It’s absolutely freezing here in New York, which means if you’re anybody who’s anybody (like my old publisher at Quest magazine), you’ve been in your Palm Beach property since Thursday evening. But don’t be surprised if the sartorial distinction between the help and the in-season residents on Worth Avenue starts to narrow: Lilly Pulitzer now …
J. Press sent out a mailer today with the words “to the future” that aroused my curiosity. Word through the grapevine is that things have been changing among Onward Kashiyama management, and the company currently has a want ad running for someone to research international fashion trends. I asked Onward for comment last month, but …
Research international fashion trends for J. Press. From job ad currently running in the New York Times. (This post is not part of Cartoon Week.)
Last weekend was the Pop-Up Flea show, which has grown considerably. While mostly populated (yes, still) with a kind of hipster/workwear/urban lumberjack vibe, there were a few tradly items worth sharing.
Ralph Lauren recently launched a mobile coffee truck in Manhattan, and today the New York Times broke the news on his new restaurant, The Polo Bar. Scheduled to open later this month, it’s located just around the corner from the new Polo flagship on 5th Avenue. Quotes the article: Simon Doonan, an author and the …
In the 1980s, there was a trend at my high school in sunny California for LL Bean’s classic rubber boot, worn year-round, of course. Fashions come in cycles ever generation or so, and today the morning news is carrying the story that there are some 60,000 backorders for Bean boots, with another 40,000 expected by …
Several things are afoot in Ivyland across the pond. • First off, a new edition of “Hollywood And The Ivy Look” has garnered press in The Telegraph, where Hollywood is said to have had an “obsession” with the Ivy League Look. • Also in the press department, the John Simons shop got a write-up on …
In the previous post, the discussion broached the subject of knit ties. Fittingly, I had a post ready for that. Above is a new tie at Brooks Brothers which I spied in the store about a week ago. I plan to be wearing it incessantly throughout the season. Black flecked with blue (there are other …
Chris Hogan of Off The Cuff has just put up an all-you-can eat photo gallery from the “Rowing Blazers” party at the new Polo store. Spot the guy not in the spirit of things. I used to have a Ralph Lauren rowing blazer I’d wear to Gatsby parties back in California, but chose to instead …
The first day of fall corresponded with the first Christmas pitch to hit my inbox. It was from the direct-to-consumer needlepoint accessory purveyor Tucker Blair. Their soft-sell advertisement announced that custom monogramed items need to be order by Tuesday, September 30th, for guaranteed holiday delivery. For those who like to see how things are made, …
I brought my camera to the “Rowing Blazers” party last night at the new Polo flagship on Fifth Avenue, but the event was so packed taking pictures was too much trouble. That is until a certain bespectacled gentleman passed by, none other than Larry from The Andover Shop, who was down from Cambridge and looking …
I spent a summer at Cal doing a French intensive. It’s the kind of crash-course where you walk in on the first day and don’t hear a word of English eight hours a day for the next 10 weeks (that’s right, they teach you French in French). By the end of the summer you can …
Today Brooks Brothers is running an online campaign for its buttondown “polo” collar shirts. The tagline is “the shirt that changed history” (it’s also running as “a shirt that changed history”). Introduced in 1896, within a couple of decades it was already the default shirt for style-setting college men in the Northeast, and on places …
Recently J. Press sent out an email plugging its fall items, so if you haven’t visited the “new looks” page, take a look. And while you’re there, tell me if things look a bit different compared to seasons past. The mannequin forms, shirt collars, tie choices — something feels like a piano slightly out …
We’re long overdue for an update on Kamakura Shirts. A couple months ago I had coffee with the NYC store manager and a a member of the founder’s family visiting from Japan, and they said the New York store is doing just great. In fact, they’re currently scouting for a second NY location, likely in …
In a previous article, I mentioned that native prints are not common among Ivy retailers today. This possibly overreaching assessment prompted me to make a more thoughly investigation of current offerings. I approached O’Connell’s, the purveyor of all things traditional and known for its expansive collection of old stock. I struck out in finding any …
When we change the clocks twice a year, we remember the direction with the mnemonic device “spring forward, fall back.” But these days retailers bring out next season’s clothes earlier and earlier, and as soon as July 4th was over there were already signs of fall. Yesterday Brooks Brothers sent out an email blast plugging …
Our last post was on Nick Hilton’s blog post about Langrock, and today he sent out a mailer announcing the return of the Norman Hilton sportcoats he recently produced. More info as we get it. — CC
The much anticipated return of Duck Head is finally here, as the brand’s website finally features product. “Launching the site has been a huge undertaking and we are so happy it’s finally up,” director of marketing Alex Wallace told Ivy Style. Products that will garner the most interest are the O’ Bryan pant and shorts. …