Another Season Look

This one is from a while back, but fits today's weather quite well I think. Theme was a sort of a smart casual and I'm quite happy with the results.

A few components happen to be the same as in my last post here, but the overall look is quite different. I think that's something where I aim when buying my clothes - versatility. Still being a student and a person with a very limited budget, it naturally makes sense to have pieces that can be worn as much as possible. And, yes, my blue tassel loafers aren't those things.

The shirt here is the same gingham checked flannel shirt, nice and soft. The cardigan is a cotton cashmere blend in a kind of medium blue. Pocket square white cotton square to keep things simple and a bracelet for no obvious reason but my own taste.

Khaki cotton chinos from Brooks Brothers, and grained leather longwings from Meermin. The socks are merino wool.

Zero Degrees Celsius

The temperatures are starting to get close to zero Celsius, meaning I'm gonna have to start scraping ice from my car's windshield soon enough. To shudder away all thoughts of cold I went for this look the previous Sunday. Casual, warm, comfortable and street-worthy was the theme.

The jacket is the same navy parka featured in older posts, the jeans the same raw denim and the shoes the same Meermin longwings. However, I really like how it all blends together. Actually, most of these pieces I've bought to use them in combinations exactly like this. I've left the collars of the gingham checked flannel shirt unironed to keep that washed and soft look that I think works better here. Also the collar bones have been removed.

Lastly, the heavier longwings offer just the right amount of ruggedness and weight for the outfit, and the color with the grained leather is just perfect for fall and winter. When it starts snowing just I'm just going to change to thicker wool socks. Here I'm still using lightweight merino socks from Pantherella.

007 Skyfall

Yep, the wait is over. Skyfall is about to hit the theaters quite soon, and we can again enjoy the coolest agent on Earth.

Just one thought: Hopefully this will be as good as Casino Royale.

A Few Shots That Never Got Published

So, here's a few shots from the previous months that never got published.

This one's another from last weekend, but I just wanted to post it as the colors here are just so beautiful. Fall isn't too bad when you think about it!

 

This one is slightly meh. I remember leaving without the vest, then coming back to get it as it seemed to get a bit chilly. It didn't so all I did was ended up rolling my sleeves. Result, a bit of a mess to be honest. It still teaches a good lesson I think. Too much is too much. Without the vest I think the tie+knit would've been OK, and with the vest both should've been left home.

This one is simply me wearing my then still new grey suit in a more casual manner. Wide light blue knit tie, gingham checked pocket square and a spread collar white shirt. Add the bracelets and the loafers and you have a pretty relaxed suit look.

Leather Jacket Study

So, last week I decided to wear an old leather jacket I've had for a long time, bought long before my taste was even close to what I prefer today. It still fits quite well and is an ideal fall jacket warmth-wise. This whole combo was just for a brief walk to the groceries, and perhaps more to study the jacket than to look stylish.

To go with the jacket I picked my Litchfields, olive chinos (mistake) and a gingham checked flannel shirt. Now, I don't really think this one worked too well, and I'm going to tell you why. First of all, I actually quite like the jacket. It's not the most beautiful leather jacket, but it isn't terribly ugly either. It fits well and the color is rather beautiful. It also goes well with the nice (and super comfortable) shirt and the boots.

The problem here are the pants (which I chose because everything else was in the washing machine). It's not even the color, but the cuffs. Actually after taking the shots I folded them quite nicely achieving a more rugged feel to them. Still, a bit more worn and less dressy chinos or jeans and I'd say this one would be totally OK for a fall day or even not-so-cold winter day.

So, I'm definitely not a leather jacket fan, but sometimes stepping out of your boundaries and experimenting with different stuff does bring new ideas and helps you evaluate your current style better. You try new things, see if they fit you, and then make decisions whether you will or won't do the same thing twice.

I'll most likely wear my leather jackets more than once this winter.

Fall Colors

Visiting the city where my girlfriend studies, the fall colors were all over the place, both on the way and here. Here's a few shots of the outfit I threw on today.

Usually when on a business or weekend trip, I prefer to pick pieces that can provide me the most variety over the coming days, with the least amount of stuff to carry with me. A navy odd jacket is probably my favorite choice, as with a few pairs of pants and maybe another pair of shoes you can pretty much survive an entire week with ease.

So, today it was a bengal striped bd shirt with extra long collar points, silk wool blend tie and my PRL vintage pocket square. Think I had a pretty nice fold in it, but somehow messed it up for this picture. Also, didn't really plan for this, but check out how the colors in the background fit the colors in my outfit here.

The shoes are my new longwings which I think are pretty damn good for a fall combination like this. I didn't really plan on wearing them much with this kind of looks, but I think they actually work here extremely well. A bit heavier than shoes I usually wear, but here they add just the right amount of roughness perfect for this weather.

And here's me doing what I do best - drinking coffee. Enjoy the rest of your Saturday and stay sharp.

Layers of Blue

So, today was a day of work as I was visiting my University. As you've probably noticed I like adding layers of cardigans and light cotton or wool vests under my jackets to stay warm when the temperatures drop. Today the theme was different hues of blue with contrasting khaki chinos.

I'm actually a huge fan of layering these kind of clothes the way I do. It is very convenient at work, as you can just hang the jacket if it is too warm and you still won't be just with your "undershirt".  You can also create some nice contrasts between your trousers and/or your jacket. Furthermore, with different weight pieces you can pretty much work between +15 degrees Celsius and +2-3 degrees Celsius.

Anyway, today I went with my navy fall jacket, a blue (it's not as dark as it looks here) cotton cashmere blend cardigan and a sky blue spread collar shirt. Pocket square is a plain white cotton square.

Again with my favorite penny loafers, this time with quite bright blue cotton merino blend socks. One other thing I'd like to mention here is always remember to press your pants. It just adds just edge that is essential to any look.

A New Pair Has Arrived

So, after some thinking I did end up ordering a test longwing pair from Meermin, a new Spanish shoe manufacturing company that has been getting a lot of buzz in the menswear circles in the Internet. I have a few friends that already have a pair or two, and they've mostly been happy with their purchases. Here are some initial thoughts I have of my pair.

First off, the customer service is pretty good taking into account that (rumored) they are completely stuffed with orders and strugling to produce enough shoes to meet the demand. Most of their stock is sold out so for those you'll have to wait for 1-2 months, these ones were in stock and it still took more than two weeks.

So, the quality control seems to be lacking a bit, but for 160 Euros you can't really ask for a pair of John Lobbs. There are a few scratch-like marks and something that I hope is too much polish. I haven't tried removing it yet. The leather feels much superior to other shoes in this price range.

One word of criticism to myself is that I didn't spot the fact that piece of leather "under the wing" isn't a single piece like in more expensive longwings, but actually three pieces with seams on both sides. Maybe I'll get over it with time, but it does kind of break the sleek shape of the shoe when the longitudinal lines don't go the whole shoe's length (which I feel is really the point in a longwing brogue shoe).

The looks then. Honestly I was expecting them to have a bit nicer shape, and in general I just can't fathom why cheap things cannot be styled like expensive things. In my opinion the shape at the tip of the shoe is a bit too bulky and the shoe could be a tiny bit more elongated. However, they are still good enough for the weather that's to come. I wouldn't want to ruin a pair of Aldens in the slush and snow that's about to hit Finland soon.

So, what will I pair them with? Probably they will be used mostly with my different chinos, like here with my olive Incotex pair. Also, jeans are a perfect fit for these, but I will need to get a slimmer pair. My current raw denim pair has been slimmed to fit my boots and I don't think I'll be wearing them too much with this pair. Guess you could also think about using them with a nice rough-textured suit, somekind of tweed for example.

Yep, Another Monday Another Suit Day

So, the regular Monday suit post. Today there's something new though, as I just got this one back from my tailor. The sleeves were taken in a bit to avoid ugly sagging, and they're just about right now. Also the shirt is new from a few weeks back, a bd shirt with very long collar points, one that I have been looking for a long time.

The tie is a yellow grenadine, and I've matched it with the leaves on the background. Not really. But, I quite like how the colors, textures and patters work here. I usually avoid using more than one pattern, and rarely wear shirts that have one. However, today it's obviously not true, and not to make people go crazy looking at seven different stripes or checks, the tie and the pocket square are of just one color. The grenadine tie is perfect for this, as it is still interesting with it's texture but especially from a distance looks like a normal plain tie (without an ugly shine).

The shoes are my C&J Hallams and the socks normal greyish navy ribbed cotton socks.