Preppy Book Signing At Saks

Last night Jeffrey Banks (pictured above) and Doria de La Chapelle signed copies of their new book “Preppy: Cultivating Ivy Style” at Saks Fifth Avenue. It was a full house, though hardly a Prep-a-Palooza. Besides your humble blogger in rep tie and pinned club, there was just KJP and sweetheart:


I Finally Take A Good Photo

… and then get mis-identified. Mort must have been not stoned. Me at the Gant fashion show two weeks ago, in tailor-tapered tan 501s and Allen Edmonds penny loafers. Above the waist: navy Lacoste polo and a constipated expression. It’s pretty ignominious when your most flattering side is your feet. — CC


See Ya Later Alligator: The $1,000 Brooks Brothers Belt

I think I’m going to get an engine-turned belt buckle. I’ll have it engraved with just two initials — CC — a little in-joke reference to my abbreviated bylines here. For now, however, I’ll have to settle for a leather strap to go with it. Brooks Brothers offers a buckle for $250 — the going


Battle of the Wits: What Does A Preppy Smell Like?

Tommy Hilfiger recently released a new fragrance called Eau de Prep. I took a whiff of it at the Fifth Avenue flagship recently, and you can definitely detect a trace of tonic water. But it got me thinking, what does a preppy really smell like? Old money and even older sneakers? Salt water and peanut


Riding The Crest: Morris of Stockholm

When it comes to piling on the faux-heraldic crests, nobody does it like Morris. The Swedish brand’s Anglo-prep fantasy ensembles include the above example, which pairs a crested hoodie with a crested necktie and crested cardigan. (You probably also noticed the striped belt echoed by a striped watchband.) Perhaps all those crests should include as


Deadstock Troy Guild Sea Island Buttondowns at O’Connell’s

We always consider it newsy when Ethan up at O’Connell’s digs up some deadstock items that have been buried for decades. Earlier this summer, in an act of unselfishness, Ethan decided to start sharing his special hoard of Troy Guild shirts from the early ’80s. These aren’t your typical oxford-cloth buttondowns: The shirts are made


It’s a Cinch: Buckle-Back Trousers at J. Press

Over two years ago I wrote an open letter to American retailers suggesting they put a buckle on the back of chinos, a craze among students circa 1956. With the PITA trend in full swing, I even asked readers to speculate what brand might be first to freshen up a pair of quotidian khakis with


High Note: New York City Opera’s George Steel

Men who work in the arts generally aren’t known for sartorial conservatism. That’s why this photo of George Steel, general manager and artistic director of New York City Opera, caught my eye in a recent issue of the New York Times. Kinda reminds me of George Will. — CC Photo by Chester Higgins, Jr. for


Ivy Trendwatch: Hollywood and the Ivy Look

Later this year Reel Art Press will release a lavish photographic coffee-table book full of rare images of Hollywood icons wearing Ivy garb. It will surely be a delight to behold. Reading it, however, may be another story. One should never judge a book by its cover, but we’ve had an Ivy book by this


On Point: Chens on Fencing for Ralph Lauren Magazine

My latest piece for Ralph Lauren Magazine is on the rise of American fencing. I spent about five years training up to five days a week and faced the national champion several times (the first time losing 5-0 in 45 seconds; the last time a more respectable 5-3). At the time, US fencing was barely


The Preppie Murder, 25 Years Later

August 26th marked the 25th anniversary of the so-called “Preppie Murder.” In 1986, Robert Chambers, a former student of Choate Rosemary Hall, left the Upper East Side bar Dorrian’s Red Hand with 18-year-old Jennifer Levin, whom he later strangled in Central Park behind the Metropolitan Museum. The story became a tabloid sensation, was eventually made


Holy Scrap! Fall Patchwork Items From Brooks

Over the past couple of years, the patchwork trend has been spilling over from summer cottons into fall woolens. This year Brooks Brothers is offering patched items across a wide range of categories.


Princeton’s Plan To Discourage Exclusivity

In “This Side of Paradise,” F. Scott Fitzgerald called Princeton “lazy and aristocratic.” How times have changed. In the age of meritocracy, sloth is hardly a helpful quality in gaining admission to the elite university. And anything “aristocratic” would have to be an individual eccentricity as the school is seeking to discourage “exclusivity” by banning


Ivy Trendwatch: WWD On Upcoming Preppy Book

Last week Women’s Wear Daily ran a feature on the upcoming book “Preppy: Cultivating Ivy Style,” by Jeffrey Banks and Doria de La Chapelle. Among other things, the story includes the great photo above of Deerfield Academy’s class of 1961. The story’s author, David Lipke, goes on to note preppy style’s relative imperviousness to change


Ralph Lauren’s Edwalton Double-Buckle Loafer

All the sartorial spread-collar/Drakes ties guys are mad for double monk-strap shoes. What’s the preppy version of a slip-on with excess hardware? How about Ralph Lauren’s new penny loafer with double buckles. Dubbed the Edwalton, it’s made in the US and will set you back $495. — CC


Sign Here: How To Get A Swashbuckling Signature

I’m going to stray off-topic here a bit with something I’d like to share with you guys. I have lousy penmanship, and years ago I got an idea to write a piece on how to have a stylish signature. Inspired by a description of the brushwork of one of my favorite artists, Belle Epoque portrait


New Collabs, Narrow Ties For J. Press Fall 2011

Today J. Press unveiled fall items on its website, which include new collaborations with DS Dundee and Will, a leathergoods company from Oregon. Regarding Dundee, “They are making the decent Ivy-chic goods with the young fits,” a spokesman from Onward Kashiyama, J. Press’ parent company, told Ivy Style. J. Press has also amped up its


DiCaprio As Gatsby In New Baz Luhrmann Production

The battle between old money and new wages again as Leonardo DiCaprio takes on the role of Jay Gatsby in a new adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1926 novel “The Great Gatsby.” The film, which begins shooting soon in Australia, will be helmed by director Baz Luhrmann (“Moulin Rouge,” “Romeo + Juliet,” “Strictly Ballroom”). While


Classic Specs’ P3-Styled Beaumont Sunglasses

Brooklyn-based Classic Specs makes a cool pair of preppy shades for anyone looking for the classic P3 shape at the more affordable price point of $89. The Beaumont model (shown above in maple) comes in several color choices for frames as well as lenses, including prescription. — CC