Recently dispatched to my inbox is a 2011 article called “Forever Prep” that ran in the magazine Virginia Living. Pegged on the release of Lisa Birnbach’s “True Prep,” it’s a lengthy piece that examines the Virginian branch of the WASPy, preppy tree. Author Caroline Kettlewell opines on how it was, how it is, and even throws …
As we bring PC Week to a close, I’d like to address why I thought it worthwhile to broach this issue that is so contentious on college campuses. In wondering how to close things out, I found myself pondering the “correct” in political correctness. Can we pursue the “correct” without the “political”? PC by definition …
Today’s most tireless champions of political correctness are called “social justice warriors.” They are quick to spot hidden meanings of oppression and victimhood in everyday life. We started thinking what it would be like for a modern-day SJW to be shot — hold on, let us finish the sentence — back in time to a …
According to the season opener of “South Park,” which aired last month, political correctness is back with a vengeance. Its shelf life in the ’90s was about six years, says a character in the show, adding that we’ve got 5.9 more years to go before people start to chill out. In the meantime, you can …
After being teased earlier this week on social media, today Gant unveiled a bold new marketing campaign. A high-production video on Gant.com features an elderly campus dry cleaner narrating the story of all the changes he’s seen over the past 50 years, spoken over footage of campus-quad touch football, herringbone-clad students carrying picket signs, poetry …
Hot on the heels of Brooks Brothers‘ announcement that it will pull the plug on Black Fleece comes the news that the lights are going down on York Street, J. Press’ attempt to court younger guys with money. The news actually came out last month — apparently while we were all on vacation. The story …
Back-to-school month may not be until September, but magazines generally publish a month early. That means that hot on the heels of Vanity Fair’s lengthy dissection of the dating apocalypse is The Atlantic’s September cover story on that other thing kids do at college — or rather are supposed to be doing — namely, getting …
On Thusday it was reported that Brooks Brothers will cease its Black Fleece collection headed by Thom Browne. The New York Times interviewed both Browne and Brooks CEO Claudio del Vecchio, and writes: “I don’t think people ever saw the collection as being inappropriate or irresponsible to live within the world of Brooks Brothers,” Mr. …
Summer 2015 will be remembered as the summer of outrage. On whichever line of Donald Trump’s combover you stand, each day brings some gaffe, injustice or felonious act about which to gripe bitterly to the enjoyment of your friends and followers on social media. And so within this spirit of antogonism and hyperbole that I …
Today A Continuous Lean put up a post entitled “The Enduring Appeal of Ostentatious Loafers.” What does “ostentatious” refer to in this context? Why to bit loafers, Prince Albert slippers, and Belgian Shoes. Here’s the preppiest passage: … By the eighties the Gucci loafer came to represent the pretentious bravado of pastel wearing undesirables. From …
This week the e-commerce company Mr. Porter brought out an exclusive collection of Bass Weejuns. And I mean exclusive in every sense of the word: the shoe carries a whopping price tag of $480, a pretty penny indeed. Today, perhaps to get consumers excited and justify the price (especially when you consider the shoes …
Yesterday the New York Post’s gossip column Page Six reported on the annual meeting of the Yale Club, where some members aren’t too happy about all the tatterdemalions running amok. Writes the paper: One member wrote in a letter to the club, “A horrifying example of this denouement, this sad decline in the atmosphere and …
This post originally ran this week in June of 2009. Since then I have referenced it regularly. The novel in question dramatizes what it was like for a young man of the 1950s to leave the netherworld of the West Coast for Princeton and learn the nuances of proper dress from his peers. * * …
Turnout for yesterday’s Seersucker Thursday on Capitol Hill was a modest nine, down from previous years. It was also predominantly, though not exclusively, Republican. In the interest of balance, here’s a brief history of political seersucker, courtesy of NPR. — CC Update: There are some quotes from me in this article at The Daily Caller. …
Yahoo! Finance talks to Federica Marchionni, formerly an executive at Dolce & Gabanna, who became CEO of Lands’ End in February. This makes Lands’ End another in the list of American brands to come under foreign leadership. “My mission is to transform this incredible American iconic company into a meaningful global lifestyle brand,” Marchionni says …
On May 23, The New York Times ran a story called “Catching A College’s Eye,” based on an open call the Times holds for college application essays that address the subjects of money and class. One of the high school students featured is Jon Carlo Dominguez, pictured above in a Times photo by Bryan Anselm. …
June arrived with a letter of introduction in my inbox from Logan Szidik, a young style entrepreneur looking to corner the market on preppy dog collars. No kidding: Szidik, a 23-year-old who graduated last year from the University of Vermont, has launched a collection called Logan Richard featuring collars for canines and belts for humans. …
If you or someone you know is planning a summer wedding, why not outfit the groomsmen in boutonnieres made of oxford cloth? Made by Mordechai Rubinstein of the blog Mister Mort, these were a highlight of the Pop-Up Flea show, founded by Michael Williams of A Continuous Lean, held two weeks ago.