Pocket Squares – Part 2: Wearing

In the introductory half of this double article, I imparted advice on how to take up the practice of adding a pocket square. This was vital as the second part of this ‘brace’ advances fairly swiftly, and quite without warning, into the practical side of adding a flourish. I feel it is important to remember a pocket square as a flourish. The original purpose of such an accessory is not relevant here; no one will be handing these squares of silk and linen to perspiring dancers and today’s man would rarely adopt such a decorative item as a tissue due to the arrival of disposable Kleenex.

Types of flourish

Essentially, there are two basic methods of inserting the flourish; folding and crushing. There are literally tens of ways to fold and crush a simple handkerchief, and it would be imprudent to begin an exhaustive series on the subject, so this article will only attempt to offer guidance on the two methods and when to use them. Naturally, the creative amongst you will be tempted to elaborate on this guidance and this is to be encouraged. What is also to be encouraged is practice. ‘Pocket stuffing’ poses particular problems as incompletely stuffed pocket squares tend to drown in the breast pocket; some will only notice when they glance in a mirror that their ‘flourish’ has gone a-hiding.

Crushing and stuffing

These are my favoured methods of flourish. I like folding on occasion, but there is something spontaneous and more artistic about the ‘crush’. It must be noted that silk is more effective being used in this way; cotton and linen pocket squares lack that crisp sheen that highlights the irregular yet attractive undulation of material. The basic method is to take the handkerchief in the palm of your hand (picture step 1) and then keeping your fingers grip on the material invert it (picture step 2) and push the material into the pocket (picture step 3), making sure that the whole pocket is filled, push down gently (picture step 4). The finished article (picture step 5) can then be altered to personal taste. Some might prefer a tall and triangular flourish (picture step 6).

Folding

Folding is a more conservative method of flourish. Though there are many exciting ways to fold pocket squares, I intend to share with you a simple method that requires little time, practice or education. Start out by opening your pocket square completely (picture step 1). Now fold this square in half into a rectangle (picture step 2); fold again into a square (picture step 3). Fold this square into a smaller rectangle (picture step 4) and then fold roughly one third of the rectangle (picture step 5) and insert this into the top pocket. Make adjustments to the flourish (picture step 6) by separating the layers of the pocket square from each other to create a serrated edge (picture step 7).  For even greater simplicity, simply fold the material in half at step 4 and insert into the pocket (picture step 8).

The ‘waterfall’

As mentioned in the opening article on pocket squares and flourishes, the ‘waterfall’ is a very individual and rather rare method of adding flair. Some love it, many hate it - I remember a famous protagonist being Lord Sebastian Flyte, played by Anthony Andrews in the television production of Evelyn Waugh’s  Brideshead Revisited. The method is deceptively simple although you may need a safety pin or two to keep the thing from misbehaving; unsecured ’waterfalls’ have a tendency to fly off with the wind. Take the pocket square and pinch an amount of the material between your thumb and middle fingers (picture step 1); then push this part to the bottom of the pocket, leaving the rest unfolded (picture step 2). Make adjustments or secure the material to give your look the ’waterfall effect’ (picture step 3).

These methods of manufacturing a flourish are easily adopted into a daily routine because of their simplicity. I do admire the pressed pocket squares in Brioni catalogues and the intricacy of the formulated shapes but, pretty as they are, I have not been able to adopt them into my quick morning routine because of time constraints. There are many combinations to attempt, and if you have the time and patience, you can iron your silk or linen into precise shapes. If however you want quick ‘pocket flair’, the above methods are well recommended.

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Pocket Squares – Part 1: Embracing

For a number of years, I have adorned my jacket top-pockets. What began as a practice of sartorial experiments has evolved into a daily routine; I now adorn out of desire, no longer out of innocent curiosity. My first experiment with the pocket square was an act of costuming and it was rather a failure; my perpetual fluffing and fidgeting attracted sympathetic glances but also squints of consternation. I was an amateur and my amateurishness was strongly indicated by my unhealthy and naïve action of ’correction’.

This was something I learned quickly and painfully. To wear a pocket square, one must not appear ill acquainted with the accessory. It should be worn as carefully, or as carelessly, as any other item. It should be treated with the same pride or naiveté. To single it out for correction or fuss is to isolate it as an uncomfortable over-elaboration; and nothing is more fatal to the stylish boulevardier than obvious discomfort. To be uncomfortable in your clothing is for your clothing to be alien and such disingenuousness is mercilessly unflattering.

This is not to say that a chap should not experiment as his confidence grows; to try things on the street he has always tried in his bedroom mirror. It is perhaps ironic that we tire of relentless dress rehearsals and yearn for the unforgiving punches of the real world, but that is essentially what we want - the real opinion, the brutal honesty of wind, rain and daylight. Our sartorial concoctions are made for the uncertainty of the world not the dust-filled comfort of our flattering and forgiving dressing quarters. If anything, there should be more experimentation, more of a dalliance with past sartorial glories, more people whispering ‘I’ve always wanted to try that…’, and so my cautionary words to pocket-square novices are merely that; cautionary. I offer such advice in the hope that others will avoid my embarrassing faux pas.

Adding colour or merely texture to the top pocket is a splendid way to smarten and sophisticate the ever-so-common two or three button jacket. At first, you will sneer into the mirror, perhaps expelling a guffaw or two, at how ridiculous you look but this is, I can assure you, merely a temporary feeling of awkwardness. Over time you will come to appreciate how well a pocket square finishes a look and how, possibly, it has changed your perspective on complementation, coordination and polish.

As a flourish, the pocket square is a reflection of personality. The more cautious men might opt for a folded triangle, just peering over the top of the breast pocket. Others might be outrageously adventurous and attempt the ‘waterfall’; beloved of eccentric artists and artistic eccentrics, this style is not so much peering over the top as, the name implies it, gushing from the pocket. Your style of dress will dictate your pocket square fashion as will your mood, confidence and, yes, state of inebriation: I myself have dressed in such a state and have worn bizarre ’combinations’ of colours in my breast pocket that have given me the contrived appearance of a court jester.

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Cardigans: Sartorial MVPs

For something that has long been associated with school teachers and grandparents, the cardigan has really turned a corner. While it is certainly still a ‘trend’ item, making it acceptable for the fashion conscious young men about town, it has also reclaimed status as an item of evergreen style. The thought of buying buttoned knitwear never crossed my mind as a youth. When I was a mere lad of teenage years, the times of uttering ‘fashion’ and ‘cardigan’ in the same sentence were long gone. Absent from the catwalk and the high street, exposure to these garments was limited to fusty outfitters who retailed heavily patterned versions to quiet academics who matched knitwear to their pipes.

It was certainly overdue a revival, and the high street is now chock full of the things. Whereas before the renaissance, when well fitting cardigans in subtle silk-cashmere mixes, or plain and honest cotton, were damn near extinct, they are now everywhere and it is a great time to purchase a good number of them. It seems people have taken this lovable item to their hearts once more and it’s not surprising. The versatility of a cardigan will make you wonder how you ever lived without one. The low v-neck enables you to wear one with a suit and tie on a chilly winter day and, because they are now available in a vast array of colours, there are fantastic opportunities for tonal matching or complementation.

In terms of smartness and formality they sit almost exactly between a v-neck jumper and a waistcoat; they are certainly more elegant than the former and they are often more charming, in an understated style, than the latter. A dark chalk-stripe suit will naturally look imposing with a matching waistcoat, but for a different look, a beautiful light purple cardigan will bring a different quality to the outfit, not to mention a welcome exhibition of colour.

Cardigans, when manufactured in appropriate materials, can be used all year round. I have a silk-cashmere version that never gets a seasonal relegation; it is constantly in use and I have often worn it, in the heat of summer, unbuttoned with a polo shirt, shorts and espadrilles. On warmer spring days, it makes a welcome change to use a cardigan instead of a jacket; with v-necks, I have never been as comfortable using them thus.

In winter, a cardigan will provide warmth and diversity to even the most staid of staid ensembles. Black is a wise colour choice that will also come in useful on summer evenings, but grey and light blue are two choices which will really stand out; the former looks fantastic with dark slim fitting suits, with a white shirt and a dark striped tie whereas the latter, a lovely winter sky blue, looks wonderful with dark and light grey.

Spring and summer colours of cardigan will veer towards the lighter and brighter; white and creams are classic and are agreeable companions for just about anything, blues, yellows and greens are unconventional, especially in strong tones, and will set you apart from the rest of the ‘cardi’ crowd’, but as they will undoubtedly dominate an outfit, it is best to use them with colours easily beaten by their vibrancy such as navy blue, white, brown and black. Wearing competing colours, perhaps in the form of bright red jeans, will certainly catch an eye but such Lego colouring often looks clownish. Cardigans are a wise investment as, no matter how long the glow of the trend lasts, these items will mark their place in the sartorial ‘value-for-money’ hall of fame.

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What about Digital Watches

“Go digital”, “The world’s going digital”, “Are you ready for digital?” There is so much talk of digitalisation these days. Everyone is scrambling for a share of ‘the digital age’. Knowledgeable pals tell me of new digital advertising, of the digital newspapers of the future; my television barks at me of ‘the push for digital’, my news channel instructs me as a ‘digital viewer’ to ‘get interactive’.

It’s all very promising and progressive and much of this digitalisation is a vast improvement on the old analogue services we have been receiving. Digital radio is not only crisp and clear, but it offers more variety; anyone yearning nostalgically for crackly sets and four wavelengths is being irrationally romantic. The same goes for digital television; on-screen TV guides, pausing live television, digital sound and interactive services are a far cry from thumping a fist on an ugly and irresponsive box. However, one shouldn’t get carried away. After all, some of the pleasure in the analogue world is not just in form but in function too.

The mechanical wristwatch remains a delight; an icon of design that I hesitate to mark, for fear of jocund interpretation, as ‘timeless’. Though I may buy Smart phones and Ipods and HDTV’s, when it comes to my daily, nay hourly friend, the wristwatch, I prefer to choose out-of-date technology. For it’s all about the little things. The tiny clicking of the wheels, the second-hand sweeping majestically around the face and especially the imperfect timekeeping. Oh indeed. I can gibber ad nauseum about the benefits of finer radio, crisper television and the wonders of the digital age but I am strangely content with the inferior timekeeping abilities of my mechanical watch.

If I was consistent in my embracement of this new age, I would purchase a quartz watch and, better still, a watch that tells me the time not through roman numerals but through a seven-segment display. However, I am not consistent. I am fickle and I choose things on the unsteady basis of aesthetics and whim. To me, seven-segment display watches remind me of childhood; when my classmates attempted to trump others with on-board calculators and infra-red controls that changed television channels. There can be as much frivolity in a plastic and perfectly on-time digital watch as there is in the antiquated mechanical timepiece. It’s all a matter of personality. For some people, their desire is a watch to reflect their personality; a Breuget for a Napoleonite, a Franck Muller for a Hitchcock fan. However, for fans of productions like Star Wars and Star Trek, the watch of choice might be something rather futuristic.

Admittedly, digital watch design has come a long way since the faddish days of King Casio’s calculator wristwatches. Seven-segmentism is so old that it is now seen as retro. However, as with all things, very few designs are worthy of the man of style. If you feel, on your more modish days, like strapping on something other than your ticking Patek, keep in mind that digital watches are produced inexpensively and therefore purchasing a well-designed one does not have to break the bank.

Imagine a gadget from a 1960s spy film and you have the perfect aesthetic for digital watches; matt stainless steel, primitive LCD display and the fewer functions the better. We are already armed with phones that seem capable of commanding submarines, so further gadgetry on watches would be futile and it seems we are now content that our wrists are the place for mere time and datekeeping.

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Spring in the Changes

I am of a somewhat impatient nature when it comes to looking forward. On home improvements, I like everything to be done all at once; I like order and preparation, and I prefer the temporary chaos of complete change to long term limbo. This year, I have been markedly impatient in relation to the arrival of spring. It’s a time of year I always enjoy and look forward to eagerly and now that March has arrived, I can with considerable excitement herald the official change of season. The dreary months of January and February have passed and the daffodils and early blossom are out. Though there is some considerable rising in temperature required, everything already feels a lot more upbeat, less grey and suddenly alive: the cobwebs have been blown away, the drudgery of winter will soon be a memory and the “winds of March” have already made “my heart a dancer.”

With this in mind, I have begun to change wardrobes. Although I have, unforgivably, overlapped due to my aforementioned impatience, I can now relish the embracement of spring-like gear. Spring is a time of year to throw back the heavy curtains, to let the glorious sun shine in and to throw a vase of flowers on the windowsill. In many ways, this represents exactly the sort of approach one should take to the wardrobe.

Denim

The time of winter denim is now aglow in twilight; the steel and gunmetal greys, the thick blacks and the browns are to be packed away and blue sky, indigo and white are to be deployed as seasonal substitutes. Somehow, gothic tones are the antithesis of what spring represents so, the brighter the better.

White shoes

It’s extraordinary how much attention white shoes attract. Nevertheless, they are an excellent and refreshing change from the muddied blacks and browns of winter. They are incredibly versatile but, in rainy weather, they can attract more than attention; save them for sunny, cloud-free days.

Green/blue/white

Think of a bouquet of flowers, or a sunny promenade past the old pier; green, blue and white are three of the best representatives of the undeniable freshness of spring. They do not need to be particularly bright, but using them in conjunction with less inspiring colours can help to lift an ensemble.

Going sockless

Although it’s a little early yet for such a practice, going sockless is elegant and attractive. With jeans that swing just above the top of a loafer, showing a little ankle on a sunny Sunday looks, and feels, marvellously youthful.

Doing the ‘neckerchief’

To many, one of the joys of warmer weather is not having to wear a scarf to keep warm. However, there are those who miss an adornment for the neck. The solution? To wear a silk handkerchief around the neck with a shirt and sweater or cardigan. It can feel slightly strange at first, but it allows for more colour matching or complementation and it looks terribly romantic.

Change the fragrance

Dumping the spicy and heavy ‘winter scents’ into the ‘winter bin’ leaves space for a spring scent; something fresh, fruity and much lighter, something that will complement your sleek, bright and mouth-watering spring ensembles. There are great options from the likes of Acqua di Parma and Marc Jacobs.

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