Illustration from a 1959 short story that appeared in Cosmopolitan. Not the short hair of the uptown lady in relation to the downtown gals. The caption reads, “They sprawled about in rapture. The bearded poet read. It was awful, Jim thought.”
Still, perhaps no other 20th-century icon better exemplifies casual American elegance like Fred Astaire. While all Ivy style is American (even when it’s Italian loafers and Scottish sweaters), not all American style is Ivy. Still, few illustrate the crossover better than Astaire. Astaire’s personal style, which he employed in his films whenever possible, was based …
According to The Daily Beast, there’s been a precipitous drop in undergraduate history majors: George Orwell famously forewarned in 1984, “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.” We shouldn’t be surprised then by some recent, disturbing trends in the study of history. According to a new analysis by …
What were Ivy Leaguers wearing in the fall of 1953? According to Gentry magazine, anything in tawny black. In a fashion spread entitled “Fashions Cum Laude for the Undergraduate,” the uber-elitist magazine (every issue included fabric swatches, and no models were ever used, only genuine gentries) says tawny black is the hot new color. But mixed …
J.C. Leyendecker’s first initials stand for Joseph Christian, but they might as well stand for Joe College. In a career spanning from 1900 until World War II, the American illustrator painted 300 covers for the Saturday Evening Post, as well as advertisements for products like Kuppenheimer Clothes and Interwoven Socks, that featured Harvard Rowers, Princeton football …
I was in the middle of a long moving process when I decided to go through some boxes and pull out my favorite albums. I soon realized that I hadn’t sat down and really listened to music in quite some time. When I discovered jazz in college, I would finish my classes, return to my dormitory …
Last night Alan Flusser gave a talk here in New York at the National Arts Club as part of its fashion lecture series. The talk was on tweed, and the event was packed. One of the points Flusser made was that Ralph Lauren — maker of (who else?) the “Ivy gang” chinos above — essentially saved …
Traditional Ivy style is rarely exhibited by the most visible Ivy League graduates: politicians. For instance, George W. Bush (Yale, Harvard) and Barack Obama (Columbia, Harvard) are never seen wearing sack suits, button down collars, or regimental striped ties. So when and why did establishment Ivy Leaguers abandon the Ivy look? “Goodbye to Wing Tips,” …
As a high school student, interchangeable items are a must. This means a few simple items that can work with everything else I have in my wardrobe. I would say that I have a uniform, which consists of an OCBD in white or blue, a knit or repp tie, khakis or indigo denim, a sweater …
Twenty-fifteen marked the 50th anniversary of William F. Buckley’s failed run for mayor of New York. In the photo above, it looks like WFB is pulling one out of British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli’s playbook, looking artistocratically bored while his opponent speaks. It’s not hard to imagine him closing his eyes and feigning to snore. …
Recently National Review Online asked me to write a style tribute to NR’s founder, William F. Buckley Jr. The piece came out today. By way of snippet: Following the First World War, the male wardrobe modernized, and elements of the Ivy League Look fell into place one by one, creating signifiers that would identify in-group …
We haven’t looked at Miles “Warlord Of The Weejuns” in some time, so here’s a gallery of him during his buttoned-down years. As a finale, there’s a shot of him in a crested blazer I hadn’t seen before. This post was composed to the accompaniment of his 1958 green-oxford album “Milestones.” — CC
What does it take to sing a good folk song? According to Hugh Hefner, “An Ivy League suit and an Eastern accent.” Jazz cats weren’t the only musicians who took to the Brooks Brothers look in the ’50s and ’60s. Here’s Bud & Travis from Hef’s short-lived TV show “Playboy’s Penthouse” circa 1960.
During the heyday of the Ivy League Look, Clipper Craft was a brand that explicitly touted its Ivy authenticity in advertorials placed in mainstream magazines. In 2009 a short thread was started at the Ask Andy Trad Forum in which a member dug up some info on the origins of the brand, which was founded in …
It’s unlikely that any style community is more fixated on authenticity than followers of the Ivy League Look. Bring up whether a hook vent is essential or a jacket can ever be darted, and you’ll kick off a dogma debate rivaling the The First Council of Nicaea in its intensity. This zealous guarding of the …
Ages ago in 2014, the blog Oxford Cloth Button Down shared a selection of calendar images by the Japanese artist Hiroshi Watatani, whose most recognized image in Tradsville is probably the one above. We used it here in our post on the Gucci loafer’s 60th anniversary. In case you missed the calendar, here it is. …
DCG on New Year’s Eve on the way to a fete at his club, and not very amused by the rain. Tux by heyday-era Continental tailoring house paired with Bean duck boots. Custom English pumps in black suede with grosgrain bow stashed inside VAN Jac tote bag. Reversible coat by J. Press. Black watch umbrella.
“People Will Talk,” one of Cary Grant’s lesser known movies, boasts some interesting outfits for the sartorial historicist. In order to portray a medical professor at a small Midwestern college in 1951, Grant was costumed in one double-breasted suit, and three suits and jackets that feature a 3/2 roll, but still have the overall cut …
Our last post featured Yalies from the 1910s wearing grey suits with simple shirts and ties. Now here’s another dose of sobriety, though from a very different source. Pictured is fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent from the late ’50s and early ’60s — in other words, contemporary to the heyday of the Ivy League Look. He’s …