Third-generation J. Press scion and Ivy-Style featured contributor Richard Press can now add “published author” to his list of credentials, thanks to the recent publication of Threading the Needle. The slim, hardcover volume (featuring a foreword by G. Bruce Boyer) collects many of the columns Press had previously penned for Ivy-Style and J. Press’s website, …
The time for Christmas cheer is once again upon us and Ivy Style is here to help you celebrate in midcentury manner. When one thinks of the Christmas season, one of the first things to spring to mind is music. With that in mind, here’s a look back at some worthy old chestnuts, standards and …
For Election Day 2020, here’s trivial troika of retro diversions. First up is the Kennedy clan in 1960, looking concerned when the outcome was still undecided. Perhaps JFK was humming our second vintage distraction, the Kingston Trio’s signature song “Worried Man”: And thirdly, from the previous election cycle of 1956, we have the debut cover of …
GQ’s Style Guy advice column once had the following curious exchange apropos of our collar of choice. A reader asked columnist Glenn O’Brien the following: I heard somebody refer to a button-down-collar oxford shirt as “middle-management” the other day. I always thought the oxford was the great American shirt. Have I been sending the wrong …
We recently posted about the differences between Ivy and preppy, which remains a perennial topic. So much so that I’m speaking to an author later this week about this very topic. Here are Richard Press’ views from 2012. No idea whether his thoughts have changed, but this post is worth revisiting for this photo alone. …
In 1977 Hampton Hawes, a woefully underrated pianist, composer and writer, died at the age of 48 from a brain hemorrhage. Known only to the most astute jazz musician and aficionados, Hawes had accomplished a great deal to be considered a bonafide jazz legend. His brief time here included performances with Dexter Gordon, Teddy Edwards …
The archetypal preppy jerk has returned to take his place of privilege in the pop culture pantheon. Netflix has a new show out called “The Politician” which features twin brothers and a Southern California setting whose style is inspired by Slim Aarons, Wes Anderson, JFK, and ’80s Ralph Lauren ads. The brothers are played by …
Menswear writer Stuart Husband, whose credits include The Rake, has a new piece at FashionBeans.com called “How ’60s fashion still puts swagger into menswear.” The piece focuses on the UK and ’60s styles in general, but there is some mention of our cherished style here: The prime look, for [Michael] Caine and his working-class-made-good peers, …
Update: Well that wasn’t much of an absence. The camp moc is back already, and looks pretty much the same, which could be good or bad. It could have been reintroduced with great fanfare, made in the US, and triple the price. * * * After being alerted by an Ivy Style reader, …
According to Esquire, there’s a boat shoe trend going on. Of course, they’re not your father’s boat shoes. That’s probably because not much that was once your father’s is your father’s anymore. From Esky: Though a staid classic of maritime casual wear, and a favorite among style icons like JFK and Paul Newman, they have, …
Ivy Style revisits this piece we did on Thom Browne in 2008. * * * Lately it seemed like Browne had receded into the confines of his tailor-shop-cum-laboratory, content to make his line in peace. But now, thanks to the December issue of GQ, in which Browne is named Designer of the Year, the hullabaloo …
These Life magazine images of Newport, Rhode Island, date from 1962. They feature some plaid/madras jackets to get you in the mood for summer, a guy who looks like Tony Curtis (above), and, in the final shot, a visit from JFK, whose birthday is today.
This latest installment in our occasional “call for collective wisdom” series boasts a nice pun on “collective,” given that the author’s family fled Communism. If you have advice for the young man, please leave it in the comments section. * * * When you’re growing up as a first-generation American in a neighborhood in Queens, …
We’ll let George Hamilton take a curtain call after yesterdays post. It is Spring Break for the college kids, after all, and yesterday on Twitter I shared the above image of what things were like — at least in the mythologized Hollywood version — before twerking contests and chugging beer from a callipygian vessel. The …
Paul Winston’s bold suit linings are so famous, many clients select the fabric for the lining before the fabric for the suit itself. Vivid linings are just one of the signature styles of Winston, the renowned tailor who began working for his father Sidney’s New York-based clothing company Chipp in 1961. Chipp soon became renowned …
A book on the relationship between clothing and power examines centuries-old European monarchs, maharajahs and tribal leaders, totalitarian dictators — and the Ivy League Look. “Power & Style: A World History of Politics and Dress,” by Dominique and Francois Gaulme, presents JFK as the centerpiece of its chapter on post-World War II American style and global …
Another look back at our previous posts about President Bush. * * * On Wednesday George HW Bush celebrated his 89th birthday, and well-wishers were encouraged to honor the occasion by donning whimsical socks. Go-to-hell hosiery has become Bush’s trademark now that he’s at that age when dressing becomes something of a challenge. Although JFK …
Over the past several decades, G. Bruce Boyer has distinguished himself as one of the most erudite writers ever to tackle the subject of menswear. Born in 1941, he came of age at the Ivy League Look’s height in popularity. A graduate of Moravian, the fifth-oldest college in the US, Boyer went on to do graduate …
This post from last spring snagged a mention in the comments section on yesterday’s post about the launch of the new RL collection Boathouse, and so we pay it a revisit. Enjoy this and want more content more often? Help Ivy Style reach its goal of 1,000 true fans. * * * After a mild …