Silk and the Open Collar

Of the ways to fill an open shirt collar, I like the neckerchief, like the one worn by the late French actor Philippe Noiret, best. But just try to find one - Jermyn Street's New & Lingwood is the only place I know of that stocks them and the last time I checked they had them hidden in a drawer.

To my mind, neckerchiefs deserve more popularity than they receive. Whether worn discretely, with the ends left inside the shirt, or flamboyantly exposed for all to see neckerchiefs have fewer negative connotations than ascots and are considerably less expensive than silk squares like the one worn by Cary Grant in To Catch a Thief. That is because the 17"/43cm square neckerchief requires less than half the silk of the 22"/56cm square.

Wearing a neckerchief is simple. The square is folded into a triangle and rolled up, and the ends knotted in front of the neck. Try it, if you can find one.

Photo: Tony Barsom/Getty Images

An Old Favorite

Today's illustration is an old favorite, and a timely one for early spring. Change the plus fours for trousers and both men would be well dressed for country activities eighty years after Robert Goodman drew it.

Of particular interest to me is the use of color. Each man wears at least one element that is seemingly uncoordinated with the rest of his ensemble. On the left, a scarf with a red ground is combined with a green tweed jacket and gray flannels. On the right a gray sleeveless cardigan sits beneath a brown and orange checked cheviot suit.

It is this well-planned use of seemingly unrelated elements that adds the proper carelessness to a look. A free and easy approach gives the impression that we were not trying too hard no matter how long it took to choose the day's clothes.

Cover Your Thighs

I do not understand mid-thigh city coats like the one Tommy Hilfiger sent on to the runway at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in New York recently. Oh, a heavy tweed coat of that length has some utility on the weekend but in the city I would think that men wearing those lightweight suits that the designers are offering would prefer to wear something more than long underwear to stay warm. And of course, the lack of length means wet calves in the rain.

Cover your thighs.

Photo: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Pocket Squares and Outercoat Pockets

It was windy and cool enough for a topcoat the other day and out came the covert coat. As usual the chest looked a little bare so a silk square went into the breast pocket (a red carnation would have done the trick but none were handy).

Pocket squares in outercoat pockets are mildly controversial of course. Even HRH the Prince of Wales, diligent pocket square in suit jacket person that he is, leaves his outercoat breast pockets empty. On the other hand, he often has a flower or ribbon in his left lapel, and that serves the same purpose of adding some visual interest to the upper chest area.

Now there is still a school of thought that says that a man should never wear a handkerchief in the breast pocket of a city suit, let alone an outercoat, reserving them for the country (I believe this is a holdover from the frock coat era when city jackets had no breast pockets). Other men argue that where there is a breast pocket, there should always be a handkerchief.

Men who find controversy a thing to be avoided can obtain a ready supply of red carnations and ignore the handkerchief question of course, thereby securing all the style without any of the controversy. But given the effort associated with a greenhouse in winter, I will stick with silk.

Clothes for Sprinkles

The City had rain early in the morning the other day, turning to sprinkles by 10AM, and that is to my mind the perfect weather for a hat. Felt hats should not get soaked, but they do a fine job of keeping the head dry otherwise. Combine them with a winter weight suit and a scarf to cover the chest and a coat becomes unnecessary in 50-60 degree weather (10-15 degrees Celsius).

My favorite hat in brown beaver felt tops a gray flannel suit, blue silk scarf, navy and white mini-checked shirt, white linen pocket square and black semi-brogues. There is a dark purple cashmere necktie hiding beneath the scarf.

The Rebirth of the Dressing Gown?

I must admit that I am a rather indolent fellow on the weekends, at least when it comes to getting dressed. I regularly spend mornings in my study dressed in my pajamas, which would be fine except that I somehow misplaced my one and only dressing gown after I put it aside to be altered at the end of the winter before this one. And the room is cold, particularly with the windows open to let out the cigar smoke, itself a necessary state that keeps me out of divorce court.

So, notwithstanding my declaration of two years ago that the dressing gown is dead, that chill has led me to think again about robes and their uses, which include a bit of extra modesty for those times when a man stumbles out into the kitchen to make coffee and discovers that his houseguests have been awake for an hour.

Now robes come in three basic types: cotton, which has modesty without warmth and is likely to wrinkle when you look at it; silk, which would be ideal if any of the cloth merchants of my acquaintance offered the paisley stuff that would let one delude himself into thinking he looked like a contemporary version of Noel Coward; and wool, or preferably cashmere, like the Derek Rose made-to-order-only robe in the photo. Unfortunately, there is a considerable price £1,999.99 ($3,000 now that the pound has dropped a little) attached to the Derek Rose version.

Fortunately, robes are the province of the shirtmaker and mine has his workshop in Hong Kong, which offers the potential for some considerable savings. And, sure enough, when asked for a general cost for a cashmere robe Joe Hemrajani of MyTailor quoted $1,800 (£1,200) and sent several cashmere books along to illustrate the fabric choices. The remaining dilemma is whether to choose ten ounce/300 gram cloth or the considerably heavier 15 ounce/450 gram stuff (camel colored of course), and that is much less stressful than the question of how to squeeze Derek Rose level prices out of a clothing budget that is already completely committed into 2012 or thereabouts.

This may signal the rebirth of the dressing gown in at least one household.

Photo: Derek Rose

Ugh

Sometimes it takes a photographer to illustrate that the day's clothes simply do not, as the saying goes, cut it.

Trying to layer lighter weights to go out to lunch in moderate weather resulted in this lightweight tweed jacket combined with a sleeveless sweater, shirt with a button down collar that hasn't fused properly (I get them unlined and it sometimes takes a few launderings before they settle in) and an ascot. If I had had any other photography this morning the combination never would have seen the light of day.

To my eye it is the combination of an empty looking collar and too much shirt front that throws the look out of kilter. Replacing the ascot with a four in hand necktie might have pulled things together. But it was what it was and I will do better next time.

Ugh, as the saying goes.

The Summer Palette

I wish I had written Michael Drake's very elegant description of summer clothing: "fawn colored linen suits with blue chambray shirts, raw silk neckwear, and woven straw hats." For natural, khaki, and light to mid blue is the ideal color base for summer's tailored clothing. Oh, throw in light gray if you must, but that is a concession to the city for men who are not able to be at the seashore for one reason or another.


Combine that tailored clothing with a Montecristi Optimo hat like the one in the photo, and in your neckties add secondary colors like dark red, pink, and grass green to the palette.

For it is time to think about these things. Spring must surely be around the corner.

Photos: Optimo Chicago (top) and Drake's London (bottom)

Put One In Your Wardrobe

Horizontal stripes play a very limited role in men's clothing. True, they are sometimes found on knit ties, polos, rugby jerseys and prison uniforms but the only other place that comes to mind is a man's dress shirt body, a rare species indeed. Horizontally striped shirts are a style little seen since the 1980's, when Alan Flusser put Michael Douglas in them for the movie Wall Street.

Since horizontally striped shirts (which we will call HSS for brevity going forward) are so rare, the challenge is whether a man can wear them with the proper amount of nonchalance, so they do not call undue attention to themselves and, by association, the wearer. For they are great looking when worn correctly. And here we owe a debt of gratitude to Ed Tutee of Style Forum and The London Lounge whose photo demonstrating the proper way to wear horizontal stripes graces this essay.

To begin with, the HSS is quieter when less of it is visible and that means it is better under jackets with smaller chest openings, such as vested suits or double breasteds. The shirt body itself should continue the low key theme, with narrower stripes in relatively dull colors preferred over brighter and wider versions. A conventionally striped collar like the one in the photo calls less attention to the shirt than a white contrast collar. Finally, solid colored neckties in low intensity colors complete a picture of discretion that is a worthwhile change of pace.

And that is how to wear the HSS. Put one in your wardrobe.

Photo: etutee

Summer Preview

Hong Kong's W. W. Chan delivered a summer odd jacket this week and though it is not warm enough to wear in our winter weather it needed a workout. The first step was steam (Chan ships its jackets in medium FedEx boxes, presumeably to save on shipping, but the price is that they arrive heavily creased). A lot of steam got most of the creases out but the careful observer will notice that what were hidden creases on the sleeves could still use attention.

Despite the effort required of the customer, Chan is great value, particularly for tropical weight clothing that is not expected to last as long as the heavier stuff.

Back to the jacket, it is a quarter lined (hence the patch side pockets, which are essentially required for quarter lined jackets) 3 roll 2 tropical weight in a blend of 75% linen and 25% silk. The silk gives it some sheen, which is good as the jacket is meant for late day wear. That is to say, early evening cocktails and meals under the late setting sun. Here it is paired with leather and suede slip-on shoes, light gray fresco trousers, a white linen shirt, white linen pocket square and a navy silk knit necktie with red dots.


There is a lot of white in the weave of the jacket so a white square and white shirt blend the combination nicely in my opinion. The navy necktie provides a focal point.

As soon as the photos were taken it was time for more seasonally appropriate corduroy trousers, a flannelette shirt and a camelhair sweater.

Mess Dress

When a reader sent me several photos of his daughter's recent wedding to a young U.S. Air Force officer, I was struck by how rare it is to see military dress uniforms these days. The royal households of Europe were once filled with officers in formal dress. Today, the military is virtually a separate society and for most of us interaction is rare.

The male members of the wedding party in the photo are wearing the Air Force Mess Dress Uniform which is for formal or semi-formal occasions such as graduations, award ceremonies and weddings. The uniform consists of a short mess jacket and mess dress trousers in dark blue. With a blue satin tie and cummerbund, the uniform is the equivalent of civilian black tie. A white bow-tie and waistcoat turn it into the equivalent of white tie.

Congratulations to the bride and groom.

Grumbles About Pockets

I use six working pockets between jackets and trousers. It has always been that way. There are two on the trousers and, excluding the breast pocket for my square, four or five on the jacket. It is a practice that has served me well - I never lose items like my keys. They are always in my right-hand trouser pocket.

But today we are grumbling about pockets and how change is not necessarily for the better. You see, I have begun exercising first thing in the morning at a new-to-me facility about six blocks away from my home and it has seemed silly to wear a jacket and trousers to get over there. So I began dressing in sweat pants and a sweat shirt, and that is when it all fell apart. There are two front pockets in my sweat pants but instead of the customary four jacket pockets I have been trying to make things work with just one interior pocket on a casual coat, and two hand warmers on that coat's sides.

As you probably already suspect dear reader, last week my perfect no loss track record came to an end. A pair of much loved tortoise shell reading glasses and their case, normally secured in my left hand jacket pocket, fell out of one of the hand warmer pockets and has not been seen since. Thus began my grumbling.

Then yesterday I put my heart rate monitor in one of the trouser pockets where I also keep a money clip. When the heart monitor strap came out of the pocket so apparently did the money clip, joyously for whoever found it but less so for me. And my grumbling increased to a new level.

So, live and learn. It is now shirt jacket and chinos with the customary six pockets on the way to and from the gym and I remove them to work out in the shorts and tee that I wear underneath. And my inventory of coats with only one useable pocket is headed for the resale shop. It is just too disruptive losing things.

Let my grumbling be a lesson for you.

Photo: Ben Silver

Coordinate Secondary Colors

One way to pull together a look for the day is to coordinate secondary colors. For example, the tan suit and purple necktie in the photo do not relate to each other, nor does the light blue shirt or the predominantly navy pocket square. That creates the proper look of nonchalance, but there is more coordination present than may meet the eye.


Specifically, the purple Cappelli necktie has small orange and green figures in it. The orange in the tie repeats the orange overcheck in the suit, and the square repeats both the green and orange in the midst of its navy. The result is, in my opinion, harmonious without being obvious about it.

And that is the result of coordinating secondary colors.

A Blue and Gray Alternative

It is personal taste rather than the product of some argument about correctness but I really like shirt jackets for knocking around. There's a little less weight on my shoulders and I stand out a bit less at the grocery store, but I still have pockets and a covered waist. The pockets are a big advantage over a cardigan sweater.

Shirt jackets are comprised principally of straight seams and are usually made cost-effectively at a shirtmaker rather than a tiaior. The version in the photo was sewn by MyTailor from unlined 14 ounce/420 gram Scabal linen. It is worn with a DJA royal oxford cloth shirt, a Cravate Royale ascot, twill trousers and G&G monkstraps that have been darkened with black polish over time.

Informal Evening Dress

It may seem odd to call a lounge suit informal evening dress when much of the world defines informal as jeans, but that is all the language leaves us. After all, black tie is considered semi-formal, and the lounge suit is certainly less formal than the dinner jacket.

Still, Friday seems like the right day to bandy about what to wear to the opera, the symphony or the theater in a city. And that is ideally a suit or a double breasted blazer in a not-too-dark shade of navy blue, like the one the late Aristotle Onassis is wearing to take his wife on the town in the photograph. That is of course because that shade of blue under artificial light looks blacker than black.

Like dinner jacketings, the cloth of this suit or blazer should be a solid or semi-solid like Mr. Onassis' herringbone. Stripes and patterns should be reserved for day wear, though there is no reason that an evening-approprate suit cannot be worn during the day from time to time. At night, it should be combined with a white shirt and a necktie with sheen that evokes a dinner jacket's satin lapels. A black or dark blue satin four in hand works nicely. A conservative bow tie that recalls more formal clothing is equally fitting.

No part of this ensemble should ideally be worn during the day of the event, for once upon a time men always changed for dinner and dressy evenings are an opportunity to pay homage to that practice with unwrinkled clothing. This is a state of affairs that is not always practical during the work week, but anyone should be able to change his shirt and necktie.

I do include the blazer in this category of dress, particularly as the formality of the occasion decreases. The theater, for example, or the baccarat or backgammon table. Perhaps a club, though appropriate dress for clubbing is so completely dependent on the particular club and locale as to be immune to my generalizations.

Photo: Tom Wargacki/WireImage

Somewhat of an Homage to Cary Grant

Of course I can not find it when I need it but a week or so ago I saw a new-to-me photo of Cary Grant wearing a dark suit and necktie with light socks. And so it was that I set out to do the same.

In the photo, a gray flannel suit accessorized above the waist with a gray on white striped shirt, white micro-dot on black necktie and a white linen and cotton pocket square with a gray-green border.


Below the waist, beige socks with beige and green stripes and brown semi-brogues.

Mr. Grant, of course, did it better.

What Shall We Wear to Your Wedding?

Town & Country magazine has its Weddings issue this month, and wedding planners rejoice for the start of the season. That means it is timely to discuss the question of what should be worn to these events, particularly in the United States where our heterogenous mix of cultures has left us at the mercy of those same wedding planners due to our lack of a common tradition.

Fortunately for the length of this essay, today we address only the clothing of the male guests at a wedding and not the much more complex choices that face the bride about the wedding party itself. And the choices are complex, for there are essentially three styles of weddings held at two times of day, and the wedding party should wear different clothing for each of them. But, as I wrote, we will only concern ourselves here with the dress of the male guests.

Ignoring time of day, for the dress of the guests does not generally need to change with the time, the three styles of weddings form a pyramid. The broad base at the bottom is the informal event where the bride wears something less traditional than a wedding dress. These are the most difficult events to characterize and one can only recommend a telephone call to the bride or her mother to determine what she will be wearing. For it could be awkward to appear in a necktie when the bride will be in denim, and here in California if not all across the continent one should never assume any level of formality greater than is offered by the products of Levi Strauss & Co.

That said, the top of the wedding pyramid is a formal wedding like that in the illustration, a level of formality that most men never encounter in their lifetimes. The bride wears a long dress, the groom and his party wear formal or semi-formal clothing, and the guests wear lounge suits if there are no strollers already hanging in their closets. Eschew dinner clothes unless the event begins after 6PM.

Navy blue solid suitings are best for events that will continue into the evening, with black shoes, a silver wedding tie, and the three whites, as I like to think of them. Those being the white shirt collar, a white linen handkerchief in the jacket pocket and a white gardenia or carnation as a buttonhole. The last is important as it is the principal remaining item worn by the guests that differentiates the wedding day from an ordinary one.

Between the formality of the long dress and the informality of anything goes is the short white wedding dress event. And here the guests can confidently wear those same navy blue suits, perhaps with a less formal necktie and, during the day, a colored dress shirt. The white pocket square and white buttonhole remain the same.

Whatever the type of wedding, it is important to remember that we are guests of the bride's parents, and it is the bride's day. A suit honors both the occasion and the hosts as we wish the bride and groom a long and happy life together. And by thinking of these things in the depths of winter, we have time to acquire the proper clothing.

Consider the Roll Neck

Of the ways to wear a suit without a necktie in cool weather, perhaps the best of a poor set of choices is the roll neck sweater or jumper, where the collar provides a visual anchor that serves some of the necktie's function.

Single ply cashmere (two ply wears warm under a jacket) plays the best lead in the role of a necktie substitute, though the good stuff - either Scottish or Italian - is as dear as several neckties. Merino wool is a reasonable substitute with most of the hand for a fraction of the cost. Either way, choose a color that picks up a secondary color in the suit, as the sweater picks up the suit stripes in the photo.

This is of course a look that is not intended for the office. Instead, consider it for art gallery openings and cocktail parties on the weekend. That also means that woolen suitings are preferable to worsteds, with flannels being better than tweeds for the city.

Consider, if you must, the roll neck.

Photo: Woolmark Archive and London College of Fashion

Contrast

Today is gloomy on the coast, which meant that an hour spent perusing summer jacketing fabrics helped brighten the morning. And that led in turn to a thought about contrast.

You see, most experts advise that odd jacket ensembles have plenty of contrast between jacket and trousers to ensure that one's clothing is not mistaken for a suit. Now I suppose that is reasonable advice (though I am not completely certain why it should matter) but I originally interpreted the advice to be about color, and have since come to learn that simply combining dark and light is by no means all of it. For combinations in similar tones like the cream jacket and khaki trousers on HRH Prince Charles are quite effective.

The point of the matter is that there is contrast and there is contrast. Which is to say that contrast comes from reflected light, and it is more than just color. Different textures, such as the linen in the jacket and cotton on the trousers in the photo, produce their own contrast. And, in my opinion, similar colors with contrasting textures are more interesting than contrasting colors with similar textures.

Once we accept this principle, it becomes obvious why, for another example, flannel trousers pair so well with worsted blazers. As do gabardine jackets and linen trousers.

Of course, taking advantage of the principle of contrast calls for a bit of planning. When acquiring a new odd jacket, spend the bit of time necessary to acquire contrasting trousers. For a wardrobe consisting entirely of worsteds lacks contrasting textures, and is poorer for it.

Photo: Chris Jackson/Getty Images

Rain

It is a sign of the drought we are having in Northern California when it is halfway through the rainy season and there had until yesterday been no reason to wear rain gear.

Yellow Macintosh, estate tweed cap, a cashmere glen check scarf and rubber soled bluchers. No gloves, as I was about to light a cigar.