You’ve heard the phrase a million times: “You can have any color as long as it’s black.” In his autobiography My Life & Work, Henry Ford claimed he told his management team in 1909 that, going forward, his best-selling Model T would only be available in one color. But for the first few years of its production, from 1908 to 1913, it wasn’t available in black at all, but rather bullet gray, dark green, midnight blue, and fire engine red. The all-black change didn’t happen until 1914, with the outbreak of World War One. Ford switched to black because of the paint’s low cost, durability, and faster drying time. Paint choices were determined by the chemical industry, which at the time was affected by dye shortages and new nitrocellulose lacquer technologies. The decision had more to do with economics than style.

Cars back then were painted using a process called japanning, which today would be known as baked enamel. “It was first used in the mid-1800s for decorative items imported into America,” says Model T restorer Guy Zaninovich. “A piano has a shiny black surface that almost looks like plastic rather than paint because it’s done with the japanning process. It leaves a tough and durable surface.” Japanning also dries quickly, which was important to the efficiency-obsessed Ford. His plants produced as many as 300,000 cars per year, at a time when competing automakers had a combined production of about 280,000 cars, so shaving minutes off each car’s production time was critical. The catch? Japanning was only available in black. “If japanning worked in hot pink, all Model T’s would have been hot pink,” Zaninovich joked. 

The history of the Model T is just one of the many strange stories of why certain things come in specific colors. Suits, for example, mainly come in navy and gray because, back in the Regency period, men wore navy coats with cream-colored breeches. Regency blue eventually gave way to Victorian black by the mid-19th century, but the norm for wearing contrasting trousers remained. The suit, as defined by a coat worn with matching trousers, wasn’t typical in London until the end of the 19th century. Until then, the suit was only worn for sport and leisure, mostly in the countrysides. No proper gentleman would ever wear it to town.

Keep reading

“Polo” is the most confusing word in men’s fashion. When Brooks Brothers put their new button-down collar on sport shirts in the early 1900s, they marketed them as polo shirts. The tan, double-breasted overcoat popular with Ivy Style aficionados is called a polo coat. In Britain, the turtleneck sweater is sometimes called a polo jumper. Ralph Lauren named his mainline Polo. And for some reason, the tennis shirt is called a polo even though it’s more likely to be worn to play golf.

In the early 20th century, tennis was a sport of strict dress rules. Women played in blouses and full-length skirts; men wore cream-colored, cricket cloth trousers and full-sleeved, white oxford shirts, typically with the sleeves rolled halfway up to the elbows. Only a man of means could afford to indulge in a country club pursuit that came with a large laundry bill. Tradition-bound sportsmen found a snobby pleasure in sweating it out in stuffy, all-white uniforms. So when French player René Lacoste came onto the courts in 1927 with a short-sleeved shirt, he was responsible for a minor cause célèbre.

To be sure, Lacoste didn’t invent the polo. First seen on the French Riveria about two years earlier, it was taken up by fashion-conscious British players before getting the stamp of approval by young Americans on the courts of Palm Beach. But when Lacoste won the US National Championships that year — and several titles since — he helped popularize the style. In 1933, he partnered with a knitwear manufacturing entrepreneur Andrew Gillier to produce la chemise Lacoste, a lightweight, breathable piqué-cotton pullover with an unstarched collar, a three-button placket, and comfortable short sleeves. Known as the L.12.12, the shirt isn’t stiff, but it has rectitude. Tennis, after all, is often referred to as the “most genteel of sports,” so the tennis shirt – or polo — is in many ways the most genteel of sportswear.

Keep reading

Spring is the season for songbirds and meaningless baseball, cool mornings and warm afternoons, but for people who love clothes, it’s also the worst time of the year. Spring clothes are often less interesting. There fewer opportunities to layer. The cuts reveal more than conceal, and few of us look good naked. Whereas dressing for winter can be a paint-by-numbers exercise, dressing for spring is more like trying to solve a puzzle. How do you dress well, but also comfortably?

It always takes me a while to switch wardrobes this time of year, but I often go back to the same things – breathable tailoring, button-down shirts, and loafers. For casualwear, it’s usually a workwear styled jacket and some raw denim jeans (gotta get those fades). I also like bolder shirts nowadays with unusual collars, and have even been embracing things such as graphic tees. If you’re looking for some early spring inspiration, here are some things I’ve been thinking about.

MY KIND OF FUN SHIRT

Keep reading

Of all the style personalities online, few inspire me as much as Yukio Akamine, a Japanese men’s style consultant and clothing designer. Like many men of his generation, Akamine went into the clothing trade in the 1960s, right around the time Japanese youths were picking up button-down collars and Levi’s 501s. Akamine was one of the young men enamored with classic style, so he decided to make a career out of it. Over the years, he’s helped translate British, American, and Italian style for a Japanese audience. In the 1970s, he had a clothing brand called Way Out, which was managed under his umbrella company Trad. He’s consulted for United Arrows and provided personal styling services for executives. He even played a pioneering role in Japan’s Italian restaurant boom in the early ‘90s, when he oversaw Tokyo’s Il Boccalone and La bis Boccia, two restaurants for Tuscan cuisine. 

If Akamine’s style feels cinematic, it’s because he developed his eye by watching old films. In interviews, he’s talked about his love for movies starring American actors such as Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart, or ones directed by Italian filmmakers such as Federico Fellini, Roberto Rossellini, and Luchino Visconti. Consequently, his style is a multicultural soup of English, Italian, and French influences. He wears suits and sport coats from Liverano, ties from Drake’s, shirts from Charvet, and shoes from John Lobb. His jackets have a shoulder line that’s soft and sloping, but also slightly extended to give his frame a flattering V-shaped figure. The trousers are trim; the overcoats generously sized. The shirt collars are long enough such that the points neatly tuck behind his jacket’s lapels.

As conservative as his style may seem, Akamine’s outfits are full of personality. Knits are layered on top of each other and socks are worn to match dress shirts. Some of his single-breasted jackets even have both patch pockets and peak lapels (a daring combination). Plus, there are those deep, deep two-inch cuffs. On most men, these things would seem affected, but on Akamine, they look so good and natural. Whether it’s because of his handsome face or age, I don’t know. I’ll give them a try when I’m in my 70s so I can at least tell if you if it’s the latter.

Keep reading

Every season, I find myself wanting at least a few things from No Man Walks Alone (a sponsor on this site, although I pay for all my purchases at full price like everyone else). The store has an impressive selection covering a range of styles, from Japanese workwear to Neapolitan tailoring to contemporary minimalism. But a lot of the stuff comes together in a way that works for guys who appreciate classics without wanting to look like they’re in repro, as well as contemporary clothes without seeming overly trendy. Greg, the shop’s founder, used to work as a senior investment banker at UBS, where he had to wear a coat-and-tie. I appreciate that he has a better eye for tailoring than more casual shops, but also a more stylish take on casualwear than most traditional clothiers. 

For the next three days, they’re holding an early spring sale, where you can take 20% off any full-priced item with the checkout code SPRING20. They also have some deeply discounted stragglers left in their winter sale section, although the code doesn’t stack. Here are five things that I think are particularly notable right now: 

Keep reading

 

A few months ago, L Brands, formerly known as The Limited, shuttered all 23 of their Henri Bendel stores, including their Fifth Avenue flagship in New York City. Founded in 1895, the luxury womenswear retailer was the first in many categories — the first retailer to hold a fashion show, the first retailer to hold semi-annual sales, and the first retailer to carry Coco Chanel’s line in the United States. On their website, they also took credit for discovering Andy Warhol, who they hired early on as an in-house illustrator.

Henri Bendel’s profits, however, have been dipping for years as the upscale retailer struggled to find footing against online behemoths such as Net-a-Porter and FarFetch. Last September, when they finally announced that they would close all their locations by the end of January, The New York Times contacted Mark Cho of The Armoury to see how his brick-and-mortars have been able to thrive in this economy. Mark said it came down to people — having personal relationships with customers and hiring sales associates who know The Armoury’s products. “For some luxury brands, the customer comes in and knows exactly what he wants, and the salesperson is just a vending machine,” Mark said. “The Armoury has no aspiration to be a big brand.”

Some of their success can also be chalked up to how they make classic men’s style feel relevant, especially to a new generation of men who didn’t grow up wearing a coat-and-tie. Their clothes are traditional and sophisticated, but they don’t reach for the same tired tropes about luxury clothing and class pedigree. They’ve also done an impressive job of pulling together small makers, such as Ring Jacket, Carmina, and Liverano & Liverano, before these names became common reference points for menswear enthusiasts. I can’t tell you how many bespoke tailors have told me about clients who ask for curvy, Florentine quarters – no doubt because of The Armoury’s influence. 

Keep reading

If Marie Kondo left you with a clean closet, but nothing to wear, Unionmade is holding an impressively good sale from now until the end of Tuesday. Take 30% off any order with the checkout code GETHAPPY. The code applies to both new arrivals and the sale section, although only new arrivals are returnable for a full refund (the website’s return policy suggests otherwise, but I called Unionmade’s store in San Francisco to clarify). 

Unionmade is a great shop for workwear, heritage brands, and hard-to-find Japanese imports. They carry everything from Levi’s to Deveaux, but the clothes come together in a way that can be roughly described as a semi-classic, casual West Coast aesthetic. There are slim-straight jeans for guys who normally wear sport coats, as well as a huge selection of casualwear drawing from militaria, workwear, and neo-retro outdoor gear.  Here are five things I think are particularly worth a look:

LVC 1947 501s: Levi’s 501s has gone through a number of iterations over the years. The 1947 edition was the first one produced after the end of WWII, and as a result, it featured details that were previously lost due to wartime rationing measures. The watch pockets were made with rivets, and the back pockets regained their arcuate lines (those double needle, “batwing” stitches). It was also made with a classic slim-straight cut – slimmer than the company’s current version of the 501, but with a bit more room in the leg and slightly higher rise than many slim-fit jeans today. If you’re looking for a slim-straight jean that can be worn with workwear and sport coats, you could hardly do better.

Keep reading