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#menswear, let me introduce you to textile science
When it comes to assessing fabrics, the world of #menswear has been hindered by a kind of "folk reasoning" which tends to oversimplify things in assessing quality. Let me give you a couple of examples...
View ArticleFabric quality: A test is not a test is not a test
In my previous posting, what I described was intended to convey a taste of what textile quality management professionals actually do. A key implication is that there is simply no way an end-user or...
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The one travel shoe
I've been on the hunt for the ideal pair of travel shoes that can meet my particular needs - namely, I prefer to wear a single pair of shoes to carry me through a short business trip (usually 3-4 days...
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Ivy League style: Kamakura Shirts
Additional links- Styleforum discussion on Kamakura- Ivy Style on Kamakura
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Fabric quality: A call to visualize and quantify
I have good news and bad news. The good news is that fabric quality can be measured. The bad news is that a fully fledged quality testing protocol is simply beyond the means of the average end user....
View ArticleNeapolitan tailoring revisited - Rubinacci
Five years is an eternity in modern fashion, especially women's fashion. Yet half a decade is but a diversionary song in the longer, still evolving epic (or is it myth?) of men's clothing. It was...
View ArticleEnglish buttons - James Grove & Sons
After more than 150 years in business, James Grove & Sons closed for business in 2012. Below is a video describing their history as the largest manufacturer of horn and synthetic buttons in the UK....
View ArticleAccessory round-up
Happy new year, I recently received a few accessories which I thought I would share. They are a very elegant pair of Vass austerity brogue shoes, a bespoke Yellow Hook cashmere tie made in Brooklyn and...
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The decline and fall of hat wearing
The English historian Edward Gibbon attributed the decline and fall of the once ubiquitous Roman Empire to the gradual, enervating loss of martial dedication and civic discipline among its citizenry....
View ArticleIs a $300 canvas tote bag a #firstworld luxury?
Well, yes. A $300 canvas tote bag is a #firstworld luxury and the ability to buy one is a nice option to have. On the other hand, it is perhaps the only ethical thing to do assuming you have the means...
View ArticleMastered.com - the theory and practice of making things
I'm not terribly fond of the well-worn adage "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach". Indeed I think it is very wrong-headed in assuming the separation of theory from practice and privileging the...
View ArticleTrimmings merchant: Bernstein & Banleys
I recently had the pleasure of chatting with Jonathan Bernstein of Bernstein & Banleys, one of the few remaining independent trimmings merchants left in the trade. I was interested in meeting for a...
View ArticleScissormaking: Ernest Wright and Sons
The Putter from shaun bloodworth on Vimeo.I enjoyed coming across this story on the state of the scissor making trade in England and a mini-revival of what appears to be the country's last remaining...
View ArticleOld World textiles: Antico Setificio Fiorentino
The Privilege of Luxury - Short movie from Antico Setificio Fiorentino on Vimeo.This is an informative albeit promotional video of Antico Setificio Fiorentino, Florence's last silk-making factory. It...
View ArticleA Messina tailor's worktable
This summer I visited one of the tailors I reviewed in my e-book on Sicilian tailors - Pippo Arrigo in Messina. Here are a few photos of his workspace and table:
View ArticleA video history of the necktie
I came across this useful history of the necktie by Fashion Institute of Technology professor Chloe Chapin:
View ArticleSleevehead's first dress shirt
Happy new year! I recently took my first menswear sewing class which focused on cutting, sewing and finishing a men's dress shirt. The class ended last month and here's the result - a shirt made from...
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Exhibition: Savile Row and America
Last week Ambassador Sir Peter Westmacott hosted a preview of the "Savile Row and America" exhibition at the British Embassy in Washington, DC. After kindly receiving a media invite, I booked my train...
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Fit, tailoring and menswear 2.0
I headed over to Brooklyn today and chatted with Joseph Genuardi who is featured in the recent documentary Men of the Cloth. Joseph is currently head tailor at Martin Greenfield Clothiers, a leading US...
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