One Thing: Cashmere Crewneck Sweater

As the holiday season ratchets into full swing, my wife usually asks for my wish list. We both understand that in my case this particular list is really more of a lifetime To-Do list than a “what I want for Christmas this year” list. I have things on there like “Rolex Submariner” and “Interview Ralph Lauren for the blog”; not exactly presents to whip together in a few weeks. There are however several items that I see as luxuries within reason.

This led me to come up with a list of items that I think every man should have. Some are more extravagant than others, but each is classic and useful. I will be profiling each item over the next few weeks. For my first “One Thing” I chose the cashmere crewneck sweater.

The crewneck sweater (jumpers) is a classic staple of men’s wardrobes everywhere. They can work with almost any outfit and be easily paired with jeans or grey flannels. A good crewneck should have a lightly fitted body and trim arms, but not too tight. The hem of the sweater should sit at your waist with room to allow for sitting, stretching etc., but should not blouse over the ribbed bottom. This is always an unattractive sight and gives the impression that you are either carrying a week’s worth of extra lunches around your waist or you borrowed someone else’s sweater. Neither impression is a good one.

It should fit comfortably over an oxford shirt yet still allow for easy movement while still maintaining a close fit. I like my sweater’s arms to either run a touch long so that I can turn back a good amount of cuff or end right at the wrist and allow some shirt sleeve to show. Anything in between tends to look out of proportion.

The neck is an area that merits additional attention. Some makers have neck lines that appear designed to strangle anyone foolish enough to try and stick through their head, while others seem to feel that wide gaping holes are somehow attractive. The ideal is a neck that allows the collar of your shirt to sit comfortably within, while the sweater itself offers a clean, firm neck hole that won’t easily lose its shape. I guess the best way to put it is that when viewed from any angle, your head should not appear constrained.

Regarding fabrics, merino is an excellent material but cashmere is really the gold standard. One or two-ply is more than enough for the average office dweller. Three-ply cashmere sweaters are often hawked this time of year, but don’t fall for it. Pictures of handsome people frolicking in chilly New England autumns do you no good while you are sweating up a storm in your climate controlled office building – every day.

When it comes to looks, there are several different styles of crewnecks; from simple to elaborate. After mulling this over for literally a decade, I have concluded that there are only two really useful styles: flat knit and cabled in solid colors.

A few years ago, during an after-Christmas sale, I came across this beautiful, chunky, heavy lamb’s wool Irish fisherman style sweater. It was a steal, and I bought it. I quickly realized that I couldn’t wear the thing anywhere except outside on a cold day. It weighed a ton and trapped too much heat. The upshot? Unless you actually are an Irish fisherman or work outside, give this heavy work style sweater a pass.

A thinner cabled sweater is a much better choice and simply more usable. You can find them in every color under the sun; from preppy primaries to English heathers. The same goes for flat knit sweaters. They are incredibly versatile and mix well with different materials. Flat knits in particular are good to have around because they can act as a grownup sweatshirt and adapt well to layering.

So there you have my first “One Thing” recommendation. Stay tuned for more.

3 Random Sartorial Mistakes That Bother Me

As we head into this holiday season, with shopping and gifts on the near horizon, I want to point out a few pet peeves of mine. They are simple areas of improvement that can benefit guys everywhere. Not major investments, they are more simple behavioral changes; minor yet still egregious sartorial errors that people make on an all too regular basis. So, before you get that fancy overcoat or pick up some new shoes, please read this first.

My first pet peeve is something that should be fairly obvious to most men, but unfortunately is not. Should you receive a sport jacket or overcoat that has not yet passed through a tailor’s hands, please snip out the basting stitches which keeps the various vents and pockets sealed shut during shipping. Though the fact seems to escape some men, let me be clear: they are supposed to come out. Pockets are meant to be opened as are vents. Particularly annoying to me is when I see some guy out on the street in a dark overcoat with its rear vent stitched closed with a big white X. It makes me want to carry around scissors all winter long.

Another outerwear issue which I simply cannot fathom is wearing a short ski parka over a suit jacket. The effect of this totally inappropriate clothing choice creates a tutu-like effect with the skirt of your jacket; not to mention the damage and wrinkled inflicted on your good clothing. This look is simply juvenile, incongruous, and in a word, laughable. Your outer coat should always be longer than the suit jacket or sports coat.  Please don’t do this.

Lastly, a big pet peeve of mine is fake dress shoes. You know the ones – trainers doctored up to look like oxfords. I hate to break it to you, but you’re not fooling anyone – really. It just looks wrong for so many reasons, not the least of which is that when those awful shoes are sighted, whatever else you have on is more or less ignored.

Men often complain about dress shoes being uncomfortable, which to me means that they are wearing the wrong shoes. Dress shoes should be comfortable all day long. Are they just like a pair of sneakers? Of course not, but you don’t wear sneakers with a suit – well, actually in some cases you can but that’s for another day. If you have persistent arch pain or other foot issues, see a doctor and consider investing in some bench made footwear or custom orthotics.

Mastering the Rumpled Look

Cooler weather is always more kind to men when it comes to getting dressed in the morning. We can layer, pull out the cords, throw on a chunky jacket and top it off with a warm scarf. The sheer variety of cool weather clothing is something many a man looks to as the thermometer drops.

For those of us with the flexibility to move between business dress and corporate casual, what I call the “Rumpled Look” is a middle alternative to just dressed up and dressed down. Originally an offshoot of the American Preppy aesthetic, the rumpled look has come into its own.

The basic idea behind this style is the allusion to old money, classic taste, and timeless style. Newer or continental styles don’t lend themselves to celebrating beat up and handed down clothes quite like the preppy culture does. The unspoken message of the slouchy khakis, un-ironed oxford shirt and slightly beat up shoes is that you have old money, an Ivy League education, a summerhouse in the Hamptons, and you sail a lot. Or at least you dress like you do.

I have to say that this really is a fun look which is not hard to carry off well as long as you don’t try too hard. Like the current “critter” trend, with pants, ties, belts and coats are adorned with embroidered animals and icons of every sort – dogs to martini glasses – less is more. One creative article of clothing at a time is ironic, more is overkill.

For most men, wearing this look at the office can be a bit tough, but depending on your company’s culture, distressed chinos matched up with a wrinkled button down under a crewneck sweater should be just fine. For a younger look, don’t tuck in the shirt but rather let it hang out under the sweater. Wear a washed tweed jacket over the whole outfit. This kind of layering effect is another signature of the rumpled look. To meet up with friends for drinks, try pairing a permanently wrinkled Thomas Pink dress shirt with dressy jeans and a sport coat. The juxtaposition of classic and casual is a key balance to this look.

Like any other style you want to incorporate into your own, stop and look in the mirror before leaving the house. You want to be happy with the overall feel and proportion of your outfit. The goal should be to look like you’ve had everything for years and don’t think twice about getting dressed.

Ralph Lauren as Historian

In case you have been living under a rock somewhere, it may come as a surprise that Ralph Lauren, the company, turned 40 this year. What’s really surprising is that at one point in time there was no Ralph Lauren; kind of hard to imagine really. Lauren created the concepts of lifestyle marketing, aspirational customers, and with the opening of the Polo Mansion, total immersion product presentation. No other designer has to his extent, actually become his brand. While many are closely identified with their labels, Ralph quite literally is Polo, Ralph Lauren, Purple Label, RRL, and Rugby to name just a few. That his company has so remade the retailing and luxury lifestyle landscape in only 40 years is the really amazing part. If you think about it, he didn’t really hit his retailing stride until the mid 1980s. That makes it even more impressive.

Lauren has been busy publicly celebrating his anniversary and I for one don’t blame him. Those of you who are regular readers of my blog OffTheCuffDC will recognize my particular affection for Mr. Lauren. For this I do not apologize. People are endlessly fascinated by him and his company. More than any other brand, Polo/Ralph Lauren invites you to live inside its world: wear its clothes, clean up with its soap, splash on its cologne, sleep on its sheets in its bed, decorate your house with its paints, and eat in its restaurant. Now, after decades of relative mystery, Ralph Lauren the man is opening up the doors a bit.

With his new enormous now coffee table book, “Ralph Lauren,” virtually every collection and associated marketing campaign is given the chance to shine alongside a retrospective of his own life. Additionally, the Discovery Channel recently ran a fascinating documentary on Ralph Lauren’s vintage automobile collection: “The Ralph Lauren Car Collection: Speed, Style & Beauty.”

Considered to be one of the finest of its kind in the world, this collection encompasses many marquee names - Porsche, Ferrari, Mercedes, Bugatti - but the quality and stylistic breadth of the cars is staggering. Restored to a level that in some cases exceeds their original showroom quality, his cars track the development of the automobile not only as transportation, but as art and social elegance.

The hour-long exploration of the collection examines how it came to be, the development of the obligatory companion book, and how his cars have influenced Ralph Lauren the designer. Lauren also graced the covers of recent Men’s Vogue, Fortune, and Town and Country magazines.

Another legendary collection of Lauren’s pulls at my soul: his assemblage of watches which range from vintage Rolexes to a one-of-a-kind collection within a collection of Panerai Italian military watches. Watches in particular are intensely personal items that convey a true sense of individual style. A collection like Lauren’s is in many ways a mirror of his personality and certainly seems to accurately reflect his obsession with quality, purpose, style, detail, and history.

This past March Ralph Lauren and the Richemont Group, owners of such luxury brands as Jaeger-LeCoultre, Mont Blanc, IWC, and Alfred Dunhill, signed a deal to create The Polo Ralph Lauren Watch and Jewelry Company. The 50/50 joint venture will design, manufacture, and distribute products through Polo boutiques and exclusive high-end jewelry stores. It seems that Mr. Lauren is ready to add his own creations to his personal museum.

By assembling these fascinating collections, Lauren is becoming a curator of historic touchstones that define luxury and elegance. While some may see this as a homage to conspicuous consumption or a celebration of indulgent decadence, I look at it very differently. Watches and cars, clothes and shoes, bags and furniture; these are the things that people use to define and identify themselves the world over. They are expressions of personality and elevate functional objects to the level of craftsmanship.

Ralph Lauren is consciously preserving the history of practical elegance. He also uses his collections for personal and professional inspiration; think of them as a database of style from which new Polo creations evolve.

Look around your own life; your home, your closet, your dresser, your briefcase. What daily objects can you say are unique and truly important to you? If for example you have a mug full of pens on your desk but only one or two vintage roller balls actually mean something to you, get rid of the others. Use the things that matter and don’t hold on to stuff just because you have it.

While most of us do not have his financial resources, take a page from Ralph’s playbook and don’t just accept what you can get; don’t keep what happens to be around just because it’s there. Rather, select the things in your life and regularly edit. Create your own personal collections and you will find more value, financial and personal, in fewer but cherished possessions.

Dressing up Jeans

Jeans. For some people they symbolize lazy weekends; perhaps paired with your favorite old tee shirt and beat up trainers. Perfect for washing the car or walking the dog. For others they connote urban hip; the ultimate counter play to formal office wear. Ralph Lauren made news when he wore jeans with his dinner jacket to receive a major award. Far from being social faux pas though, it was instantly understood to be a very “Ralph Lauren” look and launched a thousand failed imitators. What he made look sharp and fashion most people simply butcher.

Jeans can be dressed up, but never make the mistake of thinking they can replace dress trousers, suit pants or, god forbid, tuxedo pants. People in the fashion business can get away with such things because they are in the fashion business and to their peers this is messing with the vernacular in a creative sort of way. Everyone else, myself included, should tread lightly when it comes to bringing jeans into the office. Still, it is possible to dress up jeans for work, a nice dinner, or cocktail party. Just focus on some key rules.

You should own at least one pair of dark blue jeans; they are timeless and the most versatile type you can own. Dark blue jeans can be dressed up with a collared shirt, sports coat and brogues, or dressed down with a tee shirt, cashmere crewneck sweater and moccasins.

Remember this: your jeans should fit you. I read a very funny article recently about “dad jeans,” which highlighted the sad fact that over the years most guys fail to buy new jeans and instead perpetrate a self-delusional myth that their favorites will always fit. They don’t; and while the jeans may stay in top form, you dear reader will probably not and it will show.

Although there are all sorts of fits and cuts, your best bet is still the basic strait leg version. It should sit at your natural hip and have a nice moderate break over your shoes. Alternately, you can wear them rolled up a bit for a preppy take or tailored to exactly hit the top of your shoe. Whatever your choice, they should look comfortable and trim but not tight; certainly not baggy and low-hanging. As with most things in life, simple is often better.

Dark jeans in particular lend themselves to more dressed-up outfits. They can carry off dressy casual better than their stonewashed or “vintage” brethren because of their inherent sophistication. In most outfits a good pair of dark blue jeans provides great texture and personality. Of course, if you want a laid back casual preppy look, most distressed and faded styles work fine as long as you stick with well-fitting strait leg models.

For autumn, try pairing your jeans with a high quality dress shirt and sport coat – tweed or corduroy look great. Throw a vest in between to add some warmth as well as style. Trim jeans can carry off dress shoes particularly well.  The juxtaposition of elegant leather footwear and rugged denim is very attractive. As noted above, jeans and sweaters are always a great mix.

By approaching a good pair of jeans as a part of your wardrobe and not just something thrown in the corner, you will get more out of this versatile workhorse.