The London Lounge

All,

I am curious whether an odd tweed jacket could be worn with odd tweed pants, and if so what would be potential pitfalls? I am looking to pair this jacket with something a bit more interesting than grey flannel:





Many thanks!

JD

Possibly dark green with a blood orange windowpane.

My instinct it to say that it would be too busy. If you don't want to wear flannels (and provided it's for a casual occasion), I'd say that olive cords or moleskins would be the thing

I recall reading somewhere that hunting tweeds should never match. Can anybody shed any light on this?

JDelage:

To complement the herringbone tweed odd jacket, try cavalry twill or bedford cloth trousers. You could also add a tattersal check vest with flap lower pockets as well as a few cashmere cablestitch V-neck sleeveless pullovers. Suede or Scotch Grain brogues or derbys would be a good choice for your feet, preferably without clunky double soles.

Back to the odd jacket. You might consider replacing the leather buttons with horn buttons. On a two-button model, the lower button is always left undone, and the sleeve buttons should number three or four. If you decide to rebutton the jacket, make sure the sleeve buttonholes actually work.

JMB

All - thanks for your comments. I have some green cords, but they seemed a bit too dark to me. But I'll try that.

Jordan,

Thanks for your suggestions. I'm curious about your comments wrt the leather buttons. I thought those were often on tweed jackets? In fact, all the tweed jackets I have seen had leather buttons, if I recall correctly. (And they all had 1 or 3 buttons on the sleeves, for what it's worth.)

Thanks,

Joss

I'll stay out of the leather button debate, but I will point out that there's plenty of classic precedent for country (or country-inspired) odd jackets to have one or two sleeve buttons, as well as for them to have three or four (Windsor's choice). You can see plenty of examples of the former in etutee's AA illustrations in the Featured Articles section.

I recall reading somewhere that hunting tweeds should never match.

I am not sure what you mean...are you saying that tweed suits should not be worn? I have never heard that hunting tweeds should not match but I will research when up north.

BTW, I do like the tan windowpane suit worn by the fellow aiming the Purdey at his father in laws head and wearing a bright yellow ascot. It reminds me of the Windsor suit I saw in London.

Cheers

M Alden

'm curious about your comments wrt the leather buttons. I thought those were often on tweed jackets? In fact, all the tweed jackets I have seen had leather buttons, if I recall correctly.

Dear Joss,

If you have trouble finding horn buttons, please let us know and we can help you, but do remove the leather buttons immediately if not sooner.

The kinds of tweed coats that come adorned with leather are those sold on Regent Street for tourists headed home to the Continent who want to export a bit of what they think to be "English chic." They are also exported in great quantities to Lower Freisland where the inhabitants, mainly cows, don't know any better. The look of leather buttons on any self respecting tweed, has the effect of a sharp stick in the eye. Meanwhile, a natural color mid brown horn button would look splendid.

Why is it that I am always left with the task of delivering these bits of bad news?



Cheers

Michael

alden wrote: I am not sure what you mean...are you saying that tweed suits should not be worn? I have never heard that hunting tweeds should not match but I will research when up north.

I wish that I could remember the source, but the gist of it was that to wear a fully matching tweed suit was in some way poor form. Although, as the illustration shows, coordinated tweed suits were commonplace. Peculiar.

alden wrote: Dear Joss,

If you have trouble finding horn buttons, please let us know and we can help you, but do remove the leather buttons immediately if not sooner.

The kinds of tweed coats that come adorned with leather are those sold on Regent Street for tourists headed home to the Continent who want to export a bit of what they think to be "English chic." They are also exported in great quantities to Lower Freisland where the inhabitants, mainly cows, don't know any better. The look of leather buttons on any self respecting tweed, has the effect of a sharp stick in the eye. Meanwhile, a natural color mid brown horn button would look splendid.

Why is it that I am always left with the task of delivering these bits of bad news?



Cheers

Michael

Thanks Michael. My only real quality is the hability to take the most brutal feedback as valuable info. I'd love to knowof a source for horn buttons.

Joss

I am in London later this month and will be happy to bring the perfect horn buttons to match your jacket back for you. Then you can repost the picture as the coat should be!

Cheers

Michael

I wish that I could remember the source, but the gist of it was that to wear a fully matching tweed suit was in some way poor form.

PV

I suspect that you have it reversed. The old saying has it that wearing tweed odd jackets is bad form and that tweeds should always be worn as suits! That explains the picture above. I think the mystery has been solved.

Cheers

Michael

alden wrote:

I wish that I could remember the source, but the gist of it was that to wear a fully matching tweed suit was in some way poor form.

PV

I suspect that you have it reversed. The old saying has it that wearing tweed odd jackets is bad form and that tweeds should always be worn as suits! That explains the picture above. I think the mystery has been solved.

Cheers

Michael

When it comes to hunting, it seems that my memory is as bad as my aim.

Just a guess, but I'd think that Michael Alden has it correct, as usual. Why? Because an odd jacket could be seen as the remnant of a suit, and that a man should need to retain the coat after the trousers had worn out may be seen as an indication of poverty or (by keeping the serviceable orphaned coat from the really poor) of meanness.

I do enjoy tweed suits. But, nevertheless, I continue to enjoy tweed worn in odd jackets.