Relative autonomy

"He had that supreme elegance of being, quite simply, what he was."

-C. Albaret describing Marcel Proust

Style, chic, presence, sex appeal: whatever you call it, you can discuss it here.
uppercase
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Tue Jun 10, 2014 7:54 pm

I need to lose 10 lbs by July 4 and this, after a very abstemious winter, read: few cakes, pastries, starches, pastas, rice, etc etc. ( is that a paleo diet? Formerly Atkins? Formerly caveman?). All I can eat these days without quickly looking like a jolly farmer is steak and green salad.

I don't like roll ups on jeans. I don't even like jeans. But they do help dress down overly tailored, overly divisive SR tailoring. Has anyone noticed that there is a class war going on out there?? It's best to hedge ones bet as to who will win. It's not a good idea to advertise your affiliations and politics too loudly through your effete dress.
C.Lee
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Wed Jun 11, 2014 4:41 am

Dear UC,

Before you know it, you'll be wearing t-shirts and sneakers in an effort to look relevant. Using jeans to dress down a tailored coat comes across as the wrong approach to me. Doesn't it look better to be adding value to something - for example, dressing up a pair of jeans with a tailored coat - instead of taking it away?

What has all this got to do with you anyway? I thought your wardrobe was a tour of bella Italia.

If you must, why not tailored cotton trousers in all their wrinkled glory and semblance of line. You'll come across at ease if you truly are, with less stretch and butt-sag than denim.

Regards.
C.Lee
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Wed Jun 11, 2014 5:05 am

uppercase wrote:... Has anyone noticed that there is a class war going on out there?? ...
What ever happened to the qualities of ease, charm and warmth which made men and their guests comfortable regardless of surrounding or circumstance? And this goes across the board.
davidhuh
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Wed Jun 11, 2014 9:16 am

C.Lee wrote:
What ever happened to the qualities of ease, charm and warmth which made men and their guests comfortable regardless of surrounding or circumstance? And this goes across the board.
Excellent point, C Lee.
C.Lee wrote:If you must, why not tailored cotton trousers in all their wrinkled glory and semblance of line. You'll come across at ease if you truly are, with less stretch and butt-sag than denim.
Agree. Add linen, whip cord and light corduroy in summer. Denim is good for Idaho :D

Cheers, David
uppercase
Posts: 1769
Joined: Fri Feb 11, 2005 3:49 pm

Wed Jun 11, 2014 6:59 pm

I wear Ts and sneakers daily. And these from H&M, one of my favorite stores.

Tailored clothing has it's uses. But there's much much more out there.
Clothing has to be fun. And practical. And useful. And suit me.

If it's not, it just becomes a cliche, and I'm not interested.
Rob O
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Wed Jun 11, 2014 9:26 pm

I must admit to feeling conflicted about bespoke sports jackets. I have a beautiful LL herringbone tweed in the works, courtesy of Gianfrancesco, however I can't imagine wearing it with anything but jeans, a t shirt or slim polo. Maybe it's a class thing or maybe it's because my wife thinks I look like an Norfolk pig farmer when I sport tweed and corduroy (I do). But I also like the aesthetic of simple workaday wear with a self-evidently handmade jacket.
uppercase
Posts: 1769
Joined: Fri Feb 11, 2005 3:49 pm

Thu Jun 12, 2014 1:30 am

You should feel conflicted Rob O.

Me too.

Nobody deserves to spend to 5000 on a sports coat.

Think of the starving people in Africa.

And the refugees in their UN provided tents around the world.

But why go there…people everywhere in your immediate environment notice your clothes and assess you in an instant: you're either one of us or one of them. The world is tribes.

Where's your politics? Where's your loyalty? On whose side will you fight? Your clothes tell all. It's shocking actually. Screaming loud.

Denim is the great equalizer. And if you like to wear them with Dover EGs, that's just between us.
Luca
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Fri Jun 13, 2014 9:10 am

Rob O wrote:...my wife thinks I look like an Norfolk pig farmer when I sport tweed and corduroy (I do)...
Pictures! :lol:
Rob O
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Sun Jun 22, 2014 4:16 pm

I will take a host of pictures when I pick up the jacket. I owe it the lounge for the referral to Musella Dembech. Sadly even a jacket of that finery won't help me betray my Irish farming roots. When UC's apocalyptic prophecy comes true I doubt I will be singled out by the hooded ready to wear hordes for elimination.
Costi
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Tue Aug 05, 2014 5:09 pm

Sides, tribes, class, war, fighting... Either your mind is constantly at war, UC, or mine has had peace for too long. And that has nothing to do with clothes, it's only perception and, consequently, attitude. Yes, I do see around people who make a statement (political, or of "class", or otherwise) with their outfits - whether wearing bespoke or Levi's; I can only smile amused that they feel the need to resort to that kind of projection. I also see people dressed with taste and humour - whether wearing bespoke or Levi's - projecting nothing but their beautiful selves, in respect of others' individuality and with joy of life; they put a different kind of smile on my face.
I am perhaps fortunate that my tailor has such a modest shop - just his cutting table, piles of work in progress and an improvised fitting booth in a corner, actually - that I get no luxury feeling whatsoever when I visit him, and no guilt feelings versus the starving and the refugees. Neither do I feel, once I'm out, as if my clothes put me anywhere above the rest of humanity - I don't project that and I don't get that kind of feedback, whether from strangers or acquaintances. And, mind you, I don't even own a pair of jeans - but have nothing against those who do.
Dressing should be peaceful business, rather than a declaration of war (or alliance) renewed every morning. Any division from others cannot be blamed on clothes; it is either in our minds or in our attitudes - and feelings of guilt and remorse don't help much.
hectorm
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Thu Aug 07, 2014 9:34 pm

Costi wrote: And, mind you, I don't even own a pair of jeans.
:shock: And what do you wear when you´re chopping wood or rounding cattle?
Costi
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Fri Aug 08, 2014 6:19 pm

I do it the other way around: first veal chops, then I round the woods.
yialabis
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Fri Aug 08, 2014 6:30 pm

Ha ha ha ha ha :D ... Same here ..
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