Double Breasted Tweed

The late actor David Niven of Pink Panther and Around the World in 80 Days fame is, in the photograph, wearing two objects worthy of emulation. The first is his cream colored gabardine trousers, something so rarely seen that they stimulate frequent and generally positive comment while complementing a variety of jackets. The other is his even rarer double breasted tweed.

In my opinion, double breasted tweed adds interest to wardrobes comprised overwhelmingly of single breasted coats. DBs are usually either suits or blazers these days, so an odd jacket version displays a certain command of the language, as it were (they are less interesting in a wardrobe that is mainly double breasted, as a man needs some opportunity to wear his collection of waistcoats and sweaters and SB odd jackets are the better opportunity for those).

The holiday season is perhaps the best time to wear odd jackets during the year, tending as it does to offer daytime social occasions that are just the right level of formality for them. And though it is almost certainly too late to add either cream colored trousers or DB odd jackets in time for this year's gatherings, they might be just the thing for your 2012 wardrobe.