Maltese Falcon Gallery
While the look in the Maltese Falcon is a classic it is still dated. In this article we take a look at how the style could be updated. All color photo arrangements made possible by Jay Kos, NYC.
Old Skool: In 1941 the dark single breasted, peak lapel suit was considered POW for early spring time and paired with a white shirt and a solid tie. And a mouse brown fedora.
New Skool: In 2006, to elicit the same reaction consider a beautiful medium grey suit with a light red shirt with a white graph check. A woven tie with a repp stripe and a mouse brown trillby.
Old Skool: Charcoal double breasted chalk stripe suit, white shirt and solid tie. Steady and refined.
New Skool: Single Breasteds are more in keeping with the spirit of the double breasteds of yesterday. Single breasted charcoal chalk stripe, Black knit tie, Sand pink cotton shirt with white box plaid. Medium blue pocket square with yellow dots. The black solid tie, either repp or knit was ubiquitous for the denizens of Film Noir.
Variant: Or you can rock it with more color for spring. Same suit with fuscia knit tie and a pale blue background shirt with white stripes outlined in purple and medium blue. Chocoalte brown fedora.
Old Skool: Sydney Greenstreet knew how to relax in the sophisticated silk dressing gown.
New Skool: Updated for maximum impact in vibrant colors and patterns either in yesteryears fine silk or in cashmere with quilted silk lapels.
Ecce Dandy
What is a Dandy? Everyone has a reaction to the word “dandy” but how many have actually ruminated on the term and its meanings? It may be that the actual term is far too complex to ever fully understand. That the meaning of “dandy” may forever elude definition and might require volumes of study for even the most basic understanding. What we do know, is that when he appears with a carnation in his lapel he excites notice and comment. The secure are pleased, the jealous are overly inquisitive and those who feel inadequate make their minds up that this is frivolity itself.
Perhaps the dandy’s place in society is to summon another’s true nature to the surface. There is a Twilight Zone episode where an old player piano would “out” a certain personality type according to what tune was played on it. The true personality was brought out against the subject’s will and belied the face they were wearing for the world.
If, like in the player piano episode, the role of the dandy is to elicit a self revealing reaction from his observer what tune animates the dandy himself? Identifying that tune may prove elusive, and might cut much deeper than the clothes they seem to exist to wear. This would suggest a more complex persona for the dandy than the mere fascination of beauty and style. And it may be that like the player piano episode, there are forces at work, which are beyond the comprehension of the dandy himself.
The Dandy is looked up to as an example of elegance and at the same time ridiculed for his superficialities. How can a dandy be thusly persecuted and extolled? We know that some of our most influential men across Anglo-Franco-American History have been dandies. Examples abound: Patton, Churchill, Disraeli, Wilde, Fitzgerald, The Duke of Windsor, Proust, and Hemmingway to list a mere handful.
A dandy set the stage for what we all wear, and Dandies after him refined it. Dandies are considered the very essence of social interaction, living to a certain degree not only to dress but to interact with their surroundings and affect them. And yet, a dandy can be considered a loner, an outsider.
Although the dandy is often called upon to serve as an example of maintaining propriety, he can also be portrayed both as not serious and not to be trusted. Like the Templar order that were eventually burned at the stake by the King of France, the Dandy can be used and then thanklessly discarded. I think there may be a deeper reason for this. Though the dandy is a figure of the establishment, he is definitely his own man, a libertarian, a non-conformist amongst the conformists. He may support King and Church and Country, but he is not a flag waver. This is not a good personality type for society interested in producing individuals easily controlled.
Control is an issue, especially in a country, where the humorless work ethic may have developed a sense of jealousy about the dandy’s wit and ease with the ladies. Think of Fred Astaire in his movies as a graceful, witty dandy foiling and making look inflexible, all the overly serious men around him.
Even so, this image was only able to manifest itself for a short time during the depression era when the carefree lifestyle of the dandy temporarily intersected with the dreams of the unemployed “everyman.” The depression was one of the few periods here when the “work ethic” broke down completely and the idea of national lightheartedness was necessary for emotional relief. And the work ethic being essentially “taste-deaf” would only be able to counter the dandy’s lightheartedness with condemnation that it was idleness. And we all know what idle hands lead to.
Ordinarily the dandy is subject to jealousies by those who cannot keep up with his seemingly effortless ease. Thus it seems word is spread that the dandy is not serious, that he is flamboyant and that he is overly vain. How else could the centralized bureaucracy keep us from respecting the dandy, from admiring him? It seems this labeling is designed to reduce him to the level of lightweight, of self-indulgent “dirty player”. We see the dandy as a recurring character in film.
Think of any Hero who is a little too well turned out and tidy, and you will find a character too good to be true. In film noir, though many of the characters love clothes and have style, the pure dandy is often the villain, the sociopath. Think of the Clifton Webb’s character in the film Laura (1944) who seems to be the very pillar of stability, then exposed as the essence of self-indulgent appetites. Portrayed as an immaculate dandy, he seems harmless and superficial, but apparently teeming with evil cravings.
How many times is the precise character presented in film as the one with the wicked, anti social thoughts? Like the art dealer Fustian in the Albert Campion series, under the façade of decency and propriety, the dandy is a “dirty trickster.” At best he comes off as unable to love anyone but himself.
Those classic B grade Hammer films come to mind with all their debonair English madmen dressed to the nines. Each one of them educated, refined and immaculately outfitted, but insane and diabolical. Aren’t all the Bond Villains highly individualistic dandies? It would seem Hollywood would have us believe dandies are trying to destroy the world with their self-absorption.
I think what is happening here is the public’s inability to separate the true dandy from the compulsive, neurotic personality. There are some similarities but, like the double helix, many traits of each do not touch. If a dandy is someone who wears clothes for the pure enjoyment of wearing clothes, he is at peace except to the extent that he may be dreaming of acquiring another piece with which to adorn his person.
On the other hand, the compulsive neurotic is at odds with nature, and it follows that being obsessed with perfection would lead one (neurotic) to intricacies of clothing, clothing being a “fussy” item and thus an endroit neurotics would congregate around. However, there can be no enjoyment of clothes where the concern is only with neatness and construction, stitches per square everything, being pressed and afraid of a stain, all at the expense of consumption and style. If one were to play the player piano music for custom made shirts it would prompt a dandy to ask if the shirts are beautiful, a neurotic would want to ask if they are prefect.
Perfectionists are doomed from the outset, and they are too caught up with their own inner demons to have relationships. True dandies get dressed well then have a merry time on the town and do not worry about every crease bending their legs causes in their trousers or whether their companion’s lipstick gets on their collar. These are all part of what makes the wardrobe more comfortable; they are the road to patina. A dandy is happiest when he is dressed well in the way he likes to dress.
Next time you see the man with the carnation in his lapel, make sure you observe to see whether he is constantly looking at it and smoothing his lapel out or if he is walking jauntily and oblivious to his surroundings. If the second type, he is not worried about what others think of him, and probably a true dandy.
He certainly isn’t overly worried about picayune comments about whether a buttonhole is exactly one sixteenth of an inch away from the edge. The Dandy has some knowledge of construction but prefers beauty to uniformity, taste to technicalities. He knows what he likes automatically, and the idea that everything he wears has to be of the “best” is absurd, the concept of the “best” being a rather elusive one.
Excellence is more likely the aim of the dandy. While worry over the “best” is the purview of the neurotic who runs around in circles like a pinball bouncing off of bumpers, for the approval of others, the dandy relies on his own well grounded preference. The dandy merely enjoys what he enjoys in a very fluid, natural manner. Which all begs the question, is a dandy born or made?
I think probably the dandy is born not made. He is developed and polished but one either hears the aria, or one does not. That may be why so many who try so hard and have it not in them, give up in disgust and decide that it was all vainglorious after all. In this way, the dandy is more like the shaman, the medicine-man.
Forces are at work creating the dandy, he occurs in nature, but rarely and, like left handed children, his talents are often quickly corrected by his unimaginative environment. And within that rareness, there are so many variations, that social observers have trouble cataloguing him properly. Whatever they are, in the modern age, they tend to be a discreet character and eschew discussions about their toilette, which only adds to the murmurs that he is an outsider, not generous and prone to hoarding his talents rather than sharing them with the world. Again, that is a trait society finds unacceptable.
Acceptable dandies like Sherlock Holmes are such because they are Brummelian one step further. Not only do they wear the same monotonously scrupulous outfit, but it was ala mode and in no way one’s own cut. He simply appears apparently unconsciously clad in the most correct articles of clothing. It also ties in with the Victorian/Puritanical ideals of thrift. It also helps that Holmes was a mastermind and a heavyweight sleuth. However, I might add that he is pictured as an unwholesome loner (Watson is more like his familiar than his friend), and a tortured, pallid, obsessive soul.
It would seem that in the modern societal context, even acceptable dandies must have severe failings. Additionally, that they must not actually be what they seem to promote themselves as. That even the most honorable ones harbor dark secrets. In fact, I can think of no illustrated hero who is precise in his kit who doesn’t also have serious flaws. Real Heroes are rugged, outdoorsy and muscular, and if they look good in clothes, it had better be an accident.
We may never truly know who and what a dandy is. The man and the mask are perhaps inseparable. We do know that wherever the dandy’s well heeled eminence goes, curiosity follows. Dandies march to the beat of a very different drum, if you could only hear its music, you would understand. Baudelaire touched on it well when he said that Dandyism was a form of religion. Perhaps, its devotees are fanatics, and perhaps they are mystics. They do seem to know each other instantly, as if there is some greater power at work coursing through sartorial radio waves undetected by the rest of the population.
However, the dandy IS recognized by the public as a type. Additionally, the dandy is a recurring stock character in Hollywood movies, but he is never neutral. No one in a movie is ever a dandy as a matter of chance; it always touches on his character. And although the dandy is known to exist, who he really is remains a mystery.
All that seems to shine through is who he seems to be to the uninformed observer, and that is someone who thinks himself superior, above the laws of men. Demanding respect, he at once wants to be looked at and yet, intimidate from inquiry about his clothes. In this manner, the dandy reinforces the idea that he is a loner, that he is provoking curiosity and cruelly denying the observer an outlet for resolution of that being observed. This frustrates the full appreciation and keeps the titillation ongoing. That stance keeps familiar, contempt laden paws off the dandy, paws that may turn and rend just as soon as stroke and admire.
And so we are back to the man with the carnation. He gets off the elevator and strolls by you, and you wonder. The man with the carnation makes us all wonder if there isn’t something he knows that the rest of us do not. Has he more expertise, what other interesting secrets lurk beneath? Women think he is maybe a little more interesting. Men think he may have a few sartorial secrets, they may even think he is smarter (I would be hard pressed to find an example of a dandy that wasn’t bright.) Attention to the right detail can intimidate, create wonder or generally please. His individuality can provoke because he can make the observer realize they are uniform in their banality. The dandy is not afraid to exhibit his personal style can cause resentment, it can engender admiration. And what is style but a canvas, an illusion, a landscape. The dandy paints and mesmerizes the conscious mind with the mastery of his brush strokes.
For a further exposition of this topic the author recommends visiting Dandyism.net where there is a selection of erudite essays on this topic.
The Art of Tie-Chi
In an age where it seems many are constantly focussed in acquiring a new necktie, how many are interested in learning how to perfect the tying of the ones they have? It is elemental to the idea of style to have tied your tie well and yet make it look like you cared not at all. It is the perpetually conflicting emphases that a man of quality should be idle and at the same time both selfless and industrious which creates the triality of illusions to choose from in one’s tie knot.
If you are idler, then less care for what others think and the more cavalier and indulgent can be the choice of knot. If you are selfless, then more thought for what others think, perhaps symmetry and reassurance to please the eyes of the observer? If you are industrious, then no time for what others think, and yet, you need to avoid distractions and keep the focus on what you are trying to convey. When all three factors are in perfect harmony for you, the style gods might say you have achieved oneness with your tie-chi.
It should be noted that the perfect knot is an illusion. Like a beautiful painting, its possibility draws you in and mesmerizes you gently. It is the call to a remote Caribbean island, a holiday in the Rhone valley. But because you can but rarely achieve its perfection, it is about the striving for it, the wanting and getting of it all; the grand illusion.
And the illusion continues. One need not be old or wealthy or powerful to tie a knot that grants them status and style. Style transcends all other considerations and is often attained in its highest form by the outsider, there is nothing like yearning to out emulate what you most adore or covet.
The object is to engage people’s wonder at the beauty of the way you tied your knot without causing a disturbance or too much unresolved curiosity. When you’ve achieved that, you’ve arrived. I have seen old men with thrift store duds and teenagers with seemingly little in store for their future still tie their ties (and indeed, wear their clothes) with ageless and indomitable panache.
I have expended considerable energy in the act of knotting (of ties) and I have learned one thing, that I am an amateur. I will pursue the beautiful, elegant knot until I knot no more. To be sure, the most sought after tie knot may not be a perfect knot, but rather a beautiful one. A simple tie can do, it need not be expensive but it must be from good quality silk, well lined, well sewn and well designed in terms of both shape and length.
I have seen Ralph Lauren Purple Label ties for $15 and Charvet ties for $40 on eBay. These two brands, amongst others, are constructed very well and use gorgeous silk and interlinings and will give you head start in your mission. Truthfully, I’ve seen Holliday and Brown and Turnbull and Asser ties for $5 or less in gently used condition. My point is that we are not talking about a big investment to look good, simply a personal investment of time in developing the right attitude. Just like throwing a baseball, anyone can learn to toss (a baseball), how many will put the physical and mental effort into becoming a major league ace? Luckily, unlike becoming a pitcher, one can learn to tie beautiful knots without needing too much innate talent.
One thing that is certain, you must love the idea of tying your tie knot. If you don’t have approach the act with the proper zest, you need to reexamine your modus knot-orandi. There are far too many today who see this as mere a chore (wearing a suit as well as a tie) when in fact it should be treated as an act of manly determination and control over both your environment and destiny. In fact, tying your tie knot beautifully is such a promethean step within the world of style that it would almost be better if neckties were all solid in color so that rather than concentrating on a tie’s pattern, we all concentrated on the beauty of the knot and tie length themselves. Think of tying your knot, not merely as a necessity to make money but rather as a proud demonstration of who you are and how much respect you have for what you do.
You should stand in front of a mirror to perform this ritual, and concentrate. It helps if the lighting is good. If you have a beautiful person to tie your tie for you, well then you certainly don’t need my help.
Choosing the knot: Interesting topic, this. I have always favored what I consider the four-in-hand knot. Recently, I have taken the shocking step of trying the Albert knot, which I find can sometimes be quite doggy. This is of course a matter of personal choice but some knots do look better on some that others. Maybe a few photos of you in different knots and collar types will yield a desirable selection. This is all up to you of course; some actually like a discordant perspective between the size of the knot and their head/neck. I believe in the Greek principle of balance in proportion. The 85 Ways to Tie a Tie: The Science and Aesthetics of Tie Knots by Thomas Fink and Yong Mao is a wonderful resources for experimenting with tie knots and available from Amazon.
Personally, I tie the tie around my shirt collar after I’ve flipped the points up but before I’ve buttoned the front top button. I’m sure there are other ways to do it, whatever would make you comfortable and not obstruct what you are doing will serve.
It is essential that you have a dimple in your knot. A necktie sans dimple is the sartorial equivalent of wearing your pants right under your pectorals. To achieve this effect whilst tying the tie, pinch the fabric on each side evenly to create a dimple, holding it in place with one hand (and set of fingers) while pulling the wide end down gently with the other, until the desired tightness of knot is attained. Though some tightness is preferred moderation should be the guide, one doesn’t want to destroy the dimple’s presence.
Re-tying the tie several times is not an admission of failure but rather a striving for excellence. Don’t miss your train or be late for the office but it can sometimes take several times to figure out how to knot a particular tie. You will doubtless form a “memory” of the way certain brands (or actual, individual cravats) of tie tend to perform and where you need to cross them over to arrive at the desired length of tie and thickness of knot.
Pinch and shape the knot, with passion, with pride, with assuredness, with honor, excitement, exuberance but above all with your thumb and forefinger. Here is moment when both the knot you choose and the manner in which you condition its shape reveals you for who you are as an individual. Who is it you want to be? A famous jazz musician? A British prime Minister, A famous movie star from the past, An important businessman, A King and dandy, A trial lawyer, an auction house curator, an Ivy league professor. I suggest you seek out photos of your sartorial hero and examine the types of tie and knot they employed on a regular basis? Ill wager the way any man whose style you admire was most consistent about their tie knot, a factor you probably never noticed consciously but subconsciously were drawn to.
Too many leave the art of tying their tie to the last five minutes before they run out of their house or apartment. They mistakenly believe people will admire them merely for the overtness of their well chosen clothes, forgetting the power that resides in a well tied but seemingly effortlessly arrived at knot. To cultivate the perfect knot takes practice, it takes patience and it takes a desire. It’s one of those machinations wherein style resides and costs not a penny extra.
Just buying a tie is the first step but ask yourself if you really spend time practicing on how to wear it just so. To achieve a oneness with your sartorial chi, put aside 15 minutes and just tie and re-tie a necktie until you achieve a knot you find handsome. Learn to use your fingers to shape the silk and scrunch it around in different shapes and positions until you hone a technique with your finger tips.
Slip the tie to the top of your shirt collar. Some shirts will accommodate this; some will knot (haha). It looks better when you do this, unless you have a specific alternative mission in mind like looking hard at work.
Bowties: Every man should have one besides a formal one and know how to tie it also. There are times besides formal ones that a bowtie can add an air of insouciance to the outfit. It is a new way of saying; I do not have to kowtow to anyone.
How you tie and knot your tie tells the world a great deal about yourself. Others may not be able to pick up on the transmissions consciously. However, I’m sure sociologists would agree that the messages would still be chronically broadcast for anyone who cared to notice. Sherlock Holmes, or someone in the know, could undoubtedly read volumes about you from your knot. No doubt Watson would proclaim all those revelations as “Dashed clever”. That’s part of the fun of dressing well, that’s part of the fun of being dapper.
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Beau Brummell: The Ultimate Dandy
The name Beau Brummell is familiar but few people really know anything about who he was, or his effect on history. In this biography Ian Kelly sets out to address this shortcoming, and in doing so presents us with a most entertaining and informative read. To date, there been few books touching on the subject of this man who single-handedly conjured up the maelstrom that would swirl all “male-dom” into the fixed business and evening dress, and set of habits and attitudes that we know as the modern man of manners. Although not without its faults, this is why this book is such an important addition to the bookshelves.
The book starts off well with a promising overview of the origins and the evolution of the meaning for the word “dandy” but soon gets mired in the dry history of both the London of the time and Brummell’s parents. Although necessary to provide a context for the story there is little social imagery to draw the reader in. Fortunately once the setting has been established this lack of flow gets brilliantly rectified in the chapters that follow as Beau Brummell is introduced.
The man who would eventually be nicknamed “Beau” for his overall excellence and beauty of style and person is born in 1779 as George Bryan Brummell to middle class (but well-to-do) parents, and the stage is set.
At Eton College, a boys only boarding school, we find Brummell’s world awash with homoeroticism, actual homosexuality and autoeroticism. No doubt the reason for this examination is owed in part to influence by a revisionist movement that sees homosexuality in every crevice of the past. In any case, while at Eton, Brummell meets the Prince of Wales and they develop a pleasant acquaintance. The set is now populated with one of Brummell’s most important supporting characters.
On leaving Eton at sixteen, Brummell purchases a commission in the Prince of Wales’ cavalry regiment. It is here that Brummell forms a strong friendship with the Prince of Wales. The Prince becomes so impressed with Brummell’s talents for social grace and personal style that we find the teenage Brummell attending the Prince’s official state wedding as a stand in for the Prince’s brother. Suddenly the book explodes into color with charming anecdotes between Brummell and the Prince.
The book describes the Beau’s first romance and subsequent loss of love although without as much clarity as could be wished. This is tied together with the closely timed deaths of both of his parents. The author intertwines this triple trauma, which, he believes, specifically contributes to Brummell’s developing a distant stance. Unfortunately, he does not explore this theory any deeper. The net effect is superficially tantalizing enough that it leaves one wanting more, ultimately there is just not enough analysis or synthesis about what behaviours or defense mechanisms these traumas all drove him too, or why.
Under the patronage of the Prince of Wales Brummell seemed to enjoy army life and much of this joy derived from wearing uniforms. There is here a tie-in between leading the rakish, ribald and fashionable life of the Hussar and a newly developing sense of gentlemanly comportment for this period in England. Fortunately for Brummell, according to the author, he was right in the epicenter of what was to become the hussar lifestyle, which included the understated but detail oriented hussar clothes, and the Prince. Thus all the elements Brummell could capitalize on to become both famous and the arbiter elegantiarum of his day were in place. Here there is a little analysis of what factors formed the Beau but still not enough to truly unmask the man and his reasons.
Although dandyism was already taking hold even without Brummell, he had a gift for theatrically performing its details better than everyone else. It would be interesting to know whether it was sincere behavior on his part, or artifice. But I suppose one could say that that is the ultimate question about the man1. In matters of personal hygiene, the Beau was both fastidious and fanatical, scrubbing himself with soap and water within an inch of OCD. The author highlights Brummell’s ability to be taken seriously by society. Brummell was able to grant himself dignity through light-hearted quips and self-effacement. And because he never took himself, or anything, seriously Brummell was like vapor, you could never quite determine what he was made of, but he was nevertheless a very substantial persona. Additionally, Brummell was lucky enough to be built in a manner that was then considered fashionable for a man’s body. All of these factors, theatricality, never knowing if he was serious or in jest, personal hygiene, and physique helped make him the rock star of his age.
While examining Brummell’s relationship to society the author does not provide a matching introspective look at the psychology of Brummell the man. Though it is understood that this is not a psychology book, an analysis reconstructing Brummell’s psyche might shed some light on why he became so extreme at what he liked. The author touches on a tangential analysis of what shaped the Beau’s behavior when he gives an interesting insight about Brummell’s possible severe razor rash from constantly shaving too close. This leads the reader to believe he was not as comfortable as some may have believed and that a certain degree of obsession might have driven the Beau towards fastidiousness2.
Brummell’s leisurely shopping forays in the West End are explored with aplomb as the author discusses the reasons for and the ultimate rise of English tailoring. This is the time for the emergences of the several streets we enjoy today as important spots for purveying English clothes, Jermyn Street, Savile Row, Bond Street etc. It examines the relationship between the Beau and his tailors. How, on the one hand, the tailors needed Brummell to wear their clothes and so offered him credit on generous terms and how, on the other hand, the Beau while he also needed the tailors felt he had to make it clear for everyone to understand that it was he who directed the tailors and not the reverse. The author essentially discusses the birth of the bespoke tradition in the West End, the details of what constituted Brummell’s kit, and the variations he might wear. Numerous details of how coats and pants (and pantaloons and breeches) were made are set down.
And how did this attention to clothes and attitude translate into becoming a celebrity? According to the author, London high society operated like a series of concentric circles. High Society was and is, by its very nature, exclusive. What made that period special is that “Exclusion was one of the key raisons d’être of the gentlemen’s clubs, but also of the etiquette of greeting and dressing. The signal peculiarity of Brummell’s career was that he came from outside the immediate spheres that had formed society but came to dictate the language of exclusion from an apparently unassailable position at the centre3.” He was history’s first celebrity in the modern sense, the first “It” boy.
Within this High Society language was developed and re-developed for the sole purpose of expressing the subtleties of exclusiveness4. One visiting Frenchman in London remarked that the language of exclusivity changed so much that within six months a foreigner would need to learn a completely new English language again.
Contemporaries considered Brummell to rank on the same level as Napoleon as one of the great men of his age. Brummell seemed both to be aware, and find amusing, that he in his frivolity would figure as highly as the “heaviest” most serious man of the time. In many ways as the Lord of the Ton, Brummell was a Napoleon of sorts, waging wars of exclusion with armies of dandies.
In this warfare Brummell’s ability to cut people, that is see them but pretend not to see them, was apparently one of his greatest talents. He did it with such aplomb that it became forever tied to his style and helped make him a legend. His ability to cut people tangibly combined with his well timed quips served to morph dandyism into much more than love of clothing5. Dandyism encompassed both a person and a set of behaviors that included beautiful speech, wit, entertainment, and of course attentions to those details in dress that separate the genteel from the poseur6.
The book devotes an entire chapter to several of his longtime lovers, all female and most of them much older. It is tedious but as a history perhaps it all has to be chronicled. This chapter speaks to Brummell the social climber who could intrigue more readily with women than with men and not have the secret ingredients of his talent either appropriated or exposed. Additionally, the Beau is established as a heterosexual man (with no hostility towards homosexuality) who loved clothes, grooming and the city high-life; perhaps the world’s first metrosexual?
There is excellent coverage on the dandy clubs with which the author creates a tactile zeitgeist for the reader. White’s club gave one instant cachet as no other club could convey. Brummell made White’s, an old fogy’s club at the time, a fashionable endroit again. And the Beau and his dandy set would sit in the club’s bow window which overlooked the street below and people watch while commenting on their dress; a sort of modern day holding up of the score cards. It is terrific the way the author uses the term “fashionista” to describe their people watching behavior, it sort of ties the past to the present.
Club life provided the male bonding of the era where the dandies would follow the lead of their style god and try to one up each other on the subtleties of their quips. These subtle quips were often at the expense of someone else’s appearance or style. The author provides us with a priceless interchange between an officer of the Coldstream Guards and the Beau and his gang of Dandies we can see an example of both the influence of the Beau on other dandies and the subtleties sought after. The Beau and the dandies put down the officer’s new coat (following the Beau’s cue of course and trying to out-clever each other) with a series of subtle quips. When the officer, after enduring quite a bit, finally asks in frustration if there is anything wrong with his coat, Brummell exclaims “Coat?!” and the dandies likewise gasp in a chorus “Coat!?” and of course the punch line is that the poor officer is already overreaching from the start in assuming his jacket could ever be considered a “coat.”
Brummell influenced all men of London society in his day, including the Prince Regent or Prince of Wales. They begat a men’s club together that would showcase all the extremes of dandy excess, notably fine cuisine and gambling. The author notes that it may have been, ironically, the chronic tempo of gambling at this new club (Watier’s) that turned Brummell into a compulsive gambler, a habit that eventually contributed to his demise.
Much of Brummell’s nightlife revolved around the theatre. It was de rigeur to see and be seen at these theatres before one attended a ball or dinner. To be part of the haut ton was an end unto itself. The author claims Brummell was an expert at this sort of being seen at the right time in the right place, forever flirting with the ladies in a way that made them feel special. He speculates, probably quite accurately, that Byron’s Don Juan is based primarily on George Brummell7.
The book illustrates clearly that Monsieur Brummell had quite the opinion of himself. When it became clear to his set that his hitherto strong relationship with the Prince of Wales (always a key ingredient in his maintenance of his spot at the top) had weakened he was recorded to have said “I made him, and I can unmake him.” This proved to be incorrect; ultimately the Prince was royalty and Brummell a commoner, not a difficult choice for High Society to make and although he stayed popular right up until his untimely bout with syphilitic madness, he was progressively shunned.
Brummell’s star had shone very brightly for a fair length of time but nothing lasts forever and having lost the patronage of the now Prince Regent he finally felt the need to flee England to avoid his massive debts8. Also, it appears that the Beau’s peccadilloes led to the contraction of syphilis. The syphilis would worsen creating both physical and mental setbacks for him, and eventually making the once pristine beau, less than appealing. The author makes a fascinating statement, which he might have explored further, connecting men of fashion and style consciousness with promiscuity and even sexual deviance.
In any event, hounded by his creditors9 Brummell fled to Calais in France, and stayed there for some years, recalling some of his faded glory10. He ultimately started to mount his debts once again and of course his illness worsened. Eventually, he was appointed to a foreign office post in Caen11 but his inevitable collapse could not be stemmed.
The remainder of the book is a detailed chronicling of Brummell’s descent into madness from his syphilis. And it is pitiable to read about this man’s deterioration into everything he stood steadfastly against. Finally, the Ultimate Dandy dies in squalor and loneliness and pain, an ironic end for a man who was perhaps one of the greatest living ironies of any age. His demise would later be used as an example by the Victorians as proof that vanity was punishable by the gods.
The book’s Epilogue is excellent and contains some compelling analysis. There are many fascinating conclusions and only a few can be mentioned here. For example, it discusses the Beau’s lasting effects on men’s style and dress. That we today all wear a descendant of the Beau’s wardrobe in both look and attention to detail when we want to project our seriousness and refinement to the world.
Also discussed is the “dandy pose”, which includes an assumption of superiority, backed up by discerning tastes, a dry superior wit, a keen eye for observation and a seeming detachment towards all things. According to the author, this “dandy pose” was copied into a contemporary book based on Brummell called Pelham12 in which the hero (a dandy) serves the template for most future gentlemen heroes in the English literature. Even the Victorians, who tended to claim they eschewed dandyism as frivolous were rife with examples of this dandy-hero in many different forms. In fact, we see a dark hero Sherlock Holmes portrayed as a matter-of-fact dandy who fastidiously observes details as a means to an end. Perhaps it is not a stretch to believe James Bond and the Beau would have recognized and enjoyed each other’s company.
The author points out to us that the great erotic poet Baudelaire found enough merit in the dandy to redefine him as a character who bridges the gap between a tottering monarchy and a not yet stable democracy. Therfore, the dandy enjoys the comforts of the old regime, but also behaves like the modern, lighthearted man about town. Thus, while the dandy supports the establishment, he provokes and reshapes it also.
The idea of the dandy and dandyism is thus superficial and complex, ephemeral and lasting. A dandy is at once living art to be observed and artist able to remold society from the top down. So many men of letters and influence in the Anglo Franco-American world have copied the dandy pose set by Brummell that it is not a leap to consider that he may have had more influence than Napoleon in creating a new reality for how the western mind thinks. Thus, in spite of his apparent superficiality, it would be inadvisable to underestimate the massive but often intangible influence Brummell had on history. It is no wonder that given the choice to be either Brummell or Napoleon, Byron chose to be Brummell
1 It would be fascinating if some of Brummell’s writings could be forensically analyzed both for content and for handwriting to see what the psychological makeup of the man was like.
2 Although, on the subject of forensic analysis, I wasn’t aware that Brummell was as big as the book’s author claims. Apparently, the Beau was over 6’ tall. I had always believed him to be rather small; edifications abound.
3 Beau Brummell: The Ultimate Dandy, Ian Kelly, 2005. P.212
4 Parallels with our own hip hop culture where idle persons from the other end of society constantly come up with in words to distinguish them from the out of touch worker.
5 The word dandy came into its own during this period to describe a set of smart, talented, beautiful, and impeccably well dressed men of leisure and bons temps. Ergo words like dandyism, dandified and a host of other forms to describe the Beau and his male friends, the “dandiacal” body.
6 And which details can only be picked up by others in the know, whether they be in the cut of a jacket or in the behavioral subtleties of noblesse oblige.
7 He is also the person Baroness Orczy based the Scarlet Pimpernel’s lead character (Sir Percy) upon.
8 Debts accumulated mostly from his gambling addiction, and not necessarily from the purchase of food, clothes and drink. Even then, it was primarily a “credit squeeze” because of his loss of influence in society after being distanced from the Prince of Wales.
9 Many still say any dandy worth his salt since should be hounded by his creditors and never pay their tailor.
10 Apparently, when the Prince regent became the crowned sovereign of England, he did not recall Brummell, nor when he visited France and passed through Calais did he even bother to see Brummell. “I have left Calais and have not seen Brummell” was King George IV’s famous statement on this subject.
11 Where his former arrogant tone began to aggressively re-manifest itself to the astonishment of the English ex-pats and French nationals in the town.
12 Pelham or Adventures of a Gentleman by Edward Bulwer Lytton (1828).
Comment [1]
Suggestions for the serious dresser
Admit it- You want to present yourself in a certain light. You want to be different in the way you dress but not unusual or the suspect of caring too much about clothes and not the matters at hand. A man who is together, sharp and elegant but without revealing what exactly makes that so apparent. You want to be admired and wondered at, but in a subtle way not like a crass arriviste. But, unless you understand the subtleties of dressing well, how do you affect this purpose of knowing at what point you have gone too far? To you, you look attention getting and fetching, to everyone else you are as garishly loud as a klaxon. In short, you want your outfit to accomplish the same touch of expensive cologne dabbed around the ears, rather than a dousing. How do you combine the subtleties of being admired for the classic-ness of your demeanor and yet still remain modern?
The universal language of what makes a man well dressed is more varied than it has ever been. Men in black suits with black shirts and no ties make deals with men in sack suits and oxford button downs paired with navy ties sporting little green whales. Do they despise each other? Do they even notice anymore? Different silhouettes for suits abound and are the fashion all at the same time. The differences can be regional (London, Milan, Naples) or simply a matter of fit and taste.
One needs to consider what image they want to present to the world. To pursue the image of someone not yourself too often is to lose yourself in the process. You may be dreaming of a look that may or may not work on you personally. You may also be dreaming of a look that doesn’t work today for the purposes you need it to. For example, you may want to look like a particular actor from the 1930s but can you really carry it off, today?
Think about what personal look you want to cultivate before choosing a manufacturer’s suit style or a custom tailor’s house silhouette. Bear in mind that no matter what a tailor assures you, their basic silhouette will not change that much, no matter what sort of suit you request. It is virtually impossible for one tailor to exactly reproduce another tailor’s work even if they have the garment in their hands. Therefore, if you are not happy with the house style or the manufacturer’s style from the start, it may be time to move on to another destination. A destination where both look and fit jib, and one whose comfort and ease makes you happy. And you should be happy, you dress for others, at least reserve comfort and ease for yourself.
I patronize Nino Corvato as my custom tailor because I like a soft shoulder (actually, no shoulder) suit jacket with a soft body and yet very clean lines with a definite shape. It is a no nonsense business look that is tailored cleanly and also sweater-like at the same time. Mr. Corvato borrowed from everywhere, Brooks Brothers natural shoulders and unpadded jacket, Italian precision and cleanliness, and an English sense of propriety. It is a fusion, a handsome, timeless, international look, for an international, modern, important person. However, just going to a great custom tailor doesn’t always ensure universal success. There is another customer who gets suits made by Mr. Corvato who has, to my eyes, the worst taste. Every time I drop by the studio, it seems I see yet another gorgon-esque suit fabric being made up at this customer’s behest. Hey, that’s his style, having bad taste! Who knows, maybe it even works for him.
Another client used to get what I called “Dr. Evil” suits (as in the Austin Powers trilogy of films) made in standard pinstripes, solids and plaids. The jacket was a Nehru and the pants were made in double width! Sometimes you want to stand out a lot, sometimes not at all. Either stance can be a tremendous boost to your image, just make sure you “know thyself” in this regard. It might be fun to wear a top hat or spats in the privacy of your own house (air guitar for dandies?) but consider the effect that will really have amongst your peers. If you don’t care about that effect, that’s great but you are also not part of the audience this essay is intended for, that of the serious man of talent who wants to present himself both pristinely and nattily.
You must straddle the fence between who you really are and how you want to portray yourself. If you want to seem more English, then perhaps one of the Savile Row tailors or even Cheo or Logsdail in NYC? Ask yourself why you want to be seen in a certain way and if it makes sense for who you are and what you do. If you are an aristocrat and a man of leisure, perhaps a medium grey cashmere chalk stripe suit, spectators, grape colored poplin shirt with contrasting white pinned club collar and white French cuffs and a whimsical tie from Lee Allison. The look is quietly decadent, uncaring about what people think, self indulgently stylish.
But, what if you are the CEO of a successful (or working towards being successful) corporation and want to let everyone know that you are to be listened to at all times? You might need something like a charcoal single breasted peak lapel suit jacket with a white pinstripe, white spread collared shirt with skull and crossbones cufflinks, Maroon tie with small white polka dots, black alligator belt with sterling buckle and black wingtips. It is all a matter of who you are and whom you need to be. Be honest with yourself and if you can afford it, get a qualified, talented “wardrobe engineer1”. They can save you a lot of time and frustration and ultimately, money.
Now, with regard to shirt choices. We live in an age where anything goes as long as it is smartly done and well coordinated or contrasted with the proper accessories. When in 1998 I got my first batch of made-to-measure shirts from Hilditch and Key, one I chose was a solid red body with contrasting white spread collar and French cuffs. Back then it was a show stopper. However, just a few years later a proliferation of colored and patterned shirts hit all industries. Today, my red shirt would hardly be noticed. Almost anything goes nowadays, even in the so-called conservative cities and industries.
While white shirts will almost certainly always be considered the mark of quality in a man, now you can wear a selection of patterns and colors that have completely removed the shock value from what Turnbull and Asser used to do. It seems every conceivable pattern and color has gone main stream2. How does one then stay in front of the curve? For now, look for shirts with red patterns on them, either bright red or burgundy on a white background (with or without white contrasting collar and/or cuffs) or shirts that are either solid lavender or purple or have patterns in that color on a white background.
1 They do exist and can give you invaluable help but they are rare these days, very rare. Someone whose image is everything should consider it, if they have the budget.
2 Due in part to the degage and “look-at-me” stances of the dotcom era when there was a social revolution of sorts and, additionally, the office wardrobe broke down, any dress shirt was appreciated as an effort, even if it was bold or hideous.
What are the elements the serious, modern man considers when he chooses clothing to purchase and gets dressed?:
Cloth weights- You might dream of wearing what they wore in the old movies but unless you are a purist, there are ways to incorporate hints of the look in an updated manner. Today fabrics need rarely be heavier than 11-12 ounces per yard. There are reason for this trend. Improvements in central heating, and more disposable income in our time for the average person obviate the need to preserve a suit forever3.
Colors/patterns- There is a tendency to get fanciful things made when one goes custom. That’s fine but bear in mind today’s exciting fabric may be tomorrow’s curio. I think, unless you already have a closet full of things, there is nothing wrong with getting an understated item. For one thing, if you can wear it every day, you can really see how well the suit’s4 construction performs under constant use. Also, if the suit is high grade, people are going to notice it anyway (at least people in the know) and that obviates the need for that yellow windowpane. Solids, discreet pinstripes and dark plaids accomplish this.
If you need to get something with more “bite” then consider pinstripes in alternative colors (to the standard grey, white or blue) or chalk stripes. The fainter the chalk stripes, the less the fussy (but out-of-the-know) set may sneer but the less style you will have also. Chalk stripes, if they suit your personality, are the ne plus ultra of dressing. However, they are an aggressive stance and if you are one to be molded by the opinion of others, you should make another choice
Fabrics- There are fewer mills which produce fabric, and some of the beautiful things from the past are no longer made. That’s the bad news. The good news is that some of the staple things are better made than ever before. The legendary film actor, Alan Ladd might have looked both tough and cool in his 14-15 ounce worsted “Drape” suit (with enough shoulder padding to land a helicopter on), but today you can achieve the same look with a 9/10 ounce birds-eye in a 120s (with or without 1% cashmere.) We are heading towards a finer, lighter more “Luxe” world of suit fabrics for men who have to do important things in an effort to become those men of leisure many of them aspire to be.
Although my choices of fabric, color and texture would vary according to your occupation (or sniff, lack of it) I would suggest that weight, at least for woolens, has left the building. 12 ounce flannels should be the absolute heaviest suit a man owns for blizzard conditions, and even then it should be a more refined flannel (perhaps with a cashmere admixture).
The old style flannel and tweed weights and textures are beautiful and yet inappropriate for today’s modern man who wants to be taken seriously. Using cashmeres or worsteds in tweed patterns are the modern way to look like the gentry of the past. For example, Harrisons of Edinburgh markets a Glorious Twelfth fabric book which is particularly interesting. The cloths are worsteds in tweed patterns with a shading style that makes the cloth actually look like tweed from a few feet away. Again, the effect is a salute to the past without being shackled to it. Fox Flannels round out the modern man’s choices. They’ve been weaving flannel for a long time but have kept step with the times and produce a flannel that has an airy weave and is light. You would swear it has cashmere in it, but it doesn’t. Again, looks just like the original but made for a well dressed 21st century man.
In general the super 100s and 120s 2×2 (double ply both weft-wise and woof-wise) fabrics are the workhorse of the suit wardrobe. I make assumptions here. I assume one wants to nod to tradition and yet be taken completely seriously today and admired for his efforts. If you want to wear what they wore in 1941 in terms of weight and finish with exactness, then be my guest, just be prepared for all the eye rolling you won’t see taking place as you exit a building. For every day wear, super 130s and up are not advised. However, for that special suit for a party, to really wow the competition in a meeting or for a dinner with the significant other at that extra haute restaurant then do indulge yourself in a 150s (or higher) material.
Fabrics by Harrisons of Edinburgh, Holland and Sherry, Zegna, Minnis, Dormeuil all make 120s fabrics that are excellent year round suiting. Especially Holland and Sherry has combined modernity, durability and that Old English look. *Zegna*’s colors are beautiful and so are their cashmeres. Another firm that makes beautiful cashmeres with excellent colors that are more “British” looking is Harrisons of Edinburgh. Bear in mind that odd sports jackets should have trousers in similar weights and finishes with some exceptions.
The same weight/finish ratio applies to shirt fabrics. In general try and keep the fineness of your shirt’s fabric in and around the fineness of your jacket and pants. There is a relatively wide range of what shirt cottons fall into this category but it is as good to keep in mind that a royal oxford shirt in 100s 2×2 is better paired with an 8-12 ounce flannel than it is a summer weave worsted or fresco. Similarly a Viyella brushed cotton or cotton and wool mixture, even the finer ones from say Acorn, look better with a cashmere sports coat or 11 ounce faux tweed worsted than a summer weave sports jacketing. Voile is for the summer as is the linen/cotton combo. Of course, if you live in areas of extreme temperatures year round this may need to be altered. Do some men wear voile year round? Yes. Can you do it? Yes. It is just better to develop a sense of balance before you begin experimenting.
Neckties- Nothing kills an outfit like a cheap or garish necktie. If you can find the better quality neckties for less, that’s excellent. However, learn the labels of the necktie makers who make superior quality neckties and wear them. Cheap, flimsy or poorly executed ties (colors, dyes, prints, tints etc…) detract from your own substantiality. Generally the better the quality of the tie manufacturer, the harder it is to go wrong.
Sometimes a tie works better with a given outfit or a given season but aside from that consideration, men today wear ties meant for summer in the winter and the reverse as well. I’m not defending this approach, it just happens to be the current state of affairs. Neckties from makers such as Drakes, Ralph Lauren, Charles Hill (or Turnbull and Asser), Charvet, Borelli, Paul Stuart, Marinella, Hermes, all get the Dandy seal of approval5.
There is a certain look the right necktie possesses, which is rather difficult to convey with mere words. A good necktie looks rich and attractive and desirable. A cheap one (even expensively made) just looks naff. If you wear a cheap necktie, a man of taste will not be able to look past it and may be unable to concentrate on what you have to say. Oh, and never have a woman choose your neckties for you, unless you happen to want that particular woman and she will be wearing it for you later on.
Color choices vary a great deal by region but in the USA we are inheritors of the old English gentleman’s choices and Anglo-American military color combinations6 (from both the modern and horse and musket period). Although the English seem to have developed a philosophy of style from the 1960s onward of clashing their colors with a lot more regularity. I happen to like this look myself… occasionally. American men are more impressed with complimentary colors or colors that contrast with a certain degree of smartness.
Whereas you can find an Englishman wearing a Bengal stripe shirt with sulfur yellow stripes with a salmon pink tie on top of it and look smart doing so, An American would prefer to see a shirt with blue pinstripes paired with a maroon solid tie. Striped ties are very “It” right now and we in the USA do not care much about the associations certain color combinations on the repp may possess7, as long as it compliments or underscores what we are wearing. I see the late night host Conan O’Brien wears a lot of repp stripes and they frankly are variegated specifically to coordinate with his outfit and blend all the colors together (including curiously enough, his hair color). This blending of all the other colors of the outfit together with the repp stripe tie is an interesting phenomenon which used to be the purview of the paisley tie, which is itself coming back into vogue.
Again, unlike in England where men almost revel in clashing or mating discordant colors that should never be next to each other…ever, Americans tend towards the blended, the easy on the eye, the well matched, in short the harmonious. There are reasons for this. A pot pourri of influences in this crossroads nation of men’s style which includes but is not limited to the African American, Hollywood, Alternative lifestyle community, the Italian color sense, female influences and the Rap community have all contributed to this. Meanwhile the Englishman still proudly wears the “dressed in the dark” but nevertheless purely “Anglo” male version of the suit and tie. Both nations have a “Go to Hell” code of dressing; the codes are simply different in timber. However, both are to be enjoyed, rather like competing drams of the best single malts.
Certain color combinations are more pleasant than others. On a white shirt, almost anything goes, whereas patterns and colored shirts obviously take a little more skill to match with a tie. Without going into the tedium of what color combinations go specifically with what, at least if you’re going to clash, do it with an expensive necktie and well made shirt, it will forgive a multitude of sartorial sins.
Wear good shoes and socks, the best you can afford. Although they do not have to be the very very best, stretch here more than anywhere else, and keep them and your socks always in good repair. Your socks should always cover your calves when you cross your legs, if they roll down too often, get rid of them. Centuries ago, being fully clothed in Northern Europe was the mark of the Christian gentleman versus the barbarian invader and the concept has stuck.
You can drive yourself mad looking for interesting colors and patterns but it is enough to match the pants (with some exceptions for white pants when you should match the shoes or wear a pastel, but then there are so very few occasions for white pants, sigh) with your hose. Both over-the-calf or mid-calf socks are acceptable, but they should stay up. There are a lot of men who love sea island cotton, but many think that a thin, merino wool keeps the foot drier and more cushioned than the cotton sock.
Belts or braces? Good question. I like both…but not at the same time. It is, however, up to you. Buttery leather belts which are cut specially to go into the sterling, engine turned buckle are both the highest form of the art and easily adjustable to your girth du jour, happily. Braces are also comfortable but seem to have developed some associations these days which is not altogether pleasant or positive. If you don’t remove your jacket or wear a vest, then braces definitely. A belt should be simple and match your shoes. Braces can be simple but can also be fancy with a pattern like the limited edition ones made by Trafalgar.
Here then is at least a glimpse into what to consider when considering custom made clothes and the accoutrements that will properly accompany them.
3 In 1940, I would imagine many men had one or two suits and had to make ‘em last, nowadays you might get tired of a suit long before it has seen its day (generally, all other qualities being equal, the heavier the cloth the more rubbing it can endure).
4 Shirts, shoes and anything else custom that gets used frequently can fall under this same auspice.
5 There exists a relatively long list of good tie makers. However, I am holding back a few choice names of makers at the behest of colleagues because it occurs to them that after I praise a tie brand’s qualities its price will skyrocket on eBay.
6 Which is culturally why combinations from other countries often seem “wrong” to traditional American eyes.
7 The English can take that quite seriously in England, that certain striped ties belong to members of certain schools, clubs or regiments. In the USA, we have a freer approach which is in the middle between Italian any color combination goes and English color restrictiveness.
The Plates
Modern suits are lighter and weight and frequently have a cashmere content. Woven neckties in soft silks that complement both the suit and the shirt are more in vogue than in recent times.
Something old, something new. A navy suit with a high cashmere content and an irregular nailshead is both a tribute to 1930s style and the realities of modern tactile expectations.
A dapper man in the modern but serious style. The red shirt with white chalk stripes and white collar and cuffs is a very modern and yet pleasing interpretation which picks up the red stripe inside the white chalk stripe of the suit. Red is increasingly becoming an accent color to trump the hoi polloi. The pocket square was purposefully pulled up for a better view of it.
Beautiful cashmere sports jacket paired with a perennial favorite, a repp stripe tie. Not associated with any regiment, it is a current manner in which to tie together all the colors of one’s outfit. A tweed overcoat is thrown over the entire ensemble to give it a country/Edwardian flavor.
Detail of the tweed overcoat’s cuff. A lighter weight tweed coat is a nice touch for casual Fridays in the city.
Again, something old and something new. A 1930s style stripe in modern colors, weight and fabrics. The effect makes for a lighter, softer version of what we find most handsome about the past.
Cashmere is the tweed of today. Lighter, softer and more likely to endear you with your significant other when you stroll down a gallery with your arms around each other.
Inset detail for the Prince of Wales plaid suit.
A Prince of Wales plaid suit in a single breasted model with peak lapels works for exactly the reason it is considered wrong, it is unexpected and yet an eye pleaser which makes it a favorite of the dapper dresser. Notice how the strong, horizontally striped shirt works well with the indefiniteness of the suit’s plaid. Note also how the luxurious repp necktie and the pocket square serve merely to blend the entire look together. Being smart in an underlined manner is one way to navigate these uncertain times.
A beautiful and lightweight suit with a red chal stripe, outlined by a white pinstripe. A darker blue shirt for the lighter shade of the suit complements the salute to spring. The repp tie once again used to blend suit and shirt together.
A closer look.
The complete outfit, brown shoes, burgundy socks. What is more important is that this photo was not posed, it was a quick sit down and displays the comfortable ease of the outfit. Comfort is really what it is all about.
Detail of the outfit’s layers. Braces, pants top detail and shirt front, all working in perfect harmony.
Comment [1]
History of the Black Suit, Part 1.
General History and Evolution of the Black Suit for Daywear
The solid black suit you ask? How did it ever become the subject of controversy? Exactly how does such a neutral choice become imbued with enough emotionally charged angst to make it the DMZ of men’s style? After all, wasn’t there a time when all of serious and polite society was dressed in black from head to toe? How then did it creep out of use and then back in for men’s day wear? What were the elements that made this choice of color naff for one generation and the perfectly acceptable choice for a new one?
Part of the answer might actually reside in the collisions of generational high and low fronts which separate “Old Boy” from “Home Boy”. Recently, I had occasion to exchange correspondences with someone who is rather more of a clothing historian and obsessive about fashion minutiae. Apparently, if his thesis is to be believed, and it is a fascinating one, it was the very fact that late Victorian and Edwardian society wore so much black for day wear that the “new” lounge suit wearers purposefully avoided black. It seems, they wanted to distinguish themselves from their stuffy forbears. After a while, black became the more cloistered choice with additional and various reasons invented by retailers to demonize it as a selection and steer buyers to the more readily available charcoals and navies.
During this period (Roughly 1920-1980), black became an increasingly odd choice for daywear. When the solid black suit was seen, it was usually seen on people whose occupations demanded it for purposes of mourning, formality or purposeful social color differentiation from the clientele. Further, the black suits were often not of the best quality, reinforcing the idea that a solid black suit was an inappropriate choice for a man of taste. Throughout the mid twenties to the late 70s a black suit was an odd choice for a lounge suit indeed.
Certainly, the black solid suit must have fallen squarely off the ivy league bandwagon for fashion designers (and eventually, the entire fashion industry) to choose it as the suit color to distinguish themselves from those tedious corporate or ivy league types. Armani, Versace and subsequently Donna Karan and others began to use black as the newer, Hip-per color for younger men, for evenings out. As a result, It was adopted as a staple by all the very fringe groups who ironically contribute so much to the mélange that is American male (versus English male) style.
Thus it came to pass that the professional athlete or singer, the alternative lifestyle community, African Americans (ever an invaluably stylish American resource), the dot-comers, and artists all donned le style noir. For many reasons, it was a sound choice in these circles, whether it was the Hollywood set, or merely talented persons who wanted to escape any class or educational associations from their past. Black has power, mystery, sex appeal, it slims, it is counter culture and it is undeniably formal and appropriate also. It is the color of the night, of the city, of things modern, the new age. Also, at some point, there was a concurrence amongst the egalitarian (but talented) smart set, rather than try to compete (at a disadvantage) with those to the manor born, they would create their own “Oxford and Yale”. It amounted to nothing less than a new clothing dialect that announced their membership to their own clubs and universities. A new lingua Franca, for a new aristocracy of the asphalt night.
Even if you were from a Paul Stuart background, one gladly donned this protective camouflage in order to socialize with the interesting people without letting your background or day job exclude you from the fun or intimidate anyone at the party. In short, it became a polite way to mingle on an even playing field. Further, it was a way to vett out those boring, stuffy guys in brass buttoned blazers and khakis. What label appropriately describes this new dialect, this new language for a brave new style? We could call it talented, we could call it modern.
I prefer to use the term Hip. Hip suggests a a respect for tradition but a strong predilection for the current as well. It covers every social set including the one it is trying to stand apart from (the mainstream, old line one who’s members can don it to fit in, if they possess the requisite reflexes for adaptation), and it is updated and modern without rending the basic social dictates of taste.
What began as an adaptation by designers and a host of fringe groups and subcultures was eventually adopted by young people (after all they are now heavily influenced by sub or counter cultures; and their fathers had rejected black and so it has become the same symbol that shunning black once represented) and those of all classes in the largest cities who want to congregate in the requisite noir moderne which is as much a part of city night life as wearing top hat, and white tie was during the end of the 19th century.
The old and seemingly solid rule to avoid black was being turned on its head, and black was suddenly as in as one could expect. Add to this a desire for older men to want to seem younger and hipper (whether to mingle with the ladies or appeal to those Dotcom guys from, seemingly, a quarter century ago). Also, black is an instant power look. It was always a good choice for men in businesses where there was a need to command respect and attention. Black fills that order.
If black was against a rule at some point for daywear, that rule is now dead. Although, according to one quite knowledgeable fashion historian, even in the past, you would occasionally see a very proper Englishman in a flawlessly cut black flannel suit for town. Rare perhaps, but certainly bringing into question whether there was ever a “rule” against the black solid suit. Solid black suits are now commonly seen in almost every profession and the only ones who think it wrong are equivalent to the same pince-nez and spat wearing fellows whom Fred Astaire tapped around in many of his movies.
However, even if the rule against the black solid suit is dead, if it ever existed, does not mean that the black solid suit is sans controversy. Au contraire, the black solid suit is at the absolute epicenter of conjecture. The controversy does seem to cut across generational lines to an extent. It seems that many, older, well dressed men consider the solid black suit to be both outré and the realm of the parvenu. To wear a solid black suit, even for the evening, is to their eyes, wrong. Rather than a black solid suit, they consider a darkest charcoal suit the richer choice.
The reason? The black suit only looks good on a certain physical type with certain coloration, the high contrast person. Generally, people with dark brown or black hair and medium to light skin complexions (not pale it is important to note) are the ones who look best in black suits, every other physical coloration either gets drained or disappears in too unrelieved a manner with the black solid wool’s ensemble which represents a lack of depth, warmth and humor. Sometimes, this camp admits, a pair of black pants or a black jacket is acceptable for a more modern look at a club, bar or a hip new restaurant, but generally, the black suit is to be avoided.
At the other end of the dressing spectrum, the younger minded dressers are promoting black as something their fathers do not like. To the up and coming generation, a black suit stands for counterculture and night life… for youth. We are a generation trying to live an eternal life of exterior city partying and black is slimming, mysterious, sexy, modern and defensive; all the characteristics that generation X’ers and Y’ers have decided define them. Thus, we’ve learned to don noir as a protective mantle.
But how, you may ask, does this all translate into the black solid suit appearing more and more at the office? Social lifestyle contaminates work lifestyle more than it ever has before. You are what you play. Young men wear black at night, all their idols wear black suits, those older dudes don’t wear them. That’s all the recipe one needs to see the black suit is a way to look professional and still not submit to the Man.
Now let me make one thing absolutely clear. I do not own a single solid black suit for day wear. To be honest, I think there are so many more interesting choices that it has never occurred to me to wear a solid black suit to the office; though I have no prejudices against doing so.
I own black suits with patterns on them (window panes, bird’s eyes and chalk stripes) in white or in “hot” colors like alternating white and orange pinstripes. For after hours stepping out downtown style, I have two solid black suits and an assortment of black jackets.
However I need to confess that I do have a predilection for midnight blue solid suits. I feel midnight blue with something black underneath covering my torso makes a tres sophistique contrast. Why? It is a faux pas for women to mix navy (or midnight blue) and black in their dressing. However, in spite of this female rule, it is such an interesting and rich combination that it creates something a little different and, at the same time, something 100% male. Female influences have made themselves so felt in American and Italian male style as of late that I thought it as well for us to reclaim a toehold for ourselves.
I come clean about not wearing black suits for daywear because I admit that the solid black suit is making inroads for daywear in spite of how I might feel about it as a choice (that is, not a negative but rather an uninteresting neutral) and that it is a symbol of my generation for going out in the evening to that hot new club, or bar or to wear while entertaining that girl you finally asked out to that trendy restaurant with the candlelit tables on those balmy spring evenings in the city. Sometimes trends and acceptability are not about what we like but about what is. For now, the black suit is us, old but new, what our great grandfathers wore and our fathers eschewed. Old but new, just as the term “hipster” has reappeared in the lingo, the solid black suit separates us from our fathers, and may yet from our sons.
I have had Jeeves create a Black Suit thread in the Wardrobe forum where we can debate the ideas raised in this article.
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Domenico Spano: Modern Day Apparel Arts Man
The style illustrations from the 1930s Apparel Arts magazine are for many who love clothes today a window into an elegant past. We gaze on the photos and wonder what it was like to live back then when seemingly everything was quality and what all men wore was already hashed out. In that elegant past, it was just a matter of taste and style that distinguished the well dressed from the very well dressed.
Like the old movies, the plates from Apparel Arts transfix our attentions and promise us a better life, a more elegant time. Almost subconsciously, we consider these drawings to separate the world as it should be from what it has become. They are us, but somehow also incredibly distant, like a black and white film.
Have not we all yearned for that bygone era when men were all wearing the same basic lounge suits with only their personality and flair to distinguish themselves from each other? Back then, it was a given that everyone wore the same basic articles, settled as convention, as a starting point, and it was then up to each wearer to bring personality to the ensemble through his own approach to style. Some men wore collar pins, others bowties and still others odd vests. I think the term we are searching for here is “subtleties”, subtleties separated men and underlined their personalities, and perhaps this is the art the modern day clothes enthusiast feels is lost in the sartorial sands of time.
We know that Apparel Arts tended to discuss the bolder elements of men’s clothing and style but we also acknowledge that it was all within the general bounds of excellent taste. We also know that Apparel Arts presented the ideal concept of the man of the times, a confident man; a mature one too. Drawn at a time when men wanted to look like a gentleman, rather than a gigolo, these plates are considered still today to be the way the modern man can properly turn back the clock and re-splice today’s reel of life with yesterday’s proper sartorial path.
Nowadays, it seems like we rarely see people dressed as well as these Apparel Arts men. Heightened clothing interest often seems to be the purview of the fringe or the effeminate. But, what of the mainstream man? The man who lives a full, happy life and still wants to look good, to look enviable in clothes without frittering the time to obsess over it? And how does a person learn to make all the varied elements work without frustration? How does he take it to the next level to look better than everyone else without looking the least bit studied? From Apparel Arts, to be sure, but are there no modern day men of flesh and blood to both relate and warm those cold, lifeless details? A flame was once lit in the style temple by the Beau, and it illuminated. Where are the keepers of this flame? The men who still practice without effort the stylish creed that Apparel Arts tried to instill in us all to before the darkness took over? I know of at least one man who embodies both the spirit and the outward appearance of Apparel Arts, a champion of the style gods. His name, Domenico (Mimmo) Spano.
Mimmo is originally from Calabria in Italy. He served in the Italian army for 8 years and immediately became a paragon of how to keep one’s uniform immaculate. In fact, he was often chosen for special guard duties for the exceptional beauty with which he maintained his military kit. Emigrating to the USA in the early 70s, he began working in retail. Today, he has his own custom clothes shop for men, many of whom seek him out as much for his teachings on style as for the wonderful clothes he produces for them.
Mimmo loves old movies as much for their gripping scripts and cinematography as for their wardrobes. His style icons include the usual suspects, The Duke of Windsor, Fred Astaire, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr, George Raft, Charles Boyer, William Powell, Cary Grant, Gary Cooper and Randolph Scott. Who can argue with a pantheon of style gods such as these?
He doesn’t like solid black suits for men’s day wear, which he says are only appropriate if you are one of the “Blues Brothers.” Many stop him in the street to remark on his outfits. They are mostly young people both girls and boys who ask him about his clothes. That makes him feel good about the sartorial future. His favorite look is the 1930s look, and a British version but with a definite modern interpretation. Edward Green shoes are his favorite. He loves heavy tweed suits (16 oz) with odd vests and bold designs that proclaim both their individuality and tastefulness to the observer.
He has exclusive bolts of cloth made up by Mills such as Fox, Moxon and Taylor and Lodge. Their fabrics are often to men’s suiting what Raphael’s brush was to the canvas, rich, timeless and luxurious to the eye beyond all possible mortal measure. One particular bolt by Taylor and Lodge in medium grey worsted with a black chalk stripe is one of the nattiest I’ve seen in a while (it is set and executed perfectly), and proof that where the mind is creative, wonders are still possible.
What forces shaped Mimmo into a man of style, what higher calling? He is a dandy to the bone. And what is a dandy? Simply put, a man who loves dressing well. Dressing with inventiveness and keeping within a genre. To enjoy dressing well, one needs to be a tactile person who desires to be both smartly attired and pleasing to the eye of the observer. Mimmo is this very prefect balance of a man who lives to swath himself in the next terrific outfit and wants to create a beckoning impression. How similar then is this to those Apparel Arts men of yesteryear?
And what makes him a living embodiment of the Apparel Arts man? Those qualities we assign to those color plates, manners, joie de vivre, gravitas, an erudite and self effacing sense of humor, glibness, generosity, an ability to tell a fascinating story (often from his own experiences), and kindness. Mimmo possesses all of these qualities in abundance. When someone meets him, they soon realize this is no ordinary man and that they may be in for special treatment. They are never disappointed as Mimmo is pleasant to a fault, and always little original, a little different.
Always a little bit different? That is Mimmo’s approach. Similarly, Apparel Arts always tested the boundaries of the “rules” to demonstrate the most elegant a man could be after they had mastered the hum drum. When you meet Mimmo, you will notice that his navy flannel suit has a caramel chalk stripe, that his dress shirt is made from 220s 2×2 blue end on end (he’s not a fan of the white shirt for his own style), with a burnt orange bowtie, baby blue silk pocket square and darkest brown suede monk straps with bright blue wool hose. Or, a navy mini self herringbone single breasted suit in 100% worsted cashmere, paired with a blue shirt with yellow candy stripes and a black bowtie with a white jolly roger printed on it, a light blue linen pocket square with a hand rolled pale yellow edge, chamois wool hose and beautiful Edward Green lace up cap toes in a medium brown, burnt pine, complete the look. Always sharp, always evoking admiration but always a bit different, whether it’s a 3 piece, rust windowpane on a navy flannel, a Single breasted peak lapel suit with a lime green triple pinstripe on a dark postman’s blue worsted, or the occasional vintage cloth he has recreated in a softer, lighter weight for a more centrally heated era. Always with his inimitable cream colored, tea sized carnation invitingly angled in his boutonniere.
Sometimes it is a dreamily airy Fox flannel with a cashmere content and a look, if not a weight, from the 30s, or a Lumb’s golden bale barathea (black or the cognoscenti’s choice of midnight blue) for a double breasted dinner jacket from the stately Moxon, Or, a brilliantly designed navy with a pale blue nails head and tight double box over plaid by the geniuses at Taylor and Lodge, truly they are the mills of the sartorial gods, producing the woolen equivalent of ambrosia.
Whatever, the combination, Mimmo will wear it with aplomb. His bowtie is just so, his shirt collar is always crisp but sans starch and his shoes are always polished to a bone shine. His ability to wear clothes in both a formal and degage manner is a defining part of his style. You notice he is immaculate but it never seems out of place, even for the first time viewer. That, then, is part of the art of dressing well, combining elegance with ease.
Mimmo is the Apparel Arts man. You see them but rarely, crossing the street, or getting off an elevator in a crowded lobby. They make your head turn to admire their clothes and you wonder if you should not trot after them to compliment their rig and offer to buy them lunch in exchange for tips on how to upgrade your own efforts. In an earlier time, drawings would be made of whatever he wore and wherever he went, greedily fingered by us in each anticipated issue to see what our style gods currently fancied. We would then all dash to our tailors to have it copied to the letter. In an earlier time, he would be brought to you monthly, today you need to seek him out and befriend him yourself.
The Plates
An Apparel Arts style illustration. Produced in abundance for an age when men wanted to gaze on examples of stylish dressers for hours on end in the privacy of their own abodes.
Navy fabric with blue nails head and blue double windowpane. Designed by expert fabric artists to a gentleman’s requirements.
The well dressed man always appreciates that tweed was one of the “original” country and leisure fabrics. Before street gear made its garish debut, tweed was the highbrow mark of the casual, modern man, especially when done in certain clean but “drapey” silhouettes. This beauty is a single breasted, peak lapel, district check tweed (country green with a yellow, red, navy mix windowpane pattern from Harrisons of Edinburgh ( Porter and Harding,14ozs), odd vest in wool challis forest green with pheasants printed all over. A pale blue, royal oxford cloth shirt with broadly spaced maize Bengal stripes with an attached point collar. A green repp silk bowtie with gold stripes and a yellow pocket square with small olive and red foulard design. Country in spirit but also smart enough for city strolling.
A well chosen sports jacket is no easy feat. One must pick a pattern and fabric that reflects one’s own personality, sense of ease and still pays homage to the canons of gentlemanly discretion. This jacket is an example of answering all three calls with aplomb. Of course, Mimmo cheated a bit, he designed the cloth himself. The jacket is a worsted with a slightly unfinished surface to create just the slightest amount of texture. Pants are an obligatory grey flannel, and the shirt is a high thread count poplin. Notice the relationship of bowtie, shirt, jacket and pocket square all compliment each other without the slightest hint of pushiness, whilst the neutrality of the pants serves in the role of sartorial sorbet.
Inset with more detail.
Brown in Town! At one time this combination would be considered “improper”. Now, only the smartest dressers know that a striped brown suit is one’s unique ticket on the style express. All aboard, next stop, anywhere the wearer would like. This version is a charcoal brown flannel with an ochre chalk stripe. A 140s 2×2 cotton broadcloth shirt in saffron with a blue and white over plaid. This outfit is completed with the sophisticated addition of a navy bowtie with butter polka dots, and a soft yellow pocket square with a white hand rolled hem. A navy tie with a brown suit can be quite the look if done properly.
Again, more detail.
Black and white and all the shades in between will always be part of the language of classic men’s urban style. It is how one puts it all together that either increases or decreases the outfit’s sophistication and proclaims its purpose. Here, the outfit’s message is clearly imperial. 14oz grey flannel suit with white chalk stripe, double track graphite colored, horizontal striped shirt on a white background with contrasting white collar and cuffs. Black and white shepherd’s check bowtie tie the whole look together which is both stately and approachable. The carnation here adds a bit of warmth.
Sublime flannel chalk stripe from, the aptly named, Fox Flannels. Their cleverly designed flannel fabrics are to men’s tailored clothing what Rolls Royce is to automobiles.
The ne plus ultra of men’s luxury suiting. A navy nail’s head worsted, in a slightly wider spatial setting than usual, with a 20% cashmere content. Created by the design geniuses at Taylor and Lodge whose ability to create both exciting and original cloth qualities and colors/patterns within the boundaries of upper class taste continues to dazzle.
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