WDIWT...4/30/13

The closing of April still looks more like March as the sun is slowly starting to peak through, still a much nicer day than yesterday. Went with blues and gray.

Details:
Sweater: Old Navy Navy V-Neck via Old Navy-$15
Shirt: Banana Republic Navy L/S Dress Shirt via Banana Republic Factory Store-$12
Trousers: IZOD Gray Flannel via JCP-$5
Shoes: Florsheim Imperial Cognac Wingtips via eBay-$25

WDIWT...4/29/13

Back to work today, and the weather sucks. Compared to this weekend, the gray gloomy day on a Monday, out of all days is the worse...blah! I didn't want to go with gray and stick to the same gloom as outside so I stuck with different shades of blue. When mixing different shades of color make sure they are different enough in color and/or texture.

Details:
Sweater-Old Navy Navy V-Neck Sweater via Old Navy-$15
Shirt: Disney White/Blue/Light Blue Check Shirt-Gift
Trousers: Gap Light Navy Corduroy via Gap-$15
Shoes: Florsheim Imperial Cognac Wingtips via eBay-$25

WDIW...Yesterday 4/28/13

Headed out to the Walkway Over the Hudson yesterday, on a really beautiful day. It was windy up there but still nice enough to go without a sweater. Kept it simple, dark denim, white short sleeve dress shirt and Tom's.

Details:
Shirt: H&M White S/S Dress Shirt-$7.50
Jeans: Gap Selvedge Denim Slim Fit via Gap Factory-$12.50
Shoes: Toms Gray Tweed Classic via Nordstrom-$32

Total: $52

Treating the Women In Your Life Right...Christian Louboutin...Part 2

My wife is simply amazing! She has made me into a better person and has always been supportive of anything and everything I do. She's my motivation and inspiration in everything I do and is someone who works incredibly hard at everything she does. Like me she's a teacher, I should say like her I'm a teacher, and she's pursuing a doctorate! She's my example of hard work and dedication. For this and many other reasons I always try to do something nice for her. Sometimes it's small, like flowers and sometimes it's something a little bigger. As the title says treat the women in your life right and that should be all the time, sometimes it's getting them something a little special. My beautiful has wanted a pair of black calf leather pumps in a short heel, something around 2 inches or so, these were perfect.

WDIWT...4/27/13 And My Wife!

For the first time ever, my wife is on my blog! She was game for her to be in a post especially considering the t-shirt she was wearing "I'm With Beast" I think she's had that t-shirt for a few years and this is the first time she wore it. I might start featuring her outfits in the blog as we both like dressing well but doing it on a budget, with the exception of a couple of items (check for a post on that later tonight probably lol).

Details:
Sweater: Gap Gray Cardigan via Gap Factory Store-$15
Shirt: Gap "The Beatles" T-shirt via Gap-$15
Jeans: Old Navy "Slim Fit" via Old Navy-$2.50 (dropping weight has made these pants go from slim to baggy it seems)
Shoes: Toms Black/Gray Tweed Classic via Nordstroms-$32

Tom's Burgundy Classic Woolen Slip-On

I've been eyeing these since I first saw them in store at Journey's. Almost ordered them a couple a weeks back but held off. At $54 they are still a great price and considering they give a pair to those in need it is even better. It's something about the rich burgundy color that drew them to me. I'm a fan of the woolen line with the fleece lining inside as it allows me to wear them even on those not so warm Spring days, the wool upper helps with that too. Journey's currently has these for $29.99 plus tax, great price!

WDIWT...4/26/13

Another one of those it's Spring but it still feels like Fall kind of days. The wind is nowhere near as bad as yesterday but still cool enough to warrant a sweater. Granted, after a while you can start feeling warm, which is why layering is great and having the appropriate layers is important. With the sun the way it is, the short sleeve shirt is handy.

Details:
Sweater: Perry Ellis Gray Marbled Cardigan-Gift
Shirt: Old Navy White/Navy Bengal Stripe S/S Shirt via Old Navy-$12.50
Jeans: Old Navy "Slim Fit" Dark Denim via Old Navy-$2.50
Shoes: Toms Classic Brown Woolen Slip On-$35

WDIWT...4/25/13

It's deceivingly sunny outside, based on the pictures you'd think it was in the mid to high 70s or low 80s, not the case at all. In reality it is in the low 60's but still quite a beautiful sunny day. Keeping that in mind I tried sticking with both a lighter color for what is supposed to be Spring weather while still wearing something more reminiscent of Fall, a light brown v-neck sweater, for the cold. Earlier this morning the wind was pretty crazy and I'm glad I was wearing my navy peacoat as the wind dropped it to the 40s.

Details:
Sweater: Polo Light Brown V-Neck Sweater-Gift
Shirt: BCBG Light Blue/Blue Micro Dot Dress Shirt via Nordstrom Rack (years ago)-$15 (I think)
Jeans: Gap "Slim Fit" Dark Indigo via Gap-$45
Shoes: Kenneth Cole Brown Suede Made in Italy Chukka Boots via eBay-$25

WDIWT...4/24/13

The warmest day of the week is today, at 72 but still with some wind. This morning, even at 7am it was still about 38-40 degrees. I kept it dark at the bottom and light at the top. I was going to wear a white/red/blue gingham shirt but really didn't like how the fabric felt, too stiff, needs to be washed first. I kept it simple, with shades of blue and white.

Details:
Sweater: Banana Republic Off-White V-Neck-Gift
Shirt: Disney Brand White/Light Blue/Blue Checked Shirt-Gift
Trousers: H&M Navy Chino Trousers via H&M-$7.50
Socks: Unsimply Stitched Royal Blue Shark Socks-$1
Shoes: Florsheim Imperial Cognac Wingtips via eBay-$25

WDIWT...4/23/13

Mother Nature needs to get it together, it's late April and it was 30 degrees when leaving the house, with the high today being an awesome 51 degrees...it's late April!

Keeping this in mind I went with some thicker than usual fabrics for the trousers than this time of the year would usually call for. I threw on a sweater, while I originally had planned to wear a Navy cotton blazer, considering the weather I didn't feel it would be warn enough, as it is unlined. Originally was going to wear a Navy v-neck but then quickly realized I was wearing my students' school uniform. I picked up this deep purple sweater over the weekend at the Banana Republic outlet for a great price, $11 and keeping in mind some of the outfits my wife put together for me a couple of weeks back, I went with the mixing of light and dark colors.

Purple can be a risky color, so make sure it's not Barney purple or a purple so light it is borderline pink, unless that's what you're going for.

Details:
Sweater: Banana Republic Deep Purple Merino Wool V-Neck via Banana Republic Factory Store-$11
Shirt: Gap White/Light Blue/Pink Check Shirt via Gap Factory Store-$15
Trousers: Arizona Cotton Twill Khaki Trousers via JCP.com-$5.45
Socks: Cole Haan Multi-Stripe Black/Purple/Violet Socks via Marshalls-$10 for a 3 pack
Shoes: Florsheim Imperial Cognac Wingtips via eBay-$25
Total: $46.45

Full Outfit

The Shoes & Socks

Details & True Colors

Parent/Teacher Conference WDIWT...4/22/13

This is the last Parent/Teacher Conference of the year and besides having the daily responsibility of dressing professionally, ensuring that you look professional on a day such as Parent/Teacher Conference is important. I've seen many cases where teachers simply don't care and wear whatever they feel. Respecting your profession, your students and the parents of those students is just as important as the knowledge you instill, dressing appropriately for it, is one way to demonstrate respect for the profession.

With today being supposedly the coldest day of the week, with the weather being in the low 50s, I decided to wear 2 of the 3 pieces of my Indochino Brown Bootlegger Tweed suit, with a peacoat over it when heading outside, which really is going from the house to the car, the car to work and work to the car. I paired with a blue micro-check shirt on white and navy tie with white polka dots. 3 of the pieces are custom, two aren't, showing that you can mix high and low.

Details:
Vest: Indochino Brown Bootlegger Tweed via Indochino-$80
Trousers: Indochino Brown Bootlegger Tweed via Indochino-$part of a suit deal voucher
Shirt: Michael Andrews Bespoke White/Navy Micro-Check Dress Shirt via Michael Andrews Bespoke-$210
Tie: Stafford Prep Navy/White Polka Dot via JCP-$6.50
Shoes: Florsheim Brown Spectator Captoes via eBay-$15

This is how I look like when I wake up at 5am and out the door by 5:45

The Devil is in the Details

I like blue and polka dots today (Also my 1 of my 2 favorite pair of shoes)

My "Lazy Man" Uniform

Some times it may be easier to throw on some basketball shorts, a t-shirt and some sneakers to run some simple, quick errands or some times it is just easier to throw that on because one doesn't want to look for what to wear. I personally don't like heading out to run some errands (especially if I am going to a public space such as mall), in basketball shorts, t-shirt and sneakers, unless it's a quick 5-10 minute thing and I'm already in them. What I've found myself doing is going to one specific outfit when having to run out to do some errands, knowing it'll be more at least 20-30 minutes and a public area. You've seen me wear it before as I've likely posted something similar, but here are how it looked today.

I think I may have worn it last weekend to do the same come to think of it. I usually only change the footwear, depending on the weather. Last week they were loafers, today they were Toms.

Details:
Sweater: H&M Royal Blue Crewneck Sweater via H&M-$3.50
Shirt: H&M Gray Henley (not shown) via H&M-$5 or $7
Jeans: Old Navy "Slim Fit" via Old Navy-$2.50
Shoes: Toms Brown Woolen via eBay-$40

Cole Haan Lunergrand Wingtips...New Colors

For those contemplating changing up the way they dress and are debating on giving up the sneakers for dress shoes or feel that dress shoes are too uncomfortable, the Cole Haan Lunargrand might be a great middle ground for you. In addition, if you simply are someone who is on their feet a lot or want to add some color to your wardrobe the offerings by Cole Haan for this Spring/Summer aren't too bad at all. Personally the Olives one are my favorite as they are the most versatile.

Keeping It Casual but Dressy

For the times that you need to keep it a little dressed up but still want to keep that casual Friday going on. The versatility of a navy blazer and simple white pocket square can't be underestimated.  The great thing is that from the waist down it could be dark denim or khaki or gray dress trousers and it would still look great.

Details:

Blazer: Stafford Prep Navy Unstructured Blazer via JCP-$27.50

Shirt: Gap White/Light Blue/Pink Check Shirt via Gap Factory Store-$15

Pocket Square: Pierre Cardin White Cotton Pocket Square via Marshall's-$.50 a piece

Not Shown:

Jeans: Gap "Slim Fit" Dark Denim via Gap-$45

Shoes: Florsheim Cognac Imperial Wingtips via eBay-$25

Better Pictures!

Same details just better pictures:

WDIWT...4/16/13

I posed the question on NikeTalk as well as a couple other people, including my wife, on how to pair the waistcoat from Michael Andrews Bespoke (the error one), especially since I don't have the matching trousers. I received a lot of good suggestions and decided to go with the following. I forgot who it came from but I paired navy and white, which is a great idea, considering the pattern and texture of the waistcoat; chalk stripe flannel. The trousers are a heavy weight cotton in order to "match" or come close to the weight of the flannel, the shirt is an oxford cloth, the tie navy and knit and the shoe have a rugged sole, again to better match the heavier weight of the waistcoat. I could easily take off the waistcoat and pair it with a cardigan and it would still look great.

Details:
Waistcoat: Light Gray/White Chalkstripe Flannel Waistcoat via Michael Andrews Bespoke-$error order
Shirt: Merona White Cotton Dress Shirt via Target-$22
Tie: Navy Knit Tie No Brand via eBay-$5
Trousers: Arizona Navy Twill Cotton via JCP-$5.45
Shoes: Cole Haan Pebble Grain Bluchers via eBay-$15

Natural Light

Natural Light

Natural Light

Details!

NTs Collective, Support It!

Check It Out!

Support It!

www.ntscollective.tumblr.com

WDIWT...4/14/13

Went to run a few errands today so threw something on that would keep me warm but didn't make me look sloppy as all get out. Although the thought may be when looking at the pictures that this is something that I took time to put together it wasn't really the case. Blue and gray are two colors that when combined properly can't go wrong, throw on some low top sneakers or loafers as in my case and you have an outfit that is not only casual but appropriate for any environment.

Details:
Shirt: H&M Gray Henley via H&M-$5
Sweater: H&M Light Blue Crewneck Sweater via H&M-$3.50
Jeans: Gap Selvedge "Slim Fit" via Gap Factory Store-$12.50
Shoes: Florsheim Imperial Loafers via eBay-$22.50
Total: $43.50

And after a shine...

NT's Collective

Wis who's tumblr/blog is wisith.tumblr.com just put together another amazing tumblr featuring the guys from NikeTalk's Dressing Better thread as a way to show how styles can vary while still dressing better. Dressing better isn't all about suits and ties.

Here's the link:
http://ntscollective.tumblr.com

Customer Service Matters...Compliments to Michael Andrews Bespoke!

Went to pick up my waistcoat from Michael Andrews Bespoke and unfortunately the waistcoat for the trousers I had purchased at their sample was ordered in the wrong fabric. They didn't try to pin it on the customer like I've heard so many horror stories of other shops but instead moved quickly to see what the mistake was and to alleviate it. My usual stylist didn't do this order for this waistcoat and my new stylist wrote down the wrong fabric #, hence the wrong fabric on the waistcoat. They ensured that the fabric for the re-order was the correct one, put in the new order, and let me take the waistcoat that has already been bespoken for me home! Now I don't know what to wear it with as I don't have matching trousers or jacket but I will likely get the matching trousers made.

WDIWT...4/12/13

Another try with better pictures, still trying to figure out some angles and resolution and camera set up while my tripod comes in but these pictures are definitely better than the iPhone 4's camera.

The rain is back and so is the cold after having two days earlier in the week in the high 70s/low 80s. Had a peacoat over this earlier...from the car to my school's building. Went with commando rubber soles due to the wet rain so it was either my brown 1901 Suede Brown Wingtip boots or the Cole Haan pebble grain leather bluchers (I believe), went wit the Cole Haan pair, one of my best eBay steals and pick ups. To keep it warm a nice heavy knit in the form of a shawl cardigan.

Details:
Sweater: Gap Navy Shawl Cardigan Sweater via Gap-$Gift
Shirt: Stafford White/Pink/Black/Blue Micro-Check Long Sleeve Dress Shirt via JCP-$5
Jeans: Gap "Slim Fit" 1969 Dark Wash via Gap-$41 or $45 (can't recall)
Socks: Cole Haan Purple/Violet/Black Multi Strip Socks via Marshall's-$7 (for pack of 3)
Shoes: Cole Haan Brown Pebble Grain Bluchers via eBay-$15

Blurred too much out

WDIWT...4/11/13

Brown and Blue is a understated mix in terms of color but a great mix when done properly. Dark brown can be at times difficult to match up and I will usually go with a white shirt and some sort of dark tie but I think the light blue with a navy tie is a good mix. I got this knit tie in a few days ago via eBay for about $5. This is my first time wearing a knit tie and I really do like how easy it is to tie with a dimple.

Details:
Waistcoat: Indochino Brown Tweed part of a suit
Trousers: Indochino Brown Tweed part of a suit
Shirt: Stafford Light Blue Oxford Cloth via JCP-$5
Tie: Navy Knit Tie (no brand) via eBay-$5
Shoes: Florsheim Spectator Brown Captoes via eBay-$15

WDIWT...4/10/13

The weather is still warm but in the mornings on the way to work it isn't, solution? Thin knit layer. It's not so thick that as the day warms up it will become a sauna itself and have you sweating but it also isn't so thin that it serves absolutely no purpose during those cold mornings. In addition if the temperature really spikes up you can remove it and easily fold it up neatly into a bag.

Details:
Sweater: Banana Republic V-Neck via Banana Republic-Gift
Shirt: Van Huesen White/Pink Micro-Check Long Sleeve Dress Shirt via JCP-$5
Trousers: Gap Blue Corduroy's via Gap-$15
Shoes: Florsheim Cognac Imperial Wingtips via eBay-$25

WDIWT...4/9/13

With the temperatures set to hit the high 70's to low 80's today in the city, and the first time it is anywhere near that warm in MONTHS, it was a good time to show a bit of Spring into the wardrobe while still keeping it professional. As I do work as a teacher I still find myself keeping things a bit muted and along the lines of professional attire, although I was tempted to wear red chinos today. For many, going sock-less would not be considered professional but I think it is one of the few things I can probably get away with, in order to infuse that Spring look.

Details:
Blazer: Stafford Prep Navy Cotton Blazer via JCP-$27.50
Shirt: Gap White/Pink/Light Blue Check Long Sleeve Shirt via Gap-$15
Trousers: H&M Khaki Chinos via H&M-$7.50
Shoes: Florsheim Imperial Vintage Loafers via eBay-$25

WDIWT...4/8/13

With the weather getting nicer and warmer...70 today and supposedly close to 80 tomorrow, it's nice to decrease the layering! Therefore I went with a cardigan and that was it, no need for a coat or a heavier sweater. With it still being in the high 60's to low 70's and a breeze kicking in here and there the cardigan provides enough of a layer to stay warm but still light enough that you're not sweating as a result.

Details:
Sweater: Gray Gap Cardigan via Gap Factory Store-$15
Shirt: Merona White Oxford Long Sleeve Dress Shirt via Target- $22 (plus alterations $20)
Tie: LandsEnd Navy/Orange Rep Tie via eBay/NikeTalk-$5
Trousers: Merona Medium Brown Herringbone via Target-$8.80
Shoes: Florsheim Imperial Cognac Wingtips via eBay-$25 or $35