Perhaps tired of too many obscure posts about neckties, a reader sent me a link the other day to Roger Stones' 2010 Best and Worst Dressed list. Stone, a controversial conservative political consultant in the United States, is pictured online looking fairly well dressed himself, save for the unfortunate half inch of air space between his jacket collar and the back of his neck. Not that I am being critical, mind you. I will leave it to he who has never published a photo of himself with his trousers puddled around his ankles to cast the first stone before joining in the fun.
At any rate, Mr. Stone's politics may differ from my own but his taste in dress appears similar. He expresses admiration for Charlie Watts as well as HRH Prince Charles and Alan Flusser (none of them Republicans so far as I know). We can pick nits regarding some of the rest, but I have been among those who complain that the pickings are slim among public figures these dark days and Stone has included a representative sampling of the usual as well as some less well-known exemplars. The musician Wynton Marsalis, for example, deserves more attention than he usually receives.
Truly, great style has no ideology.
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24 comments:
Agreed with most of those choices...I often turn to CNBC and not pay attention to anything coming out of Larry Kudlow's mouth but pay close attention to what he is wearing.
Will,
Thanks as always for the post on style, I don't know how relevant the political part is. Before, when I came to this site, I just thought about clothes, and have purchased a bit from your store. Now, I am left wondering if I am supporting Nancy Pelosi. I would have preferred to not know.
Well Will, I think on the whole it's a good list, but I'd draw attention to the 'Please someone just shoot him' comment next to Michael Moore. This seems, given the sort of debate kicking around in the US right now, to be either tastless or downright unsavoury. I agree with you that great style has no ideology, but our guard should be kept up in any case lest form is allowed to stand for content through the repetition of idle rhetoric. Vigilance is the price of freedom, etc.
Thanks for posting.
VB
Since you mention Wynton Marsalis, here he is in a striped grey suit and double cuffed shirt with perfect sleeve length.
Today's post is a bit of a red herring, don't you think?
And what might the main issue be then Jim?
I got that sense that you wanted to make sure that you weren't endorsing him, which is more than fair, but that you also sort of let people know which side of the fence you sit on. I might have said something about how this post is about style, not politics, rather than sort of throw out where you are politically, which I think that you inferred. It's just a little polarizing, and I don't think I am the only one that commented on that, as you can see by both Brian Sheridan and vir beatum. That's why I said it's a red herring.
It's not that big of a deal, but there are buyers out there who have strong opinions, and direct their money accordingly. That's why, as a salesman myself, I avoid the subject entirely. That's just me.
Love the list - who doesn't like Flusser or pine for an Acheson?
I would, however, have found it more satisfying had the man shown a modicum of respect - awareness? - for proper pronominal inflection (its, not it's; whose, not who's). Seeing as the article purports to be a take on proper style and all...
Forgive me, just my liberal upbringing rearing its ugly head.
I did not intend to give any hints of where I stand politically, and other than saying that his politics are not mine, don't think I did. For the rest of it, I'd rather be interesting than politically correct, and hopefully for every reader I lose for that I'll gain one in return.
Stone put his arch-enemy Eliot Spitzer on the list or has in the past. I've got to confess, I find Stone very entertaining. He's into adolescent pranks and dirty tricks. Yes, he's a conservative. But he's also a swinger(figuratively and literally) and he's got an well-constructed tattoo of his old boss Richard Nixon on his back! He can laugh and joke with his political enemies.
His, Stones, list of the best dressed is non-partisan.
Will, not that it matters, but I'm a conservative and could care less if you like Nancy Pelosi(she's quite well dressed herself). I think it's fine you tactfully mention politics once in a while. I loved at the SOTU last night where dems and reps sat together.
Will, I loved the cashmere sweater I bought at your store and could care less if you support Speaker Pelosi or the current speaker!
I wanted to weigh in that I am glad you are constantly seeking new topics instead of falling into easy reprints of previous entries with only minor tweaks. Considering your prolific posting your variety is worthy of approbation.
I've spent a total, through your site, as well as prior to it, a total of $3,140.00.
I hope that your new readers are the paying kind!
Will: ignore the jokers who are trying to politicize this. His picks are ok but he's obviously never heard of Marzotto, Arnault or Barbera. I'd echo Brian's comment on Kudlow, for godsake don't take his investment advice, but his haberdashery picks are excellent. Flusser's a problem. He's contributed enormously to menswear appreciation in the US and sells lovely stuff (I've bought a couple things off him) but seems personally to have retreated into Hogarthian dishevellment which probably disqualifies him from inclusion.
Btw is that the BB #3 Repp bar stripe tie he's wearing in the pic? I don't particularly like it with his chalk stripe suit (they're fighting each other) but it's one of the most versatile ties you can own. If I could only own five ties it would be on the list.
I've looked and looked again and can't see any jokers here.
VB
The problem with the way the system works now is that parties appear monolithic. You can't be conservative on certain things and liberal on others. You have to agree with everything that's part of the groups' narrative and oppose everything from the other groups'. It's a terrible situation to be in, not allowed to make independent judgments issue by issue, as people should. While this may be a necessary evil of party politics and the whip system in a legislature, it shouldn't be among rank and file voters. It leads to the elimination of thought and thoughtfulness.
Well I do appreciate well-dressed public figures, but those stripes are a bit of a clash for me - heavy on heavy with a monochromatic color scheme verges on gangster territory for me.. I suppose I prefer to see a measure of contrast. His list is rather entertaining, though he could have populated the 'worst-dressed' list with just Hollywood or sports channels.
Adabeie and Brummagem Joe, I completely agree about the necktie. As Jim wrote, the post was a bit of a red herring.
Not a bad list especially one that includes Flusser and Kudlow. Love ASW even though a little disappointed about the political tone today but will still enjoy the blog going forward. To the left leaning comments you might want to start leaning right. The direction we are headed now we could all end up wearing uniforms so as not to engender class envy. After all in the current political environment achievement which affords one the pleasure to acquire a customized wardrobe of your own personal taste and style is a vice and a character flaw not a virtue. Guess I will enjoy my custom suit while I can before I have to turn it in to the government or face penalties, fines or possibly jail time. Kind of like the Obama care penalties for being forced to buy something I don't want and is inferior to free market choices. It's the death of style in this country as we know it!
The suit is great. The tie is a great. But together they don't work.
Too similiar.
The tie works well with a solid suit. A cream linen with a a white shirt? See Flusser's Dressing with Style.
The suit needs basic elements. A solid navy knit with that tone of blue.
Spend less time worrying about the politics....
Great post. Best ever? Maybe not.
"The tie works well with a solid suit."
That tie assuming it's the BB navy/white bar stripe works well with a lot of stuff although definitely not that suit. I happened on this discovery by chance but it's versatility is amazing. In the days when I was constantly shlepping around foreign parts and travelled light(ish) it was the tie of choice.
This is a great post. Please do not discontinue looking at public figures due to their politics. Many of them do dress well and are worth our attention. I work in the political field and like to see information on people no matter their political perspective. Keep looking at these people - from pundit to politico to president!
In the end, I think we all maintained a civil tone and avoided direct political confrontation. Hooray for all of us. I agree - we should highlight the good dressers no matter their politics. The bad dressers - they speak for themselves.
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