Around San Francisco: Bye Bye Bay Meadows

Bay Meadows race track outside San Francisco ended its season the other day. The place where Seabiscuit raced into the history books seventy years ago is being replaced with condominiums and office buildings.

The decline of horse racing in the United States has put the race track suit on the endangered species list. Loud tweeds, checked shirts and suede shoes are in their element around day time horse racing in the same way that a dinner jacket seems natural in the front row at a boxing match. And, lacking a venue, they also disappear.

That's progress.

Sheen

A bit of sheen adds to a look in the bright light of spring. Mohair and wool suit with a silver-blue necktie and a matte pocket square. The shoes are tan.

Sorry for the delayed post today - the photos were stuck in my camera.

Timeless

Adolphe Menjou, Hollywood's best dressed man in the years before Astaire and Grant took his place, looking remarkably timeless. Change the button stance on the jacket and I'd be happy wearing those clothes today.

Managing a Wardrobe

Well-dressed men devote thought to their clothes. Wardrobes, like most things in life, need to be managed.

Thinking men periodically take an inventory of their clothes, discarding worn, stained and outdated items. They purge things that haven't been worn in more than a year. And they keep the remainder in good repair.

By the beginning of each season, the man with a managed wardrobe has acquired his clothes for that season, including his requirements for special occasions such as weddings and holidays. And he's thinking about his clothes for the season to come, so he will have replacements for things that are nearing the end of their useful or fashionable lives.

With proper planning a man never finds himself forced to purchase a bright blue raincoat at the last minute because there's nothing else available.

Public Appearances

Successful men in many walks of life find themselves periodically in the spotlight. And men who care about the image preserved in their newspaper clippings or YouTube clips need to look their best on those occasions. In general, the best looks are the simplest.

Simplicity begins with the avoidance of distracting patterns. Pattern can appear to jump or vibrate on video. Men in the public eye should choose matte fabrics in solid colors, unless they're making a courtroom appearance during the 1930's like the man in the illustration. Video hadn't been invented yet you know.

Those matte fabrics should be impeccably pressed, as well. You probably can't steam away wrinkles before you're the center of attention, so make arrangements to change into wrinkle-free clothes.

It's also important to remember that reflection is the enemy of flattering visuals (RIchard Nixon may have lost the Presidency of the United States to John Kennedy by refusing make-up for a televised debate in 1960). Eschew the glare of white shirts during the day. When on camera or speaking from a podium, wear a leather wristwatch band instead of metal to avoid distracting flashes of light. Choose cufflinks that don't reflect. And forgo eyeglasses or replace them with contact lenses for the same reason.

Once properly attired it is a good idea to rehearse in front of a full length mirror. Rehearsal may seem awkward to the uninitiated but they should be assured that the actors they admire know exactly what to do to look their best on camera. Practice builds confidence that the details are under control, so it's easier to forget about appearance and focus on content.

Pocket Square and Boutonniere

Jack Buchanan (1891-1957) was the British Fred Astaire (or perhaps Astaire was the American Jack Buchanan). Debonair, and always well dressed, he shows us here that pocket square and boutonniere, sometimes deemed too busy in combination, can look fine together. The key is to keep the square simple.

Gray Hair

A man may spend a lifetime learning how to complement his coloring with shirts and neckties, only to see that learning become useless in a matter of months when his hair turns gray. But gray hair is fairly easy to work with. It responds well to a palette of pastels as well as grey, beige, red and white. Indeed, men who always looked washed out in white shirts may find that a bit of white to the face is quite complementary once they've grayed.

There is little to like in this monochromatic cast photo from AMC's Mad Men television series, but it does illustrate a white shirt working with white hair on the man in the double breasted. If only he had swapped neckties with the guy on the far left before he drowned in that marine blue suit. Oh well, I shouldn't get started.

Country Weekends

Times have changed since today's illustration was drawn. In an interview on Men.Style.Com, Varonique Nichanian, menswear designer for Hermes, tells us a man needs only a shirt, two cashmere sweaters, three polos, and one pair of jeans for a country weekend. Plus whatever sandals or moccasins he happens to be wearing.

We have weekend guests frequently and most of them seem to intuit her advice. I guess no-one ever told her (or them) that jeans are not permitted on most private golf courses. Including the one I play (perhaps it's a conspiracy by the pro shops to sell more clothing). I've grown accustomed to the awkward conversation as we get ready to depart for the round. "Do you have any other pants? Well, you'll need to buy some if we're going to play. Do you mind?"

Now, casual day wear is fine as far as it goes but it pleases me when the men make the effort to wear something dressier than jeans to dinner. The standard is not that high. In summer, which is much of the year, I try to strike a casual note myself with a white polo, black gabardine trousers and black slip-on shoes for meals at home.

I'm hoping without much optimism that a guest will surprise me with a white dinner jacket one of these days.

Comfort

We're a self-centered bunch today. We dress for ourselves rather for others, which is why I hear over and over that clothes must be comfortable and easy to wear.

Many of the details of dress that were a mark of elegance are condemned today as uncomfortable or too time-consuming. Loafers replace oxfords, and sneakers replace loafers. Returning home from work, men in what were once considered white collar pursuits change from their jeans into their more comfortable sweats. On vacation they transform themselves into backwoodsmen or tropical islanders.

Now some of this is because many men have never had the opportunity to wear good quality clothes that fit. I had a colleague once that refused to wear wool because the little of it he'd worn was scratchy. He apparently had an intimate experience with unlined tweed trousers.

Men who seek comfort above all will eventually find they have become slaves to trainers and sweat suits. Pursued as a goal, comfort is the enemy of elegance. And the rest of us are the poorer for it.

Dressing for the Evening at Six AM

Can a suit-wearing man be appropriately dressed all day and into the evening without changing his clothes? Absolutely, so long as the night's event doesn't require either jeans or black tie. It's just a matter of choosing adaptable clothes in the morning.

Emulate the civilian in the illustration by starting the morning with a plain dark gray or dark navy suit, white shirt with french cuffs, white linen pocket square and black calf shoes (much as I like suede, shoes should reflect light at night). Carry a more formal necktie with you during the day and don it before the evening begins. Personally, I prefer satin in shades of maroon, light blue and gold. And voilà.

Advanced students may choose to carry a change of shirt in addition to a necktie, forgoing the white shirt in daytime for something more flattering. But it's not required.

So Wrong

I don't know if Juliet Polcsa, costume designer for most of HBO's "The Sopranos," did the clothes for this ensemble photo taken near the end of the series run. Whoever dressed James Gandolfini (lower right) had a wonderful eye. It's just so wrong, in so many ways.

From the unpleasantly aqua poplin shirt to the matching tie and pocket square, Tony paints a perfect picture of how not to look upwardly mobile. Look, shudder, and learn.

Custom Clothiers Stub Their Toes

I'm all in favor of what are called custom clothiers, consultants who help their customers put together wardrobes that work for them. Clothiers represent themselves as more than retailers or tailors. Their services include wardrobe consultation, image analysis, and appointments at the client's home or office at his convenience. I do a bit of that myself for clients.

Like Manuel Martinez of Martinez Custom Clothiers in Baton Rouge, the man on the right in the photo, many custom clothiers belong to the Custom Tailors & Designers Association. CTDA, as it is abbreviated, is the oldest trade association in America. It was established in 1888 as a venue for members to exchange ideas about tailoring and has stayed relevant by shifting into the custom clothing arena. Which brings me to the September issue of Robb Report, which contains a piece titled 'Clothiers Make the Man' featuring Mr. Martinez as well as several other CTDA members.

The theme of the Robb Report piece seems to be "patronize one of these men and you'll look unlike anyone else." Not better than anyone else, or well dressed. Just different. And that's a half truth if I've ever heard one because there's different as in better and then there's different as in odd. The Robb Report story is about odd.

Now I am not talking about over the top dandy stuff like Hamish Bowles might wear but the distinguished members of the CTDA represent themselves wearing ensembles ranging from mediocre to awful.

He's not awful but Mr. Martinez, who's been elected the best dressed man in Baton Rouge and who probably doesn't deserve to have me pick on him, appears in the magazine wearing a fairly outlandish combination that pales next to the red and white checked odd jacket and bright green necktie worn by his business partner. They definitely don't look like anyone else.

It used to be said that an Englishman could count on his tailor for the make of his suit but shouldn't depend on him for recommendations about his daily dress, as many tailors don't have the experience to make the best choices. Robb Report tells me that adage still has run left.

I hope all the featured gentlemen gain clients from the publicity but I'm not looking forward to the clothes we may see around America's private jet terminals next year because of it.

Reader Questions

From CJ
"My question concerns a debate a colleague and I are having. He believes that it is acceptable to wear cream trousers for the autumn and winter season, calling it 'winter white.' I believe very much to the contrary. A glass of Woodford Reserve is riding on the answer!"

Seasonal colors follow what we see in nature and there's plenty of white around once the snow begins to fall. So, were I you, I would pay up.

Of course, knowing that you can wear a color is not the same as having a place to wear it. I'd wear a navy jacket and winter white trousers on a sunny Sunday afternoon to a party in a winter garden. The green jacketed gentleman in the illustration is wearing his in a clubhouse on what looks like an autumnal day.

From Jocke
"Do you have any good picture examples of different ways to wear neckerchiefs? And also tips on where to buy them?"

I thought I could find a illustration that answered both of these questions but, alas, the men in the illustration are wearing an ascot in one case and toweling in the other. I recall there's a decent illustration in Flusser's Dressing the Man.

There are only two ways that I know of to wear neckerchiefs. Start with a silk square. If it's at least 36", you can roll it up and tie it as a four in hand. Or, if it's the more common 27" variety, roll it up and tie a square knot. The ends may be worn in or out of your open shirt collar, but in is a bit more discreet.

They are not on the web site but if you call the store you'll find that London's New & Lingwood carries a variety of 27" patterns for £75 apiece (about $150).

Quotation: Overdress for a Party

"The elevation of comfort above all other considerations, the flawed belief that informality equals conviviality, and downright laziness have resulted in a contradictory and illogical dress sense that would stump the most mondaine of time travellers beaming into a modern dinner party as he observed the crazy cocktail of sartorial semiotics about the table.

However, the tide - at least outside the shellsuit-wearing brigade - is turning. This is because of two fundamental human instincts that have been overlooked by the slobs. One is the ancient need of people to decorate themselves, which started long before the first murmuring of civilisation and continues today. The other is our very natural wish to please others, be admired by our peers and attract a mate. Add to this the security that a few unwritten rules can bring, and the enduring need for dressing up becomes clear

The first step is to forget the old British adage that it is ill bred to be overdressed. This guideline has outlived its shelf life, as it was conceived in a period when it was the accepted norm to dress up for any activity more than gardening. At this time overdressing meant being got up in a flashy, overly elaborate or embarrassing way and took no account of the modern invasion of sports-inspired clothes that has enslaved whole swathes of the nation into sweats and trainers

Now it is advisable and good manners to err on the over- rather than the underdressed when invited to a party. This is because by being seen to make an effort you are paying your host or hostess a great compliment, as well as making yourself look your most attractive. After all, the short time required for getting yourself dressed is negligible compared with the hours the hostess may have put in preparing the party."

Debrett's New Guide to Etiquette and Modern Manners, by John Morgan

About Color

Color theory is a body of knowledge about the visual impact of specific color combinations. Orginally conceived for painters and then modified for the printing industry, it's also useful for choosing clothing combinations.

There are three principal types of color schemes. A monochromatic scheme is comprised of different shades of one color, such as a navy blue suit, light blue shirt and mid-blue necktie with navy stripes.

An analogous color scheme is comprised of colors that are adjacent to each other on a color wheel (A color wheel is a wheel used to show the relations of colors). Tan, red, and yellow are adjacent to each other on the wheel and might be worn successfully as a tan suit, yellow shirt and red necktie.

Complementary colors are colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel, such as the orange Alexander Olch necktie worn next to a blue suit in the photo. When used side-by-side, opposites make each other appear brighter.

There's a color wheel at Wellstyled.com that's designed to produce color schemes for web pages. Playing with it for a few minutes may give you ideas that will be helpful when you're dressing in the morning.

Cotton Kills

Innovation in clothing has long been driven by sport, and a look at today's sport clothing offers some hints of what people will be wearing more of during the coming decades.

Companies such as Patagonia and REI have been driving the use of new materials in active sports such as hiking, climbing, biking and fishing for the past twenty years. When temperatures rise or activity-levels increase, technical clothing made from man-made materials is designed to improve comfort by letting sweat and body heat escape. The same types of technical clothing are also making inroads for travel as they tend to resist wrinkling and dry quickly, so they can be washed in a sink and hung dry by the next morning.

Technical clothing is designed for dressing in several lightweight clothing layers instead of one or two heavier layers. Layered clothing systems let the wearer add or remove layers in response to changing conditions (they also tend to pack more efficiently than heavier clothing). Most systems have four basic layers: inner, mid, insulation and outer. Each type performs a specific task.

Inner layer clothing is worn next to the skin. Its job is to keep the wearer comfortable by wicking sweat from the skin and providing insulation. Wicking keeps the wearer dry and comfortable in warm conditions and retains warmth in cold weather by reducing evaporative and conductive heat loss. Inner layer clothing is available in a variety of thicknesses for different activities and weather conditions.

Cotton is not recommended as an inner layer for active wear. It's comfortable when it's dry, but it absorbs sweat and holds it next to the skin (which can lead to significant heat loss). Cotton also takes a long time to dry, which can cause discomfort and even death when it freezes (hence the phrase "cotton kills" used to warn hikers in mountainous terrain). Cotton-like materials with hollow synthetic fibers made from laminated polyester or nylon such as MTS 2® (Moisture Transport System) or Capilene® (used by NASA) are better.

The primary function of mid-layer clothing is to provide insulation and protection in warm conditions. Mid layer items are often worn alone on short trips in good weather conditions. Pile and fleece mid layer garments are available today in shirts, pants, vests, jackets, pullovers and sweaters with wind and weather-stopping liners built in. And pile weighs about half as much as wool.

Insulation layer clothing is designed specifically to provide additional warmth. It's typically worn whenever mid and/or inner layer pieces are not warm enough for the conditions. Insulation layers, also often made of pile and/or fleece, are designed to be warm, lightweight, breathable and without bulk.

Finally, the primary job of outer layer clothing is to protect the wearer from wind, rain and snow. Outer layer items are ideally designed to create a "chimney effect" where built-in venilation such as zippered necks, high collars, open cuffs and vents allow hot air to rise and moisture to evaporate. Breathable waterproof fabrics like Gore-Tex® are comfortable in a wide variety of situations and conditions.

So what does all this mean to every-day dress? It's become common to see technical clothing mixed into every day wardrobes. The New Zealand native sitting next to me on the airplane yesterday was wearing it from his shirts to his shoes. As suits are replaced by what Anne Hollander predicted will be shirt, trousers and a bomber jacket, more of what people wear will be endowed with technical advantages that were first applied to sport. It's adoption will be speeded as suppliers complement their offerings of brightly colored stuff designed for visibility on the face of a mountain with more conventional looking clothes.

Suits and Socks Installment III

Spectators and cotton argyles worn on a temperate Sunday with a mustard linen suit. It's definitely not business dress, but in my opinion there are few things that make a man feel quite so debonaire as a linen suit.

Suits and Socks, Installment II

City wear, including what were for a couple years my favorite brown oxfords. Above the waist, a light blue on white striped shirt, orange oval cuff links, a blue-gray twill necktie and a white linen pocket square.

Yellow Gloves

Black gloves are a bit like black suits in that retail inertia pushes them on customers when there are better choices. Just as brown shoes are more interesting than black for day wear, so brown gloves are a step above black. Other colors, such as yellow chamois or gray suede, can also add texture and visual interest. Both are appropriate for most evening occasions as well as day wear.

Once a common gentleman's glove but now seen infrequently, yellow chamois shows dirt easily and because of that has a relatively short lifespan. On the plus side of the ledger, an unlined pair is a soft, sensual pleasure to wear with a dark Chesterfield, a silk or cashmere scarf and a Homburg hat.

I ordered my yellow chamois gloves from Chester Jeffries, a small English company based in Dorset. They offer a variety of made to order gloves (in half a dozen materials with a dozen different types of lining) on their web site, and accept less ordinary requests by email.

After establishing that Jeffries had the chamois I wanted, I sent them a tracing of my hands. About a month later they responded with a made to measure pair of their CDG-4 Classic Dress Glove, which is, according to the company, hand-cut and hand-sewn. I know of few comparable personalized delights for £53.00 (about $105) including postage.

Sunday Tweeds

I've had half a dozen requests for more "what am I wearing" style photos since the Rumpled in the Country picture. So, since the muse is rather lazy today, here's a shot from earlier this year. It's a cool but sunny Sunday afternoon. We've just finished lunch and are about to drive home with the top open. Which is hopefully a satisfactory explanation for the scarf and gloves worn with a very loud suit.

I'm not very pleased with the shoulders and chest on this jacket. I think the make is fine for lighter cloth for summer, but less suited to heavier fabric. My next tweed will be a gun club jacket from Peter Harvey this Fall.