The Sun King's bedroom at Versailles has a painting of Louis XIV in full regalia that Bruce Boyer used as a metaphor for the passing of an era of dress. Almost literally, as Louis was sitting for his portrait dressed in ermine, silks and jewels, the English nobility were beginning to wear tailored wool clothing.
Today, the English tailored clothing era is fading after a long run, but the careful observer can still see signs of Louis in men's dress around Paris. Consider, for example, this rack of colored jackets on offer at Arnys.
I regret that I was very disappointed in Arnys this trip. The second floor, where they sell their wonderful coats, was closed for the season, and much of the merchandise on display on the main floor looked (there is no other word) cheap. Including the colored jackets. The hand-written mark down signs didn't help this impression at all.
Returning for a moment to Versailles, no-one will ever correctly call the Sun King cheap. It's been calculated that 6% of the national income of France went to run the palace, after an initial investment that would be in the tens of billions today (assuming the necessary craftspeople were available in the first place). And not a single visitor among the thousands that I saw was wearing a suit. Or even a colored jacket.
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3 comments:
Will: I am curious why you claim that the era of the English tailored suit is at an end. To satisfy another curiosity, what should a gentleman expect to spend, on average, for dressing head to toe bespoke. Kennet
I said the era is fading, which means going the way of the dinner jacket over the next generation. As to why, look around you.
The answer re cost depends on your attitude towards expenditure and how much travel you're willing to undertake (everything is less expensive in Naples for example but most of those guys don't travel). A day's clothes and shoes - no watch or jewelry - can run as "little" as 3k USD for Hong Kong to 9k USD for Savile Row head to toe and up from there as you get into exotic fabrics and shoe leathers.
I too have recently been in Arny's and was unimpressed, particularly given that Arny's is one of the first men's stores to which one is directed from something uniquely Parisian. They do have some interesting jackets, though, in styles and materials not seen often in the states.
Your comment about about Louis XIV and the fading of an era of dress reminds me of one of my favorite shops in Paris, called (I think) Coupe des Charmes (forgive misspellings). It is on rue des Canettes, one of the oldest streets in Paris. It's on the left bank, right off of Place St. Sulpice, heading toward St. Germain. Michel Faret (sp?), and I think his brother Daniel, make some really over-the-top designs that evoke a much earlier era (brocade vests, velvets, strollers, and so forth). It is difficult to wear any of these together, but one at a time they can be quite fun.
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