by Matthew Longcore
The J. Crew catalog is a fond memory for those of us who came of age in the late 1980s and went to college in the early 1990s. At my undergraduate alma mater, Trinity College in Connecticut, stacks of J. Crew catalogs were delivered regularly to the mailbox area in Mather Hall.
Shopping from the catalog became a collegiate ritual, and nearly every member of the Trinity class of 1994 had the iconic J. Crew barn jacket, the rollneck sweater, and other items from what is now considered to be a heritage brand.
A recent article for Town & Country by Sophie Dweck caught my attention with the headline:
Dweck writes, “The updated catalog features the label’s signature preppy aesthetic that readers have known and loved for years, but with a contemporary twist.”
J. Crew plans to publish three times per year, starting with the current fall catalog.
My curiosity peaked, I decided to stop by the J. Crew store in New Haven, Connecticut – located near the Yale campus and across the street from J. Press – to pick up a copy of the catalog. Unlike catalogs of the past which included ordering information, this catalog redirects viewers to a QR code for the J. Crew app which is available for download.
While “preppier than ever” may be a slight exaggeration, I was pleased to discover that the catalog imagery and the products featured lean in heavily towards J. Crew as a heritage brand. A collage of J. Crew clothing labels through the years is featured with the caption:
Memory markers from 1983 to right now. From our original red oarsmen to bespoke mill tags, we believe in heritage from the inside out.
The catalog opens nostalgically:
A collection of the things we love – from the people who inspire us to the coastlines and cities that define us. And the quality classics that span generations, at the heart of everything we do.
The first section of the catalog titled “At Home on the Coast” is the most appealing. It begins:
Friends and family gathered at the beat cottage, year-round. Grey shingles weather by salt air and generations of memories. The scent of the sea and sun-dappled lawns.
This is just the sort of lifestyle marketing that made Ralph Lauren and Kiel James Patrick famous.
But what about the clothes?
Quality and timelessness have made a welcomed return at J. Crew.
Ivy Style readers should take a look at the limited-edition Crosby-fit blazer in handwoven Irish Donegal wool on page 34 of the catalog. The Donegal wool comes from Magee, a renowned Irish mill established in 1866. The details of this blazer are terrific: three-roll-two closure with leather buttons, Italian suede elbow patches, and a tartan plaid lining. This blazer is as Ivy as it gets.
I have my eye on a few other items in the J. Crew Fall 2024 catalog, but this item is definitely the one for me.
And for anyone out there looking for the perfect birthday gift (mine is tomorrow), hint, hint…
Welcomed news! This felt like a shot of nostalgia and brought me right back to college, perusing the offerings at the J. Crew store on M Street in Georgetown. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go listen to Weezer.
I’m definitely thrilled that J. Crew is making steps towards its preppy/trad past, but I have to say the bulk of women’s items still have a lot of work to do!
Looks and sounds very hopeful. I note that the Crosby Donegal sport coat that I saw online appears to be two-button, so perhaps there is another version coming. https://www.jcrew.com/p/BZ598?srsltid=AfmBOooJXMaQiRW3fzCZAl2LG-nTcOg2vT1WuEEdz_R8AUymgKhR3EzJ.
At any rate, I am hoping for a full-fledged Ivy revival. Not only is the J. Press fall look book superb, but the new Ben Silver catalog just arrived with a number of beautiful tweeds, albeit at considerably higher prices. My wife and I are making a rare trip to Manhattan this coming weekend, and I can’t wait to see the full J. Press lineup in the flesh. It will be my first visit since their move to the current location.
https://www.jcrew.com/p/BZ598?
The item is described as follows:
100% wool.
Notch lapel.
Three-roll-two closure.
Thanks. Oddly, the picture does not seem to match.
Have a safe trip. Looking forward to a report on the trip.
What is going on with Eljo’s?
Thanks, Tom. I have heard, but not verified, that Eljo’s is for sale and, if no takers are found, will close at the end of the year. Very sad, but not really surprising. I note that the Miles, the owner, is probably around 78 or so, and the times are not being especially kind to the classic clothing trade, even in Charlottesville. I hope someone takes it on, but have no idea whether anyone is ready to buy.
“The pinnacle of tailoring” ? I mean. Come on. I can appreciate the occasional bit of hyperbole, but this is ridiculous.
I also came of age in the 80s, but didn’t own/buy anything sold by J. Crew. Because of access to several great local men’s stores (all but one still going), I neglected a lot of the catalog-driven retailers — with the exception of L.L. Bean.
It’s amusing, the differences in culture. I recall seeing (and wearing) the superb field/hunting coats made by Duxbak during my high school — but zero J. Crew coats. I saw the catalogs, but they seemed … “80s yuppie” in that kind-of annoying way — not unlike, for example, the ubiquitous BMW 3-series of that era.
The girl with the dog, wearing penny loafers with no socks. Girls can do that.
Everything is a “blazer”? Actually, it more resembles a shooting jacket. The pockets are for shotgun shells. I’ve got nothing against J. Crew, but they could at least call a thing what it is.
https://www.cordings.co.uk/us/menswear/field-clothing/jackets
https://www.robinhurt.com/pheasant-shooting-england.html#nil
Quite true, Hardbopper. It seems that every sport coat is now called a “blazer” by the average guy, but one would hope that a clothing company would know better. Still, I wish them luck. I’d much rather see someone in a tweed “blazer” than a hoodie.
Even if the clothing gets a B+, it’s a force for good in what people are wearing. It’s easy to throw stones, but these clothes are far above average.
I’m less interested in the clothing than I am the models. The J. Crew tradition of the ’80s, ’90s, and into the ’00s was expressions of joy in both human relationships and in the natural world. It was fun. It was good. These were people you wanted to be. And America was a good place to be.
And then the clothing fell off a cliff, and the models started to look depressed. J. Crew fell apart, and they ended up in bankruptcy. The country was in a dark mood, too.
It’s not altogether apparent in the photos above, but in the catalog the joy is back. I hope that’s a cultural barometer again. Maybe this catalog will give us permission to believe we live in a good time and a good place again, and it’s great to be ourselves.