Rupert Everett

It is funny with men's fashions that one can immediately take a dislike to a look, but eventually it grows on you. Such is the case for me with Rupert Everett's 'tracksuit bottoms with jacket' look that he sported on Channel 4's The Scandalous Adventures of Lord Byron http://tinyurl.com/mu95bc

Stylish, but practical and cool for travelling I should imagine, especially with the summer holidays upon us.

Best dressed man

According to Esquire magazine, Prince Charles is the world's best dressed man

http://www.esquire.com/blogs/endorsement/prince-charles-best-dressed-man-030609

Although undoubtedly smart, his look is too fussy for my liking though due to his relentless wearing of the double-breasted suit and the high lapels. Daniel Craig pulls off the British look better in my opinion.

Unpatriotic as it may seem, the simple continental stylishness of Nicolas Sarkozy and Jose Mourhino is more to my taste.

Black ties

The black tie (standard tie as opposed to bow) has increasingly in modern times been shorn of its funerial associations and are generally worn at work and leisure. I wore mine at work for the first time today with a grey suit and white shirt and I feel it looked good. I did, however receive a few concerned looks and comments by friends and colleagues who believed that I had arrived at work from a funeral. Perhaps the black tie should be reserved for less formal attire to remove all possibility of it being associated with funerals to prevent well meaning misunderstanding. One would look good underneath a black shirt, grey pullover worn with a pair of jeans and a light jacket perhaps for an evening at a tapas restaurant or bar.

Character Socks - Yes or No?

Here are the socks that I am wearing today, no doubt a thoughtful present from a recent birthday or Christmas (men in their thirties will attest to the fact that socks, and Simpsons socks in particular are a common present). I would never wear a character tie (a no-no unless one is a primary or junior school teacher) but think that character socks are quite charming – the jury is still out on character boxers however. Note that my shoes, socks and trousers all match in colour though, so whereas the picture of Homer Simpson challenges the rule, the predominance of black in the sock adheres to it.

Men and tights

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?Very_cool_men_in_tights&in_article_id=579445&in_page_id=34

Reported in today's Metro is a trend for men wearing tights (under shorts or plus twos/fours). Initially I thought no way - but the look grows on you. I doubt it is a look for the streets of Huddersfield though, but an interesting and quirky summer look.

If you are brave enough go to http://www.e-mancipate.net/

Scarves as ties part II

Further to my conversation yesterday regarding using scarves as ties, perhaps David Beckham overdoes it when out and about in Milan. It is a bold look though.

The Scarf as a Tie

The scarf is an essential fashion accessory for the modern man and can be considered a tie replacement when wearing clothes too casual to warrant a tie. They can quite comfortably be worn inside, although I would warn against them in too formal a setting where the tie is still the order of the day. Here my friend and colleague Dr Chris Gifford shows how it should be worn – note the knot (the scarf is doubled up and then passed through to form a knot) which presents a sophisticated look. Chris wears a pale blue scarf here, which is just right – I caution against too rowdy a colour or pattern however.

Handkerchiefs

It has often seemed strange to me that a smartly dressed gent that puts lots of effort into his clothes will at some time in the day produce from his pocket a handkerchief that looks as if it has been screwed up in the darkness since the late 1980s. It is usually sepia tinged and has the detritus of months of use attached to it.

It really is silly to fall down on the basics. Pocket squares can be purchased very cheaply – any supermarket selling clothes will stock them and a tenner will get you a week’s worth – they are easy to wash and iron in with other clothes. I spray some eau de cologne on mine for extra freshness.

A braver man than I might wear there pocket square in their breast pocket – It looks classy, however a touch ostentatious in most towns and cities in the UK.

In praise of leather patches

The purpose of the leather patch on the elbows of jackets was to strengthen these areas which might otherwise wear thin due to contact with desks when writing. It is for this reason that they became synonymous with the world of academia. I’m pleased that the leather patch is being seen frequently on Gent’s clothing again and that it has been further popularised recently in the latest series of The Mighty Boosch; as whereas their purpose is primarily practical, I feel they add a certain masculinity and other-worldliness to a jacket. You can see in the jacket I am wearing today a slight and subtle contrast between the brown herringbone of the wool, and the dark tan of the leather patch. This jacket, worn with jeans and a plain white shirt provide an intriguing mix between old fashioned and modern.

Shirt Ironing

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkdKZHdMQGU

Here is a video overviewing how to iron a shirt. Amusing, but it doesn't do it, however, in the order I was taught to iron which was:

1) Collar
2) Sleeves
3) Back
4) Front

I always think it best to iron the front of the shirt last as it is the most often seen part of the shirt when worn and there shouldn't be moved after ironing to prevent creases developing when one is moving the shirt around.

The best fashion accessory

Here is the best fashion accessory that a man can ever buy, and the easiest and cheapest way to spruce up your wardrobe. It is cheap, can be bought on the high street and comes in a variety of sizes and colours to suit all tastes.

Someone who buys 'easy care' or 'non iron' shirts or clothes and thinks that this means they need not iron them is fooling no-one but themselves. Ironed clothes look and feel better (and if you think it is unmanly chaps - ironing is day one of training in the army too).

End of the suit?

Whilst in London at the end of last week I came across Irena Sedlecka’s excellent statue of Beau Brummell in Jermyn Street. Brummell argued that the well dressed gentleman should never be noticed by the singularity or flamboyance of his dress and so pioneered a simple more elegant form of dressing that was radical in its time. The problem that this message has for the modern day is that in an overtly casual age, is the suit and tie wearer standing out from the majority of wearers and therefore guilty of bad dress? Are we (and I like to place myself in this group) therefore the people who he was rebelling against (i.e. if Brummell were alive today would he be more Abercrombie and Fitch than Gieves and Hawkes)?