Wed Jan 26, 2011 7:28 pm
They not only stole my blazer, they stole my underwear.
I'm going to miss that blazer. Although it was relatively new (a mere 2-3 years old, a youth, just getting broken in) I had become attached to it. I think that it was the cloth which endeared it to me: Lessers flannel, probably 12 ozs., it offered reassuring weight and warmth. This was also the first coat I owned whose cloth was first class, I found it wonderfully tactile, and the brighter blue shade, charming. It felt good on my shoulders and slipping it on just put me in the right mood. The blond horn buttons made it just that little bit more mine.
I've come to depend on a blue blazer for all of my travel needs. One in Summer weight, one in Winter. It's all I need. Wear it with jeans, grey flannel, khakis, cords. With tie, ascot, button down or polo shirt. Fold it, toss it in the duffel and I'm set for any occassion. Just reaching for a blazer helps make my packing simple, straight forward and lightweight. I've always found a blazer an elegant, versatile solution when travelling.
So now it's gone, all the more the pity, as this coat was the closest to getting the pattern right where I wanted it with this particular maker.
Well, I guess that the only consolation is that I've enjoyed it while it was mine. And now I have the pleasant prospect to consider what to have made.
I don't think that I can go back to A&S. But I have been wanting to give Richard Anderson a try. I've tried some of his try coats on and thought the silhouette superb. However the rather stuffed, square shoulder may be a bit too severe for a blazer which I think of as essentially a casual coat, whether SB or DB. The choice of maker to get just the right shoulder - soft yet structured, rounded though not round, distinguished though not distracting - is a bit of a dilemma, well nigh impossible in London, I'm afraid, and I may have to visit Italy this Spring for this project.
Is it artichoke season then?