The sophistication and sticker shock you’ve come to expect from Ralph Lauren. Gorgeous styling, punitive tariff. Madras is an inexpensive fabric. So is seersucker. Oh look, there’s a $1,200 seersucker jacket too. They used to say only a rich man can afford to wear cheap summertime fabrics. Indeed. Here’s RL’s mid-level madras jacket at $500, …
Over the past few months several menswear colleagues have mentioned that fashion designer Jeffrey Banks, who started his career at Ralph Lauren, was writing a preppy book. Then a couple weeks ago, as I exited the J. Press warehouse sale, I received a phone call from Mr. Banks, who was trying to track down the …
If you’ve enjoyed the history of J. Press and insight on the Ivy League Look from our interview with Richard Press this week, rest assured there’ll be more to come. Richard has offered to share more anecdotes and observations in occasional guest posts for Ivy Style. Stay tuned. He is pictured at a party at …
I started high school in suburban California riding a skateboard and running a music fanzine for which I scored an interview with Metallica, back when Metallica was still accessible to 15-year-olds with fanzines. But change comes rapidly in those years, and by my senior year I was wearing sportcoats to school and listening to classic …
Stuttgart-based department store chain Breuninger has given a Teutonic interpretation of campus style in a photo spread from its in-house style magazine. The shots have even inspired a South African blogger, further evidence that Ivy is on a world tour. Germans may be precise when it comes to engineering, but the photos are anything but. …
If you’re like me, you probably look at the industry standard 3.5 inches for tie and lapel and think, “That looks wide.” And if you don’t, you may be part of a shrinking minority. The slim look is growing, not fading away, so get used to it. Take Ben Silver, for example. The Charleston-based torch-carrier …
Nordstrom has released a men’s fashion video that devotes 18 seconds to acknowledging the Ivy trend, with vintage footage and a style endorsement of cardigans and wingtips (click here to go directly to the Ivy section of the clip). Yes, the gingham shirt doesn’t have a buttondown collar, and the wingtips aren’t longwings. What do …
Today Brooks Brothers announced the rennovation of the third floor at its 346 Madison Avenue flagship. The floor is devoted to the brand’s sportswear, and the abundant decorative knick-knacks pay tribute to golf:
There are a handful of new club-collared shirts on the market this season. Tops on the list is this new white broadcloth from Brooks Brothers, available in extra slim fit as well as regular fit:
The spring marketing videos from Brooks Brothers and Tommy Hilfiger both feature outdoor parties full of stylish clothes, attractive people, good food and drink, and fun and frivolity. If you could crash either party, which would you choose and why? The Brooks party may be good for networking, but the Hilfiger party has ping pong. …
In what probably hasn’t been done in half a century, GQ has endorsed the sack suit — sort of. The March issue features a one-page primer on the Ivy League Look (more or less), though it avoids the term “Ivy” and instead opts for “sack suit.” The Ralph Lauren suit pictured appears to be dartless, …
J. Press has followed up on the announcement of its new Daniel Cremiuex collection with an official release about its Yale parntership that went out last night. The release makes the collaboration sound a bit more formal in nature, and indicates that it will include more than just athletic wear. This morning J. Press released …
Just got back from the 346 and the presentation of next fall’s collection was impressive, at least from a staging and creativity standpoint. Unfortunately I have little news for orthodox trads: no idea if shoulders have been changed in any way or how many sack suits will be offered. I don’t think my hosts even …
Sartorially speaking, it’s a great time to be an Eli. First Gant returns to New Haven and resuscitates the Yale Co-Op label, and now J. Press is collaborating with Old Blue. What’s more, in a move completely out of left field (wait, which way is France?), Press has also unveiled a collaboration with French designer …
A few months ago we annouced the return of the Norman Hilton brand with a great new tweed sportcoat with natural shoulders, soft construction and a three-inch lapel. Now you get to see the jacket in action. I teamed up with Fred Castleberry of Unabashedly Prep and the guys at Prepidemic to create a Norman …
The Wall Street Journal offers a summary of the zeitgeist so far. Prediction: The topic will continue to generate buzz this year, but the buzz will end in 2012. Of course, everything is supposed to end in 2012. — CC
This fall/winter season Ivy and related references have multiplied at both Ralph Lauren and Rugby as vintage university style continues to be rediscovered by the fashion industry. Likewise, Ralph Lauren’s Fall 2010 in-store magazine features the image above, which has a vaguely “Take Ivy” vibe, combined with the car from “La Dolce Vita” and stately …
Erstwhile Ivy Style contributing writer and vintage Ivy collector Zachary DeLuca recently opened an Etsy shop under the name Newton Street Vintage. It’s amusing to think of DeLuca and Giuseppe of An Affordable Wardrobe, who also began selling online recently. Both live in Cambridge and thrift from the same wellsprings. It’s not hard to picture …
Muffy Aldrich of The Daily Prep has just put up a perspicacious analysis of 25 companies on her preppy radar. Included are many of Tradsville’s favorite clothiers: Brooks Brothers, J. Press, Ralph Lauren, Mercer & Sons, LL Bean, Alden and Bills Khakis. Aldrich plots them on a line with small handcrafted startups like Kiel James …