As we make our way through the Ivy Style archives, I see that this post originally ran on my 40th birthday. Having just arrived in New York (that’s right, life really does begin again at 40), this was one of my first appointments. * * * Recently I was invited to Hickey Freeman on New …
Andrew Meschter is an Ivy Style reader who has just released a book on gentlemanly deportment for young men entitled “As Iron Sharpens Iron: An Adventure In Building Gentlemanly Character.” It began three years ago when, as Meschter puts it, “Two prep-school headmasters asked me to write a book about gentlemanly character for young men …
Happy Father’s Day from the father-and-son duo behind R. Hanauer/BowTies.com, whose neckwear has been proudly made in South Carolina since 1985. The collection has recently expanded — the collection of Hanauers, that is — ensuring the tradition has an auspicious future. Check out R. Hanauer’s bow ties here, and neckties right here.
When it comes to starting fashion trends, there’s Princeton and then there’s every other school. From the three-button suit to its namesake haircut, Princeton has popularized such menswear staples as Norfolk jackets, raccoon coats, tweed sport coats, rep ties, spectator shoes, khaki pants and Shetland sweaters. Princeton’s sartorial influence has been dulled by time, but …
When I profiled Alan Flusser for The Rake back in 2011, he made a big impression on me with his remarks on the concept of “chic.” One of his points, no surprise, is that men who are into “gentlemanly” or “sartorial” dressing are very rarely into “chic.” For one thing, the term is almost always …
Today is a rainy Seersucker Thursday, that tradition that began in the US Congress when members decided that once a year they’d like to add a touch of whimsy to their dress while practicing corruption and incompetence on behalf of the American people. Pictured is an undated advertisement from Haspel, the great popularizer of seersucker. …
Do your outfits look stiff and contrived? What you need is a dash of sprezzatura — deliberately calculated nonchalance — to give yourself a more devil-may-care, deshabille appearance. Here’s a quick fix in three easy steps: 1) When you launder an oxford-cloth buttondown, keep the collar buttoned. As the shirt gets knocked around in the wash, then …
Sorry for being MIA the past few days; I came down with a sudden strange malady. Here’s a news quickie spotted by an alert reader. Robert Earle, host of the TV show College Bowl, died last week at 93. College bowl was a quiz show. Below are the boys from Princeton in 1966, while below …
Some various images from the LIFE archives. First up are several shots from Bowdoin College in Maine. Above, 1952; below, 1957: No date on these three Bowdoin shots. The one below looks like a good starting point for a Ralph Lauren Home collection inspired by a ’50s college dorm room: Moving on, freshman class arriving at …
Brooks Brothers showed its Spring 2020 collection recently. Exactly when or where I don’t know, since they no longer invite Ivy Style. I could blame that on the commentariat cranks, but no, it’s firmly on me. WWD reported about it on Tuesday, writing: The 201-year-old brand updated many of its staple pieces — dress shirts, …
Arthur Ashe in 1966 in patriotic colors. Check out the accompanying SI story on the groundbreaking legend here. And this is my new racquet. It’s not as pretty as Ashe’s old wooden ones, but nor is it completely ugly by today’s standards. For years I’d been stuck where most recreational players get stuck: the dreading ratings-system …
Kamakura Shirts, in case you were unaware, devotes a part of its website to what you could call “dynamic content.” That’s another way of saying a brand blog. Since 2014 fashion critic Toshiyuki Kurosu has been writing pieces for Kamakura, and a number of them have been translated into English by “Ametora” author W. David …
A recent piece by Richard Press from his “Threading The Needle” column at J. Press delved into the topic of black, the verboten color of gentlemanly menswear. But while black is often the schmuck’s stand-in for patrician navy, it may actually be worse to wear blue, at least from a certain point of view. You see, …
Over the years I came to develop a great affection for director Blake Edwards. Sure he made a lot of stinkers, but he also made “Breakfast At Tiffany’s.” Later in his career he made “Skin Deep” with a brilliantly cast John Ritter; it remains one of my favorite comedies from the ’80s and contains my …
This week I met with the new owners of The Andover Shop. First off, they can report that Charlie is hanging in there at the ripe age of 93. The team that took over has only modest upgrading plans, which mostly include a new website and perhaps some store events. Certainly no collaborations with Urban …
Today oodles of Americans will turn on the news and see a man with a messed-up shirt collar. There was a time when such recalcitrance around the neck (often accompanied by an asymmetrical tie knot) was a sign of trustworthiness. Alas our nation has lost faith in its institutions. May it never lose faith in …
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, …
This 2008 post is one of Ivy Style’s earliest, and is being revisited with updated photos as a nice compliment to our previous football-themed post. The Benjamin Bixby line didn’t last long, and there are only a few surviving items currently on eBay. * * * Along with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Andre …