For Conor

This post is for Conor over at Young Man/Old Man .  Even though I think he should grow a beard the rest of his sartorial musings are sound.  So yeah check him out if you've got a chance.

My Chippewa #25290's are just about a year old, they have gone from looking like this:

After a year of trudging thru mud, cutting down trees, digging gardens, cutting down more trees, shoveling sand, laying bricks and a whole heckofalotta standing around, they like this:

So I re-waxed them last night with Nikwax.  The Nikwax was separated in it's tube, I tried to masage it back into a homogenous mass.  I think I failed, the wax part of the solution is just sitting on top of the leather and the oil part got absorbed.  The leather was at first really soft, but now the wax is just flaking off.  I'll pick up another tube of Nikwax and try re-waxing them this week.

 

Norfolk jacket

I have a new (to me) Norfolk jacket coming over from dear old blighty.  I like the cut and colour, and should be able to match it with a few different looks.  I'm thinking of perhaps picking up the vauxhall trousers and waistcoat from Old Town Clothing.  For some reason I'm currently inlove with the idea of fistail backs on trousers.  I was thinking either the grey moleskin or corn corduroy, not really sure how the corn corduroy would look with the colours in the jacket,  it may be a bit too startling. 

Another startling option would be a set of trews in the Taylor or Cameron weathered hunting tartan.  The taylor would be rakish, and horrible and simply lovely while the Cameron would be a bit more subdued.  

There also was this J. Press jacket up on ebay I could use for inspiration.  I like the addition of the mechanics sweater, I would however go with a this reproduction m1911 sweater from WPG. If I was to go the mechanics sweater route I could pair it up with a nice pair of Barbour or Orvis moleskin pants.

Games keeper Roberts

What? What!

So much sartorial inspiration!  

Not sure where I got this picture from, just found it on my hard drive while looking for something else.  I really do need to get myself one of those belts like the second gentleman from the left is wearing to hold my shells, hell I just need to start dressing like the first gent on the left, now where to to get one of those walking sticks that unfold into a stool?

Clippings from the Waste (Twice) look book

I've heard rumblings and grumblings about how people are getting sick of the "American heritage look," and are looking for something else.  I consider my look to be a mix up of classic yankee work and leisure wear.  I'd like to say that it's my style and that the zeitgeist and myself are just lining up for once.  We'll see if I jump on what ever the next bandwagon look is.  Le sigh...

On the topic of todays post I pulled some pictures from the Fall 2009 Waste (Twice) look book.  Overall I think the outfits they have assembled are a bit too twee, and I think the model looks like a right twat, and why do lines exclusive to Japan keep using anglo models?  These are a few outfits that I could use as inspiration or use a piece or two from.  Oh and sorry for the sucky crops, I had to save the images as PDFs and crop them in iPhoto.

I like the soft shoulders of this sports coat, the patch pockets and odd placement of the breast pocket.  The overall outfit is a little too Decemberists for me.

Again it's the sports coat I like in this picture, the soft construction and the rounded front.  The description says it is Harris tweed, but it falls like it is canvas.  I'm not a fan of drivers caps, the bow tie and normal length pants are a plus however.

I like the mackinaw pea coat, the rest of the outfit looks like what I would have worn when I lived in brooklyn 4 years ago.  I can't believe I used to dress like that.

Again I like the sports coat, and I like the khakis with turn-ups.  I've been thinking of getting some nice heavy weight canvas trousers with turn-ups lately.  The cable knit turtleneck  and way too tight jacket make him look like a pregnant schoolboy.

This looks to be the most normal wearable outfit.  hell about 2/3rds of my friends dress like this.  I like the chambray hooded shirt, but I fear that the hood would be too small to use and would be purely a design feature.  And what the hell is up with the fanny pack worn bandolier like?  Makes him look like a fanny...

Surprisingly enough this may be my favorite outfit.  Twee yes,  I would definitely ditch the hat

but I could see going out on a pub crawl dressed like that.  I think it would fit with my lions mane quite well.

digging these pockets

One thing that drives me nuts about J. Peterman is the lack of photos on their website.  I'm iffy on their marketing babel and I hear that their quality is on the poorish side of things.  I'm very interested in this jacket however, or perhaps I'm interested in the upper pockets. Instead of having flaps the pocket has an upper yolk/cape that comes down and buttons over the tops of the pockets.  I would love to have a british khaki canvas sports/norfolk jacket with those pockets. Ditch the epaulettes and add in a bi-swing back and lower bellows pockets, the jacket would be killer.  Throw in some leather covered buttons while your at it.And the obligatory bizarre J. Peterman spiel:

"Once a year I drop in to see Lord George Milford Haven, 451st in line for the throne.

He has a small country estate outside Liphook. We usually spend the afternoon tramping across the moors, scaring up grouse and pheasant.

On my last visit, he greeted me wearing a very fine pair of muck boots, moleskins, and this jacket.

"So, what's going to be the big seller this year?" He asked.

"You're wearing it."

Four-Pocket Herringbone Blazer (No. 2446). The quintessential country gentleman's jacket. Made of a handsome fabric from a mill that's been turning out 100% English wool for his family since the 1830s. Amazingly soft and luxurious, but still rugged.

The pocket flap is actually part of a larger swatch of material that's anchored at the shoulder and side seam, and tucks under the lapel. Not only unique, but a sign of master tailoring. The inverted pleats on the pocket and the epaulettes give it a military feel."

New Hat Day!

Or new used hat day!  Not sure how it looks on me, I feel a bit weird in it.