"I want to feel like a new man"

[Pompidou]

Back in the olden days, they dressed children like adults. I don't think there's a such thing as age appropriately. If there is, than it should be just as wrong to dress older than you are as it should be to dress younger than you are. Once the age-attire pairings are set in stone, it should be just as wrong to send kids to school in suits (essentially what school uniforms are), as it should be for men over 40 to wear jeans and t-shirts. This is, of course, if age appropriately really exists. "Overgrown toddlers" has been tossed around, but is it really an accurate phrase? Perhaps everyone who wears a suit and a hat before 60 is a premature geriatric?

 

[LordBest]

Getting a suit used to be rite of passage for a young man, hardly something restricted to the eldery. Shorts, on the other hand, were for boys, sport or the tropics.

I found the article rather good, nice to see a chap trying to raise his standards to boost his own self image. Good luck to him.

 

[Widebrim]

Getting a suit used to be rite of passage for a young man, hardly something restricted to the eldery. Shorts, on the other hand, were for boys, sport or the tropics.

Precisely. There is such a thing as age-appropriateness, and it hinges upon cultural/historical standards. If one wants to question said standards, then that's something else.

 

[Widebrim]

Very interesting article.


I never will understand why you can't today go to the theater, or movies, with a suit - as this would be an office uniform.

I wear a vintage suit to the theater every time I attend the annual 3 Stooges Film Festival and the Film Noir Festival here... Boa noite.

 

[martinsantos]

Bom dia!

... and I wear when I take the old projector from box and project any old film here in my home for friends. Unhapilly we don't have these festivals here. (two years ago we had a "noir festival" - couldn't attend any, theater was full everytime!!!)

I wear a vintage suit to the theater every time I attend the annual 3 Stooges Film Festival and the Film Noir Festival here... Boa noite.

 

[Mr Badger]

I don't blame Mr Jeffries for rejecting the infantile clothing available on the UK's High Streets, but I am shocked at the price of a bespoke suit from a non-Saville Row tailor! Shame, as I'd always harboured the thought that, one day, I'd get myself a suit tailored... never mind!

Mr Jeffries should get himself down to Radio Days or one of the other great vintage shops in London, pick up a vintage suit and have it altered to fit.

I'm fed up of the slovenly nature of modern UK man, no wonder there is only cheap rubbish that makes you look five year's old or very expensive stuff available to most folks – if you dress like a child, you get the choice of High Street clothing that you deserve.

My wife and I went to the New Year sales in Bristol — quite a large city — on Bank Holiday Monday and there was nothing, and I mean not a single thing, at any price, to buy that was in any way desirable.

I've just turned 41 and have decided that, at my age, t-shirts should just be used as undershirts, unless they are non-logo-bearing and are worn very casually with chinos and plain plimsoles or basketball boots (no training shoes).

I always thought that I spent quite a lot on clothing but, having seen the prices of the most laughable tat on sale in (actually quite respectable) UK High Street shops on Monday, my acquisitions from Ebay, vintage dealers and charity (thrift) shops seem an absolute bargain!

 

[W-D Forties]

My husband's made-to-measure tweed suit was from asuitthatfits.com (hope that's right, but you could google it if not).
They have a travelling tailor that roams the UK and takes your measurements and discusses what you want from a 'menu'. He got a lovely vintage styled 4 button 3 peice suit with high waisted trousers and buttons for his braces, with all the attendant pockets, etc for under £500. It's in a beautiful and quite funky brown and blue tweed with a blue lining. It was delivered in about 4-6 weeks and a very slight problem with fit was promptly sorted. It was excellent value (the making is done in Nepal, I think) and you do get exactly what you want.
It's not bespoke, but a very decent compromise.

 

[Pompidou]

Precisely. There is such a thing as age-appropriateness, and it hinges upon cultural/historical standards. If one wants to question said standards, then that's something else.

I would agree completely, if that were past tense, and it was phrased that we were the ones doing the questioning. When all is said and done, this is a forum about bringing back the past, and we're the minority. How the average Joe dresses is the appropriate standard - it is the cultural standard of our time, and given the historical precedent for a continuous decline in formality, you could argue it's the historical standard. Bringing back the past is great. I won't object if streets full of suits becomes the norm. That said, there wouldn't be this thread if we were anything but a fringe minority from a bygone era. Our success in bringing about any sort of change will rely on self awareness of where we stand.

 

[martinsantos]

That's a very good point!

Since the 60s the standards in clothes (and even about behavior) are changing... All here have some parameters, bought from 30s/40s. But they aren't, at all, any standard.

Two blocks from my office there is a kind of mall (don't know the correct term) only with clothes, records, shoes, skates, etc, for teenagers and young people. Everybody who buys there must have a lot of cash - a complete clothing is VERY expensive - much more than a complete suit.

And it's funny to think about guys who want to look like rappers. Guys who have no troubles at all. Certainly they don't have to see the daily violence, jobless people, etc, that would be in the origins of rap.

Maybe this kind of clothing is the standard today, and probably tomorrow's.

I would agree completely, if that were past tense, and it was phrased that we were the ones doing the questioning. When all is said and done, this is a forum about bringing back the past, and we're the minority. How the average Joe dresses is the appropriate standard - it is the cultural standard of our time, and given the historical precedent for a continuous decline in formality, you could argue it's the historical standard. Bringing back the past is great. I won't object if streets full of suits becomes the norm. That said, there wouldn't be this thread if we were anything but a fringe minority from a bygone era. Our success in bringing about any sort of change will rely on self awareness of where we stand.

 

[Widebrim]

I would agree completely, if that were past tense, and it was phrased that we were the ones doing the questioning. When all is said and done, this is a forum about bringing back the past, and we're the minority. How the average Joe dresses is the appropriate standard - it is the cultural standard of our time, and given the historical precedent for a continuous decline in formality, you could argue it's the historical standard. Bringing back the past is great. I won't object if streets full of suits becomes the norm. That said, there wouldn't be this thread if we were anything but a fringe minority from a bygone era. Our success in bringing about any sort of change will rely on self awareness of where we stand.

You're correct, Pompidou, in pointing out that physically we are in the minority; no doubt about it. For the majority, the "appropriate," cultural standards are admittedly different. Yet I believe that the "traditional" standards of which we speak, still exist at the inner core of our culture (hanging on for dear life, perhaps), and held onto not just by those who would qualify as members of the Fedora Lounge. And while I wouldn't necessarily object either to streets full of suits, I think our main objective is to educate those who are unaware of those traditions which still linger on, and to simply to see the bar raised a bit as regards clothing choices.

 

[JimWagner]

A better course, at least to me, is lead by example. A respected leader is emulated.

Telling others what they "should" do seldom actually works. In fact, that's the course that leads to at least attempting to make "rules" to enforce that idea of what others "should" do and is doomed to ultimate failure.

And that applies to more than how you dress.

 

[Widebrim]

A better course, at least to me, is lead by example. A respected leader is emulated.

Telling others what they "should" do seldom actually works. In fact, that's the course that leads to at least attempting to make "rules" to enforce that idea of what others "should" do and is doomed to ultimate failure.

And that applies to more than how you dress.

You are correct, Jim.

 

[Pompidou]

I think reality television is the quickest way to start trends. The cast of Jersey Shore are the leaders people follow. What makes a leader - the difference between power and authority - that's a thread in itself. That's a career if anyone has the right answer. So as I was saying - reality television. What we need is a bunch of guys in suits and hats confined to a mansion having tons and tons of sex with beautiful, easy, young women. That's what the people want, and if they think a suit will get it, you'll see suits. Blunt but true. We won't see people getting their inspiration from C-Span any time soon, I think.

 

[scottyrocks]

Yes, but people (young men, anyway) dont generally want to spend the time it takes to dress in a suit, especially for leisure time. T-shirts, sweats, hoodies, hair that looks like you just woke up (man, I just do not understand that at all), sneakers with laces all over the place are much easier to don. Celebs, who can get away with almost anything, know this, and use it to their advantage. Who wouldnt want to have half the populace wearing stuff because you wore it first? Also, aside from the comfort factor, part of the reason they wear sloppy stuff is because they know its easier these days to get boys to wear slopp . . . , er, 'relaxed fit' clothing than stuff that makes you look like a man. These days, comfort trumps looks.

Also, society as a whole evolves. We just happened to have evolved into a very casual dress atmosphere. Going back is going to be difficult, if not impossible.

 

[150719541]

Easy

All you need to feel a new man is fill your mind with good things and share ¡¡¡¡:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap

 

[Torpedo]

Yes, but people (young men, anyway) dont generally want to spend the time it takes to dress in a suit, especially for leisure time. (...//...) These days, comfort trumps looks.
Also, society as a whole evolves. We just happened to have evolved into a very casual dress atmosphere. Going back is going to be difficult, if not impossible.

I agree completely. Often, my co-workers wonder at me dedicating time every day to combine a different outfit with harmonized colours, which include a tie (or a bowtie) and, most days, a pocket square. The fact I do the tie knot every time, instead of just leaving it done to save time, is cause of amazement, as is, of course, the realization I actually tie my own bow tie, or that I fold myself my pocket squares, and in several ways too.

Yes, society has evolved. Now we are in the minority, and we stand out, for good or bad. Note I am not qualifying it, either way. I am just stating it.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Hmmm, he's a very trendy tailor, and his prices reflect this. And his fabric markup seems a little extreme. Buy your own fabric and avoid the worst of the markup and certainly avoid the tailor pushing you towards horrid "super" cloths. A bespoke suit in "the provinces" should run to about £500-750.

The tailor in the article not even in a very high rent area. He's just trendy. There are excellent bespoke tailors in London (with W1 and WC1 postcodes - HIGHHH Rent) who'll do a suit at provincial prices. You just need to know where to look and have some good recommendations.

I don't blame Mr Jeffries for rejecting the infantile clothing available on the UK's High Streets, but I am shocked at the price of a bespoke suit from a non-Saville Row tailor! Shame, as I'd always harboured the thought that, one day, I'd get myself a suit tailored... never mind!

 

[Mr Badger]

Thanks for the tips, Baron!

Inspired by this thread, I made more of an effort dressing for work this week, and had quite a number of favourable comments, admittedly these encompassed "Have you got a client in?" to "Why are you looking so smart?", but at least no-one was snidey. To my face, anyway...

My fave outfit, outlined below, made me feel really good and also, I'm glad to say, was picked up for much less than yer average bod would spend on a spiffy outfit.

To whit:black 1970s 'Corcoran' jump boots by Georgia (Ebay, £25); dark grey nailhead wool Daks trousers (vintage shop, £35); green tweed waistcoat with lapels (Ebay, £30); a 1930s-style black, 3-button, patch pocket moleskin jacket by Canterbury of NZ (charity shop, £10); blue 'Aertex' soft-collar pullover shirt by Bodum (Ebay, £5); red w/white polka dot knitted tie by Yves St Laurent (market, £1); double-breasted 1940s Crombie overcoat, tailor-made in Dudley (charity shop, £45); grey herringbone Jaxon 'Big Apple' cap (Ebay, £15).

Total: £166

I have worked with folks who spent over £200 on what looked, to me, like a designer kagoul (slicker)...

 

[Widebrim]

black 1970s 'Corcoran' jump boots by Georgia (Ebay, £25);

Jump boots? Am I wrong, or did you actaully opt for a paratrooper look below your knees?

 

[Mr Badger]

Jump boots? Am I wrong, or did you actaully opt for a paratrooper look below your knees?

Ha! With the punched toe cap and hi-gloss finish, they're closer to semi-dress than most boots, when worn under a pair of trousers...

I was aiming more for a utility / workwear look more than anything...