This week US News & World Report released its annual ranking of the best colleges in America, and Princeton once again is back on top, right along with their — alas now dismantled — sartorial legacy. In the last post, on Sewanee, a reader left a comment wondering if college students during the heyday were …
Today is the publication date for “True Style: The History And Principles Of Classic Menswear,” the latest collection of essays by Bruce Boyer. There’s a chapter called “Ivy Style,” and as I was preparing to choose a passage to quote, I got a text message from the Millennial Fogey to meet him at our neighborhood coffee …
As a follow-up to our last post about Gant, here’s a wonderful meditation on the heyday of campus shops by G. Bruce Boyer. It’s an article he says the brand commissioned from him several years ago; the concept was “my favorite shirt,” and it was ultimately used for a brochure. Below are the highlights, which …
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 …
You may have heard rumors that Allen Edmonds is discontinuing one of its penny loafers, and last night the company confirmed that indeed the Patriot model is being retired. Via email, a company spokesperson offered this very simple explanation: “The Patriot isn’t selling as well as some of our other pennies, so we’re going to drop …
My days at Dear Old Dartmouth began on a September morn 60 years ago with dad cruising confidently along Route 5 in his Buick super convertible and mom inhaling a pack of Camels for the five-and-a-half-hour drive from New Haven to Hanover. It was on this the virgin voyage to New Hampshire that my …
On Wednesday J. Press sent out an email blast plugging its new fall collection. I immediately received a flood of messages (OK, one guy), asking what in the world was going on at the company. The answer is I have no idea, no one has any idea, and probably J. Press has no idea. The …
As you’ve probably noticed over the past 60 years, the borders of that little menswear town we call Tradsville is not wholly secure from outside influence. After all, the companies, large and small, that clothe us are in business to make a living. While not full-blown Ivy royalty like Richard Press (grandson of Jacobi) nor self-made …
For no discernable reason, I recently developed a mini-obsession with the color green. I picked up some polo shirts, a striped belt from J. Press, and a few other things. Among the purchases was a pair of shorts in mint-green oxford cloth (Polo, natch), which finally brought things to the tipping point and inspired a blog post. But …
A few lucky souls are skipping through the dog days of summer in new bleeding madras shirts. The eclectic and sartorially resplendent haberdasher David Hodgkins of David Wood Clothiers in Portland, Maine reintroduced the fabric last Thursday, and were sold out in 24 hours by word-of-mouth alone. Priced at $175, the shirts were based on …
While doing image research this morning I came across the fantastic photo above. When I investigated the source, it turned out to be a Tumblr site called The Black Ivy League Look. We’ve posted some historic images of students before, bunkered down with books or huddled together the way Robin Williams gathers them in “Dead …
In the spirit of all the students presently packing up for their first semester at college, Ivy Style has the pleasure of presenting a piece of student homework. I say pleasure because getting to write about The Andover Shop and J. Press is certainly a lot more fun than having to take a remedial math course. The …
My latest piece for Ralph Lauren Magazine is on the Jaguar XKSS, a rare ’50s sports car whose distinguished owners include Steve McQueen as well as Ralph Lauren himself. Ralph’s personal car will be featured in an upcoming fall Purple Label ad campaign. Here’s an excerpt: The XKSS’ combination of gorgeous curves and raw power …
Today is National Rum Day, the perfect excuse to revisit one of the bay rum stories from our archive. Although this post ran a mere two years ago, it was actually written several before that. No idea if bay rum improves with age (nor my writing, for that matter), but I’m pretty sure rum does. …
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 …
Last week The Independent published a feature on John Simons, who is to England what Kensuke Ishizu is to Japan. The king of English Ivy is celebrating 60 years in retail. Writes the paper: Simons, more than anyone, is the man who brought the “Ivy Look”, the apparently effortless American cool of the postwar years, …
Earlier this summer I wrote an essay about college dating in which I modestly proposed that young women take back control of the courship process by demanding committed relationships. I ended up taking the story down not because of any backlash, but because further reading on the subject led me to realize that my quaint …
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. …