Every year, I round up the best Black Friday sales over at Put This On and also highlight my favorites here, along with choice selections from each shop. The goal is to help readers find quality items without making them wade through what feels like an impossibly vast selection. Earlier this week, I listed seven great Black Friday promotions — here are six more.
RALPH LAUREN: UP TO 30% OFF
If fashion is a cultural language, then Brooks Brothers gave American men their ABCs, as they drafted the foundational grammar of the sack suit and the oxford button-down. But it’s Ralph Lauren who wrote the most compelling stories. No other brand has rendered such a persuasive mythos of American style — from the fine tailoring teamed with rep striped ties and penny loafers to the Southwestern cardigans and wabash striped workwear. Plus, the company’s size, institutional memory, and deep relationships allow them to create collections unmatched in the industry. Once you learn what “quality” really means — fabric development, unique design details, quality control — you understand that Ralph Lauren makes some of the best clothes around.
This season is particularly good for outerwear. They have classic pieces such as rope-toggled duffle coats, broken-in canvas chore coats, and belted motorcycle jackets, as well as oilcloth field coats, reversible Balmacaans, and double-breasted greatcoats that are inspired by 20th-century military designs.
My favorite is this wader’s jacket. It retains much of what makes the originals so compelling — the short, boxy fit that yields a unique silhouette — but it’s not so short to look like something worn by a matador. Plus, the innumerable pockets give you plenty of carrying space for knick-knacks (good for travel). Additionally, this red plaid jacket is inspired by something that Pacific Northwest hunters and loggers used to wear, but rendered in a much more flattering silhouette than Filson’s iconic Mackinaw cruiser (nice, but boxy in a bad way). I also think Ralph Lauren makes one of the best field jackets around — available this season in olive and tan. Just take a seam ripper and remove the faux-military patches. You are not in a Ralph Lauren Army.
Additionally, there are a few Ralph Lauren pieces I love every season. They always make these plaid flannel shirts in proprietary fabrics, specially made with unique yarns and finishes so they feel like that favorite flannel that’s always been in your wardrobe. This season, they offer them in staple colors such as dusty blue and red (check out the cat eye buttons — another nice vintage detail). Since I purchased these double-kneed carpenter pants a few years ago, they’ve become a favorite in my wardrobe. I don’t always love pre-distressing, but Ralph Lauren does them in a way that looks convincing.
Their Fair Isle sweater designs are consistently among the best around — classic, but not fusty — and these suede D-ring belts are an easy way to make a sport coat outfit look a bit more stylish. If you’re on a budget, don’t forget to check out the footwear. At about $150 with the discount, you won’t find anyone offering full-grain leather boots and loafers like these. I’m personally tempted by these “beachcomber” camo cargo pants, which look like they were inspired by 1950s Belgian military pants (I like how Lorenzo Don styles them). I also really want this pale yellow RRL chamois shirt. The material looks like it’s thinner than J. Crew’s version, which probably makes it easier to tuck, but Ralph Lauren’s higher-end sub-labels are sadly not included in the promotion.
STAG PROVISIONS: 20% OFF SELECT ITEMS
Despite what my blog’s name might suggest, I think workwear is one of the best starting points for anyone putting together a casual wardrobe. It’s versatile, region-agnostic, and only looks better as it develops fades, stains, and tears. With that in mind, Stag Provisions is one of the standout retailers. Based in Austin, they occupy a niche similar to Unionmade in San Francisco during the early aughts.
Stag carries a solid range of plaid work shirts from dependable labels such as Portuguese Flannel, Wythe, and RRL. They pair well with one of the shop’s white henleys, worn with the placket slightly open so the vintage-style cat-eye buttons peek through. I’m also fond of their outerwear selection, including this RRL deck jacket, RRL trucker, and Wythe Donegal tweed overcoat. The promotion even covers one of my favorite shoes — the all-black Blundstone 510s, which combine sneaker-like comfort, the water resistance of LL Bean boots (also on sale), and a classic workwear silhouette. Wear them with these piled Rototo boot socks — they feel like little sweatshirts for your feet.
Lastly, I have to mention these Red Wing Pecos. Recently re-released for Red Wing’s 120th anniversary, these were a cult favorite among Red Wing and roper boot collectors before they were mysteriously taken off the market some years ago. For the re-release, Red Wing made some minor tweaks: a taller 11” height, narrower shaft, and an oil-resistant Chemigum outsole that mercifully doesn’t require the break-in period of other Red Wing footwear. But the central design is the same: a simple pull-on boot made from Red Wing’s Hawthorne Muleskinner, which takes on a patina like you wouldn’t believe. They are unfortunately not included in Stag Provision’s Black Friday sale, but I purchased a pair earlier this season and they’re one of my favorite purchases of the year (I recommend going down half a size, as these are an E width). Just check out how great Eric Kvatek looks in an older version of these boots.
HOODIES AND SWEATPANTS: UP TO 50% OFF
Everyone has a different definition of what they consider to be the best hoodie or sweatpants. Like Italian chefs arguing about carbonara, these debates will never get resolved, as much depends on taste. But for me, I found what I think are the best through Brut and Standard Issue.
Founded in 2012, Brut originally opened in Paris as a vintage shop specializing in militaria and workwear, but it has since evolved into its own line. At first, founder Paul Ben Chemhoun and his team were reworking their vintage finds, turning old made-in-USA blankets into vests or recutting 1950s French chinos into a more modern, wearable fit. Nowadays, Brut is entirely about new or reworked vintage garments — the vintage business has been spun off into a sister company called Universal Surplus.
I want to buy nearly everything Brut puts out, largely because they’re so good at taking the nugget of what makes specific historical designs so appealing and turning it into a more wearable form. For instance, their reworked windproof jacket and wader jacket have a lovely, boxy silhouette (every time Kiyana posts this jacket from them, I wish I picked one up); their newly released relaxed and flared denim also references the 1990s and 70s in just the right ways. Similarly, their “Best Sweat” hoodie has a roomier fit than photos suggest, mirroring the wide-body look seen in 1960s-80s American sportswear. Plus, the generously sized hood actually covers your eyes when you throw it up — important for nappers like me.
Unfortunately, Brut doesn’t offer sweatpants, so I’ve had to go elsewhere for those. I recently picked up a pair from Standard Issue, a factory-run label co-founded by skater Jimmy Gorecki. The sweatpants are made in Los Angeles from an ultra-heavyweight 21oz cotton jersey — a weight so thick that, in materials such as tweed, it’s typically used for overcoats. For people who want the warmest sweatpants possible, you can knock 30% off with the checkout code 25BFCM30.
NAMU: 25% OFF; CODE: PIE
When Twitter went crazy over these photos of Oscar Isaac on Miyako Bellizzi’s Instagram a few years ago, a friend of mine messaged me: “This is pretty much Asian normcore.” I instantly knew what he meant. In South Korea and Japan, there’s a “soft boy” aesthetic that’s ultra comfortable and relaxed, yet somehow pulled together and effortlessly chic. Namu Shop, a sponsor on this site, specializes in that kind of look. They’re also bringing hard-to-find South Korean and Japanese labels to the United States.
A lot of what Namu sells can be paired with almost anything in your wardrobe, such as this skipper collar Aton polo, which can be worn with five-pocket cords (as you see on the model) or used to dress down a tweed sport coat tamed with gray flannel trousers. Fujito’s marled wool sweaters — available in blue and black — would add a bit of visual interest to an outfit, especially in place of the plain, smooth merino crewnecks that everyone stockpiles. Herill’s straight-legged raw denim also comes in that slightly looser, higher rise cut that everyone has been looking for. It would look great with this SSSTEIN sweater (loose in the right places, but with tight ribbing and cuffs) and one of these overcoats from Document or Kaptain Sunshine.
TECOVAS: 20% OFF
Almost five years after I purchased my first pair of cowboy boots, I’m sometimes tempted to upgrade to Rios of Mercedes, JB Hill, or, God willing, Graham Ebner. However, one thing holding me back is that I’m not actually unhappy with my Tecovas. Their boots are made in León, Mexico, one of the world’s bootmaking capitals, rather than in more expensive places such as the United States (home of Lucchese). As a result, they can offer Goodyear-welted, lemonwood pegged boots at prices starting around $300. I bought a pair years ago because I wanted something that met certain quality standards — stitched sole, full-grain leather uppers — but wasn’t so expensive that I’d feel the sting of regret if I ever move on from Westernwear. Nearly five years later, with many more Western shirts in my wardrobe, I’m pretty happy with how my boots have aged.
Most people will gravitate towards the Cartwright and Buck, two almond-toe boots that aren’t too square or snipped, making them quite versatile. The waxy goat hide easily takes on a patina, while the dressier cowhide mostly looks the same over time. I also really like the company’s Bandera and Rugged Roper, which have a chunkier silhouette that veers towards work boots, and the company has a handsome line of zip boots, although they naturally carry a Westernwear vibe that makes them better suited to trucker jackets than Margiela. Lastly, Tecovas recently introduced a new line of slip-ons and lace-up work boots. The Monterrey vaguely looks like August Special. I think the August Special looks better, but these cost a fraction of the price.
UNIQLO: HEATTECH SALE
Every winter, a reader will ask me to recommend stylish outerwear for places like New York City or Chicago, where the weather can get dreadfully frigid. And I always feel sheepish about my recommendations. Quality, stylish outerwear is not cheap — commonly in the low four-figures — which can be disheartening to many.
However, there’s a cheat code. Quality baselayers let you get more out of your outerwear, turning even a waxed cotton Barbour jacket or lightweight topcoat into something suitable for snowy days. The key is to pay attention to the material’s weight and fiber. Heavier baselayers, just like fabrics, will wear warmer (which is not always what you want, depending on how much time you spend indoors). Wool will also wear warmer than synthetics and won’t hold odors as easily, allowing you to get a little more wear between each wash. Synthetics, on the other hand, are more durable and better for an active lifestyle (e.g., baselayers for running or hiking).
I mostly wear baselayers from Smartwool and Woolx, the second of which carries some of the heaviest, warmest baselayers I’ve come across. But even those can get pricey (money that could admittedly be spent on cooler outerwear). A good compromise is Uniqlo’s HEATTECH. Made from a blend of synthetic fibers tightly knitted to trap heat, Uniqlo’s baselayers strike the right balance between warmth, comfort, and affordability. They’re thinner than bulky waffle knits, less itchy than merino, and wick moisture from your skin, keeping you reasonably dry on cold days. If you live in a frigid climate, you’ll want something heavier, but these can be a good solution for most people without breaking the bank.