Fashion is a dirty word among tailored clothing enthusiasts. Tailoring is often thought of as being above the frays of fashion, but this oversimplifies the history of suits and misses what’s often exciting about designer clothing. Not all fashion is about trends, even if all trends are about fashion. Just check out the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s exhibit on Alexander McQueen, for example. It’s hard to not get swept away.

Few fashion designers capture imagination as well as those that came out of Japan in the 1970s and ‘80s. Designers such as Issey Miyake, Yohji Yamamoto, and Rei Kawakubo pioneered what can be described as a sort of “Japanese avant-garde.” Although, don’t use that term in public – not just because I made it up, but because all three have said that they resent being pigeonholed by their ethnicity. Miyake and Yamamoto have said that they see themselves more as being part of a “lost generation” – one that grew up on Western culture in Japan, but neither identifies with the West nor the East. Similarly, in an interview in Women’s Wear Daily, Kawakubo said she dislikes being pegged as a “Japanese designer,” while Miyake has noted that he’s trying to create “a new fashion genre that’s neither Japanese nor Western.”

If we don’t call their work Japanese, then it’s at least avant-garde. Their collections heavily rely on varying shades of black, but what feels like a restraint in color is offset by freer interpretations on the modern silhouette. Their asymmetric, deconstructed, and artfully ripped clothes often use holes and other forms of empty space as decoration. This departs from traditional Western modes of patternmaking, which tends to emphasize the human form. For women, that means accentuating a curvaceous bust and hips, but also narrowing the waist. These Japanese designers, on the other hand, seem to shroud the body rather than reveal it. Their work refuses to sexualize the female body, thus challenging conventional notions of gender in dress. 

In Future Beauty, Akiko Fukai et al. wrote of these collections:

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A friend of mine recently scanned these wonderful images from the early days of Esquire. These were originally published in 1934 and ‘35, just a year or two after the magazine’s first issue debuted. You might not be able to tell from the illustrations, but Esquire in those days was a bastion of chest thumping masculinity. They featured a mustachioed cartoon character named “Esky” on their covers, who was often drawn doing macho things such as sailing yachts or diving off cliffs. In the 1940s, they also published pin-ups by Alberto Vargas. Those illustrations were quite scandalous for their time – so scandalous, in fact, that the FDR administration took Esquire to court for distributing “lewd images.” (As you can probably guess, Esquire won on the grounds of free speech). 

What’s funny is that – while Esquire has always been a men’s fashion publication – they’ve also always tried to bill themselves as much more. Their initial subtitle was “The Magazine for Men,” and the editors reserved a third of each issue for big name fiction writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemmingway. As Esquire’s co-founder Arnold Gingrich put it, this was to “sugarcoat the fashion pill.“ “Men,” he said, “would feel a bit sissyish carrying away from a store a magazine that had in it no content whatever than, let us say, a foppish devotion to the subject of clothes.”

Despite not wanting to seem like a sissy clothing magazine, Esquire for many decades was the last word on menswear. They told men what to wear and when to wear it through illustrations such as these. Covert coats with silk foulard mufflers, we’re told, are good for wear in the country, while dark navy double-breasted suits made from hard finished worsteds are perfect for drinking in town clubhouses. 

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Southern Italy is famous for its soft tailoring, but you don’t have to go all the way to Naples to get a soft shoulder. One of my tailors, Steed, is famous for their natural shoulder line. When they were in town this weekend as part of their US tour, I stopped by to chat about my next commission. During our conversation, they were nice enough to show me what goes into their shoulder construction. 

As many readers know, Edwin DeBoise worked for Edward Sexton (of Tommy Nutter fame) and Anderson & Sheppard before starting his own tailoring house. His current style is quite close to the Anderson & Sheppard drape cut — a bit of fullness in the chest with a nipped waist, close skirt, and soft shoulder. Despite all the shaping, there’s actually very little padding inside their coats, as you can see above.

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We’re still solidly in winter, but Drake’s new spring/ summer arrivals remind us that warmer days are just around the corner. The popular English label continues to design some of the best men’s accessories I’ve seen anywhere. Michael Hill, the company’s Creative Director, tells me that they’ve relied a lot on interesting and subtle weaves this season. “We have a linen chambray from Solbiati,” he says. “It has a nice texture and a bit more color than plain weave linens. There will also be some semi-warp faced cloths, which have a nice, antique hand, as well as a lot of slubby silks." 

My favorites so far are the grenadines and pocket squares. Drake’s grenadines now come in two weaves – larger and smaller versions known as garza grossa and garza fina, respectively. They also have grenadines with striped, dotted, and jacquard patterns, for those who want something a little more distinctive (these look particularly good). For pocket squares, there are cotton bandana prints, as well as a number of interesting designs on silk habotai – an exceptionally lightweight, slightly sheer, plain weave silk that has a bit of sheen. I find it goes well with cotton and linen jacketings. 

Michael also tells me they have some sport coats, shirts, and chinos coming. "We’ve never thought about design in terms of a product alone,” he says. “It’s always been about a look as a whole, so in some ways, this is a natural extension for us. It’s taken a bit of work to learn how to construct these other things, but I feel we’ve done a good job." 

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The landscape for high-end men’s clothing has changed a lot in the last hundred years. It’s slowly shifted from large, luxury department stores, such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus, to smaller and more specialized boutiques, such as Self Edge and Leffot. Granted, any individual boutique will have smaller sales numbers than a larger operation, but few style enthusiasts I know shop at luxury chains anymore – even those as small as Barney’s. Everyone seems to prefer things that feel a bit more intimate, specialized, and niche. 

One specialty store I’ve been particularly impressed with is Skoaktiebolaget. A small, Scandinavian operation that focuses on footwear, it started only a few years ago in 2012. Still, in just three years, it’s managed to build an impressive roster of brands – Edward Green, Gaziano & Girling, Carmina, and Enzo Bonafè. No small feat, especially when you consider that Edward Green has been operating at full capacity for some time and is very selective about who they let carry their label.

Patrik Löf, the shop’s owner, tells me that he picks brands based on what he loves, as well as what each brings to the table. Carmina offers the best bang-for-the-buck in the premium segment, while Edward Green has some of the most iconic styles around. Enzo Bonafè also gives uniquely good value given their craftsmanship and flexible made-to-order program (which Patrik says gives “almost endless possibilities”). “They’re a small family-owned company in Bologna,” he says. “They specialize in hand welted shoes, which the Italians sometimes mischaracterize as hand welted Goodyear.” As readers know, short of going bespoke, it’s hard to find hand welted shoes these days – especially for less than $1,000. Most high-end shoes are constructed by machine – either with Goodyear welting or Blake stitching – even if they market themselves as “benchmade” or “handgrade.”

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Read menswear blogs long enough and you’re sure to come across something you really like, but can’t find anywhere. A few years ago, I read about Simon Crompton’s bespoke eyewear sleeve. Made by Alfred Dunhill, it was saddle stitched from green crocodile leather. I looked around for something similar, but everything was either too expensive or not nearly as handsome.

A few months ago, however, when Chester Mox loaned me some samples from their new line, it dawned on me that they’d be perfect company for this sort of thing. Bellanie – the co-founder of the company – recently graduated from an apprenticeship with a high-profile leatherworker. Her techniques before were good, but her new work is downright amazing. Best of all, her prices are exceptionally reasonable – considerably less than any luxury label of similar quality, and certainly much less than any bespoke producer.

So, I commissioned a custom, black alligator eyewear sleeve. The leather she used is great – supple and soft, it has the flexibility needed for this sort of case, as well as the clean, even scales that distinguishes a good hide from a bad one. From here, the process of making the sleeve is fairly simple and straightforward, but there’s also a lot to the technique.

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I’ve been enjoying some texture-heavy looks recently. The jacket above is this season’s modified Aircraft jacket from Nigel Cabourn. Made with a shearling-lined hood and unique bellow pockets, it has a slightly fuller and rounder silhouette than previous seasons’ models. The body is also made from a thick oilcloth – a fabric originally worn by British fishermen to protect themselves from the harsh seas. The matte, slightly hairy fabric looks a little more interesting than your usual cotton materials and I like that it’ll only gain in character over time. You can find a brown version of the same coat at Baby & Company.

The cream zigzag sweater is from A Kind of Guise, a relatively young German label. The make is surprisingly good – thick and lofty, it has the feeling of a warm blanket when worn. Stock is unfortunately sold out at most stores, but there are a few left at Grundtner & Sohne, Oi Polloi and Making Things.

Next, the green scarf is a wool-alpaca blend from Inis Meain (it’s also sold out at Hartford York, where I bought mine on clearance, but you can find something similar at No Man Walks Alone and Anderson & Sheppard). Finally, the tan jeans are from RRL and the pebbled grained, shearling-lined boots are from Edward Green (they’re made on Edward Green’s 64 last, which was originally developed for the British gun-maker Holland & Holland’s footwear line).

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Some disappointing news today from Scotland. It seems Hunters of Brora has been sold to a ready-to-wear company, and that company will no longer be supplying fabrics to tailors or individual customers. Instead, all fabrics and archive books will be used exclusively for the ready-to-wear label. The sale marks and end to what’s been a turbulent time for the 114 year-old Hunters name. The company was sold in 2003 and the mill closed shortly thereafter. The retail side was also struggling for some time, but lived on for ten years thanks to the help of a family. 

At the moment, the remaining stock of tweed is being sold to anyone who’s interested (including non-trade customers, such as clients of bespoke tailors). Prices are discounted and negotiable, but you’ll have to contact Hunters for details. I bought a jacket’s length of the Kildary Blarmor Tweed, which has a mixture of birdseye and herringbone. My friend David loaned me some of Hunters’ books a few years ago and I thought that was one of the standouts. Sad to see it’ll no longer be produced for public purchase. 

(Many thanks to Mark for the correction on an earlier version of this article, which said that the Hunters mill will be closing soon, when in fact it’s been closed for some time). 

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Time hasn’t been kind to Scottish cashmere. Like the loss of American denim, the Scottish cashmere industry has been reduced to a shadow of its former self, with most firms having either closed up shop or moved production offshore. In the last few years alone, Caerlee Mills was shuttered, Barrie Knitwear was narrowly saved by Chanel, and Berk lost their location at the Burlington Arcade (although, there are plans to reopen online). Thankfully, whisky and tweed remain, but Scottish cashmere as an industry seems to hang by a thread.

My friend Reginald Jerome de Mans – who has written some of the best articles on this subject – likes to tell me how good Scottish cashmere used to be, before its decline. Densely knitted from long hair yarns, such sweaters are said to not pill or lose shape easily. They were also not as soft – at least not straight of out the box. Instead, softness had to be beaten into them, like character into raw denim. Simon Crompton thinks the softness in modern sweaters is a result of over-milling; Jesse at Put This On believes its from shorter hairs in yarns; one manager I spoke to says its because such sweaters aren’t knit tightly enough. Whatever the reason, it seems most companies have sacrificed durability for a more luxurious hand.

I was finally able to try one of these famed sweaters last year, when I bought a cable knit from William Lockie. It’s a world apart from any cashmere sweater I’ve ever owned. Certainly better than those I’ve bought from Italian and Chinese makers, but even better the ones from Scotland. The Johnstons of Elgin I picked up from Sierra Trading Post pilled easily, while a Barrie-made sweater stretched out after just a few wears. I don’t know if that’s because it was made from a two-ply yarn or because it was too loosely knitted. Either way, at the price Barrie commands, I wasn’t willing to try again.

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Of all the styles of classic men’s clothes to have slowly disappeared over the years, the dressing gown might be the easiest to pull off (both figuratively and literally). They’ve gone by the wayside, unfortunately, like most things involving tailoring. Replacing gowns are sweatpants and t-shirts, which I can confirm are not nearly as comfortable. If made well, a gown and a pair of pajamas are just about the best clothes you can wear at home.

I received my first gown last month. Made by Ascot Chang and modeled after something I saw at The Merchant Fox, it features a shawl collar, deep patch pockets, and contrast piping. The mid-grey windowpane flannel comes in at a 13/ 14oz weight, which feels perfect for this kind of thing – heavy enough to drape well, but not so heavy to feel overly warm. Getting out of my bedcovers in the morning has never felt better.

Although dressing gowns aren’t terribly common nowadays, you can still find them at a number of places. Some traditional menswear stores stock them, such as Ben Silver, Paul Stuart, and O’Connell’s. There are also a number of good, traditional English makers, such as Turnbull & Asser, Emma Willis, and Derek Rose (Mr. Porter carries all three labels, and often puts their gowns on sale, but stock seems low at the moment). Finally, The Merchant Fox carries some by Budd Shirtmakers, while A Suitable Wardrobe has a few versions from various shops around the world (this knockout silk piece was made by one of the more famous French tailoring houses).

If you have a shirtmaker, you can also get something made-to-measure. In this case, the cost of a custom garment isn’t too much more than something high-end and ready-to-wear. Some suggestions, based off of my experience with just this one:

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