washed to give it an unusually soft feel, ‘Art du Lin’ has become popular with a lot of people who don’t naturally take to linen.

I tried it first in a pair of dark-brown trousers, pictured here. I’m now having a jacket made up with Sartoria Pirozzi to complete the suit. The Anthology did a whole lookbook around it called ‘sueded linen’.

I can see why suede is used as a reference. The material has more surface texture than regular linen, and the colours are soft and muted, much like suede. It also doesn’t form hard wrinkles and drapes beautifully as a result.

The flip side is that it doesn’t hold a sharp crease. But that’s a plus for using it in a piece like our Linen Harrington, which is why I decided to use that same dark, dusty brown colourway in this year’s version of the jacket, which is on sale now. The navy from last year has also been restocked.

The muted shade of the brown actually means it slots naturally into the ‘cold colour’ wardrobe we’ve discussed a few times in the past. It is not a warm brown, and so it's particularly nice with colours like stone, beige, black and grey.

In the pictures here I’ve shown it with soft blacks: a PS T-shirt, which is such a soft, washed black that some people think it’s green at first; and Bryceland’s jeans, which are now approaching charcoal after several washes.

But it’s also good with more regular colours of denim, like lighter blues and darker indigo. And with a white linen shirt and a pair of khaki chinos.

The point of the Linen Harrington, of course, was to make a real summer jacket - something for the warmest of weather - that was sportier than something like the Linen Overshirt.

The linen makes it cool, and it has ingenious ventilation between the two panels of the back (below). It sits tightly on the waist, with a lot of drape in the back that helps airflow as well as being flattering (see image above).

But it can be worn open, and this year we’ve reduced the length slightly (2.5cm) so it is a little shorter when worn that way.

We’ve also made a change to the internal pockets, moving down and enlarging one of them following reader feedback, so there’s more space for a larger wallet or phone.

Both the navy and the brown are made by Private White VC in Manchester, and have distinctive copper rivets on the back of the neck. We prefer gun-metal hardware elsewhere, and this is used for the delicate teardrop-puller on the zip.

Both linens are made by Solbiati (part of Loro Piana), so the highest quality for something of this weight (as well as taste - the area Loro Piana always excels on). The Art du Lin is more expensive though, which is reflected in the end price.

Both colours are also good for summer, but the brown has less of a pure-summer look and so could be worn transitionally - in Spring and Autumn, perhaps with a fine knit.

Other aspects I like are the fact the sleeves have a placket and button, so they can be rolled back like a shirt if you want to. And the fact the elastic is only in two panels at the back, leaving the front clean and more elegant.

You can read all about the design - including the Hermes and vintage pieces that inspired it - on the original article here.

Other shop updates

We’re trying to reduce the number of articles on PS that cover products (or at least keep them the same, even while the number of products increases). I don’t want product updates and events to swamp the editorial.

So recent restocks to the Finest Polo, Linen Overshirt and Reversible Bomber (with new colours in each), have largely been communicated by email. If you want to make sure you don’t miss out on these, I suggest signing up to the Shop Update newsletter.

If you already subscribe to other newsletters, you will have to update your preferences via a message sent to your inbox. Apologies this is a bit of a fuss - it’s just how Mailchimp works.

Here are the product updates from the past few weeks that haven’t been included on the website:

The Dartmoor

This ultrafine merino collared knit, made to sit well under a jacket, was restocked yesterday in mid-grey and cream (above). Unfortunately there was a mistake with the charcoal order and we got mid-grey instead, but I know plenty of readers were waiting for that as much as the charcoal.

The Finest Crewneck

The partner to the Dartmoor, made in the same cashmere-like merino but of course higher performing than cashmere. This was restocked yesterday in navy and grey.

Reversible Suede Bomber

The button-up suede jacket, made to reverse to a water-resistant option, was restocked two weeks ago. It is still in the original brown, but a new navy was added (below). The navy is not quite as dark as a traditional blazer colour, which makes it feel a little sportier.

Linen Overshirt

The most popular product over the past couple of years. It was restocked in navy, brown, black and pale olive, plus a new tobacco. We ordered a lot, so these will be good for the rest of the summer hopefully.

Finest Polo

This super-cool merino polo, with a collar made to sit well under tailoring, was restocked at the beginning of the month. We brought back the navy and the cream, and added a dark brown (below). Most of the former have sold out, but we have reordered and expect them in July.

Other updates:

Oxford shirts and cloth - Restocked in white, blue, blue striped, green striped and pink striped. Available now

Suede overshirt - Coming next week

Undershirts - Coming next week

Shorts - Coming next week

T-shirts - Later this month

Chambray and denim shirts - Later this month

Beige, Paris: The best kind of multi-brand shop

Posted on 06/05/202406/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

A lot of music fans don’t see the point of covers albums. They want the originals, not a bunch of copies. But I’ve always liked them, whether it’s Johnny Cash’s American IV or Rage Against The Machine’s Renegades, because they’re original and reveal things about the artist.

The songs they decide to cover, the way they sequence them on the album, and how they cover them - how faithfully or originally - says a lot about their influences and why they make the music they do.

Take Kicking Against The Pricks by Nick Cave. The appeal is not just that the Bad Seeds make every song sound more dangerous and ominous - more Bad Seeds - it’s the way it reveals how sincerely Cave loves a crooner, even if it is Tom Jones. And how much they’re all influenced by the dark side of country music.

I mention this because I liked the point, and I never really talk about music. But also because I think it’s one way to think about the value of multi-brand shops, of which Beige in Paris is one of the best.

A multi-brand shop - or select store - should have just as much personality as a brand’s shop. It’s just that the personality comes from the combination of the brands they select, the clothes from the brands, and the way those clothes are put together in original, distinct ways.

We all do this - pick clothes from brands and combine them in ways that we think reflects our style - and a multibrand store is no different. Just bigger and often better.

This is communicated in many ways, but often most effectively in the shop’s imagery. The looks below, from Beige lookbooks in 2019 and 2023, could be from no one else. There is a unique mixing of smart and casual and street, refined yet playful.

And if you like that look, it’s why you’re interested every time somewhere like Beige starts stocking a new brand. It’s why they’ve been so influential in recent years in bringing brands like Doek and Coherence to wider attention.

There’s nothing to stop other shops then stocking them, but their angle would be only one of convenience - the local place to get the cool thing Beige has - and that’s not much of a foundation for a business (particularly given how important e-commerce is to all these shops).

Then there’s the third part of that trifecta - the clothes picked from the brands. If you walk round the new Beige shop in St Germain, it’s not the brands that stick out but they way they all work together. It’s the particular check on a Justo Gimeno teba, and how well that goes with the black Brady tote and black Quoddy deck shoes.

It feels like a brand much more than a department store.

I visited the (relatively new) Beige shop in January, and again in March. This unusual frequency made the experience feel more like that of a local, attracted by a few things on the first visit, then seeing and trying more on the next. Going deeper, understanding more of the style each time and looking forward to what’s next.

I was interested in the Heimat merino thermals the first time, and the Quartz parkas, as neither was a product I’d seen before. The second time it was the sunglasses from Max Pitton and Jacques Marie Marge that caught my eye, and the Quoddy canoe shoes. They were products I already knew, but I started to appreciate Beige’s selection and tweaks to the design (eg the sole and stitching on the Quoddys).

Jacques Marie Marge, by the way, is another of those brands that Beige has been working with for a while but is now everywhere.

A shop itself should also, ideally, be a reflection of a multi-brand operation’s personality, and the new Beige shop feels like it more than their previous location.

The new one is on the corner of a very Parisian mansion block, in the quiet area of Saint Sulpice. This is the rich part of the Left Bank: liberal but moneyed. The book shops are rare book shops; there’s a good smattering of embassies around the pretty Luxembourg Garden.

“People in this area understand the product,” says Basile (below). “Tebas do well here - it’s the kind of customer that might have gone to Arnys in the past perhaps.

“Where we were in the 16th, it was a little different. Someone might complain that a Shetland sweater was scratchy because they didn’t know what it was.”

That experiment in the 16th arrondissement, far outside of the centre of Paris, was an influential experiment, but everyone has now left (Holiday, Le Vif). “The 16th was fun, and a good place to start,” says Basile. “It was originally just a showroom, though we had so many appointments that we ended up opening every day.”

Interestingly, looking back on those early days shows how much Beige has changed - a shop has to evolve with its customers, just like an individual. “Originally the selection was very based around tailoring - Ring Jacket suits, Drake’s ties - and that was quite rebellious in Paris at the time,” says Basile.

“Now we’re more casual, comfy, practical - but there’s always the same approach to the brands.”

A good example is those Quartz parkas, which originated with a chance meeting between Basile and the Montreal-based maker. “We changed a few things to make them more us, and to make them more practical for city wear. We added contrast panels and changed the fill power from 800 to 650, says Basile.” The former was designed to withstand temperatures of -50C, so probably overkill for Paris.

Other brands it’s worth looking at are Rier, whose pieces are quite modern-looking sportswear but made in 100% wool where most are synthetic. And Bunney, an English jewellery maker that is only sold at Beige in France.

Hopefully, I’ll be back in Paris before the end of the year and be able to see how various projects Basile mentioned have come to fruition: new brands, new products, new styles.

This is the pleasure of a multi-brand shop, and as we’ve written before, there are fewer and fewer good ones around.

The Paris Shopping Guide is in the process of being updated, and will be republished in the next week or two.

All the historical Beige Lookbooks are available online, which is nice. See them here.

www.beige-habilleur.com

A vintage shopping day in New York

Posted on 03/05/202403/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

Recently myself, photographer Alex Natt and Carl and Oliver from Rubato (above) spent a day vintage shopping in New York. It was a lot of fun, and also I think interesting for those that are fairly new to vintage, or can find the process frustrating.

We all ended up buying something but not that much, and rarely what we set out for. Carl was not expecting to pick up a Ralph Lauren Purple Label jacket, for example, and would never have put it on a shopping list at the beginning of the day. But when he found one in beautiful wool and silk - at a good price and a perfect fit (below) - he still ended up getting it.

To me this reflects the breadth of opportunity with vintage. For you’re not just shopping one season but dozens of them, from different eras, with different silhouettes and a greater range of materials. We hadn’t ever seen this cloth before and as RL materials are usually exclusive, it was always likely to be unusual.

Serendipity like this is a big attraction of vintage shopping. You're more likely to be taken by surprise, and the clothes you're looking at won’t be ones you’ve already seen online, or in that season’s advertising and all over social media.

My purchase was similarly unexpected.

I’ve always had a weakness for suede jackets - bombers, overshirts and blazers. But I’ve never owned a western-style suede jacket, and instinctively thought it would be too unusual for me.

When we visited Front General, Alex pointed out one in a roughout-suede hanging on the wall (always dangerous) and I tried it on. The cut really worked, and the heavy suede was beautiful - rugged and thick, with a shape that had been moulded by many years of wear.

Of course, other brands sell modern versions and I might have seen one there (eg RRL or Buck Mason). But I wouldn’t have had the same open-minded approach. For me at least, vintage engenders this receptive attitude, ready to try anything and be inspired. And accept you might walk away empty-handed as well.

We tried on a lot of things we didn't buy, and wouldn't necessarily have seen in a regular shop. Above, for example, Carl is trying on an old Polo polo coat and I'm wearing a scarlet duffle coat, also Ralph Lauren.

That red rather overwhelmed me, particularly in the long length of those old Ralph ones - but it did mean I knew my size in case I ever saw one on eBay, and I now have a search set up.

In fact, something else I tried worked out very well in that way. The tassel loafers I featured recently on PS were a model I originally saw at Crowley’s but were just a size too big. I looked on eBay, and luckily found a pair in the right size.

For what it's worth, I would never do that with something that was available in a store. It will always be more expensive of course, but the owner deserves the margin for sorting through mountains of stuff, paying the rent to display the best things, and then being there for me to try on and buy.

Perhaps that's a luxury of having the money do so, but I do think people should take responsibility for their actions in that way if they have the money. If they don’t, the shops will disappear.

Oliver's experience was a little different, in that he didn't find anything inspiring, but he had been looking for some US Army chinos for a long time, and found a decent pair at 10ft Single (above).

It’s easy to feel like this kind of military clothing is everywhere, and so vintage is actually not that variable. It’s always the same field jackets, varsity jackets and denim jackets. But often that means you just need to seek out a different kind of vintage shop - like Crowley, which has such a huge range of Ralph Lauren and similarly inspired clothing. The popularity of vintage means more of these shops or sites are springing up.

Plus eBay has more variety than you could possibly hope for. Lucas has been on a deep dive into Giorgio Armani for the past couple of years, and now has a crazy knowledge of all the labels, periods and materials. Perhaps he'll open his own Armani-and-similar-eighties-tailoring shop some day.

Alex, the fourth member of that group, is also a good example of different tastes. He's more into modern vintage and knows all the history of the outdoor brands like Eddie Bauer and North Face.

It's great shopping with a friend like that, as they'll point out and tell you about pieces you'd never consider. He didn't buy anything the day we all went, but he had bought a US parka earlier in the week, and that was the budget blown.

Vintage is not for everyone. I’ve spoken to quite a few readers about this in recent years, and it's not suited to those that aren't into clothes enough to talk about them and research them. Perhaps like someone who enjoys cooking, but isn't going to spend the time talking to their local butcher or travelling to a farmers market.

I'm still very much a novice, but in the past five years I've bought many of my favourite pieces of clothing vintage, and found it incredibly interesting and enjoyable. I hope this first-hand experience helps explain a little where the joy comes from.

Rubato are in London for their next trunk show from May 23-25, being hosted by Taillour at their atelier.

For more on vintage, see:

Shops in New York visited:

Stock Vintage
Church Street Surplus
Stella Dallas
10ft Single
Sean Crowley
Front General
Rugged Road

Also recommended: Raggedy Threads

My favourite jeans: Bryceland’s, Rubato, Blackhorse Lane, vintage

Posted on 01/05/202401/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

My favourite jeans largely come from brands that make in Japan, using Japanese denim, but that tweak the fit to make it their own. I don’t think it’s any coincidence that they’re also classic-menswear brands, who make or at least appreciate tailoring.

I've tried a few from more workwear-oriented brands, such as Full Count, and they are great. But little aspects of fit or wash tend to make them not as good on me. I’ve tried to explain why, below, because this is personal.

My other jeans are vintage - 501s from the 1960s to the 1990s - which is down to two separate factors: colour and pure love of denim.

I have yet to find a light-wash blue jean that I like from a modern brand, as they do have to be industrially washed. And the love of denim means I find it endlessly fascinating finding unique jeans, each of their era and style but also distinctive. This is a deeper involvement with denim that won't be for everyone.

Here’s a rundown of the jeans I wear, with brief explanations. Related articles on PS include what makes quality in jeans, how to wash and wear raw denim, and the extent to which jeans can be altered and repaired.

Bryceland’s black 933

Size 32 (normal size, worked after shrink to fit)

These are my favourite jeans right now (above), and have been wearing in beautifully. Initially I got some veining from putting them on too high a spin with the first wash, but that’s fading as the rest of the denim does.

It’s a softer denim than most, including the other Bryceland’s jeans, which makes them very comfortable, and it has a tendency to go white along seams and wear points quickly.

The fit is just perfect on me. It’s mid-rise, with a slightly tapered leg, and crucially has a little extra room around the hips. Anyone that has larger thighs will love this - my bane was always jeans that were tight on the thighs but still gaped at the waist, and that was the original reason I went bespoke.

Rubato Lot Nr1 denim dark-blue rinse

Size 32 (normal size, once-washed so little shrinkage)

There isn’t much that separates the Rubato and Bryceland’s jeans, in terms of denim or fit. Rubato jeans are similar to the 933 (and 133S) from Bryceland’s, just a very slightly lower rise and a touch less of that fullness on the hips. They’re still a great, modern style that I know works well for lots of people.

I have a pair of these that’s a few years old (above), and love the blueness of the denim. It’s similar to the original Bryceland’s jean, the 133, and a very classic 501 colour. I was a little unsure on size as the 32 initially felt a little tight, but it gave enough and has proved to be the right choice.

The main reason I got the Rubato jeans was the fact the Bryceland's 133 was a little too wide in the leg for me. But Bryceland’s now also do the 133S, in the same fit as the 933, and I got a pair recently (size 31, they shrink less) that I’m looking forward to wearing in.

They’re a left-hand twill so should be smoother in the long term, though right now the aspect I notice most is they’re a darker indigo than the Rubato, which can useful style-wise (eg better with black shoes).

Vintage 1970s Levi’s 501s

No size (but not as relevant with vintage)

For most people, the only reason to go vintage is if they can’t find a light wash they like. There’s a lot of raw or one-wash denim out there, and my favourites are mentioned above. But there’s less washed denim because it’s an industrial process, and so much harder for a small brand to do. I've seen Blackhorse Lane go through that process in the past few years.

I have yet to find a light-wash from a modern brand I like, and so I’ve bought vintage. Orslow is probably the closest I found, but the fits aren’t great for me.

My favourite vintage pair is from the 1970s (above), bought at Le Vif in Paris, and I wear them more than any other jean. The quality from that period is as good as any modern maker; they’ve washed out nice and light; and the wear over the decades means they have the unique character that's the added bonus of vintage.

Blackhorse Lane NW1 ecru jeans

Made to measure

I have two pairs of white jeans (or rather ecru) but at some point I’ll probably switch to something in the Bryceland’s or Rubato fit. I’ve used the made-to-measure service at Blackhorse Lane to good effect, but sometimes it’s hard to know what you really want until you experience it.

I also have a pair from Drake’s (above) which are good, but it’s a very soft denim and doesn’t age in the way I appreciate in other jeans. The straight pockets with coloured linings are also not ideal. Hopefully it’s all good research for the blog, and for articles like this.

I'm really looking forward to wearing white jeans again when the weather turns. It's such an easy way to wear paler trousers, and they can easily be dressed down in a cold-colour wardrobe kind of way (as above).

Other vintage

I’ve collected a few other pairs of vintage jeans over the years, all of which are worn less than the seventies pair above, but which I love and are worth listing. I’ve linked to articles below that show them in use.

1960s blue 501s (above) - My first pair of vintage, the most worn and the most beautiful, but also the most delicate. They’re still wearable, but can’t be worn every day. Something you love as an object as much as a piece of clothing.

1990s black 501s (pictured top) - These are interesting as a demonstration of what ‘lower quality’ denim can be like. It’s smoother, more uniform, and while there’s definitely less character, in some ways it makes them easier to wear with tailoring. Picked up cheap - see article here.

1990s blue 501s (pictured below) - These were bought in research for that article above, but I kept them because they were a good back-up jean. They've proved useful, though I prefer all my others here.

2000s ripped 501s (second image below) - These were also cheap, and I loved how thrashed they were. Originally they came with big patches over the holes in the knees. I took them off, but am still in two minds whether I prefer the look with or without. They’re also the palest jeans I have, which makes them particularly nice in summer.

Lastly, a quick word on the bespoke Levi’s I had made in London years ago, because it says something about fits and fashions.

I have two pairs, and have covered both their making and the way they have aged. I love them, and still have them. But today, 10 years later, the cut is just too slim for me.

Changes like this are inevitable in menswear, and tend to happen in cycles that last perhaps 15-20 years. We covered it in some depth here.

This can be frustrating, but it’s a lot better than womenswear, and if you keep to moderate changes then the cycles are longer. Jeans are also so personal that I think I’ll always keep those bespoke ones.

Related pieces on denim (a fair bit - and not including style pieces):

How to pack for a week-long trip: Video

Posted on 29/04/202429/04/2024 by Simon Crompton

This is the second of two videos we made recently talking through what to pack for travel. The first suggested clothes for a three-day trip - basically wearing one outfit and packing another, but with every piece interchangeable. This second one expands it for a seven-day trip.

As with all the 'travel capsule' posts, the assumption is that you want the maximum number of outfits from the minimum number of clothes. Either because you get a lot of satisfaction out of solving that conundrum or (more likely) because being a PS reader you love clothes and want to wear as many things as possible.

I hope you find it useful. Do shout with any questions in the comments below. Thanks to Globe-Trotter for lending us their space upstairs in the lovely Burlington Arcade store.

For other examples of travel articles, see:

The clothes shown are listed at the end of the video. If you need any more details, do ask below

Reader profile: Niyi

Posted on 26/04/202401/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

By André Larnyoh

I’ve known Niyi for three or four years and he’s always someone I’ve learnt from. His style is eclectic: classic menswear brands alongside contemporary fashion, bursts of colour with subdued tones. Yet somehow he always finds a way to put them together and make it look effortless.

Niyi describes it as “sartorial chaos” and for him that’s a badge of honour. I know some of it will be different to what PS readers are used to, but I find it’s interesting unpacking the thoughts and tastes of a stylish person like Niyi, especially where clothes are concerned.

Outfit 1: All Black

Coat – Versace
Hat – Uniqlo
Sunglasses – Cutler & Gross
Shoes – Vass
Scarf – Vintage Celine
Sweatshirt – Our Legacy x Armani
Watch – Braun
Jewellery - Rings are Mor London and vintage bracelet

What do you do for a living?

I’m a business analyst at a media company. I help the business connect with the customers. It’s a hybrid space - I work from home most of the time but do two days in the office.

How does that affect the way you dress, because I know you as a man of “sartorial chaos”. Do they allow chaos in the workplace?

Luckily, they do! I wouldn’t say it’s conservative, like not a finance environment, but it’s also not a fashion environment and I have experience working in both.

What was it like working in fashion? I’m sure that opened your eyes to a lot that you hadn’t noticed before.

Yeah, but I also find I’ve naturally dialled down my style since then. It wasn't a conscious decision, just a question of ‘where I am right now’. I just do what I want and dress the way I want, hence that term “sartorial chaos” of mine you mentioned. I like my colours, I dress how I want within the context of a space.

So within the context of this job, which is more casual, what I like is that I can take my time and be relaxed. When I was in finance in the past I felt there was so much emphasis on the way you dress, almost to the detriment of the customer.

So, this first outfit is your definition of looking ‘smart’ right? It’s clean, very slick.

Exactly. A lot of people when they think about dressing smart, they just default to a suit. But this outfit for me is my idea of smart. It’s as tailored as it is relaxed, and that’s it.

I find that if I do take the train to work (I mostly cycle), I’ll be dressed like a freaking jazz master - and I love that! That, for me, is feeling comfortable. People will be like, is he going to a jazz concert or is he going to work?

The trousers are a black military cavalry twill. I demand a hardiness in my clothes, and these have got it while still being smart. They were made by my one of faves in the game, Fred [Nieddu, of Taillour]. I can wear them with trainers, I can wear my Vass bluchers and it’s just like ugh! Great.

That coat though is a real statement. What is that ?

Vintage Versace. Cashmere with a half belt at the back. I got it from my vintage guy Waliou, this was one of the greatest pieces he ever found. He brought it out and was like, “you are the only one I know that can wear this”, because of the length and everything. I’m quite lucky to be 6”2’ - you gotta work with what you’re given!

What I’ve got under that is a meeting of modernity and tradition – a mock neck from the latest Armani/Our Legacy collaboration.

This is it. You mix the classics with fashion so well.

I have huge respect for tradition, for the masters. There was a way that Versace used to cut jackets that is just *snaps fingers*. It was big but still looked good, which is testament to how well tailoring was done in those days

As long as your body can fill the approximate silhouette it looks beautiful. The worst thing that can happen is that it drapes, and that’s hardly the worst thing in the world.

Same goes for the trousers. This is the beauty of Fred, he respects both tradition and modernity. Look at the way he dresses – he wears the classics, but also some of the most contemporary stuff out there. Like white Margielas. Before they became a thing.

I have a real respect for that because these are people that aren’t afraid. What I dislike is when I see that perfect traditional stuff. Fine for other people, but it feels too much for me. I can’t do anything about the time I live in, and there’s great stuff being made right now.

Outfit 2

Suit – Noah
Shoes – Adidas x Wales Bonner
T-shirt – Albam
Scarf – Vintage Chanel
Belt – Vintage
Socks – Isabel Marant

This must be one of my favourite combinations of yours, but let’s start with the shoes - you sometimes refer to them as your ‘silver surfers’.

Fun fact, my favourite superhero is the Silver Surfer. The Sambas are again tradition meeting modernity. Wales Bonner draws from the past and infuses it with something contemporary. Like the silver?

Love it. That Noah cord suit is pretty nice too. What led you to it? It’s an unusual place to get a suit for most PS readers.

There are so many places you can get a suit, but a skate shop doing tailoring? I just find that interesting. When Noah first brought them out, they wanted it to be a Pick ’n’ Mix situation. Rather than have the suit all in one colour, they wanted you to purposefully mix it up. That’s down to Brendon Babenzien’s vision.

I love a good double breasted. My proportions are quite broad so I like how DBs flatter me. I could easily wear a DB with a shirt and tie and look like a Kray Twin, but where’s the fun in that? That’s the default! I want to put the clothes through their paces MY way and put my own spin on them.

That’s where people can get style wrong I think - they’re not trying to infuse their clothes with who they are.

How long have you had this suit for, because you can’t find this kind of thing from Noah at the moment. Believe me, I’ve tried.

I’ve had it for eight or nine years. The aim is always to own great pieces for a while - they should be used, be worn. I don’t like this age where we treat clothing like glass. Even if it’s silk. Run it. Run it through its paces. The more you wear it the more you look like a sexy rascal.

A sexy rascal? Why do you want to look like a rascal?

Louche maybe is the word. To be louche, to be free. I leave the house wearing a corduroy suit, and at the end of the day I’m still wearing one - it might just be rather crumpled. Shows that I’m living life you know.

Outfit 3

Trousers – Vintage military
Knit – Bryceland’s
Shirt – Muji
Shoes – Yuketen
Sunglasses – Cutler & Gross
Scarf – Vintage Celine

Lets talk horsebit loafers – I’ve seen you in a few pairs, even seen you at night dancing in a pair of Guccis

I do love my horsebits. In fact more than horsebits, I just love loafers. It goes back to that relaxed mindset. There’s nothing like slipping in, getting on your bike, doing what you gotta do.

In fact, one of the first things I do when I get a pair of shoes like this is go straight to the cobblers and get some rubber half soles, so I can cycle in them. Yuketen are made to be worn over time, they’re not made flimsy.

So I wear them to the club, but when I get home, I brush them and then if I need to go to a party or bar mitzvah I’ll rock them again.

You’ve got quite a bit of vintage right - does that go back to the point about respect for tradition?

Yeah, I estimate that my wardrobe is 50 or 60% vintage, especially when it comes to trousers and jackets.

That’s where the Bryceland’s knit comes in, the cut is traditional, based on an old block nice and cropped. But then the yellow is just… rambunctious.

Accessories are important with you, and every outfit seems to have a different print scarf, either tied around your neck or sticking out of a pocket. Where’d that tendency come from?

I love print, but more than that I love the size of the silk scarfs. Large and efficient coverage against the cold, and they don’t leave fluff on you. And did I mention the prints?

You always seem to be in sunglasses too - why?

Sunglasses are a funny one, that was a 180 moment for me. I never used to wear them, it was the same attitude as my social media – I rarely leave it on private because I’m an open person. What you see is what you get.

Anyway, I went to the doctor and the doctor said to me, “Oh you’re going to have to start wearing sunglasses because you’ve got a sunspot in your eye” I was like “Bro, I don’t need this… OK fair enough.” So, I started trying to wear shades more in the summer.

Unfortunately, I use contacts as well and because I’m always on the bike what happens is my eyes get dry quickly with the wind, so I frequently wear my tinted sunglasses even at night. It’s inadvertently turned into a fashion statement, but ultimately, I’m comfortable with it.

And these particular ones - I’ve been on for a pair of jazz-black glasses for a while: dark dark, I’m talking Thelonious Monk. Real black. God bless Cutler & Gross. And they’re well made, they have a real weight to them.

Niyi, chale*, as always this has been fun. Thank you!

*Ghanaian slang for my friend/mate/dude

Buck Mason, Novesta, New & Lingwood: Spring ‘24 Highlights

Posted on 24/04/202424/04/2024 by Simon Crompton

Our seasonal summary of things I’ve seen and liked rolls around again, and as ever is a good mechanism to answer questions about new products from established brands, such as the City Moc from Saman Amel (above).

But it’s also, by design, a mix of the old and the new, so there are both the expected names of Rubato and Drake’s, as well as the less-discussed Buck Mason or Novesta.

I hope you find something for you. All questions in the comments please, to be happily and thoroughly answered.

Buck Mason Rambler suede jacket

$698

My size: Large (size up)

I met the Buck Mason guys at Pitti last January, and Lucas and I both tried several products. I have to say we were both impressed by the price/quality ratio. This isn’t a Japanese brand making the finest reproduction quality, but it’s also half the price and most things were well done.

I was particularly impressed by the suede ‘Rambler’ trucker jacket. As I commented in the piece on Massimo Dutti, leather and suede are not an easy thing to do at a lower price, and I actually have an original ‘big E’ Levi’s one, so could compare first hand.

You definitely lose something by not going for those top-end Japanese brands, but if that’s out of your price range Buck Mason are a good option, and compare very favourably with someone like RRL.

Rubato Roper shirt

£305

My size: Medium (normal size)

Staying with the Americana theme, a few readers asked about this new model from Rubato - their version of a western shirt, in black, white and indigo. I tried the black, and it’s exactly what you expect from Rubato - great quality with subtle style.

The benchmark for many will be the Sawtooth Westerner from Bryceland’s, which I also have, and this is lighter in weight, as well as dialling down some of the western elements - one snap on the pockets, two on the cuff. I’d say it’s a great choice for anyone that finds the heavier Sawtooth a little too much. My black is also fading nicely after a couple of washes.

Novesta Marathon trainers

My size: 44 (size up)

My favourite trainers have long been a collaboration between Mizuno and Margaret Howell, and readers often ask what else I’d recommend, as those are only in black or white and not always available.

The Marathon from Novesta is a good one - slim, subtle and nicely made. Trunk had them previously in bolder colours, but the current grey and beige are more versatile and I ended up getting the beige. It’s a great colour combination, particularly the black around the edges.

Not all sizes are currently available at Trunk, but there are lots of other colours and sizes available on the Novesta site and through places like End.

New & Lingwood band-collar shirt

£155

My size: Medium (normal size)

I’ve been really interested in how New & Lingwood have evolved over the past couple of years. They’re doing more tailoring, more sophisticated materials, and more classic menswear, perhaps in the process filling some of the gap left by brands like Drake’s going more casual. It's easy to forget, for example, that until recently they only did silk gowns, but now offer cashmere, linen seersucker; the tailoring has expanded in the same way.

Over the winter I picked up a raglan coat from them in a really strong but tasteful check, for example, which is the kind of thing you rarely see anywhere else these days - traditional outfitters don't have the same taste level and modern ones are too sleek and safe.

The current New & Lingwood collection has some nice linen suits - in just the right shade of dark brown or dark green - wearable colours of towelling shirts, and great linen shirts. I’ve been after a linen band-collar one for a while, as well as a plain spread-collar silk, and they had both.

Drake’s cotton-twill Games Blazer

£795

My size: 40 (normal size)

Speaking of Drake’s, they recently restocked the Games Blazer in the cottons I missed out on last year, when I got my corduroy. Both the cotton twill and canvas are lovely, machine washable and indeed fading well when washed.

I get a lot of questions from readers about where they can get a cheaper version of the Games Blazer, and you just can’t, unless you go for a bog-standard chore coat. What sets the Games apart is design and often materials, and that’s something most other brands don’t put into a chore. The materials are the same ones from the same bunches, and the design is just straight up-and-down.

The Drake’s is definitely expensive, but to my mind design-led brands like this justify their price when they set themselves apart in those two areas.

Saman Amel City Moc (and Quoddy/Beige)

€600

My size: 43 (normal size) in the Saman and 10 US (size up) in the Quoddy

I saw these at the recent Saman Amel trunk show, just before they were due to go on sale, and was pretty excited. There’s a real gap there - a shoe that’s almost as comfortable as a trainer, but almost as smart as a loafer, and of course stylish.

They looked really good on Dag and Dom with their suits and I liked the sleek, elevated design. They didn’t work on me in the same way (with tailoring) I think because both of the guys like their trousers wide and the shoes looked great just poking out of their hems. But as a shoe to wear with something more smart/casual or casual/chic - like smart chinos and a cashmere knit - I think they'd be great. It's something I'm going to try again when the new showroom opens (on Albemarle Street) in June.

I also recently tried the boat shoes that Beige in Paris is doing as a collaboration with Quoddy. These are chunkier and not as luxe, but as with Saman the black option is really interesting - it takes away all possible old-mannish associations. The Beige guys have also made some subtle but effective choices, such as putting silver hardware on the black leather, rather than gold, and white stitching rather than yellow.

Silver Ostrich ostrich-leather belt

€440

My size: 90 (normal size)

I’ve never actually written about Silver Ostrich, although I’ve had their belts for a while. Most of the styles are a little much for me, and my brown-suede ‘Versailles’ (below) is something I wear only when I want a particular look (and 20 times less than my Rubato in the same material).

But my recent, pleasant discovery was that the brown ostrich-leather (above) is actually easier to wear than plain suede, and ages very nicely. The pattern is quite subtle and varied, but also not the standard suede, leather or croc. I have it in the Amboise style and now wear it rather more than my suede, mostly with jeans. Unfortunately the fact it’s an exotic makes it a level more expensive.

A Guide To Chambray Shirts – Part Two: Modern Brands

Posted on 21/04/202422/04/2024 by Manish Puri

By Manish Puri

In part one of this guide, I provided a brief history of chambray and why it became the de facto choice for work shirts, before turning my focus to shirts on the market that are reproductions of traditional US work shirt models.

In this second part, I’m covering chambray shirts made by brands that tweak and update the historical templates - shortening them for modern sensibilities, removing a pocket, taking in the waist etc - which can make them more contemporary, versatile and easier to pair with tailoring.

I should add that the guide is still focused on casual shirts - those with pockets, contrast stitching, roomier cuts and softer, smaller point collars.

The Anthology Workman Indigo Raw Chambray Shirt - $200

Of all the shirts in this guide, The Anthology’s Workman is the one that’s closest to a dress shirt.

The general fit, whilst not slim, is certainly tailored when compared to the more overtly workwear options. (You can see that in the flat lay images - the majority of the shirts are cut straight whilst The Workman is shaped through the waist). The collar band sits higher and is slightly stiffer. And the colour is also stronger than the more washed-out versions, which I think helps make it appear a fraction smarter (although it too will fade nicely over time).

On the other hand, the smaller collar points, contrast stitching, locker loop, flapped chest pocket and vintage cat-eye buttons (in mother of pearl) are all features inherited from the shirt’s workwear forebears, and soften the formality.

I think this union makes The Anthology shirt the most versatile choice in this guide, as it can quite effectively pull a double-shift as a (fairly) casual shirt that sits comfortably with tailoring, and thanks to the collar band, even a tie (above).

The other appealing element of all The Anthology’s shirts is they’re sold on an MTO basis (and, as a result, take three weeks to make). There’s a helpful video on their website explaining the process, but essentially it involves selecting your collar size (unusually for casual shirts, The Anthology’s collar goes up in quarter-inches for the most common sizes) and then adjusting the waist, back length and sleeve length by up to 4 cm from the default measurements. That’s over 8,000 size permutations (my maths teachers would be so proud).

I think it’s an ideal choice for readers that don’t want to go down a full MTM/bespoke route but need to make a few common tweaks to get a better fit.

Whilst this guide is focused on the classic blue chambray, it would be remiss of me not to point out that I also have The Anthology’s vanilla chambray shirt (above) which I absolutely love (and actually wear more often than the blue).

It’s off-white in colour and textured with tiny vanilla-seed like flecks. A great piece for tonal dressing and an easy way to ‘warm up’ an outfit in lieu of a white shirt.

Bryceland's Teardrop Chambray Shirt - £225

If you pop into one of Bryceland’s stores or their online shop, you’ll find not one but four chambray options. Each one with a distinctive design and silhouette, taking inspiration from a specific period in American history.

The half-zip shirt (£249) is a fuller-cut option that works well as a layering piece in winter or worn dégagé - unzipped and untucked with a nonchalant roll of the cuffs - in the summer.

The design perhaps partly inspired by the Big Yank Zipper Ace shirt (above right) that was released in the 1930s for “those that like the quick convenience of putting on a shirt in two seconds flat” (you can read more about that brand in part one).

The sawtooth westerner (£249) recalls the cowboy shirts of the 1950s with a broad chest that contours into a nipped waist.

The denim version was the first Bryceland’s product I ever saw and purchased, and it instantly hooked me on the brand; although it does have an exacting silhouette for anyone (like me) that is straight through the trunk. There are days, usually those after I’ve spent the weekend at my Mum’s being force-fed samosas, that I would love the waist to be just a fraction more forgiving.

The USN chambray (£195) is stylistically quite similar to the Buzz Rickson 1940s model featured in part one of this guide. The main differences are the buttons (Bryceland’s are white) and the extra stitching through the left chest pocket to create a separate pen pocket.

The other significant difference is fit - specifically length. While the Buzz Rickson shirt was a bit shy in venturing past the upper thigh rendering it potentially 'untuckable', the Bryceland’s USN has no such reservations. It runs long, Peter-Jackson-Extended-Cut long (for example, size 38 and 40 are around 35 inches), which is faithful to the original style of these shirts.

Bryceland's USN shirt is sold in both raw and washed chambray.

If this appraisal so far makes me sound like a sartorial Goldilocks - this one’s roomy, this one’s long, this one’s a little squeezy on my tum-tum - then can I say the teardrop chambray shirt is just right.

Patterned after one of Bryceland’s co-founder Kenji’s vintage Lee shirts, it's a comfortable and well-proportioned shirt that I think most clothing brands today would typify as “classic fit”.

I chatted with Bryceland’s London manager Ben, and he thought, based on the manufacturer’s label, that the Lee shirt dates to the 1950s. That seems consistent with this ad from 1951 (below) where the khaki shirt in the middle looks to be identical to the teardrop.

I loved the easy simplicity of the design - symmetrical, neatly scalloped chest pockets and small gathers of fabric under the yoke are really the only embellishments. Combined with the solid construction and double stitching of the seams, it meant I had little hesitation in taking a shirt (size medium) home with me - even though I was only meant to be trying it on for this guide!

The teardrop chambray is also available MTO (meaning you can have it made up from hundreds of cloths including some really nice linen-cotton chambrays - a great option for readers in warmer climes) and MTM (which allows for a wide range of adjustments to the shoulder, sleeve, body, waist, etc) - both services have a 20% surcharge to the RTW price. In the first part of the guide, a lot of readers were asking about anywhere that offers custom work shirts (not chambray dress shirts), with most guys crying out for longer sleeves in particular. For those chaps, I'd recommend the Bryceland's teardrop chambray.

Drake’s Bleach Blue Cotton Chambray Button-Down Popover Shirt - £275

A button down, popover shirt is a foundational piece within the Ivy tradition. If you need proof, Jason Jules’ superb book Black Ivy is stocked with photos showing men in both short- and long-sleeved versions - including Miles Davis in a terry cloth popover (below left).

At the same time, a popover style (especially in chambray) harkens back to the very earliest US work shirts and overshirts for sale at the turn of the 20th century - like the ones in the Sears Roebuck & Co catalogue from 1897 shown below right.

And so, to my mind, this shirt is a genuine Ivy-Workwear hybrid, making the Drake's one of the more interesting styles that I found on my hunt: a great alternative option for those readers that already have a more orthodox model.

Because popovers need to pass over the shoulders when you put them on/take them off, I’ve found it can help to have a touch more room in the body than you might for a full-placket shirt.The medium did fit - but in the same way that I used to like my dress shirts to fit a dozen years ago. Alas I’m no longer in my 20s and I’m not going for a night on the town at Tiger Tiger.

The excellent staff at Drake’s had anticipated this (they clearly know their product) and had already discreetly deposited a size large in the fitting room - an altogether better option for me with a bit more room in the arms and belly.

So, unless you like a particularly trim fit, I’d size up in this shirt.

Honourable mentions

Every year I see the Kenneth Field chambray shirt (above) land in The Merchant Fox’s shop, and every year I inexplicably delay purchasing it just long enough for it to sell out.

Admittedly, I’ve not actually seen the shirt in person, but the slubby texture of the Japanese chambray always catches my eye. The style is similar to the USN designs we’ve already covered, but with a flap chest pocket on the right hand side.

I’ve been told by The Merchant Fox that there’s limited manufacturing of this piece. However, a small restock is expected in the summer, so if you too like the look of the shirt I’d recommend signing up at their mailing list to avoid disappointment.

Manish is @the_daily_mirror on Instagram

Read Part One in this series on chambray here

The Permanent Style Summer drinks – taking over the Burlington Arcade

Posted on 19/04/202402/05/2024 by Simon Crompton

Have you got a summer suit that needs an outing? Linen tailoring sitting in the closet with no matching 'garden party' invitation?

Come to Permanent Style drinks on May 9th! We're taking over the Burlington Arcade, closing the space for just us and a few shops, and will be serving drinks from Justerini & Brooks. It should be a lot of fun.

I've always wanted to create more opportunities for readers to come and wear their finest tailoring. Not everyone has a lot of them (or indeed black tie at the other end of the year) so when this opportunity came along we jumped at it.

The event will run from 7pm. Only those that have RSVP'd and so on the guest list will be allowed entry. Shops like Globe-Trotter, Begg & Co, Marinella, Crockett & Jones, Baudoin & Lange and others will be open and some will be offering their own cocktails.

We'll also have a photographer so everyone can get shots of their outfits, should they wish. There is currently no prize for the best-dressed, but those that appear on the subsequent PS article will obviously have infinite bragging rights.

Please come down and help us celebrate the tailoring of summer. RSVP is through the form here.

Details:

Permanent Style summer drinks
Thursday, May 9th
Burlington Arcade, London
From 7-9pm
Admittance only with RSVP
Entrance from the Burlington Gardens end of the Arcade

Collars are more flattering with tailoring – but do you care?

Posted on 17/04/202417/04/2024 by Simon Crompton

I’ve regularly worn T-shirts or crewnecks under tailoring over the years. Not as frequently as a collared shirt, but when you’re always looking for more ways to wear suits and jackets, the more relaxed look of a T-shirt has perennial appeal.

I’ve written before about what kinds of T-shirts and sweaters work. Tips in that article include knitted tees over normal ones, the virtues of pattern, and why double-breasted jackets can be easier than single.

But one thing I haven’t spoken about much is the extent to which a T-shirt under a jacket is flattering or unflattering. Given this is often the argument put against the look, I thought it was worth a discussion.

Collars are, in general, more flattering on men. The collar frames the face, hides a long or thin neck, and creates that complimentary V down the front of the body. Even if you have a shorter, wider upper body, a smaller collar and the open front will often be the most flattering.

But some people need it more than others. If you’re thinner or less muscular, there’s greater benefit in the structured lines of by a shirt or a jacket (and indeed well-cut clothes in general). I’m personally on the taller, slimmer side of the spectrum, with sloping shoulders, and know that in general a collared shirt is more flattering on me.

I like the image above, for example, pictured front-on in a knitted T-shirt and suit. But the one below, showing the same outfit from the side, reveals something of what you lose without that shirt collar, with my longer exposed neck.

Other aspects of your body can also make a difference - not just shoulders, neck and general upper-body.

For example, as I’ve grown my beard out over the years, I’ve noticed that more facial hair helps this kind of look. Compare the two images below of me in navy jackets and navy tees, for instance. They’re not the same angle, but I think you can see that the second flatters more than the first. The beard helps fill in some of the gap.

This applies to hair in general. It’s one reason women can get away with a greater range of looks, and I’ve always thought it was why guys with longer hair find it easier to wear hats.

The gap can also be filled by things like scarves, or collars on the knits.

The flattering height of a half-zip is one reason they’re so popular, for example, and we all know how flattering a shawl-collared cardigan can be. In the first outfit below the collar of my cardigan effectively replaces the collar, and in the second image a scarf does the same job.

The other option is to turn up the collar of a jacket, as I’m doing in the PS Shetland Tweed shoot at the bottom. Ralph Lauren does this on all its mannequins, just lifting the back of the collar to frame the neck. But a popped collar is not for everyone, or always appropriate.

Now as with many things in menswear, the key is to recognise these points - then decide whether you care.

On PS we’ve always argued that fit is an under-appreciated aspect of clothing. But that doesn’t mean it’s the only one: quality, relevance and personal style will always be important too.

When it comes to T-shirts under suits, I put more weight on physical flattery than others and so most of the time wear a collared shirt. But I still switch it up sometimes, just because I feel like it that day. Flattery and style swap places, briefly, in the pecking order.

For thoughts on what knits and tees look better under tailoring, see previous article here.

For more on the necklines of crewneck sweaters, and what flatters you, have a look at the article here.

Vittorio Salino tweed jacket: Review

Posted on 15/04/202415/04/2024 by Simon Crompton

I'm back! Hello everyone, I hope you had a nice week in the amiable arms of Manish, and you haven't all decided he is better in every respect than me. Although even if you have, fear not - he will be writing again very soon, including the second part of his chambray guide. Now, on with that PS staple, a bespoke review...

This is my finished jacket from Vittorio Salino, the Florentine tailor covered last month.

During the week I was in Florence we managed to do a quick measuring session and then two basted fittings (Vittorio already had the cloth). That meant he didn't have as much time as usual for the fitting process, but from the start I could tell this wouldn't be a problem.

The measuring was relatively simple, reminding me of the almost cursory way Antonio Liverano had of measuring - no coincidence of course, as Vittorio was head cutter there.

And the result was just as good when I had the first fitting. Perfect balance; no issues with my slightly lower right shoulder; no struggles with the drop over the tricep. Just nailed.

And so everything proved through to the finished jacket. The only question I have concerns how roomy the fit is, and whether I’d like that tweaked at some point.

As described in our interview, Vittorio likes a comfortable jacket - something that can be put on and forgotten about, whether you’re walking or sitting, talking or working.

It doesn’t necessarily look it from these images, but there is more drape in the chest and less suppression in the waist than normal. The result is I can easily wear a sweater like our two-ply cashmere crewneck underneath. (Though not something like a Rubato lambswool - we’re not talking as big as the Assisi DB.)

Vittorio’s cutting hides this well. The room in the chest isn’t obvious, and in the profile image below, you can see that there is still some shape to the back. I think the main reason to slim the jacket would be just to get sightly more shape in the front.

I’ve only worn it a few times, so I’m not entirely decided yet, but I’m not seeing Vittorio until the summer so there’s plenty of time to decide.

The jacket elsewhere is very well made, essentially the same as my Liverano and other Florentine makers like Vestrucci. It’s not the super precision of Milan, but it’s neat, strong and finer than something like Neapolitan.

That point about strength is a relevant one, because I really identify with the way Vittorio talked about his tailoring as a functional, everyday piece of clothing - and how George at Speciale did in the piece we did on them (George also trained in Florence).

If bespoke tailoring is to have a strong future outside of event wear - so as a regular, everyday part of the wardrobe - it needs this kind of unprecious, easygoing attitude. And I can see Vittorio’s comfortable fit being part of that.

Indeed, the soft way the drape is created here illustrates this. An English drape cut has lots of room in the chest but it’s supported by layers of felt, canvas and horsehair. The Florentine one is softer, and falls more naturally.

This could feel sloppy to some, but it definitely feels simpler and easier. There isn’t that stand-up military feeling you get with most British tailoring, which of course even the A&S drape cut was originally inspired by.

The open roll of the fronts is similar. The whole jacket feels like it has just been cut open, folded back and then buttoned, with the lapels rolling naturally as they fall. This isn’t the case at all of course - it’s carefully calculated and controlled from the neck - but that’s the feeling. It might be why I’ve never been a big fan of three-roll-two fronts on English jackets.

Moving on from the technical aspects, I should address the material’s differences from my grey herringbone, as a few readers have asked about how they compare.

They’re very similar of course, and most people would have no need of both. But if herringbone tweed is your thing, the two are a little different and have different uses. This Fox Tweed is as much brown as grey, at least in the lighter herring’s bones, and as a result is easier to wear with other neutral-coloured clothes, like blacks or greys.

An example is the charcoal flannels I'm wearing here, or black jeans. A grey herringbone can work too, but it needs colour elsewhere to stop it all being grayscale - a pink shirt or perhaps a brown belt/shoes.

For those using the ‘five jackets’ article as a way to build their tailored wardrobe, I’d think of this jacket as slightly more a brown option than a grey one.

The charcoal trousers are from Whitcomb & Shaftesbury, made in Fox Heritage Flannel (HF9). The belt is crocodile from Ludens with a vintage silver buckle.

I was playing about with work shirts under jackets for a more casual look, but keeping everything white to retain that tonal feel. I quite like the result, though the Rubato shirt’s collar has a habit of flipping outside of the jacket, and the sleeves could be 1cm longer.

It’s a bit of a trade off: as with a lot of casual shirts, you just can’t get these materials to make bespoke, so it has to be RTW. The thicker material looks great with a tweed jacket, to me, but you sacrifice little points of fit.

The shoes are Piccadilly loafers from Edward Green in Utah leather, the glasses are old ones from Eye-Van I got at Ludovic in Brussels, and mostly wear at the weekend. The watch is my JLC Reverso, the coat my old Rider's Raincoat in the original colour.

I’d highly recommend Vittorio based on this experience, for the end result but also the experience along the way - his style and his advice.

For more technical detail on Florentine cuts in general, see style breakdown pieces on Liverano here, and Vestrucci here.

You can read more about Vittorio in our interview on PS here. His prices in Florence start at:

Jacket: €2200
Suit: €3000
Trousers: €800
Coat: €4500

All include cloth and tax. Trunk show prices vary. Those trunk shows are held in Belgium, Zurich and Los Angeles. There are no plans to add others in the near future, due to capacity (Vittorio and Clément make everything themselves.)

Upcoming dates:

26th-28th April: Zurich
20th-25th May: Los Angeles

Not sure what I'm doing in the pic below, but it does show the shape of the jacket nicely!

Are you a menswear snob?

Posted on 12/04/202412/04/2024 by Manish Puri

By Manish Puri

Forgive me for starting with such a blunt question.

I know that, in common parlance, ‘snob’ is a pejorative term. However, when it comes to matters of dressing, it’s worth recalling the words of Yves Saint Laurent who said, “we must never confuse elegance with snobbery”.

So, in this context, given there seems to be room for confusion, I don’t really consider ‘snob’ to be an insulting epithet - because surely my accusers meant I was 'elegant'. Right?!

Nonetheless, to avoid accusations that we’re cherry picking the meaning of the word, it’s incumbent upon each of us to apply the term fairly and consistently.

I mean, what if you think you’re a menswear snob, but you’re really not? You risk being labelled delusional. And conversely, what if you don’t consider yourself to be a snob, but you actually are? Then you’re just selling yourself short!

Fortunately, I’m here to help. The following multiple-choice quiz will quickly, and with unfailing accuracy, identify if you’re a snob or not.

To those that don’t make the grade, my apologies. You’ll find plenty of support material in the Permanent Style archives. Please feel free to read through it and take the quiz again in a year or two.

Good luck!

1. I like to shop…

a) In the sales

b) Responsibly

c) At establishments with Latin mottos

2. My tailor is…

a) Also my dry cleaner

b) A respected member of our local high street

c) On first-name terms with all of my immediate family

3. What goes well with a three-piece?

a) Fries and a Coke

b) A nice silk tie

c) A knowing smirk

4. Do you like a blazer?

a) Definitely! Me and the lads had one last Friday: a few pints, cheeky Ruby, and clubbing till 3am

b) I just repurpose my suit jacket

c) Does the Pope wear Gammarelli socks?

5. What goes through your head when the invitation says ‘Black Tie’?

a) No worries, I’ve got one from me gran’s funeral

b) I’d like to go, but it sounds intimidating so I’ll politely decline

c) I must have my bib fronts restarched

6. Complete this phrase: The bottom…

a) Of the ninth

b) Line

c) Button must never be fastened

7. Where’s Saville Row?

a) Do I look like a cab driver to you?

b) I think it’s somewhere off Regent’s street

c) Are you deliberately trying to provoke me by spelling it wrong?

8. What do you think of Drake’s latest drop?

a) He’s not done anything decent since 'Hotline Bling'

b) They’re such an exciting brand

c) I still love them, but they were better when they didn’t have a website and only sold ties

9. The Japanese make the best…

a) Lovers

b) Sushi

c) Denim

10. I dress…

b) To impress

a) My salads with oil and balsamic vinegar

c) Left

11. Four-in-hand is…

a) The technique I use to carry pints to the table

b) Presumably worth eight in the bush

c) Basic AF

12. The best reason to propose to someone is because…

a) You’ve got them into trouble

b) You love them dearly

c) You need a good excuse to commission a new suit

13. At a recent wedding, you made the Bride…

a) Put in a good word for you with the Bridesmaids

b) A hand-drawn card congratulating her on the marriage

c) Cry because you looked better than her

14. High-waisted is…

a) A good description of a weekend away with the lads

b) A trouser style I’m not sure I can pull off

c) For wimps. If they’re not touching the ribs I consider them to be lowriders.

15. MTM means:

a) Man to man marking in football

b) Mark to market

c) You’re too poor for bespoke

16. What’s your attitude to weight gain?

a) Just means there’s more of me to love

b) Nothing a little exercise and self-discipline won’t fix

c) Something for my tailor to worry about

17. Madras is…

a) My favourite curry

b) No longer the correct name. I think you mean Chennai?

c) The only shirting I wear on holiday

18. Complete this sentence: I love my single…

a) Life

b) Malt whiskey collection

c) Pleat underwear

19. What’s your favourite House style?

a) Electro

b) Georgian

c) A proprietary silhouette developed with an ex-Savile Row tailor who’s 80, blind and has a sewing thumb and index finger that have fused together like a crab. He’s also closed to new clients - not that I’d ever disclose his details to you.

20. My mother always used to say to me…

a) You’re a huge disappointment to me and your father

b) You can achieve anything you put your mind to

c) There. Doesn’t a higher collar band frame your face nicely?

21. My father drove me to…

a) Drink

b) Succeed

c) My first bespoke appointment

22. Whenever I type the letter ‘P’ into my web browser, the first website the autofill shows is…

a) Pornhub.com

b) Primark.com

c) Permanentstyle.com

Mostly a)’s

No offence, but how the heck did you even end up on this site? Also, you might have a few issues you need to work on with a trained therapist.

Mostly b)’s

You seem to know the odd thing about menswear, but I’m afraid you’re far too balanced and grounded to ever become a true menswear snob.

Mostly c)’s

Congratulations! You’re a complete and utter menswear snob. Drop me a DM if you want to go halves on a Palazzo at Pitti Uomo.

Manish is @the_daily_mirror on Instagram

A Guide To Chambray Shirts – Part One: Reproductions

Posted on 10/04/202422/04/2024 by Manish Puri

By Manish Puri

Imagine a Venn diagram with three rings representing quality cloth, construction and design.

If you buy an item of clothing that sits in one of those rings you’re still doing better than half the landfill-peddled-as-fashion you’ll find on the average UK high street.

If you buy something that lies in the union of two of them, you’ve made a savvy purchase. But, chances are that you’re informed enough to be aware of the missing dimension - and it’ll niggle at you. (“I love the cloth and design, but it’s starting to fall apart”, or, “My tailor made a flawless, entirely handmade suit, but I picked an impractical cloth.”)

It’s in the intersection of that trio - that small landing strip - where you’ll find permanent style (both lower-case and capitalised). And, in my eyes, the subject of today’s guide - the casual chambray shirt, which, in essence, means those inspired by American work shirts - is as perfect an embodiment of those three principles as any article of clothing I can think of.

Let’s start with the cloth. Chambray’s origins go back to the 1500s, in the Cambrai region of north-eastern France, where a lightweight plain-weave fabric was woven (initially in linen) to make shirts, handkerchiefs and delicate pieces like lace.

Eventually, that plain weave evolved into one with a coloured warp (usually blue) and a white weft - the defining feature of chambray (above).

Over the years, chambray became the de facto material for work shirts - it’s where the term “blue collar” originates from.

In 1935, Margaret Smith, a home economics specialist, summarised the fabric’s suitability for workwear in issue no. 1837 of US Farmers' Bulletin (above - an incredibly helpful and still remarkably current resource to help consumers determine quality):

“For outdoor work in mild weather, choose a material such as chambray, which is durable, firm enough to prevent sunburn, yet lightweight enough [to] admit air and be fairly cool.”

Cloth alone wasn’t enough to fortify the shirts against the rigours of manual labour, however. From mining to laying railroad to building skyscrapers, this was the uniform of the people that built a nation.

So these shirts, by modern standards, were extraordinarily well-constructed. Double and sometimes triple-stitched seams, bar tacks on stress points, and extra-strong buttons were typical features - and you’ll see many of them replicated on the shirts in this guide too.

And, finally, what of design? I mean, a suit of armour is durable and well-constructed too, but nobody wants to sit at a laptop wearing one.

The shirts were cut generously through the body so they wouldn't cling to sweat, full in the sleeve so there was no encumbrance to range of motion, long in the tails so they stayed tucked in, and with pockets that were ingeniously designed and truly functional (rather than the affected signifiers of casualness that are are often stitched onto a top these days).

In short, each new design or advancement was brought about to make the shirt more durable and less obtrusive. It was a workwear manifestation of that oft-quoted Hardy Amies aphorism, “a man should look as if he had bought his clothes with intelligence, put them on with care and then forgotten all about them.”

This guide is very deliberately focused on casual shirts and work shirts: those with chest pockets, contrast stitching, roomier cuts and softer, smaller point collars.

The collar is often a barometer of how successfully a shirt works with tailoring. The softer and smaller it is, the likelier the prospect of it slipping under the jacket and not framing your face in the same way as a dressier shirt (like the PS Selvedge Chambray). How much this matters will really depend on personal factors such as the length of your neck, or how you like to present yourself when wearing tailoring.

My fellow PS columnist André (below) excels at wearing soft-collar (and even collar-less) shirts with tailoring and jacket alternatives. Perhaps the key is undoing an extra shirt button just to reintroduce the length that's lost by not having a higher and larger collar. Whatever the secret, even if his collar slides under a lapel, it always seems a natural and harmonious style choice for André given how easygoing his look is.

In the first part of this guide, I’ve reviewed a few shirts that are explicit reproductions of US work shirt models, as I think this is also a good way of diving into some of the design and construction points I touched upon in the introduction. In the UK, these shirts (and many kindred designs) are available at shops like Son of a Stag and Clutch Cafe. For international readers, you’ll find them at similar denim and workwear shops.

In the second part, we'll look at shirts made by brands that are less focused on strict reproduction. These shirts, whilst still heavily influenced by American models, have modifications such as a shorter length, a pocket removed, different collars, waist taken in, etc - which can make them more contemporary, versatile, and easier to pair with tailoring.

Unfortunately, there will still be plenty of quality shirt options that aren’t covered in this guide: Full Count and Real McCoy’s are two that come to mind immediately. I’ve had to draw the line somewhere but, as always, your experiences and recommendations are welcome and valued in the comments section.

Buzz Rickson's USN Chambray Blue Work Shirt - £129

My first port of call when researching this guide was my local denim shop - the excellent Son of a Stag in east London - which carries a healthy range of chambray shirts in various weights, colours and styles.

I was keen to know which one the staff recommended, and was pleased that, on the basis of detail, quality and value-for-money, they opted for the Buzz Rickson USN chambray, because that’s the one I liked the look of too.

For the uninitiated, you’ll see the nomenclature of USN used by several brands to denote that their chambray shirt is styled in homage to those issued by the US Navy - who adopted the shirt as part of their uniform in 1901.

Over the decades, the Navy chambray shirts were quite varied - especially during WWII, when the number of manufacturers multiplied rapidly. However most of the reproduction USN shirts you’ll find today are patterned after models from the 1940s. And this is true of the Buzz Rickson model - which has a reputation for being one of the most faithful reproductions.

The cloth is a one-wash chambray woven on vintage shuttle looms and dyed to match the Navy’s exact colour specifications. The seams are reinforced with double-stitching. The inside of the collar even comes with a ‘contract label’ (above) which helped the Navy keep track of who made what, where and when.

The period-correct buttons are blue urea - urea-formaldehyde, a non-transparent thermosetting resin - which are altogether more durable than ordinary resin (polyester) buttons with increased resistance to abrasion, hot water washing (up to 120°C) and acid and alkali exposure.

The collar stand was one of the better reinforced amongst the reproduction shirts I tried. And so, I think readers should be able to pair this with more casual tailoring.

In terms of size, the 15-15.5” (medium) was almost tailor-made for me - to the point where I’d be nervous of it getting any smaller after a wash, but the Son of a Stag team were pretty confident that shrinkage would be minimal given it’s pre-washed.

That said, the sizing could still prove problematic for readers. The sleeve length finished smartly at my wrists, which, based on my experience of writing these guides, means it's shorter than other shirts of comparable size. Similarly, the shirt length was noticeably less than most of the shirts in this guide - not an especially large concern for me as I tend to wear high-waisted trousers.

And so, I’d couch the fit as slightly small to size (which is not an uncommon characterisation for Japanese brands). If you’re long in the arms, the torso, or like lower-rise trousers you’ll likely either need to size up (I tried the 16-16.5” and the fit was decent, but, as you’d expect, quite full) or try a different brand. However, if the sizing works for you I think this is an excellent value option.

Big Yank 1935 Original Chambray Shirt Blue (£240)

Reliance Manufacturing Limited was a Chicago-based company formed in 1897. Its founding principles, considered to be disruptive at the time, were based on “the use of quality material and workmanship in clothes for the working man”. Sadly, the concept still feels almost revolutionary today.

Despite having a reputation for making shirts that were “clearly superior to the ugly uncomfortable shirts then being sold”, the Reliance name had little public recognition as most of their production was white-label.

To rectify this, Reliance launched an in-house workwear brand called Big Yank in 1919, and advertising campaigns sought to position the new brand as synonymous with work clothing and the American way of life - as you can see in the advert above from 1942.

However, the main reason for the brand’s success and longevity was their appetite for pushing the envelope when it came to the design and functionality. A number of these design-elements are on display in the 1935 model I’ve chosen for this guide, which has been reproduced by 35ive Summers of Japan - who resurrected the Big Yank brand in 2011.

(They're also responsible for bringing back other American stalwarts such as Rocky Mountain Featherbed - which returned in 2005).

The most obvious and celebrated detail are the asymmetrical ‘convenience’ pockets. On the left breast, you’ll see the Gacha pocket (patented in 1930 - above left) which holds a packet of cigarettes and allows the wearer to extract a smoke without having to undo the button (above right).

In the 1930s, cigarette packets weren’t housed in plastic film and so were prone to becoming saturated by sweat in a standard single-fabric pocket. Inventor JW Champion’s patent application explains how his design eliminated this problem:

“My invention prevents this [saturation] by providing not only an additional ply of fabric rearwardly of the content of the pockets, but also providing an air space for ventilation between the rear wall of the pocket and the body of the shirt.”

The right breast holds an altogether larger utility pocket which (traditionally) accommodated a tobacco tin (these days it's equally adept at stowing that other addictive product - the smartphone) and a compartment for a pen.

The other innovation you’ll find in the 1935 shirt is the “elbow action” sleeve and the “storm cuffs”. The above patent design highlights the key features: a wider sleeve panel that is finished with a cuff band that doesn’t run the full circumference of the sleeve opening.

What this design affords is increased freedom of movement through the arm and elbow and the ability to roll the sleeve high up the arm without restriction or discomfort.

The exclusion of a cuff placket and slit means there’s one less thing to catch and tear on machinery. And, when buttoning the reduced cuff band, more fabric naturally concertinas over the forearm which helps to prevent the elements from getting in.

The earliest Big Yank shirts featured aluminium buttons, but by 1935 these had been almost completely replaced (save for a branded button on the Gacha pocket - above) by urea-resin buttons - presumably they were lighter and cheaper to produce than aluminium, without any noticeable compromise in performance.

In terms of construction, the shirt has bar tacks (above in green thread) and triple-needle stitching along the seams which help to reinforce key stress points.

By the way, anyone that’s interested in finding out more about the history of Big Yank should watch this video of 35ive Summers founder, Kinji Teramoto, talking through his archive of shirts.

I tried the 1935 Big Yank shirt at Clutch Cafe in London in my regular size of 15.5” and it was a very good, relaxed fit. In anticipation of reader questions about keeping a slightly slimmer appearance I also tried the 15” and it was absolutely fine - comfortable to wear, no tightness and I could even do the collar up.

To my mind, sizing down does run slightly counter to the aesthetic of the shirt, but I wouldn’t discourage someone from going a half-size smaller if that suits their style better.

It only became apparent once the shirt was tucked in how much lower the chest pockets sit; here they’re in line with the third button on the placket, whereas most modern shirt pockets sit 1-2” higher - somewhere between the second and third button.

If you’re wearing especially high-waisted, pleated trousers the combination of that with the low-slung pockets might make your midriff appear a little busy and bulky, but, for everyone else, the chest pockets are more of a curio.

The colour of the shirt is stronger than the others in this guide, but I think it looked better in person and will hopefully fade out nicely. When I tried the shirt, I happened to be wearing a pair of navy worsted suit trousers - not the most natural of bedfellows for a chambray shirt, but a helpful reminder that one of the best ways to tame a brighter blue is with a darker one.

For those that want a crisper chambray in a slightly more muted colour, the 1942 Big Yank shirt (above) is a good choice and similar in most respects (including fit) to the 1935 shirt.

However, as it's a wartime garment, some of the construction details have been pared back, so, for example, you won’t find the triple-needle stitching here. The cigarette pocket (a new design called the mountain pocket) is also, presumably, simpler to manufacture given it doesn’t have a flap.

Honourable mentions

Bryan Shettig (above) founded The Rite Stuff with an aim of reproducing pre-WWII era workwear because, as he told UK stockist Those That Know, “as I continued to research [...], I found that in terms of workwear clothing the high point was the 1920s and 1930s. [...] The ‘40s and ‘50s were a period of maintaining, or slow decline, of the gains made in design and fabric quality leading up to the ‘20s and ‘30s”.

In writing this article, I spent a lot of time on Bryan’s website (and the associated blog) trawling through the considerable amount of research and archive material that he’s used to help him design his pieces. If anyone is interested in finding out more about the evolution of the American work shirt I’d highly recommend his two-part history.

Of The Rite Stuff’s chambray shirts, I really like the Uncle Sam in tan (above - it’s also available in blue) with its patented (naturally) E-Z Reach Double Cigarette pockets - they look really useful for those days when you want to travel light and keep your hands free. Uniquely, the shirt is finished with Corozo buttons, which were fairly common in the 1920s before being supplanted by Bakelite and plastic alternatives.

The Heracles work shirt (above) is another faithful reproduction of a 1920s/30s classic.

Whilst the number of heavy-duty design elements - the double-lined elbows and yoke, the ventilation holes, the extended chinstrap - might make the shirt less versatile for PS readers (who I suspect are just as likely to pair their chambrays with tailored flannel trousers as jeans) it’s an undeniably fascinating and expert construction.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to try any of The Rite Stuff’s shirts for this article, so I’d love to hear from readers that have experience of any of their products.

Manish is @the_daily_mirror on Instagram

Readers can find more information on chambray in the PS archives: The Guide to Denim and Chambray Shirtings

Next week: In part 2, our favourite modern, adapted chambray work shirts

A. Marchesan, Stockholm: Curated Period Menswear

Posted on 08/04/202409/04/2024 by Manish Puri

By Manish Puri

There’s not exactly a shortage of quality secondhand and vintage stores in Stockholm.

Take a stroll along Hornsgatan for example - a busy road running through the Södermalm neighbourhood - and within just a few hundred metres you’ll pass Broadway & Sons, Herr Judit and Ruth & Raoul (to name just a few).

Interestingly, it was explained to me by local friends that Sweden’s higher disposable income coupled with a predilection for “the new” (trends, brands, styles) ensures a healthy supply-line of used goods (clothes and interiors, in particular) into those shops.

And it was one such friend, the ever-stylish Erik (the loveliest of fellas who possesses the irritating ability to go thrifting at a Boy Scouts jumble sale and still come home with an immaculate made-in-Italy, Ralph Lauren DB blazer in his size), who suggested I pay a visit to a vintage place called A. Marchesan whilst I was in town.

What I found, was an extensive selection of vintage tailoring and accessories, crowned by a very wearable range of overcoats. But let's walk through the store together.

The default mise en scène of many of the vintage shops I’ve frequented is a few wall racks groaning under the weight of assorted and unrelated garments. But A. Marchesan was far removed from this; the premises oozed old-world department-store charm and considered curation.

The ground floor houses footwear and accessories. The shoes - displayed on a beautiful wooden, oval-shaped, tiered plinth - were largely Swedish (in the 1930s nearly 250 shoe factories operated in Sweden, employing some 11,000 workers), English and American - with brands like Alden, Allen Edmonds, Church’s, Edward Green, Florsheim, Foster & Son and John Lobb well represented.

The owner, Alexander Marchesan, told me that finding vintage shoes in saleable condition was an increasingly tall order. And so, it’s an endorsement of Simon’s recommendation of Crockett & Jones as a “good-value” shoe that one of the few new products that Alexander carries is a range of brogues and oxfords from C&J.

The dearth of traditional footwear has also presented Alexander with an opportunity to develop his own product, which he was eager to show me. As Yuki Matsuda, founder of artisanal shoe brand Yuketen, put it to Simon recently, “I think a lot of companies start this way - they want to recreate the vintage that they see but can’t buy any more”.

The A. Marchesan Balmoral boot (above) is inspired by a 1920s-1930s style worn in the heyday of Swedish shoemaking. Coincidentally, on my visit I was wearing a pair of Alden parajumpers which helped to bring the design specifics of the more formal Balmoral into sharper focus: an almond-shaped toe and refined waist, a narrower and shorter boot shaft, and more eyelets on the upper.

Made from French goatskin (as this shoe traditionally was) it’s a style that, even a century on, I think has a place in the modern wardrobe - especially in Stockholm where black boots in the winter seem to be de rigueur amongst the locals.

There were other in-house products under development (shirts and knitwear) that I was less taken with, but I’ll be keeping an eye open for the boots when they’re released later this year.

Past the shoes, towards the rear of the ground floor, was a large selection of hats - mostly made by the Italian company Borsalino alongside select vintage finds from Barbisio, Panizza, Preston, Stetson, Battersby, Lock & Co and Mossant.

Alexander joked that “there may be some debate about who made the best hats in the 20th century, but when it comes to the insides of the hats there’s not really a contest” (see above).

Adjacent to the hats was a healthy stock of eyeglasses, socks (also new, also English - sourced from Pantherella’s Vintage collection) and silk accessories: scarves, foulards and ties.

Simon wrote recently about his enduring love of ties and I’ve found that a vintage pick-up is often the perfect opportunity to try a different length/width or an unusual colour/pattern without breaking the bank.

Upstairs on the first floor is where you'll find the tailored offering.

In 1950, Sweden acceded to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trades (GATT), and the subsequent influx of clothing (from cheaper markets such as Italy) had a similarly detrimental impact on Sweden’s textile industry as it did on shoemaking.

As a result, the majority of tailoring sold by A. Marchesan dates to the late fifties and prior, with an emphasis on Swedish bespoke and quality RTW alongside a smattering of UK and US garments.

I won’t attempt to summarise the vast style of suits and sportcoats - distinguishing between 1920s, 30s, 40s and 50s tailoring would require a whole series of articles authored by a source far more knowledgeable than myself. However the drapey silhouette of several jackets did bring Anderson & Sheppard to mind.

There may even be a link there to Swedish tailor Per Anderson, who founded the Savile Row house in 1906 and helped to develop the Drape Cut it became synonymous with.

I can imagine some PS readers dismissing A. Marchesan as too “period” or “costume-y” for them.

Whilst this is understandable, I think it would be a real shame to miss out on the range of cuts and vintage cloths available. Just take a look at the unusual two-tone stripe of the 1940s Swedish double-breasted suit above. I suspect you’d be hard pressed to find something similar in a modern bunch.

Indeed, the closest I’ve seen is a Fox Brother’s limited edition cloth from their aptly-named Silver Screen collection - which has been expressly designed to “pay homage to the timeless elegance and sartorial excellence of [...] the golden years of Hollywood”.

When browsing the collection of looks on A. Marchesan's Instagram page, I’ve found that mentally expunging some of the period accessories - collar pins, hats and pocket watch chains - can make them a little more accessible and help cast them in a slightly less traditional light.

Above and below are just a few outfits that I think are great as is. I’d also love to hear from readers that have successfully incorporated period tailoring into their wardrobes with any tips on how to do so.

(Above - 1930s Swedish three-piece tuxedo. Below left - 1950s Swedish tweed in a black and violet houndstooth. Below right - 1940s Swedish three-piece suit in Harris Tweed.)

Now, you might remain adamant that vintage suits and jackets made from a heavier cloth, to a fuller length, with a strong lapel and generous silhouette is not for you. And yet, those are precisely the characteristics many of us look for in an overcoat.

It’s here that A. Marchesan really shone for me; their selection of winter coats was as comprehensive as anything I’ve encountered elsewhere - both in terms of quantity (they numbered in the hundreds) and quality.

PS readers often ask where they can find value in classic menswear, and I’d argue that investing in a quality second-hand coat stands head and shoulders above all other options.

Considered purely from a financial perspective, a modest 20% saving on a good coat will be significantly more in pounds and pennies than a 40% saving on, for example, a nice pair of trousers or knitwear.

On top of that, if a coat’s style and cloth has already prevailed over 70-odd years, there’s no reason to believe one won’t be able to squeeze a few more good years from it.

And also, an overcoat is usually far more forgiving to imperfections in fit than a suit or sports jacket.

I could happily have departed A. Marchesan with three or four coats under my arm (not that I would have had the strength to carry that much wool). Indeed, it's most unusual for a shop simply to have that many coats in my UK size of 38-40, let alone in the style and condition here.

After much deliberation, and careful examination of the excess baggage fees of my airline, I purchased a bespoke overcoat (below) made in 1959 by the now-defunct Stockholm tailors Janson & Wallgren, who at the time were holders of a hovleverantör (Royal Warrant).

The coat is fashioned from a deep, dark-navy wool, sourced from the mill of They-Don’t-Make-Em-Like-They-Used-To.

Forgive me, I’m being frivolous here, but it’s incredible how many people have looked at the cloth since (and the way the twill catches the light) and commented on its superiority. A view lent credence by the fact that the coat, apart from a little wear around the neck, appears virtually new.

Even the minor details help set it apart: hand-warmer pockets, a truly sumptuous heavy satin lining finished with piping, and the original coat hook still attached to the collar. (A note to all the High Street retailers that I used to patronise when I was a younger man: this hook has taken the weight of a 2.5kg coat - yes, I weighed it - for 65 years, and your hooks couldn't even hold a flimsy bit of schmatta for 65 minutes without it coming apart. Sort it!)

I departed A. Marchesan with a terrific new/old overcoat and a sweet reminder of what a funny little tribe we classic menswear folk are part of.

A Goth teenager had wandered into the shop to rendez-vous with his friend who was busy trying on a suit in the fitting room. To kill some time, the Goth - inky black hair and smokey-eyed, nails marked with the chipped remnants of an oxblood polish, wearing a jet-black uniform of cropped jeans, T-shirt and chunky platform boots - perused the shop’s collection.

He became increasingly bemused as he ran the rule over double-breasted waistcoats, top hats, silver-handled canes, monocles and spats. Our eyes met fleetingly, his face betraying a hint of incredulity. I knew exactly what was going through his mind: “And people reckon my style is out there?”

Manish is @the_daily_mirror on Instagram

Currently the only way to buy from A. Marchesan is instore or through their Instagram page. A webstore is under construction and Alexander hopes to launch it soon. I’ll update this article when it goes live.

Images courtesy of A. Marchesan.

I’m going on holiday

Posted on 06/04/202406/04/2024 by Simon Crompton

For the past 16 years I’ve never taken a holiday from publishing and replying to comments on Permanent Style. I normally take a break on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, but that’s about it.

You could call it dedication if you want, but I suspect it’s more just paranoia that if I don’t log in and keep everyone happy, the PS audience will sort of drift away, taking everything we’ve built with it. There’s a conversation there perhaps about running a business in the tyrannical age of social media, but not one for today.

Because I’m going on holiday!

Next week I won’t be doing any writing, any replying or any emailing. The wonderful Manish is taking over.

Manish will be writing all three articles during the week, and replying to all comments (on articles old or new). He’s got some great things in store, and I know is looking forward to it. He’ll also enjoy giving his view on anything you throw at him, so don’t be afraid to carry on asking any and all questions.

I’m planning on doing absolutely nothing, just being around the house with my kids. It’s going to be wonderful.

I’ll see you on the 15th - be kind to Manish while I’m gone and, you know, look after the place.

Image: Linen MTM suit from The Armoury covered here

Come to our next talk: Tony Gaziano at Mortimer House

Posted on 05/04/202405/04/2024 by Simon Crompton

Things have been a bit crazy recently with the pop-up shop and the book launches - now three, in London, Paris and New York. But I'm glad to say we're also re-starting our popular reader talks, where we interview an interesting person in menswear along with 40 or so readers.

The next event will take place on Friday, April 26th with Tony Gaziano, of shoemakers Gaziano & Girling.

Tony will be a fascinating person to talk to. We've known each other a good while, and I've followed the journey of G&G from bespoke shoes, to innovative ready-made, the first shoe factory in over a century, and now the first British shoemaker on Savile Row.

Tony is also a rarity among shoemakers in being both a maker and a designer - someone who is interested in both aspects, as well as of course running his own company.

He's uniquely placed to talk about where shoemaking has come from and where it's going. Plus more quotidian things like his favourite pair of shoes, and which styles every reader should own.

Please join myself and Tony at Mortimer House for what promises to be an enjoyable conversation:

Friday, April 26
Drinks from 6:30pm, talk at 7pm
Mortimer House: 37-41 Mortimer Street, London
RSVP essential: [email protected]

Husbands: Still sexy after all these years

Posted on 03/04/202403/04/2024 by Simon Crompton

Husbands in Paris makes quality menswear - tailoring and related clothing - in a particular seventies-influenced style that has remained impressively consistent over the past dozen years.

The suits aren’t usually my style, but the fabrics are consistently great - high quality original developments, distinctive yet wearable - and a few friends have jackets that they wear well. We may cover those in the future, to more broadly illustrate the style.

I have a lot of respect for the way Husbands’ founder, Nicolas Gabard, has grown the brand in that time: he’s evolved with the market but stayed true to his style, and to the quality.

In the five years since we covered Husbands last, the company has grown from 5 to 15 people, and when we visited had just opened a second shop - a smaller space on the Left Bank, complimenting the original store on the Right.

I had assumed the store was a straightforward expansion, but it has a different spin to the original, focusing on ready-made clothing. “It’s somewhere for that local customer to just stop in and buy,” Nicolas told us. “The original store is more of a destination, for MTM and MTO. People come here knowing what they want.”

It’s a good example of how the Husbands evolution hasn’t always been in a straight line. It started with ready-to-wear tailoring, stopped for a few years, and then started up again in 2019 when there was more of a focus online.

Until the new shop, expansion had largely been through wholesale, something that was obvious when we toured the offices upstairs. The little white-walled warren contained the rest of the staff, racks of samples, and several mood boards for future seasons. Samples on display included robes and leather jackets.

“I’m not sure we’ll expand with wholesale forever though,” commented Nicolas. “It too has its pressures and problems.”

Nicolas isn’t keen on being the face of Husbands and rarely allows his photo to be taken, despite looking amazing in the clothes. But he is intelligent, warm and honest, so talking to him is always interesting.

“When I started I wanted to show that tailoring could be exciting, could be sexy,” he says. “And I think I’ve done that, which is pleasing.

“We did it in two ways I think. One was showing people that there was greater value in our clothes than with designers, and still a really interesting style. We showed people what makes great fabric, by doing it in detail, in person.

“The other thing was talk about how much tailoring is a means of expression. It’s not about a designer brand telling you how to dress - that's so boring. You can walk into Gucci, spend 10,000 and look like a clone. Much better is to use the blank slate of a suit to show what you can do, to show who you are.”

One thing Nicolas is particularly good at is putting classic clothes in less-expected combinations, often removing their associations in the process: a tweed jacket with a flared jean perhaps, or a tattersall shirt under a leather jacket.

These kinds of looks remind you how much the problem with classic menswear is rarely the materials, but the way they're put together. Some of the tattersall shirts could be straight from a traditional shop like Cordings, but they feel very different at Husbands.

Nicolas and his staff often do this with clothes in the shop, putting combinations together as you talk. At the moment they’re doing a double-breasted tweed jacket with a notch lapel, for example (below), that looks quite classic with a straight grey trouser. But as we were chatting Nicolas mentioned how much he likes it with their really wide-leg (28 inch) style. Suddenly the look was much more striking, very 1930s.

“We’re always pushing and pulling people in different directions,” says Nicolas. “Our trousers have become wider over the years - when you were here last our classic had a 19-inch opening, now it’s 22. We’re also experimenting an ultra-long point-collar shirt.

“But at the same time, we’re doing navy suits again because we want to remind people that we can. And a navy suit is so hard to do well - there’s nowhere to hide, no eye-catching design or details.”

Nicolas is selling himself a little short there, because there’s always something going on with a Husbands suit, no matter how plain it might seem.

For instance, he’s been doing quite a lot of fabric development with Lovat Mill in Scotland. “We’ve been creating these tweedy wools but with a dry handle, sometimes with little micro-stripes like you might have seen in the 1960s,” he says. “And our own flannels - I love Fox, but I wanted something between their weights and with that same really dry hand.”

That charcoal flannel (above) is also a reminder of why Husbands is worth a look for even conservative dressers, because there are always interesting, subtler pieces in the collection. I picked up a western shirt, for example, that is pretty standard save for a longer collar - which isn't even very long, just longer than the skimpy things most brands are doing.

Then there's a Loden coat (below) which does something similar - like the classic style but with a slightly bigger collar, slightly better/heavier material, and a slightly more flared silhouette.

It was lovely to have the chance to catch up with Nicolas, both from a customer point of view and an industry one.

The brand started in such a similar way to others we cover - one man who couldn’t find clothes he wanted to wear - but has developed in different directions, a bit more fashion, a bit more mainstream, yet stayed true to its style and its production.

Here’s wishing Nicolas and the team more of the same over the next 12 years.

husbands-paris.com

For further reading, this piece on Matches is nice, written by some of the staff on their tailoring style.

Wearing black shoes with jeans

Posted on 01/04/202401/04/2024 by Simon Crompton

This is something I’ve had questions about recently - I assume because fashion generally has taken a turn towards black and, combined with the general casualisation going, black shoes and jeans have become a more common styling choice.

So the answer is yes, obviously you can wear the two together. But not as easily as something like brown suede, and not in as many ways.

On Permanent Style we tend to assume two things about readers:

1. They want to appear ‘simply well-dressed’ most of the time, in those words we’ve used so often. They want to look good but not stand out. On the spectrum of subtle to showy, they lean heavily towards the subtle.

2. They want clothes that are versatile. This won’t always be the case, but a lot of readers are in the process of figuring out what they like to wear, or upgrading their wardrobe, and in both cases virtually starting from scratch. Versatility is often highly prized.

For these two reasons we tend to suggest something like a dark-brown suede loafer or boot as the smart option with jeans (examples above).

A brown-suede chukka works with every shade of blue jean, from dark to light, off-white and black (with a little bit of fading). And also with a range of smart trousers - greens and tans, grey and navy; cold and warm, muted and strong.

Plus there's versatility with the rest of the outfit. The knitwear or jacket could be anything from a raspberry shetland to a taupe cashmere, the jacket a cold urban navy or a warm rusty brown.

The result is a classic, traditional look. Brown suede creates less contrast - in terms of colour or texture - with the trouser than almost any other type of shoe.

You get subtlety and versatility.

Black is different. It’s not great with warm colours, like that rusty brown, and it can make bright colours look cheap.

The colour of jeans has to be more particular: rich blues usually aren’t great and white can look stark. The easiest colour is a dark indigo (perhaps in a colder, greener wash) or a much more faded blue, like my jeans above.

And it makes demands on your other clothes. Wearing a similarly dark navy top, as I am in these images, can work, as can black itself. Very pale colours are often good, as are some browns or greens. But fewer things work than with brown shoes.

Black shoes are not as versatile.

Nor are they as subtle. Black shoes contrast more with these pale blue jeans - they’re not the normal or expected choice. Of course, that’s why some people find them refreshing, but it will suits fewer conservative readers. (It's no coincidence that classic tailoring is more about harmony and has less of this dissonance.)

Black shoes with black jeans creates less contrast, but it’s still more of a look. I like it and I wear it, but the same things apply as above: I wear it less, only with specific things, and when I want a specific style.

How much of a look it is depends a bit on the type of shoe. The suede Sagans (first image below) are more of a look than the Galway boots (second image).

But still, my default is something subtler like Color-8 cordovan.

When it comes to the type of shoe, more casual styles like boots and loafers are generally easiest, as are derbys. But the material doesn’t necessarily have to be that casual.

While I normally go for my black Utah loafer from Edward Green (a waxed and tumbled leather, a bit like a grain), black calf isn’t necessarily bad. It just creates more contrast and probably requires something a little smarter on top.

The only thing to be careful with is black suede, as the way it sucks the light can make it quite unusual. That's best in particularly casual styles, like a derby.

The loafers I'm wearing are vintage Ralph Lauren crocodile loafers. Blake-stitched, probably from the late 1980s, I picked them up on eBay having seen a pair on a friend. They’re not something I’d wear all the time, but the super-low vamp is quite appealing. It might have been good to lengthen the jeans by a fold though, given how low they are.

Lucas (on the left) is wearing vintage Gucci horsebits. The fade of his black jeans is a good example of how good that shade is with navy, as well as how much easier faded black is to wear in general (being basically grey at that point).

Clothes shown with my blue jeans:

B&Tailor bespoke overcoat in Fox cloth
PS watch cap in navy
Rubato navy lambswool crewneck
Vintage Levi’s 501s
Rubato black alligator belt
Vintage Ralph Lauren crocodile loafers

Clothes shown with my black jeans:

PS ‘English Tweed’ coat
PS white undershirt
Rubato ‘Earth’ lambswool crewneck
Rubato black alligator belt
Bryceland’s 933 black jeans
Edward Green ‘Galway’ boots in calf and grain leather

Book launches in Paris and New York

Posted on 29/03/202429/03/2024 by Simon Crompton

We're going to have launch parties for the new book, The Casual Style Guide, in both Paris and New York over the coming months. The Paris launch will be on April 18th at Beige, and New York on May 16th at The Armoury.

I'm really excited about this. The London launch at Clutch was fun, and it will be great seeing a wide range of readers in both France and the US. I know guys in Paris have been asking for an event of some sort for a while, and the new Beige store is a beautiful place to do it.

As you may have seen from the PS Shop, we've sold out of the Casual Style Guide online, incredibly. It took six years to sell out of the first one, and a little over six days to sell out of the new one! But we have kept some stock aside for the two launches, so there will be books available to buy and get signed at both events. Feel free to bring along your own copy of the book as well, or indeed any other books if you would like them signed.

Stockists around the world also have copies, so please check your local store. Even if it's not in the same city, they're nearly all selling online so you can pick it up that way. We've also placed an order for a second edition, which will arrive in June. Shops are sending re-orders in anticipation of that, and anyone ordering on the PS Shop will get theirs once the new copies come in.

Thank you everyone for your support. Jamie and I really have found it quite overwhelming.

And thank you so much to the guys at Beige and The Armoury for hosting us. The details of the two events are below. No need to RSVP to either, just turn up and say hello.

Paris

Beige Habilleur
Thursday April 18th
86 Rue Bonaparte (new shop, Paris 6)
6-8pm

New York

The Armoury
Thursday, May 16th
13 East 69th St (Upper East Side shop)
6-8pm

Beige images credit: Photo, Julien T Hamon; AD, Pierre-Alexis Guinet

Vittorio Salino: His philosophy, and fitting a jacket

Posted on 27/03/202404/04/2024 by Simon Crompton

Having met the Florentine tailor Vittorio Salino last summer, I took the opportunity of being in Florence this past January to commission a jacket. I got on with Vittorio, was impressed with his outlook, and realised PS readers would be interested in a Florentine option now that Liverano has become so expensive and Vestrucci is mostly MTM.

When I have that jacket I’ll do a full review, but for the moment I wanted to talk about Vittorio’s background, his work and how he sees the future of bespoke. We took some nice images of the fitting for the jacket too, in the new atelier Vittorio is setting up in a residential neighbourhood just north of the Fortezza.

That atelier was very much embryonic. The ground floor had one or two pieces of furniture, but was essentially a shell. Downstairs, there were cutting tables, steam irons and a mirror, but had little more in the way of outfitting.

The plan is to have the place fully kitted up by June, with a cosy seating area and big fitting room upstairs, as well as a bar.

For the moment, there’s a nice coffee bar on the corner of the street, and Vittorio and I chatted there, along with his assistant Clément, about questions of clothing and philosophy.

Where did you train before Liverano, Vittorio?e

Before I started my career at Liverano & Liverano I had three years of ‘school’ at the Camera Europe Dell’Alta Sartorial [CEDAS]. My teacher there was Luigi Gallo. The school was in the morning and then in the afternoon I had an apprenticeship in the tailor shop under him.

How long were you at Liverano?

After those three years of tailoring school, I had the opportunity to go to Liverano & Liverano. There I underwent the classic method of learning bespoke.

First you learn all the small, less important aspects: sotto di collo, basting lines... Then you go to the first fitting and the making of the sleeves. Then the second fitting. Finally, you learn how to finish everything else in a jacket: the sides, the shoulders, the collar.

The hardest part is arguably how to set the sleeves in the sleevehead, and to finish the shoulder. When I mastered all these steps, including pattern making and cutting, Antonio Liverano asked me to go to trunk shows with him around the world, where I went to Asia, America etc, and discovered the different styles and ways of thinking.

During Covid I also taught at the Liverano School for two years, where I had the opportunity to work with future tailors. Some off those went to Cifonelli, others had a chance to work at Liverano, and one became my assistant, Clément [below]. By the end I was doing all the above at the same time.

Why did you decide to leave and set up on your own?

I don't really like to say it, but I felt undervalued at Liverano for the time and effort I had put in. I felt that I could do the same but for myself, and prove that I'm good at what I do. Not that I really had something to prove, but I wanted to feel free and show my own vision and philosophy.

How would you say your product or approach is different to Liverano?

Style-wise we are still perfecting our jacket style. But that’s inevitable - it’s always a never-ending journey - and the changes are never drastic. Fundamental views and philosophies don’t change.

For example, for us the most important principle is comfort. If you are not comfortable in your jacket or suit, you won't wear it. You need to be able to go about your daily chores and almost forget you have a jacket on. We make it slightly larger in the chest as one way to create this feeling.

One of the most beautiful things is to dress someone who has imperfections, and to show it in the jacket. We think the jacket should never hide anything, but rather show it elegantly. That's why it's really important to have a soft jacket: no shoulder padding, no heavy canvas.

Technically how would you describe your cut?

My jacket style could be said to be influenced by the eighties Florentine jacket, rather than the modern one. Style influences would be Luigi Liverano and Vladimiro Mealli.

The jacket should be very tight around the neck and a bit more open in the front. The buttons sit a little lower than the classic Florentine (as a reference, perhaps 1cm lower than Liverano). The lapels are a bit wider so they can have a beautiful wave form over time, as they open up.

I make a straight chest pocket as the ‘boat’ form is created over time, with the help of a pocket square. We tend to give slightly more room in the hips for comfort and a slightly higher vent - level or slightly lower than the pocket. The shoulder is slightly extended but never exaggerated.

Our trousers are a bit larger in the front to be sure that the front darts stay closed. We heavily work on the calf as it's a pet peeve of mine to see it break there. We prefer simple slant pockets, and the trouser should just hit the top of the shoe, with a minimal break.

We haven't made a lot of coats yet, but style-wise I tend to go for raglans and single-breasted peak-lapels. They tend to have cleaner cuts, and simplicity. I don't like to add martingales. I make the collar and sleeves slightly larger.

You seem to have a broader awareness of men’s clothing than some tailors, do you think that’s fair?

Perhaps yes. We like to experiment and love side projects. We’ve made bespoke clothes that are very different from classic tailoring, including ‘fashion’ garments for fashion schools, dresses and cultural/traditional garments.

My philosophy of trying to make something timeless that follows you in life comes from my travels, and love of vintage. I have pieces from the forties that are unworn. In this day and age it's really hard to find clothes that are made in the same way.

Does that influence how you see the future of bespoke tailoring?

Yes. Bespoke needs to go in a new direction, and for me the important thing is ease - a bespoke piece should be treated like a normal jacket or even an overshirt. It shouldn't be something you only wear at work or at very formal events.

Bespoke should be playful, and mixed with daily clothes like jeans, penny loafers, perhaps a jungle jacket over the top. Vintage military garments probably influence our colour palette as well: we tend to go with similar greens, browns and blues.

I want to make garments that you wear, break in, throw in the trunk of your car, and take for a long walk. They should be like a second skin and show that they’ve lived - I love to see defects from wear and tear. We hope that after two generations, a jacket will have been repaired, altered, and still used. We can alter it for those generations as it always has at least four sizes of inlay inside.

For more on Vittorio (and some old images!) see his interview with The Armoury here.

A review of the finished jacket, made in Fox Tweed TD9, will follow in a couple of weeks. The jacket pictured is at a first-fitting stage.

Vittorio Salino’s prices in Florence start at:

Jacket: €2200
Suit: €3000
Trousers: €800
Coat: €4500

All prices include cloth and tax. Trunk show prices vary

Those trunk shows are held in Belgium, Zurich and Los Angeles. There are no plans to add others in the near future, due to capacity (Vittorio and Clément make everything themselves.)

Upcoming dates:

29th-30th March: Antwerp and Brussels
26th-28th April: Zurich
20th-25th May: Los Angeles

Assisi double-breasted summer suit: Review

Related posts

Introducing: The Suede Overshirt

Related posts

Making shoes for King Charles: Tony Gaziano video

Related posts

Permanent Style summer drinks in the Burlington Arcade: Pictures

Related posts

Introducing: The Art du Lin Harrington

Related posts

Beige, Paris: The best kind of multi-brand shop

Related posts

A vintage shopping day in New York

Related posts

My favourite jeans: Bryceland’s, Rubato, Blackhorse Lane, vintage

Related posts

How to pack for a week-long trip: Video

Related posts

Reader profile: Niyi

Related posts

Buck Mason, Novesta, New & Lingwood: Spring ‘24 Highlights

Related posts

A Guide To Chambray Shirts – Part Two: Modern Brands

Related posts

The Permanent Style Summer drinks – taking over the Burlington Arcade

Related posts

Collars are more flattering with tailoring – but do you care?

Related posts

Vittorio Salino tweed jacket: Review

Related posts

Are you a menswear snob?

Related posts

A Guide To Chambray Shirts – Part One: Reproductions

Related posts

A. Marchesan, Stockholm: Curated Period Menswear

Related posts

I’m going on holiday

Related posts

Come to our next talk: Tony Gaziano at Mortimer House

Related posts

Husbands: Still sexy after all these years

Related posts

Wearing black shoes with jeans

Related posts

Book launches in Paris and New York

Related posts

Vittorio Salino: His philosophy, and fitting a jacket

Related posts

Instagram Stories