Die, Workwear!

In addition to my work at Put This On, I’ve recently had the honor of writing at A Suitable Wardrobe about Anna Matuozzo and Mimmo Siviglia, two custom shirtmakers in Naples and Rome respectively. Matuozzo is famous the world over for her handsewn stitching, and Siviglia is known for his clean fitting, smooth tailoring. As I noted in the articles, it’s often believed that all things handmade are better than anything machine-sewn, but this is too much of a generalization. Each approach serves a different, but equally beautiful, purpose, and whether one wants something hand or machine made just depends on the kind of product they want. 

I’ve also been writing at StyleForum. An article was published yesterday on E. Marinella and today, I posted something about Rubinacci. Since I have more photos than can be published over there, I thought I’d put the “leftovers” here. 

The first set of photos is from E. Marinella. There was a lot to be impressed with there, but my favorites included some ashtrays with scenes of Naples’ history painted on them. Since I don’t smoke, I passed on them, but they looked like they would beautiful on a dark wood coffee table. I also really liked their colorful men and women’s scarves. There were Mughal, paisley, and Kilim prints that were all very attractive. 

Behind the cut are photos from Rubinacci. Like those E. Marinella ashtrays, they had many accessories celebrating Naples’ history and culture. These included their own line of ashtrays, some women’s silk scarves (which were framed and hung up as art), and a similar line of men’s pocket squares (of which I picked up two). I got a full tour of the place, including the labortorio where all the bespoke garments were made, but the real highlight had to be the back room, where Mariano keeps the original order books from the 1930s, two full walls stocked with cloth (much of which was also from the 1930s and 40s), and some bespoke formal wear. Older tailors, particularly those who make a drape cut, have complained about how difficult it is to add good shape to today’s newer cloths. When you feel how substantial and hefty the older cloths are, you can really get a sense of what they mean. 

The last photo is simply of two ties that were displayed in Rubinacci’s store window. I kept waffling on whether to buy them, but in the end decided to pass. Of all the things I regret not buying (there were many), these two sit very high on the list. What incredibly beautiful ties. 

To read my full articles on these artisans and stores, head over to A Suitable Wardrobe and StyleForum’s blog. 

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One of the highlights of yesterday’s Michael Bastian FW12 show was the use of Kilim slippers, which you can see in the first photo. Kilims are traditionally flat tapestry-woven carpets or rugs produced from the Balkans to Pakistan. They’re produced by tightly interweaving the warp and weft yarns to produce a flat surface with no pile. Though they’re traditionally made into rugs, you can get kilim anything - upholstery, bags, shoes, etc. Drake’s also has a few kilim inspired pocket squares and scarves this year, but they’re obviously made out of soft silks and not a thick rugged wool. You can order them from E. Marinella. 

There are a number of places that sell Kilim slippers. Stubbs and Wootton and Pickett are two “mainstream” suppliers. The best place that I know of, however, is Nomad Ideas, which sells genuine handmade versions from Turkey. Price is about $165 plus shipping. To see what designs they have, you need to email them and tell them your shoe size so that they can send you photos. From my experience, they typically send over a picture of four or five shoes, but this doesn’t mean they don’t have more. If you give them an idea of what you’re looking for, they can better select things that may appeal to you. 

I thought about getting a pair of these last year, but only for the home (they’re meant to be house shoes). I have a number of East Indian rugs in my apartment, and I thought walking around in these would be a good complement to them. I ended up passing, but perhaps I should reconsider.

I’m back. Naples was amazing and I have some articles in the works for a magazine and few websites. I’ll link those when appropriate. In the meantime, I was able to catch up with Cucincelli, who was kind enough to share with me their latest SS12 lookbook. 

The collection here is not too unlike the other spring-summer collections they’ve been doing for the last eight or nine years. There are the high-end sweaters and knits that the company specializes in. These sometimes feature a piece of contrast-color detailing on the collar or underside of the placket. There are also one-and-a-half breasted sport coats, vests, and bomber jackets, which are casually paired with cargo pants and suede boots for the company’s signature look. Colors mostly rely on beige, brown and grey, but when there is color, it’s often soft and pastel toned. 

One of the more interesting pieces is a buffed leather jacket, which you can see behind the cut. There’s a welted barchetta pocket, lapels, and an asymmetrical zip. It kind of gives a tailored look to a fairly rugged piece. As well, Fall’s reliance on grey and navy cashmere ties have been replaced with “pajama style cotton ties” and a bunch of cotton knits. I don’t think I’ve ever considered cotton knit ties, really, but these make an interesting case. 

Altogether a fantastic collection, but that’s to be expected. 

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I’m traveling to Naples this week and won’t update this blog until I get back. Till then, gung hei fat choi. 

I’ve been getting along just fine with my Kent Wang polo and rugby. In fact, I think they represent a great value. $65-85 is about what I’m willing to pay for an off-the-rack casual, weekend shirt. Kent’s are well made, fit nicely, and feature a spread collar with reinforced collar band. I think they’re one of the best on the market. 

The only other polos I want more are Guy Rover’s. Unfortunately, the ones I’ve seen have always been around $175. I thought I’d never even consider paying that much for a polo, but having seen these videos … well, I’m not saying I’d pay that much now, but if someone I knew decided to, I can’t say that I wouldn’t understand. 

I’m working on a post for Put This On about “affordable” shoes. I put that in quotations, of course, because everyone’s definition of affordable is different. By affordable, I mean shoes that retail for under $350, which is about the entry level price for good quality, full-grained leather shoes that can be resoled nowadays.

Meermin is on the short list of companies I plan to write about (thanks to Matt for the introduction). The company is based in Spain and came out of the dissolution of another Spanish shoemaking company, Yanko, which some readers may be familiar with. Yanko made very decent shoes many years ago and sold them at extraordinarily good prices. US customers used to be able to buy them from Sky Valet, but then suddenly one day they were gone and the remaining stock at Sky Valet was sold through. Out of Yanko, however, came Carmina and Meermin. Members of the Albaladejo family own both companies, but the relations stop there. The two hold different products, are owned by different people, and act as different operations. 

Meermin has two lines, the Classic and the Linea Maestro. The Classic collection is fully hand lasted and made with Goodyear welt construction. Prices start around $150-200. The Linea Maestro collection is a bit more contemporary looking and features high-end finishing. They’re not only fully hand lasted, but also hand welted. Prices for the Linea Maestro shoes start at $320 for calf and $370 for shell cordovan. 

I was a bit skeptical of the deal at first and figured they must be skimping on the leathers. I talked to the CEO of the company, however, and he confirmed they’re using suede from Charles F. Stead and calf from Annonay and Weinheimer Leder. These are the same tanneries that serve highly respected English and American shoe companies, including ones that charge two or three times the price of Meermin’s. The shell cordovan is also from Argentina and they plan to get crocodile and stingray skins in soon. 

The hand lasting and hand welting are interesting artisanal details. You typically only see such features on high-end bespoke-level shoes or cheaper models coming out of East Asia. I’ve yet to see them coming from a mid-priced European shoe maker - I assume because of the high cost of Western labor - so it’s interesting that Meermin is offering it. There has been a lot of debate over the advantages of hand lasting and welting, and it has been all hashed out ad nauseam at Ask Andy About Clothes. I’d like to avoid summarizing the controversial details, but suffice to say that I think it’s an artisanal detail that you either appreciate or you don’t. 

For the moment, Meermin is only available through their shop in Madrid or high-end Japanese department stores such as Isetan. I’ve been told, however, that they plan to launch a webstore soon. Once they do, I’ll be sure to let you know. 

New photos from Tommy Ton and Moon on the Moon.

Some more photos from Pitti. To be honest (and I know this is irresponsible of me), I’ve somewhat lost track of where I’ve gotten most these photos at this point. Some are from Tommy Ton, Nam, and GQ Eye, while others came from the Twitter accounts of Park & Bond and Nick Sullivan. The rest, I’m not so sure. 

Click behind the cut to see photos from inside the show. Most of those are of Cucinelli’s booth. 

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Esquire’s Nick Sullivan has been posting some great photos through his Twitter. Pictured here are colorful, cashmere lined chukkas from Fratelli Rossetti; lightweight Tombolini suitings; a range of Isaia coats and jackets in innovative fabrics; elegantly tailored garments from Sant Andrea; and some country-inspired pieces from Belvest. 

GQ Italy also has has some videos of their interviews with vendors. Unless you speak Italian, the language will be lost on you, but you’ll still be able to see some of the garments shown at the tradeshow. 

Well, it’s begun. Pitti Uomo, the menswear trade show in Florence, Italy, began yesterday. Photos have been coming from Justin Chung, StreetFSN, Crazy Pangolin, and A Continuous Lean, as well as the Twitter accounts for Nice Try, Bro and The Grungy Gentleman. 

In addition to the photos, GQ published a short piece by Brunello Cucinelli on what he brings with him when he travels, and attendees have commented on the popularity of Chelsea boots, quilted jackets, batik prints, and technical fabrics for FW12.