Back to School Tomorrow...

Tomorrow is my first day back to school, no students yet just staff. Will post my WDYWT tomorrow. Have to set the precedent on how I'll be dressing from Day 1. My male co-workers tend to have a complex about someone wearing a blazer or wearing things that fit properly. They tend to think that you're overdressing or must have somewhere to go.

Oh well, they're just going to have to get used to it.

The Simple White Button Down Shirt

A member on NikeTalk's Dressing Better Thread, RFX made a great point about white button down shirts. Here is the direct quote:

"A white shirt is very underrated. Why do people always want to wear a colored shirt all the time? That is so high school prom. My suggestion is to stick to a crisp white shirt, maybe with a spread English collar for a more formal look? Just accent the tie and pocket square with the color you desire, have fun with the socks and maybe some nice cuff links if the shirt has a French cuff. It's all in the details"

Color coordinating like he says is a little too childish. Look as a married man I perfectly understand wanting to coordinate with your girl. But as RFX sums it up quite well use the tie and pocket square to accent your look. In other words gentlemen, if you want to match your girl, don't do the shirt AND tie, do a crisp white shirt and wear a tie that contains the color of wifey's dress or a pocket square in the same hue.

Prior to starting the blog, my beautiful wife and I went to a family member's wedding and she was wearing this gorgeous lightish pink off the shoulder dress. The pink was reminiscent of a light pink rose like the one below. I wore a navy pinstripe suit, white shirt, navy tie with a white pocket square...but accented and coordinated by taking a small rose bud and putting it in my lapel.

Couple Changes to the DB Blazer

Made a couple of adjustments to the Double Breasted blazer to give me a better fit. My man from NikeTalk wj4 aka Wisith, pointed out that the blazer was too tight and how I could fix it one of two ways. First way, taking it to a tailor and have them let out the extra fabric under the lining or two move the buttons. The first way is the easiest in the sense you don't have to do a thing but pricey, the second way is the fastest as it can be done now. So I took thread and needle and did it myself. Yes, I can sew. If you look at the previous post there is a lot of pulling, in this one there is little to no pulling.

On a whim today, my wife and I went to Woodbury Commons, went to get some batteries changed on a few watches, and check out any sales going on.  After finding nothing spectacular, we decided to do one final stop at the Banana Republic Factory store. My wife found quite a few things and I found a pretty nice Double Breasted Blazer. I have stayed away from DB jackets since I'm a wider guy (44-46) and figured it'd make me look wider.

Nonetheless, I found this really nice grey one, so I tried it on and actually really liked how it looked. I don't know if this was made just as a blazer or if pants were at one time available but I couldn't find even one pair of pants in any size. Retail was $229.00, was on clearance for $44.99 plus 30% off and I got an additional 10% thanks to Triple A, so paid about $28 for it! Need sleeves shortened that's about it, I think.

I'll likely be wearing this with jeans as in the look below and possibly a couple other combinations such as navy and black pants...first going to try and see how that looks.

A Closer Look...

I showed a quick picture yesterday of my eBay pick ups but here is a much better look at both pairs.

The Bostonian Loafers are in really great condition and the leather is a very nice medium brown. The side of the sole could use some sole dressing but nothing major. The white is talcum powder, I put a little too much apparently as it got from my feet to the leather once I stepped out of them. (Note: I use talcum powder when wearing my loafers sock less). The patina on the shoes is also pretty nice.

Picture with Flash

Better example of the actual Brown

The Eduardo G. which apparently is a brand carried at Saks 5th Avenue after doing a little research, are a nice wingtip with a minimal amount of brogue-ing and leather overlays. The brown is also a very nice rich medium brown. Notice that shape of the toe, rounded toe that flows naturally with the shape of the foot.

Soft leather, very soft leather

Note: Both shoes have leather bottomed soles and are Goodyear welted.

eBay Pick-Ups

Another 2 eBay picks up at a great steal price, already wore the loafers today. $70 shipped for both. The loafers are by Bostonian and in a very classic shape. The wingtips (did not come with the trees) are a beautiful brown color by a brand I've never heard before Eduardo G. nonetheless they are very nice. Can't wait to wear these more often!

You Should Probably Buy This Watch...

Seriously you probably should. This watch is simple yet elegant and can be dressed up or down. Here's a list of reasons for why you should buy it:

1. Dark Brown leather band: this can be dressed down and worn with jeans and dressed up with a nice navy or gray suit.

2. It's REAL leather

3. The silver colored face makes it extremely versatile to wear with pretty much every color

4. The silver colored face...well lets be honest how many of us males wear gold colored jewelry, this watch will match our jewelry

5. The size of the watch face, not too big but not too small

6. The blue hand dials, it adds that little flare of color while still keeping it masculine. And no it doesn't mean you can only wear this watch when wearing blue.

7. The price, $53 and if you have Amazon Prime, it's free 2-day shipping...usually this watch is about $120 and other sites have had it on sale but never lower than $90.

Today Was My Birthday...WDYWT

Today was my birthday, I don't really care too much for it, it's just another day to me but I still wanted to dress up a little bit for the occasion. I had a few articles of clothing that I hadn't worn at all or in a good while. The shirt is a shirt I bought from a friend that was going to post it on eBay, shirt was brand new without tags, I think it's been about a year since I've worn it, now it fits! The jacket is the one previously featured here. Hadn't worn it until today, fits pretty well off the rack and it has working cuffs. Beware that if you get working cuffs that they actually are the right length for you, shortening sleeves with working buttons is extremely difficult and expensive since the shortening has to occur from the shoulder and not the cuffs.

Blazer: Gap $35 via Gap Factory Store
Shirt: Banana Republic $10 via Friend
Pocket Square: Folded Napkin
Jeans: American Rag $7 via Macy's
Shoes: LandsEnd Loafers $21 via LandsEnd.com


And this is what I wore...

Blazer: Gap, Shirt: Banana Republic

Working Cuffs

Jeans: American Rag Shoes: LandsEnd Loafers

Changing the Way YOU Dress...

This is a reply to a couple of NikeTalk members regarding making the change to dressing better. Many of us when we make the change of dressing better, the comments from others are plenty. From "why are you so dressed up" to "where are you going tonight" to "your clothes are too tight/small." Here's my reply...

Initially when you start changing your style of dress, especially if it is somewhat dramatic people will notice and people will talk. I know I had that happen to me a lot, especially the comments about trying to be someone else. Ideas to dress better and keep it simple, is still do you. You mentioned t-shirts, why not wear some chinos with some plain tee's and some Jack Purcell's or dress shoes for example. Hoody, replace the hoody with a V-neck sweater and a button down top, change the sweats for some jeans, shoes you can do some boots or some dress shoes as well. Plus at the end of the day, who cares, if you feel comfortable and walk around with that confidence the comments will stop.

I completely agree as well with the "damn dude bought that suit too damn small" comment. As most of you know I'm not a small guy so the assumption is always to wear loose clothing, super loose clothing, ah no. I've gotten from my co-workers (I'm a teacher), specifically my male co-workers the your suit is too small, it's isn't it just fits properly. The main one I still get to this day is again from my male co-workers, regarding where I'm going later in the day (like a date, interview, usually it's "ahhh you must have a date") when it's just the fact that I give a crap about how I look. It's not that they don't but I can tell you right now that even the smallest guy at work wears his clothing about 2 sizes too big and square toe shoes are staple amongst most of the men at work or the pointy slip ons. If I even wear a blazer to work most of the guys think I'm either going on a date or trying to show them up. I actually got fed up the last week of school, since no students are present mostly all the males just dress like if they're at home, and I wore a button down, jeans and a blazer (my Bespoke suit jacket to be exact). The comment was made and as much as I insisted that I just wanted to wear a blazer they kept at it. I responded with "no I just care about how I dress and considering I've waited 6 months for this jacket, I'm wearing it." My principal is in a suit everyday and not well fitting ones so the times I've worn suits to work which fit better than his, I've even gotten sarcastic comments from him. I don't care, my thing is, it's not my fault I know how to dress . Not surprising it's the women at work whom I get the most compliments from. At least 3-4 of the women (staff of 45 teachers, about 28-30 female), compliment me on a weekly basis and I think the men at work hate that. I once was told by one of the women that my pants were too short because I cut them at my ankle for my loafers and no socks, I let her know that no this is how you are suppose to wear your pants not having 8 inches of fabric piling up, it shut her up. Too many people don't know how to dress properly in terms of fit and proportion and that's why when they see people like a lot of us here who take the time to put ourselves together and wear things that fit that we are "trying too hard."

At the end of the day, do you. Be comfortable. Be Confident. Be You

LandsEnd 25% Off and Free Shipping...NO MINIMUM

LandsEnd is known for always having some sort of sale, pretty much on a weekly basis. However, it is rare when their promotions offer free shipping without any minimum. This is the second time in about 3 weeks they actually offer this deal, so JUMP on it. It end on the 20th at midnight.

Here's a pic of the banner but since the banner does NOT show you the code and pin I'll provide that first. Be aware that the code and pin on their banner is not the same one, and offers free shipping on orders of $50 and over.

I'll try and post some deals that I think you guys should jump on.

Code: AUGUST
Pin: 8844

Completing the Suit

Remember that jacket that I posted about a week back here? Well I found the pants and took advantage of the 25% off code that I posted a few days back as well. Drove out to the Poughkeepsie Galleria where the Macy's had my size in stock and found them. Paid $23 and change for them. Grand total for the jacket and pants, just under $39! Full cotton suit for under $40?! Yes, this is why I love shopping towards the end of seasons, because all the seasonal stuff goes on sale. Yea some may some but summer is almost over, yes true but the khaki suit is a classic, come next spring and summer I can still wear it.

All the pants need are a hemming.

The pants:

The Suit:

Boots for Fall & Winter

A member on NikeTalk who also lives in New York asked what is the best boot to wear during the at times brutal New York winters. Well this very much depends on what you're trying to go for. Are we looking into a leather boot that is intended to wear with a suit, dress pants? Pretty much a boot that looks like a nice pair of captor or wingtips. Or a boot where the main intention is to keep your feet dry and warm yet still can be worn with jeans or some corduroys pants? Below are some of my suggestions

Dressing It Up:
Any sleek boot that is shaped like much of your dress shoes, whether they are suede or leather can be worn with a pair of dress pants, jeans or a suit. Remember they shouldn't be bulky. Dress boots are somewhat difficult to find especially wingtip dress boots and cap toe or brogue ones. A sleek chukka boot are much easier to find and come in different shades of suede and typical brown and black leathers. If this is what you want for a winter boot, the soles of the shoe MUST be rubber. I can't stress this enough! Icy surfaces and leather soles are just an equation that will lead to you falling and getting hurt.

Dressy and Rubber sole equals perfect for winter

I recommend looking for Dainite rubber soles or Commando rubber soles. Both will provide great traction on the slippery surfaces that are the streets of New York.

Dainite Soles

Commando Soles

If functionality while style being able to wear it with jeans or corduroy pants look for something that is lined to keep your feet warm and that the shoes are waterproof. The boots below by Cole Haan look great under jeans and a pair of gray cords.

Macy's Sale...25% Off Code AUGUST

So remember that code I told you about yesterday well it got me a great deal on this blazer. The blazer is by American Rag, khaki, cotton, perfect for summer. I am debating on getting the pants but need to track them down first. The jacket was $19.99 with the AUGUST code, paid $15.21 with tax.

Save Some Money on Dry Cleaning!

A lot of us own articles of clothing that simply can't be washed at home. For example, for us men our suits, blazers and fine fabrics can not simply be thrown into the washing machine and then put into the dryer. For those with spouses, women's dresses present these issues as well. If you wear a suit to work, whether daily or once a week and you're someone who likes getting their stuff cleaned after 1 or 2 wears then you all know dry cleaning costs add up.

For example, my wife and I returned from vacation about a week ago. I had a linen blazer, a 2 piece Bespoke suit in addition to three of my wife's dresses that needed to be cleaned. By me that alone would of been over $40 in dry cleaning. I've been meaning to buy a garment steamer for a while and found one for $51 with tax at Bed, Bath & Beyond with their 20% coupon (just sign up online).

If your clothing is not stained and just needs a simple cleaning and/or press this works wonders. Steaming, for those that don't know actually cleans clothing all without using chemicals that eventually break down fabric. While it cleans, at the same time it ends up removing any wrinkles from the fabric. Now if you have a stain, then definitely have a professional take care of it. The garment steamer will pay for itself with all you will save on dry cleaning.

Con-Air Garment Steamer-$51 with tax

Save 25% at Macy's Men's Private Sale & Clearance

Use CODE AUGUST to get 25% off Men's Private Sale aka their suiting, shirting, and ties and Clearance items.

I picked up a Cotton Khaki American Rag blazer for $15. Will post pictures later tonight.

Likely 1 of 2 or 3 posts tonight.

Another Target Gem...

Went to Target today to exchange some crew neck undershirts for some v-neck undershirts and stumbled upon their clearance section in the men's department. They had quite a few dress shirts for sale, I managed to pick up the following one for $7.13 with tax. Neck size is my size but I know the shirt needs to be taken in on the sides. Still even with the additional tailoring costs this shirt is a GREAT Deal.

So head to your local Target and head to the men's section near the undershirts as they were pretty much hidden in the back corner of the men's department. Their Merona shirts quality is very impressive to say the least.

Lavender/White Stripe by Merona

I'm Back!...Michael Andrews Bespoke Sample Sale!

It's been a while since I've posted regularly, been away on vacation and just getting back and trying to get everything back into place. You will definitely see more of me from here on out and will continue to try and update this blog daily.

So on a whim I stopped by the sample sale that ended today at Michael Andrew's Bespoke. Mind you I went during the last hour so not much was left just a few things. The prices were great! Ties for $10, Hand-rolled pocket squares for $5, etc. I got really really lucky and found two pairs of pants; Bespoke pants for an AMAZING price.

The 2 pants were pants that someone had put an order in for, paid their 50% deposit and then never paid the last half and as a result never picked them up. Once a year passes they are a go for the sample sale. I paid $20 for each pant; if I had them Bespoken specifically for me, they'd be about $500-600 each. All they need is to be hemmed and tapered a little bit. For $40 for pants that would have ran me $1000-1200 I can't complain. The tie, $10, I think it sold for $50 originally. In all I paid $50 for over $1000 worth of stuff if I had ordered it myself.

I am considering getting the jackets made if the fabric is still available especially on the blue one.

Tie: MAB by Dan Trepanier

Pants: Navy-ish MAB

Pants: Gray with White Stripe by MAB

Quick Note: The pants definitely were made for someone else. You can tell that the place where the tag "Bespoken For" goes has been removed.

Banana Republic Factory Store & Gap Factory Store

Looks like their is going to be a sale August 4 and 5 only, 30% off entire purachse! I'll post the coupon tomorrow!

Gap Factory usually already has lots of items marked down for an additional 20-30% and BR Factory usually 30-40% additionally so this 30% coupon is even better!