Five years ago today, a fresh-faced young pup, I left California for New York.
Now I’m a big-time big-city bigshot with a Chipp on my natural shoulder.
It’s a smelluva town. The Bronx is up and the Battery’s down. And people in cars run you into the ground. — CC
Europeans dess better than Americans. The evidence speaks for itself. Put someone from Europe next to you or someone from America and it’s game over. No need for discussion.
Interesting remark, given your Montreal IP address.
I knew a percussion ensemble that went by that name once…
@Johnny Bravo
A more accurate remark would have been that Christian dresses better than most Americans.
@Johnny Bravo
If your claim is true, then why is Ralph Lauren – who designs “classic American clothing” inspired by the ivy-league look – the best selling designer in the world?
Indeed Rambo, because I’m European too. Your lack of style is famous all around the World. North American ”style” is lazy and unoriginal for the most part.
Real gentleman wear Brooks Brothers, not Ralph Lauren!
here in NY it’s “tempus fugeddaboutit”.
“I think it’s well known that anti-Americanism has its roots in sexual impotence, at least in Europe.” -‘Barcelona’
Few people on the planet dress better than French women or Italian men. There’s experimentation, there’s flair and there’s a genuine desire to always look your best. Americanism is just similar to Anti-intellectualism!
Excepting the upper classes, Italians dress like clowns. French either look sublime or completely foolish. Spaniards and Swiss keep Ralph Lauren churning out the tackiest of the tacky, and Germans wear hideous denim or amazing trachten. Russians are some of the worst dressed humans on the planet, at any income level.
The difference is that poorly dressed Americans (and yes, there are many, this is not news) don’t spend hideous amounts of money to look bad. Poorly dressed Euros do.
Alright no more troll-feeding for me, besides this fella is in Canada…CANADA. Rob Ford’s NFL tie is the last word in Canadian haute couture.
A superb Chipp on your natural shoulders,
… and coming from an Italian!
Sincerly i don’t think that the average Italian dress like clowns,if anything the Italian IGent/sprezzatura/Pitti Uomo dress like clowns.
For the rest i like much the American elegance.
Ivy league,but also mid-atlantic style are wonderful.
American ready to wear and made on measure were the best in the world back then,and also if we live in a post-elegant world what remains of American style is much and precious.
Things like “my tailor is better than yours”,or “Ruritania mens are better dressed” bore me,and
are uninteresting.
I think its safe to say as human beings we can find just about anything to argue about… I have no opinion on anyone’s comments really… just that as a whole people seem to take less pride in themselves and I think it’s sad as a world we’ve become so sloppy. I envy the pictures and movies that showcase how men, women and children use to dress. Thats all I have… oh and I like the golf bag in the background.
Looking good Christian! I am glad that the city is working out for you.
Carmelo I defer to you, you’d know better, I’m just a traveler. More importantly, Happy Anniversary Christian! You’ve survived the city longer than millions of interlopers!
If you can make it there,…
In five years you’ve accomplished a great deal–and in what is perhaps the most competitive city in the world. Great picture.
The only non political site I check in with daily! The picture depicts a well dressed and confident boulevardier!
Photo by DCG, by the way. We had to take 30 as we couldn’t figure out how to handle the backlighting from the windows (we ended up pulling one curtain on the shot above), and of course I was looking dyspeptic as always.
In addition to his other accomplishments—founder of Dandyism.net, founder of Ivy-Style.com, wrangler of luminaries to this site, golf player extraordinaire—he has also single-handedly created both “Viking Ivy” and “Ivy Chic.”
Congratulations on a job well done, and long may you blog!
Thanks, Henry!
Given what a thankless task being a freelance writer is, loyal readers like you make this so worthwhile.
Oh how I wish some enterprising, imaginative lad would follow Paul Winston’s lead. A baton passing. A Chipp MTM jacket is one hell of a great deal. Especially for Manhattan. Superb cloth, top drawer tailoring. What will become of Chipp??
Funny thing: a number of the best dressed Italians(the industrialists) wear shirts from a little American clothier.
Europeans gave up on dressing well a long time ago. Only in Italy one can find well-dressed people in significant numbers. I don’t know about Americans, but judging from TV shows such as Curb Your Enthusiasm you aren’t doing particularly well either.
Curb Your Enthusiasm is filmed in LA…nuff said?
By the by, I’m in Chattanooga for work and if anyone’s in the area you must check out Bruce Baird Co., great store with Southwick, Crittenden, Atkinson’s, lots of great stuff. Lots of darts, but it’s the South after all.