Show off the sports coats.

[Dinerman]

Some early '60s numbers

 

[Benny Holiday]

What a find Damian! I'd have trouble getting that off my back!

 

[Metatron]

After a long search, I finally found a summer jacket I like, on sale from Gant:


Sort of dressy but casual at the same time with the patch pockets and the cotton cloth. (Yes, the sleeves need to be shortened)
Only thing is, the white buttons make me think 'Lounging with a cocktail on the royal yacht' which is decidedly not the look I'm going for.
What do the coordination masters think would be a good colour for a set of replacement buttons?
A recommendation for a source would also be welcome.

 

[Two Types]

Personally, I rather like the white buttons (but i would be trying to look like I was drinking cocktails on a yacht - in fact, right now, I wish I was drinking cocktails on a yacht!). I would think that a light tan button with a little bit of a swirl in it would work well.

P.S. That jacket is rather nice.

 

[herringbonekid]

i think white buttons on blue work well on a crumpled linen / cotton workwear jacket. the smarter the jacket the more you'll get the 'yacht blazer' vibe.
if you want to keep the buttons contrasty then i would agree with TT: tan / caramel colour (see my blue Haversack jacket).

 

[Rabbit]

Any shade of earthtone should work. I'd choose a medium or darker medium brown (horn, bakelite). A darker brown of a similar light value as the blue jacket makes for a surprisingly unobtrusive combination in my opinion.

 

[Eddie Derbyshire]

Very nice jacket Metatron - the sort I need more of! The jacket I have that's similar just has blue buttons on, a shade darker than the fabric. Tan sounds a nice contrast though!

 

[Metatron]

Personally, I rather like the white buttons (but i would be trying to look like I was drinking cocktails on a yacht - in fact, right now, I wish I was drinking cocktails on a yacht!)

Ha, yes, there's nothing intrinsically wrong with drinking cocktails on a yacht (as long as it's not the royal yacht) I will be drinking cocktails by the beach in Cyprus soon, unfortunately any kind of jacket will be virtually out of the question.
Thanks for the responses chaps.
Btw Eddie, that photo of yourself with your db inspired me in my search, it was a good demonstration of a double breasted jacket worn casually.

 

[Eddie Derbyshire]

I'm glad to hear that! I find mine very versatile for a number of outfits.

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[Dinerman]

Some more '50s-'60s models

 

[Eddie Derbyshire]

Classic.

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[jamespowers]

Personally, I rather like the white buttons (but i would be trying to look like I was drinking cocktails on a yacht - in fact, right now, I wish I was drinking cocktails on a yacht!). I would think that a light tan button with a little bit of a swirl in it would work well.

P.S. That jacket is rather nice.

That would be brass buttons over here.

White is more innocuous.

 

[PeterB]

Gentlemen, checking through the back posts on this thread, I am astounded at the 50s jackets and the radical atomic fleck and innovative pseudo tweed fabrics back then. I used to own some in the 80s, which I bought for very little as a student, but invariably traded them in for 20s and 30s outfits. Little did I know.

I am surprised that nobody has thought to dig out the patents for the atomic fleck weave, or the patterns, at least, and make some up. I would imagine that the materials are still available, and there ought to be a market for a few jackets -- would Magnoli be interested? Is it possible that the bold tweeds and atomic fleck were not thought of as terribly high class in their day? And hence the lack of interest?

I ask this because having searched all the companies who remake vintage clothes I have not been able to find one that sells new atomic fleck or the bold tweed designs.

 

[Rabbit]

Peter, I think we vintage enthusiasts easily forget how small the market for such things is. Take shirtings, for instance. Vintage shirtings were made in subtle, often intricate patterns, not to mention the feel of the cloth itself, and to us these are desirable fabrics. Only the biggest names in reproduction clothing such as Ralph Lauren are willing to pay a mill to have their own cloth made to these vintage specs (or at least once in a while they do so). I dare say no mill is going to make cloth like the atomic fleck stuff just because it's a nice market. It's just too small a niche market for that.

The atomic fleck fabrics are very place-and-period-specific anyway. I don't know how large the subset of specifically late 40s to early 50s vintage wearers is, but I imagine SoCal has a fair share of them, so Magnoli, being located in the States, would be a good address for trying the market. But I doubt they would be willing to take the chance. Oh, and if an atomic fleck fabric for summer was going to be made of rayon (or mixed with rayon), that would complicate things further, as post-60s rayon is usually made fully synthetic rather than semi-synthetic (based on cellulose) like it used to be; this changes its looks and properties. It would further raise the cost of making the cloth to get that detail right.

 

[PeterB]

Rabbit, I am getting into the habit of bowing to your knowledge. Good old rayon -- the types of wool have changed as well, haven't they. Seems a pity, as the atomic fleck is quite unique, and to my mind the most indicative of the US 50s style. I think a mill has to make 3,000 yards in a run, so assuming about 2 yards per jacket, that would require about 1,500 customers, and the stock might sit on the shelves for a while. If I ever have the money to do it as a retirement project, you will hear back from me, in about 20 years' time.

 

[herringbonekid]

while 'atomic fleck' is strongly associated with the 50s, i could easily imagine some of the new generation of sartorialists and brands embracing the fabric, and using it for garments with a modern-classic or modern-retro twist.

 

[Rabbit]

Interesting idea, HBK.

We have yet to see fabric merchants put vintage style fabrics in general into their books. The whole texture-on-pattern thing, basically a lost art, has long been replaced by simpler textures. Sometimes I get the impression that pattern is even mistaken for texture. It has been argued that the decline of complicated textures such as self-fabric woven into patterns (example below) has to do with the increased handling of photos rather than actual swatches of fabrics. These subtle textures get easily lost in the visible pattern. In the example below, you have to look close to tell the self-fabric stripes apart from the colored pattern. The self-fabric texture is slightly raised, adding visual interest as well as making the fabric feel differently. This is a mid-30s American suit.

Edit:
The craziest suit fabric I've encountered, a wool glencheck with texture added by using silk thread for the blue overcheck, and a raised texture on some of the grey check patterns. From an early 30s German suit.

 

[jamespowers]

Gentlemen, checking through the back posts on this thread, I am astounded at the 50s jackets and the radical atomic fleck and innovative pseudo tweed fabrics back then. I used to own some in the 80s, which I bought for very little as a student, but invariably traded them in for 20s and 30s outfits. Little did I know.

I am surprised that nobody has thought to dig out the patents for the atomic fleck weave, or the patterns, at least, and make some up. I would imagine that the materials are still available, and there ought to be a market for a few jackets -- would Magnoli be interested? Is it possible that the bold tweeds and atomic fleck were not thought of as terribly high class in their day? And hence the lack of interest?

I ask this because having searched all the companies who remake vintage clothes I have not been able to find one that sells new atomic fleck or the bold tweed designs.

They reproduce the look but it ends up being used for this:
http://mybabyjo.com/Jerry-Lee-Lewis...2BBC1A38C9B60C08CF48A8A835D5C9.m1plqscsfapp05

 

[PeterB]

I checked the link. I think the trouble with "retro" is that it seems to be a commercialization of vintage, which seems to mean the genuine article, reused. I have checked "retro" shops and they seem more about costumes, though it is good to see fleck fabric being made and used.

BTW that pinkish German suit is quite amazing.

 

[Dinerman]

Here's a modern one with a good bit of 1900s influence.