Lovely handmade by alter
ben invecchiati
Russell Safari Ph, 7-8 years old.
Originally ordered for use on an African photo safari, these have proven to be one of the most comfortable warm-weather boots ever.
(via iqfashion)
Cut, Make, Trim
If you enjoyed our series on custom shirts, and are now thinking about having some made, consider supplying a tailor with your own fabrics. The process is known in the trade as “cut, make, trim,” or simply CMT. By giving the tailor your own cloths, you can save money on the mark up that the tailor would otherwise charge for the fabrics in his books.
Supplying your own fabric is easy once you know where to go. For good, affordable basics, I strongly recommend Acorn, an English shirting merchant that is known for selling quality, workhorse fabrics. They have a variety of weaves and designs. Those above a 150 thread-count can be fairly expensive, but much of their stock is priced affordably. Their oxford cloths, for example, are about $20 per yard, including shipping. The quality is as good as, if not better than, most of what you’d find in stores.
To go about this process, you just need to figure out which shirtings you’re interested in, and then ask Acorn to ship you some sample swatches. They’ll arrive in small, clipped books like the ones you see above. You can sit on these for a bit. Figure out which you like best, consider their texture and color, and put them against the various trousers you think you might like to wear them with.
Once you decide what you’d like, find a tailor that will take CMT and have Acorn ship them the materials. Of course, which tailors are available to you will vary by region, but two online custom shirtmakers, Cottonwork and ModernTailor, confirmed with me that they would take CMT orders. Cottonwork charges $45 (including shipping) and ModernTailor $25 (not including shipping). ModernTailor is a bit cheaper, but their workmanship isn’t as good. One of my shirts from them, for example, had its seams fall apart in the wash, which is something that has never happened to me before. Still, if you’re on a very tight budget, $25 plus the cost of fabric can be very attractive.
Most men will need about two meters of fabric, depending on the width of the roll and their body size. You should confirm with your tailor exactly how much he thinks you need. Assuming you’re of average size, however, that means you can get a custom shirt made from good fabric for about $75. If you’re feeling iffy about the process of measuring yourself, remember that both Cottonwork and ModernTailor can copy an existing shirt if you send it to them. Your new shirt will fit in the exact same way.
You can take a look at Acorn’s shirting selections here. Fabrics in 36” width tend to be of higher quality, but they’re also more expensive. My favorite (affordable) lines in the 60” range are King, Oxford, and Windsor. Check out their full collection to see what else you might like.
Il Gergo rocks (just based on two pairs of high sneakers bought a while ago) — now hopefully increasing visibility will not push prices up…
The driving shoes have recently become a must for the warmer months, the lightness combined with a casual design makes them a great choice for a stroll downtown. However, most brands like Tod’s or Car Shoe aren’t very price worthy if you look at price versus sustainability. If you’re using them for driving they might last a few seasons, however if you use them on a regular basis they will probably wear down quickly.
An alternative for those of you looking for a more price worthy option is Italian brand Il Gergo, they have quite a nice range of driving shoes, at 130€ it’s easier to motivate a purchase. Of course you cannot compare the leather quality with e.g Car Shoe, however the rubber sole is probably just the same and that’s where you’ll see them wear out quickly.I might just order myself a pair, I’m guessing they won’t last long though but they sure look nice!
A great throw back. Still resonates, still relevant.
The take away for me three years later is that soft tailoring can make almost look great, even guys that clearly don’t wear it every day (if you’ve seen the behind the scenes video of this shoot, you know that to be true).
Summer jackets 4x - The essentials.
Lardini - This blue jacket is made of 100% silk, it adds an interesting and subtle texture, enough to not be boring and lightweight enough for the summer.
Boglioli - A basic navy sportcoat is basically all you’ll ever need if you’re a guy who likes to stick to the basics. Choose an unconstructed jacket for a casual feel.
Montedoro - The khaki jacket also belongs to one of those essentials for the summer, it goes with basically anything and is therefore a good purchase.
Boglioli K-Jacket - Green is this seasons color, much like blue it’s easy to match up with e.g white/beige/navy. Maybe not for those of you who wanna stay safe, but it’s a bold move!
