Blazer for Mike

[hectorm]

The attached picture shows the Duke of York (future King George V) and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia at Cowes’ Royal Regatta in 1910.

Just for harmless fun (or discussion): Cowe´s Royal Regatta takes place in August (also in 1910). King George V´s became King in May 1910 when his father died (but his Coronation was in 1911). So it seems that maybe the blazer wearing Duke was already a blazer wearing King.

[Concordia]

I've had gold buttons, and still own two DB models with gold. For more recent efforts, however (LL Mistral, LL Ultimate, and a Minnis Fresco that is a hair darker/greyer than the fabled 520), I've moved toward plain antique silver that is a tad less conspicuous, especially in the evening. I may switch at least one jacket over to antique bronze. That's a hard one to locate in the catalogues, but I've found someone who will do custom orders of buttons in that color with monograms or logos.

[angelo]

hectorm wrote:
Just for harmless fun (or discussion): Cowe´s Royal Regatta takes place in August (also in 1910). King George V´s became King in May 1910 when his father died (but his Coronation was in 1911). So it seems that maybe the blazer wearing Duke was already a blazer wearing King.

Dear Hectorm,
thanks for the observation but just also for fun and for an historical accuracy here is my response:
a)the original subtitle of the Getty collection picture attached to my previuos post,showing the Duke of York and of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia at Cowes’ Royal Regatta, says: Czar of russia Nicolas II (1868-1918) with future king George V of England (1865-1936) august 1909 at Barton manor on Wight island;

b)the subtitle of this other attached picture
http://www.gettyimages.it/license/515219300
showing King George V and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia at Cowes’ Royal Regatta with their sons the Prince of Wales and Tsarevich Alexei says: circa 1910: Prince Edward of Wales (later the Duke of Windsor) with Tsar Nicholas II, Tsarevich Alexei and Prince George of Wales (later George V) at Cowes.This picture is also present in the Davies & Son archive where is quoted as dated to 1910;

c)in the uncertainty between the two dates, depending on the not always precise dating accuracy of Getty picture subtitles, I opted for 1910 and now I apologize for this wrong choice;

d)this latter picture
http://www.gettyimages.it/license/515305684
showing, within the two royal families(Windsor and Romanov) sitting for a portrait during Cowes Week on the Isle of Wight in 1909, King Edward VII togheter with his son the Duke of York ,clearly demonstrates that we are dealing with a" blazer wearing Duke".

Regards,
Angelo

[Scot]

Ah the blazer discussion again, excellent.

I own three: two DB and one SB, two summer weight, one winter, two with silver buttons, one with brown horn. They are, indeed, incredibly useful things to have in a wardrobe but the sporting connotations are still strong. Where was the photograph of Prince and Princess Michael taken? Polo? The Duke of Edinburgh has a rather splendid blazer with eight gold buttons but I have only ever seen him wear it at sporting events. Then there is the issue, if the button is not plain, of the crest. It should be ones coat of arms, club, school or regiment - tricky for many!

[Scot]

Like father like son -



And if there is some real sailing to be done, black buttons are the order of the day -

[Scot]

RIP

[hectorm]

in the uncertainty between the two dates, depending on the not always precise dating accuracy of Getty picture subtitles, I opted for 1910 and now I apologize for this wrong choice...this latter picture
http://www.gettyimages.it/license/515305684
clearly demonstrates that we are dealing with a" blazer wearing Duke".

Excellent research, Angelo, and no need to apologize. We are having fun.
BTW: striking physical resemblance between Prince Michael in the OP and his grandfather and Tsar Nicholas II in your picture, 100 years apart.

[Noble Savage]

Flat or dome buttons?

[hectorm]

Flat or dome buttons?

I could live with flat ones for a summer blazer or a finer worsted provided they are shanked, in an antiqued metal and with at least some relief.
But I think textured quarter-dome ones play better to the severe sportiness and heft of that type of coat.

[couch]

I agree with hectorm that quarter-dome buttons with a relief device are well suited to a rugged blazer that proclaims its nautical pedigree firmly.

It seems to me that otherwise, the choice should be influenced by the cloth (as hectorm notes), the expected occasions for wearing, and the affiliations and whimsy of the wearer.

For my own part, I've always valued the advice John Kent gave me regarding dressier blazers, especially if SB—which was that plain flat shanked polished gold or gold-filled buttons of moderate size are always correct and understated, as plain gold oval cufflinks are always correct; that otherwise said buttons engraved or embossed with the device of one's club, hunt, service branch or regiment, etc. are acceptable. I'd extend this to silver as well. Things like school or college buttons, etc. would be appropriate for relevant occasions.

For my own part I'd never wear personal monograms, or devices derived from ranks or organizations I don't inhabit, but others may be happy to do so. Whimsical devices to taste.

My preference is plain gold, until and unless I find an engraver and funding to hand engrave one of my organizational devices. Here's an example of the kind of engraving I mean, though a bit more extensive and whimsical than I'd want, on an 18th-century set of silver hunt buttons:


Benson and Clegg will do custom engraving on gilt buttons, but it appears from the uniform line that the cutting is done by machine or laser. Here's an example, showing an armorial crest:

[rodes]

As an aside, the green and blue striped tie worn by the Duke of Edinburgh in the first photo posted by Scot is my all-time favorite.

[uppercase]

Terrible about the Duke of Westminster.
64. Heart attack.
RIP.

[Ruvort]

A blazer is a DB coat with metal buttons. No metal buttons: no blazer, just a DB coat.

Channeling Crocodile Dundee: that's not a blazer...now this is a blazer:

I love this cloth. Would you kindly share the details of it?

[andy57]

I love this cloth. Would you kindly share the details of it?

It is a lightweight Fox flannel from their "Vintage Bolts" section of the Merchant Fox website. There were ten meters of it left before I had this jacket made up, and it is no longer listed. Fox did remake several older boating stripe cloths this post summer, but not this color, as far as I could see.

The jacket itself utterly belies the "in order to be cool wearing you have go unstructured/unlined" train of thought. It is a fully canvassed, fully lined jacket that is as light as a gossamer.

[hectorm]

As an aside, the green and blue striped tie worn by the Duke of Edinburgh in the first photo posted by Scot is my all-time favorite.

So I guess you know it's the regimental necktie of the Inns of Court Officers Training Corps. I understand that -given the Regiment's origins (when the judges and officers of the court would serve in the army)- it's also a favorite necktie amongst those in the legal profession.
I know Prince Philip served in the Royal Navy so I need someone like you, or Scot,or other LL member knowledgeable on these subjects to tell me why he's wearing it (other than because he likes it, of course).