It probably wasn’t hard to feel the excitement behind the words of my last post on Bicester Village. One friend’s favourite-ever quote from this blog says it all: “I am at heart a cheap man.” (From a post last year on buying luxury – specifically, very versatile Hermes ties.) The prices and luxury menswear on offer got my heart pounding, as they did many of you given the comments I have had. Ever since I have been trying to think of … [Read more...]
I’ve had a bit of an obsession recently, namely patch pocket suits. I should qualify that by saying I’m ostensibly talking about side pockets and not the breast pocket. You won’t find a great deal said about it in style tomes. Indeed, before putting fingers to keyboard I scoured my bookshelf for some helpful insight or quote. The best that Hardy Amies can muster up is to say; “Patch pockets look very well on blazers and sports … [Read more...]
The Patek Philippe The Patek man is one who has always been prepared to wait. He patiently saved for his Knightsbridge flat when paying next to nothing in rent for a shoebox in Hounslow. He made do with altered M&S suits for years until he had amassed sufficient funds for a couple of decent three-pieces from Henry Poole. And when some of his old school friends were out lunching in Michelin starred eateries that they could ill afford, … [Read more...]
I commissioned my third bespoke suit from Graham Browne today, and I had thought about the choice pretty constantly for three weeks. There was one particular bad night in Hong Kong, plagued by jet lag, where I turned over the options for jetted versus flapped pockets for seven solid hours. I like to hope it was the insomnia that made me obsessive. Essentially, it was a question of wardrobe building. Which suit should I commission next, given … [Read more...]
By its nature inspiration comes from curious sources. My school uniform was a strictly enforced affair, leaving little room for manoeuvre when it came to individuality. Standard issue kit was: navy blue blazer, blue shirt, royal and navy blue stripe school tie, grey trousers and black leather shoes. However, there were three acts of subversion one could perpetrate, and get away with - just. The first was to tie your tie in reverse. This … [Read more...]
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