Having just visited London and shopped on this street, I would call this nothing short of a tragedy for the sartorially-minded male. So much history and craftsmanship reside on these few blocks.

Jermyn Street was originally named so after Henry Jermyn, 1st Earl of St. Albans, and has been peddling fine men’s clothing – particularly shirts (Savile Row is to suits as Jermyn Street is to shirts) – since the middle of the 18th century. Keep reading to find out a little bit more that I learned while I was there…

Shortly after entering Jermyn Street, you are greeted by Beau Brummell, a 19th century gentleman who apparently defined elegance and style during his business around town. He stands guard of the street with the following quote on his plaque:

“To be truly elegant, one should not be noticed.”

I did manage to quickly visit each and every store on the block, but in sticking with tradition on this blog, have decided to highlight the most affordable of the lot.

T.M. Lewin began on Jermyn Street in 1898 and has been a staple there since, despite expanding to more than 60 stores across the UK. I found TM Lewin to be the most affordable of the shops I visited, and was so without sacrificing fit and modernity. I ended up buying two shirts, two ties and a suit at this store before it was all said and done. Their clothes, especially the slim cut dress shirts, embody English tailoring and the pocket-pleasing prices were certainly welcome on an otherwise expensive street.

They support a vast website for men and women – and you can find it here.

Charles Tyrwhitt is the new kid on the block on Jermyn Street. This shirt and suit retailer was only founded in 1986 by Nicholas Charles Tyrwhitt Wheeler to become a mass-producer of men’s and women’s shirts. Their prices are also on the reasonable side, especially during their annual end-of-range sale where I found the perfect blue and white striped, french-cuffed shirt I had been searching for all week for a mere 24 pounds.

This particular shirt is from their slim fit line. I have owned a couple of their traditional cuts and do find them to be very “American” in that regard – much more baggy and flowing. Whatever style and collar you prefer can be found at their website.

Another shirt retailer that began as a Jermyn Street staple and has since advanced and expanded globally is Thomas Pink. Slightly more expensive, but with superior selection, fit and quality, the Pink experience is something to behold. They pride themselves on service and catering to the customer, providing them with whatever they need.

Photo courtesy of Debi Kirksey

This couldn’t be more true than in the example of their White Shirt bar, located at the Jermyn Street shop. A customer has dozens of choices for their made-to-order white dress shirt such as cuff, collar, fit, buttons, tabs, and a plethora of other decisions. Their sales representatives are happy to spend as long as it takes to find the perfect white shirt for you – and then you are expected to buy, buy, buy.

Visit the Thomas Pink website for more information.

Photo courtesy of Hawes and Curtis

Another imminently affordable shop along the route is Hawes & Curtis. H&C  was established in 1913 by two friends with a mission of providing quality products while also seeking out the opinion of customers to help define the inventory and style of shirt. They boast the Prince of Wales on their client roster and have also significantly expanded throughout the UK.

Hawes & Curtis have a useful and substantial web presence here.

Other famous shirt-makers and purveyors include the pricier, but classic and timeless Turnbull and Asser;

Photo courtesy of Debi Kirksey

As well as Hilditch & Key.

Photo courtesy of Debi Kirksey

Quickly, Jermyn Street became one of my favorite places to browse, window shop and daydream. I visited the short little road at least three times on my trip, finding myself with each subsequent visit wishing more and more I could live near such a treasure chest of men’s fashion.

If some of it is to be remodeled and destroyed in the process, it will be devastating to those who see value in the historical precedence of elegance. These places for men are few and far between, but Jermyn Street certainly tops the list. Visit it when you can.

For more information on Jermyn Street, visit the street’s Association web page.

]]> http://mensstylerevival.com/2009/08/19/save-jermyn-street/feed/ 1 rkirksey IMG_0590 IMG_0482 IMG_0480 IMG_0479 IMG_0494 white shirt HCShop turnbull hilditch http://mensstylerevival.com/2009/08/08/books/ http://mensstylerevival.com/2009/08/08/books/#comments Sat, 08 Aug 2009 04:08:14 +0000 Ryan Kirksey http://mensstylerevival.com/?p=299 ]]> If there is another passion I have that can rival style, it would be a good book. So, I thought “why not combine the two?!” To that end, I have added a page at the top of this blog with links to books I recommend about style, about dress and about being a gentleman.

Some of these I have own, some of them I have just flipped through, while still others have been recommended to me. I have a good list started, and will continue to update as I come across great titles.

If you have one you recommend, please let me know so I can share it.

The direct link is http://mensstylerevival.com/books.

Both did a little ribbing of the other and of Al Roker, the host of the piece, and they posted extended video of the interviews online, breaking it up into specific pieces for Williams and Lauer. The piece that aired on TV is found here:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/31423437#31423437

While the full video for Lauer can be found here:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/31423437#31413418

All joking aside, Matt Lauer has become a fashion icon of sorts for many men in this country. Personally, I sport a similar hairstyle and quite enjoy his daily sartorial choices. I, however, never did pick up on the fact that his ties “always have some blue” in them.

Another interesting tidbit from the first piece is the interview with Adam Rappaport of GQ. When discussing Lauer, he comments that the Today Show host is neither fashion-forward or conservative, but rather covers himself like a “well-dressed European businessman.”

So at the urging of my wife and mother, and to satisfy my own curiosity, let’s dissect Lauer’s style at work and outside the office. Is he not fashion forward? Is he not conservative? Is he a European businessman? We’ll see.

Let’s start with his typical office wear – the suits. Suits are his uniform and it’s only on rare occasions that he has to dress like this:

I have been doing some research lately (i.e. watching some TV in the morning) and have discovered that Lauer is predominantly going to wear a suit that is a shade of grey. They trend darker in the NYC fall and winter and much lighter in the summer, but grey with some blue in the shirt and/or tie is a safe bet. Let’s start with this one:

Classic – that’s the word to describe this picture. A medium-shade of grey that truly could be worn year-round with the trendy and popular light blue shirt and solid navy tie. This is a suit/shirt combo you will see Lauer wearing on air as the light blue is best for TV lights instead of a white shirt.

But in this picture, Rappaport nails the description of being neither fashion forward or conservative. He is not wearing your traditional navy suit-white shirt-red tie presidential attire, but he is also not attempting the super-skinny tie or spread Windsor collar either. Notice the detail of the tie and lapel of the jacket being about the same width; that’s the sign you are dealing with someone savvy and sartorial.

This suit will work in 1959 and 2059 as well as it does in 2009.

Here is a suit for the colder months – a darker grey pinstripe, with an off-white or possibly very light blue shirt. A sign that the suit fits well is that one can tell that Lauer still can be comfortable despite sitting down, cross-legged, and arms stretched out.

Details are important here as well. The perfect dimple in the tie, just enough sleeve poking out from the jacket, and also displaying what is slowly become his trademark; the JFK-style white pocket square with only the simple, straight line of linen showing.

The tie gives this suit a modern look, but tell me you can’t see this same suit on Cary Grant circa 1950.

Again, the grey suit – but clearly wearing it out of the office this time. You can learn a lot from the little piece of this ensemble we can see.  What can seem to be a very straight-laced, basic suit – the grey suit with white shirt – can always be dapper-ed up a little bit with some original flair or design in the tie, a man’s one true blank canvas with which to work.

Nothing surprising or revolutionary here – the straight point collar, the exaggerated pin-dot look – all modern in style, but classic enough to pass the test of time.

In the Today Show and in the interviews above with Lauer, it becomes clear that suits are not jut a necessity for him, but rather a comfort zone. He has to know he looks good in them, so in turn, he takes pride in creating and refining his look in suits. And don’t be fooled, his look is not all the work of one of the show’s producers or designers – it’s his own.

Now for some more casual wear, here are some examples:

Interesting outfit here in what is obviously a candid photo of Lauer. I am amazed at all the different shades that are in play here, yet they all seem to work, drawn together by an unconventional yet stylish pair of light brown cap-toes.

This does remind me of Europe what with the thick scarf, slim pants and sweater. On what is probably a cold spring night, Lauer certainly realizes bundling up doesn’t mean dressing down.

In what was probably not his proudest moment, Lauer was injured a few months ago, separating his shoulder swerving to avoid a deer on his bike in Central Park. But despite donning a sling for a weeks, he manages to still define casual-cool.

I have seen Lauer in this double-zip cardigan on multiple occasions. He always seems to match it with a dress shirt and jeans – all very clean colors and straight lines that carry a French/Italian feel to it as well. You can tell the jeans are well-fitting and not baggy or sagging – an important lesson for today’s man.

For what looks like a night out, Lauer chooses the dressier casual approach, with basic sport coat, crisp white shirt and flat-front dress pants. Again, muted colors, nothing flashy, clothes that fit appropriately, and making simple things work to look classic – notice a pattern here?

It’s funny how Lauer uses the white pocket square in this outfit. Where we discussed above how he chooses almost daily to show the small, straight line with his suits on the air, he decides in this picture to go with the more laissez-faire approach, with the “give it a tuck and go” toss into the pocket. It’s almost like he uses the white pocket square to help define what he is doing – saying I know how to separate work and play.

Other things I like here: the matching of the belt and shoes – always a subtle detail, the open jacket – gives off an air of casualness, and the orange cell phone cover – just for it being a little funky.

So the final verdict? Simple colors, clothes that fit to the body, attention to details, and a touch of modernity? All these things shout out European everyday couture, so I can’t help but agree with Adam Rappaport.

Lauer has style worth emulating, style that is admittedly his own.

The Perez Hiltons of the world notwithstanding, the internet has also allowed any idiot (like me) to share their thoughts and impart their style wisdom to anyone lending their computer screen and cable connection. Some of it has proven to be dramatic and iconic, such as Wikipedia providing history of fashion and designers and materials at the snap of a finger; while others we could have certainly done without, such as thefashionpolice.net, who, in their opinion, point out the obvious and not-so-obvious fashion mistakes of the rich and sometimes not-so-rich and famous. Like when they told us all that something called a “Witch Dress” does not look terribly desirable. Um, you didn’t a website to convince me of that.

But look long enough, and you will certainly find the gems that exist in cyberspace; the sites that can benefit the savvy shopper and provide guidance through your fashion faux pas. A lot of what I have gleaned has been through a computer – and recently, I have been introduced to just a little bit more.

Here are three recommended sites for those curious about all things tyle:

The Sartorialist is a celebration of style blog written by Scott Schuman, also of GQ. There is nothing terribly ground-breaking about the premise of this blog, but its simplicity and thoughtfulness is what makes it so unique. Have you ever wondered about the best real-life fashion that cities like Paris, New York and Milan have to offer? Schuman will take you to those places armed with nothing more than a digital camera and his brief thoughts on the subject. Taking pictures of regular people on the street that he admires for their boldness and creativity in style, Schuman documents them on his website, and will sometimes write a word or two, but many times just let commenters tell the story of the subject and make notes on their style. Often the comments for one photo will be in the hundreds.

His latest round of photographs are from Australia and include this gentleman, with the photo entitled “The Tailor of Chapel Street:”

Photo property of Schott Schuman - www.thesatorialist.com

Another website I was turned on to lately is Shop Style. If you are a little bit OCD, like me, you love lists and organization. With style, especially online style, it is hard to manage and keep it compartmentalized. What do I like? What is new? What’s on sale? It never ends.

But, with Shop Style, in the mold of an Amazon Wish List or something similar, all you need to do is create an account and then you can search the tens of thousands of products and labels and deals they have, which draw from all over the web, to find your favorites. All that is required is that you scroll over the item you prefer and it will prompt you to buy or to add to your favorites or your wish list. I first looked at sunglasses as an example. Currently, there are 81 pages with 12 pairs of sunglasses per page at which to look. And that’s just the beginning.

Browsers can search through clothes, bags, accessories, outerwear, big & tall, or anything that meets your fancy. All of it is fully customizable by price range, brand, color, size, on sale, etc. It is one of the most convenient and comprehensive resources I have found for shopping and browsing. The wish list serves as a perfect place for something looking for a gift who does not want to ask or pry. The favorites section lets you create looks and outfits and styles that match your own preferences. You can see how items look together before purchasing.

Many may wonder, “is it just cheap stuff, or maybe it’s just the ultra-expensive items?” I can assure you the range is quite broad. Just looking under the pants section shows that there is a range of pants from $12 to over $1700 – with about 2500 to choose from.

Last week, I get an email from my wife inviting me to join something called Shop It To Me. After a filling out the requisite info, taking less than two minutes, I was up and running on a site that sends you emails as often as you choose about items that are on sale online in your size and from your favorite brands.

You see, when you sign up, you are asked to fill in all of your sizes for shirts, shoes, pants, etc. as well as at least 10 of your favorite brands/designers. You are then asked your preference on how often you would like to receive emails (I selected Mondays and Thursdays) and you immediately get your first round of on-sale items emailed to you.

After signing up, you can easily go back and change sizes, select additional brands, add women’s clothes (if you are looking for a gift or something), and browse deals. Essentially, you are telling the site to send you all the sale items from your favorite retailers instead of searching through each site individually, undoubtedly taking up more time.

Here is a sample screen grab for what you will receive – sorry, women is the only sample they have:

As you can see, they offer brands that are considered luxury as well as brands that are imminently affordable. Whenever I end up buying something through the site, I will update with my experience and how it went.

Happy surfing!

At a party on Saturday, a good friend reminded me that I have had this blog almost a month with nary a word about my numero uno item of desire. I was struck by my “misrememberance” of a favorite envy of mine, and decided now is the time to pay homage to something I feel every man should own.

Some items in a man’s wardrobe seem to iconically represent something so much more than just a piece of clothing to be worn, and in the case of seersucker, it reminds me of charm, southern hospitality and always using your “polite” words (As we tell our daughter). It reminds me that saying yes ma’am is always appropriate when speaking to a lady.

Culturally, seersucker suits have become popular through a very historic big-screen role and also one or two on the small-screen.

First is Geregory Peck’s famous court scene in To Kill a Mockingbird where, although in black and white, the seersucker can almost make Peck appear cooler than the rest of the crowd packed into the sweltering room:

Next is the famous Ben Matlock (Andy Griffith) always getting his way in the courtroom wearing the forgiving fabric. There must be some lawyer secret to wearing seersucker I don’t know about. Maybe the man who wears it seems more confident and less restricted and therefore can more easily focus on the details of his case:

One thing I did not realize until today is that, every summer, the U.S. Senate holds a Seersucker Day on a Thursday in June. Originally proposed by Trent Lott, it has picked up a following since 1996:

A lot is made about how a man should wear a seersucker suit. And while there are some variations of common standards, straying away from these can sometimes be dangerous.

As you can see from the picture below, you can go a lot of different directions with your preferred color of seersucker, with the most popular being the light blue and white. This is followed, normally, by pink and yellow. I would personally avoid the rainbow option you see at the top of the picture, as well as the lime and fuchsia dyes as well.

Since seersucker is inherently a stripe, I would naturally tend to lean towards shirts and ties that are solids. A white shirt is customary while a navy blue or red long tie or bow tie fall under the most traditional looks. Here are some examples of the look pulled off well:

Good use of using some multi-color with the tie here, and this is more of a gray/white than a blue/white.

White shoes are typical with a seersucker suit – usually some sort of buck shoe. White socks, on the other hand, are not my favorite. High risk but high reward would be to go sock-less.

Good use of the most traditional, no-tie look. Can’t go wrong doing it this way.

Good use here of the bow tie and more color as well. I can promise you, it’s not going to be easy wearing something like this the first few times if you are not used to it, but with all things difficult, effort and perseverance are required.

So where to get it? Where can you find something so dashing and deboniar, yet find it for a reasonable price? Surprisingly, you can pick something like this up more places than you might realize.

Brooks Brothers, who some believe are the standard for quality seersucker, has their suits priced quite reasonably at $398. For the quality, you might not find a better deal.

As of early March, J. Crew had limited colors, but also a great price on their seersucker suit separates, with a jacket going for $198 and pants at $98.

For an ultra-good price, check out the separates on Paul Fredrick’s website. You can get a double-breasted jacket on sale for just $49.95 and pants on sale for merely $19.95! Colors are very limited, however.

Also on sale through the Macy’s website are the seersucker separates that range from $74.99 to $164.99.

Go ahead and buy yours quickly – Easter is coming soon and you will need it to hunt eggs anyway.

But enough about the past few weeks…..knowing my two passions, one can imagine that if there are ever opportunities where these two worlds meet, I almost pass out with excitement.

Sports, frankly, does not get enough credit for certain fashion trends. Whether it is Michael Jordan introducing the baggier shorts and shaved head or the Michigan Fab Five donning the black socks in the early ’90s or MLB allowing baseball caps to be mass-produced, sports have set certain undeniable trends in motion that have either had their time come and go (black socks) or are still going strong (baseball caps).

Recently, I ran across a couple of things of interest that I thought might be intriguing to any fellow hardwood-haberdashery lovers out there.

Uni Watch

This isn’t really a new discovery by any means; I have been reading Paul Lukas for a long time. I first saw his semi-regular columns on ESPN discussing each upcoming sports season and the changes (good or bad) that had been made to each team’s uniforms.

That inevitably led me to his Uni Watch blog which is so chock-a-bock full of information, it will make your head spin. Anyone who writes about the “visual history of sports design” (as he calls it) and has categories for his posts that have to do with curling and rodeo certainly has my respect.

By far the most entertaining part of the blog is the regular appearance of the Uni Watch News Ticker which highlights all things old and new in the world of sports fashions, uniforms, logos, patches, color vs. color games, you name it…

And the tagline (“The Obsessive Study of Athletics Asthetics”) is priceless.

Update on NBA Dress Code

This short, but perceptive article appears in the latest issue of ESPN the magazine and is written by the Worldwide Leader’s Ric Bucher. While he certainly will never claim to be a style writer, Bucher (fairly level-headed and straightforward analyst) does a good job of contrasting the grumbling that was first heard when the NBA instituted its “business casual” code back in 2005 with the praise it is receiving today. While admittedly a bit of hyperbole, Bucher says that this dress code might have done more than anything to move away from the sweat-suit-wearing, large pendant necklace-hanging, Escalade-driving culture that was the NBA to more of a “Euro” style – where players are not mocked for wearing clothes that fir their body.

My favorite quote is from a 20-year-old Kevin Durant, who never was part of the NBA without a dress code, saying about guys who would have showed up wearing track suits or something similar: “That’s just not professional.”

Always happy to see somone notice that at such a young age.