Commonscents

It’s funny the things you suddenly realise you don’t know. As I made clear on Bespokeme this week, I’m on the hunt for new scents, having tired slightly of my current signature. The one thing I have learned is that it’s a whole other world out there, with its blogging enthusiasts as passionate and as dedicated to detail as those of us enthralled by tailoring and style.

However, the first bit of basic knowledge I’ve now got under my belt is why one scent might last a day while others merely a few hours. As a smoker – no I haven’t managed to quit yet – this happens to be an obsession of mine. Additionally, I really don’t see the point of unburdening my wallet on expensive scents that last but a few hours.

There are certain anatomical factors that determine how long a scent lasts. They take to people’s skin type differently, so there is a certain amount of luck involved. You can weight the odds in your favour by layering products, such as using the same scented body wash, deodorant and moisturiser. Alternatively put some on a comb or brush and run it through your hair – it absorbs the moisture better than skin. The other factor is the strength of scent you pick, and this was the bit on which I was a little hazy – or rather, I had hitherto met with success purely by dumb luck.

I may be entirely alone in my ignorance but just in case, you have five types of scent; Aftershave, Cologne, Eau de Toilette (EDT), Eau de Parfum and Parfum. The name is a guide to the percentage of essential oils in a mixture, and the higher the concentration of essential oils, amongst other things, the longer the scent is likely to last.

Aftershave: This is the weakest of the bunch. Typically containing 1-3% concentration of oils you can expect it to last roughly 2-3 hours. It will often contain other ingredients, like Aloe, designed to help sooth the skin after shaving.

Cologne: Typically a 2-5% concentration these will last a little longer, but not much more and it is advised that you use them like an invigorating spray. They are also better for the skin after shaving than EDT’s and EDP’s. Now this is were it gets tricky; apparently many scents labelled Colognes are in fact Eau de Toilette’s; many but not all.

Eau de Toilette (EDT): Scents in this group apparently work best if you place them on pulse points. In fact owing to the higher concentration of oils some advise avoiding the face all together –especially after shaving. A concentration of 4-8% they should last 6-8 hours.

Eau de Parfum (EDP): Also works well if placed on the pulse points. Some advise spraying it into the air and stepping into the scent cloud. A concentration of 8-15%, sometimes higher, and will last all day –certainly that’s what I’ve found with Ormonde Man. These are quite hard to find and you pay a premium for them.

Parfum: In men’s scents this is like hens teeth and even harder to find than EDP’s.

What I have realised is the more I read the less I know – which I think is a song lyric. More work.

Leave a Comment

A World Of Imagination Adjusted

One of my joyous memories of childhood is the extent to which I exercised, and was encouraged to employ, my imagination. Imagination was always my friend in solitude, a make-believe sunshine on a rainy day. Unfortunately, my rebellious teenage years corrupted the fantasy and my early twenties were years void of invention. Now, in my 27th year, my innocence entirely expunged, I feel a pang for the days on which I was left with my playthings, a view of the sky and my own impossible dreams.

My imagination, which at one point in my younger years my mother commented, was so vivid that I would often replace the reality with the fantasy entirely and would vociferously reject any tired pleadings for my return to life, is not what it was. Years of the disappointing realities of life have broken the imaginative spirit. Mores the pity, for I have long thought that a good imagination is one of the most underrated qualities in any human; child or adult. Imagination is the glory of man, his triumph over the beast; the first intelligence in man was measured by his ability not only to observe but also imagine. All art, from cave paintings to cathedrals, shows a mind capable of soaring through the heavens.

When I wander the heavy laden racks of high and side street stores, glancing through price tags that rarely touch triple figures, I look around and see a disconsolate group of people doing the same. Rarely do they ‘see’ anything; they merely ‘look.’ Whether their unsettled state is due to their resentment at having to purchase in such establishments or whether they are bored by clothing I cannot say but I detect a lack of enthusiasm and, more importantly, a want of imagination that I find a trifle upsetting, for one of the few activities in which I consistently and happily employ what remains of my imagination is shopping in such environments.

I once asked a cynical friend, a designer label addict, to go shopping with me. I was determined to show him that though some places do not pre-package your perfect aesthetic onto mannequins, play you soft-and-crackly early Dean Martin and offer you an environment more akin to a boutique hotel than a shopping establishment, they can offer you garments which, imagination permitting, could be so much more than a sad little piece of cloth in a strip-lit thrift store. The key is not to buy into the aesthetic of any store but simply to create and maintain your own. If, for example, I had bought into the GAP aesthetic, I would never have altered the buttons on my £20 blazer, nor would I have paired it with a vintage waistcoat, French collar shirt, tie and punch-cap Oxfords.

If you like a particular style, say for example Hackett – who do produce some of the most arrestingly handsome window displays – don’t believe that only Hackett can offer you that look. It might take a little longer but you can find your own Hackett look without stepping into a single store. A lonely linen double breasted blazer in a cheaper establishment might not be sold as effectively as the Gatsby-esque displays at Ralph Lauren, but evaluate the product for what it is, imagine wearing it and, most importantly, imagine the way in which you will wear it.

“To look at a thing is very different from seeing a thing. One does not see anything until one sees its beauty.”

Leave a Comment

Searching For Quality Pants at Daffy’s, NYC

While in New York on a business trip, I decided to search for the much hyped Incotex and Mabitex pants to add to my business and casual wardrobe.  For those unfamiliar with these brands, there is plenty of discussion in these pages as well as the internet fora.  The mecca for the aforementioned trousers is Daffy’s, a discount retailer of merchandise, which offers both brands with tags cut out, however, at ridiculously low prices (I must add that there is nothing else of interest at Daffy’s for a discerning buyer, as its mostly fashion clothing).  With this information at hand and with plenty of time to spare, I decided to visit the three locations closest to my hotel.

The Madison location at 335 Madison Avenue had the largest selection of Incotex and Mabitex at cheap prices: $14.99-$24.99 for cotton and $24.99-$34.99 for flannel and wool.  The first complication, however, arose when trigger-happy small town me brought 14 pairs of pants to the men’s dressing room only to realize that there is only one changing room the size of porta-potty and only six items at a time were allowed.  Another quick realization while trying on the pants: I gained weight!  I could no longer fit into my regular size pants, especially since Incotex makes them a bit on a slim side.  Irritated by the weight gain, I still kept trying to squeeze into the nicest pairs I picked but to no success.  My irritability grew further due to the fact that there was no air-conditioning and that every few minutes I heard a knock by another customer inquiring as to when I was going to get out.  Finally fed up with the situation, I left all the pants hanging and walked out.  Not my finest moment to say the least.

Feeling bad about the experience and, more importantly, about all the pants I could have bought, but deciding against coming back to the same location, I moved my sights to one of the Broadway locations at 462 Broadway.  To my pleasant surprise, this location had plenty of pants and plenty of dressing rooms.  This time, I made sure to size up and ended up buying four pants: two pairs of cotton Incotex in chocolate brown and sky blue and two pairs of Mabitex, in light beige flannel and steel gray wool.  Total damage: $90 and change.

On to the final location at 1311 Broadway, I did not realize that this is all the way in TriBeCa district.  Hence, I had to take a cab.  This location just like the Madison location has only one changing room.  After about fifteen minutes searching, I was able to purchase one more pair of Mabitex, in heather gray wool for a staggering $19.99.

All in all, in three hours on a cold winter Friday afternoon, I was able to purchase five pairs of high end business and casual pants for just over $110.  And while Daffy’s is not the most accommodating store around, the bargains on pants that often retail for $225 a piece would make me do it all over again.

Leave a Comment

Brand Review: Devonport

Who, where or what, you cry, is Devonport? Until a couple of weeks ago, I hadn’t the foggiest idea either. Google searches for ‘Devonport’ assist little. In fact, when you search for ‘Devonport clothing’ most of the results yielded are connected with New Zealand. So it transpired that I, sat in the smart waffle carpeted, leather chaired, better-decorated-than-Hackett Piccadilly store (at present the only store), searching on my phone’s internet for clues as to the origins of this perplexing arrival on one of London’s most famous and notoriously expensive streets, came to the conclusion that I had wandered into a Kiwi export.

Having smiled at the pleasant shop assistants in a way that conveyed more surprise than ease, I approached them for more information. I had believed that New Zealand had something to do with the store, so vague was the online information to hand, but the shopkeepers informed me that actually Devonport was an English company which manufactured most of its wares in Portugal. I informed them I had not heard anything about the store before and that its arrival was something of a revelation. They replied that this store was, at present, the only store and that the firms marketing had not yet stretched to an online presence.

The approach is slightly strange, although not illogical. Strange because to manufacture clothing, purchase a pricey Piccadilly lease and open shop without the slightest hint of marketing or PR seems extraordinary. I reasoned that the website was clearly still under construction and also that their address, the envy of dozens of retailers, would surely begin to draw in the right crowd of potential buyers, although when I visited on a sunny Saturday afternoon, the store was empty apart from my entourage. The store assistants assured me rather calmly, when I enquired about the success of the store, that they have experienced custom and that some buyers had even made repeat visits.

Despite the bewilderingly non-existent marketing and public relations campaign, Devonport will surely be a welcome addition to a street in London that was, appropriately, formerly known as Portugal Street. The style is simple but graceful. Fabrics include fine Italian cloth, chunky Scottish wool and cashmere. The suits are not shiny, small-lapelled fashion-oriented things; they are crafted out of fine materials – wool flannels and linen – and are offered in a very large range of styles and colours.

The suit room, one of three carefully planned ‘theme rooms’ (the others being a hunter’s cabin style casual wear section and a bright and airy front room for shirts, ties and accessories), is spacious and well appointed. As well as offering standard alterations on all suit stock, Devonport also offer a made-to-measure service that includes the possibility of adding a waistcoat in the same fabric to an off-the-rack suit. Detail on suits is excellent and finely executed; the canvas is horsehair, the corduroy suit buttons are smart knots of brown leather and I also noted with pleasure that the default aesthetic for the wool suit trousers was turn ups, though of course this can be altered according to the wishes of the individual customer.

Trousers, casual blazers, knitted waistcoats and cable jumpers are also on offer, as is an astounding array of shirts all neatly arranged around silk shaded lamps. Noting the prices of some of the latter, and their rather commonplace appearance, I did not foretell a happy future for this section of the store – with long-established Jermyn Street a hop, skip and jump away, how could they hope to compete in the shirt market? However, in other respects Devonport offered an aesthetic comparable to Hackett and Ralph Lauren and prices comparable to an upmarket high street store; it is the sort of clothing of great interest to style-conscious men ranging from a mere 35 to a grand 80 years of age. It has legs too; this is not experimental stuff. The designs are reliably derivative and well-made and offer a warmer, wiser, coffee-drinking European alternative to the brasher, younger-looking Hackett aesthetic.

The store manager informed me that a morning wear section is planned; tailcoats, waistcoats, sponge bag trousers, the lot, as well as the new spring collection, due in a couple of weeks, which will include linen suits, seersucker and summer blazers. She also keenly informed me they are looking for an English cloth provider and, potentially, a resident tailor. Expansion plans were not made evident, although it seems that this very European looking store – that brings together a London-via-Milan style – will be considering other large cities on the continent. However, bearing in mind the state of the retail market, this will probably be the only store for now.

Leave a Comment

The Week Ahead: North Sea Clothing

One of the tasks on my agenda this week is to score an interview with Neill Starr, the fellow behind London’s North Sea Clothing and the resurrection of the Submariner Jumper. I discovered this particular item on a recent visit to 14 Earlham Street, a vintage store just off Cambridge Circus, and have had a bit of a fixation with it since.

If, like me, you’re a devotee of those classic British war movies that you used to watch on a cold Sunday afternoon such as In Which We Serve, The Battle of the River Plate, We Dive at Dawn, Sink the Bismark and their like, then the submariner jumper may strike a similar chord. Standard issue kit by the War Office to Royal Navy personal in both World Wars, the jumper was later taken up by 1950’s motorcyclists and worn under their leathers as a means of keeping warm.

It’s this historical thread, its robustness and the perfect combination of form and function that have tempted me to buy one. I’m even scouring the markets of London in hope of bagging a vintage beaten up Barbour to complete the look.

Although, for me the truly curious thing is how subtext has altered my view of a garment type. In the normal run of things I have a near religious aversion to turtleneck/roll neck jumpers, or anything like it. I know they have their enthusiasts here, but for me they conjure up images of greasy, moustached, medallion wearing lotharios, synthetic fibres, Old Spice, wide lapels and the great collective awfulness that were the 1970s.

Of course the story to be told is as much about the man behind the jumper as the jumper itself. Speaking as someone who has often talked about setting up their own label I’m fascinated by people who just decide to get on and do it; and in my experience, the more unusual the garment the more interesting the back story.

Leave a Comment