Summer Picks
Yay its summer, time for shorts and ice cream, right? No. Time for perspex face shields and masks. But why not elevate the protection. Latex gloves? Pass. Prada technical fabric and calfskin gloves? Yes. Surgical mask? Pass. Off-White arrows mask? Yes.
In a pre-corona world summer, for me at least, meant boating on serpentine lake, running around SoHo, taking in a show at L’Opera in St. Tropez. But now it means sitting at home writing posts trying to find the will to wear something other than sweatpants. But hey, everyone needs clothes and shoes right?
Combination 1: Perspex face shields and Perspex Yeezys
It was back in 2015 that Kanye first revealed his Perspex vision to the world, since then almost every major brand has taken note and followed suit. Perspex face shield with with random shoes, nope. Perspex face shield with Yeezy Perspex boots: elevated quarantine essential.
Combination 2: Hazmat suits and Prada Gloves
Prada has been pioneering the use of technical fabrics long before any other major fashion house. Therefore it only seems right to pair what you may see a housepainter wearing, but is truly a feat of engineering resulting in a thin non intrusive technical fabric with something that was wrapped around the hand of a model on a runway in Milan.
Combination 3: Gucci mask Sunglasses and Givenchy snoods:
When the face shield and surgical mask combo isn’t really for you, why not put on an immensely oversized pair of mask sunglasses and add a piece of nylon wrapped around your head to cover up any bits you may have missed. The oversized sunglasses have been a long standing trend that almost every major fashion house has dabbled in. This time the long standing question of function over fashion is rendered null and void; because, in this case , fashion is functional. Guaranteed to turn some heads and perhaps fog up your glasses if the snood isn’t fitted properly.
Combination 4: Givenchy Parkas and Disposable shoe covers
If the ten pound hazmat suit just doesn’t deserve to obstruct your fancy French clothing, do what Apple forces us to do every year: upgrade. This parka covers you from head to toe and due to its transparency allows your fit to be in full view of any lucky passerby’s. Its a great match with cheap disposable shoe covers that on top of looking like they just ran away from fashion week, protect your overpriced footwear.
See! Summer 2020 is not cancelled, our typical mould for a summer just has to adapt a bit to fit the morphed dystopian world we now live in. We all have a man who ate a dead winged marsupial to thank for that.
Quarantine Life
It's 2020, a man ate a bat and the world came crashing down. Now we're all stuck at home re-watching two and a half men and friends, waking up every morning hunting for a will to live. While we exist only in our homes, waiting to disinfect every delivery left at the door, what do we wear, what do we watch, what do we read?
What to wear during quarantine:
Look One:
This is possibly my favourite look out of all. It's 12pm, you wake up, bored, ready for a day of binging on television or food. Any and all inhibitions you once had are on vacation in Bora Bora because you can't be, the couch is prepped for your buttprint and to swallow up television remotes. You just want to slip into something soft and comfortable.
Look Two:
So, you've worn every pair of sweats you own and are now motivated to look more presentable to an outside world. Not couch potato nor red carpet ready, just somewhere in the middle, sitting upright instead of lounging horizontally. Maybe even in the mood to put on pants with buttons and not an elastic waist.
Look Three:
Day 19, you have grown sad and empty with stains on your worn out loose clothing. You get up look at your sweats and are sickened. You start a discussion with your family, pets or yourself, to try and get out of the rut that is comfortable clothing. For one night and one night only! It's time to class up your quarantine.
Look Four:
Congratulations! You have been permitted to go down the street and buy a pack of oreos, time to get the drip on.
AMIRI suede MX1 jean - £1090
What to read during quarantine:
As George R.R. Martin once said, "A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one."
Take all the spare time made available by the bat-eater to expand your mind and maybe even your vocabulary.
Glamorama - Bret Easton Ellis
Time Magazine describes the novel as "a screed against models and celebrity." This satire on 1990s consumerism and celebrity culture. This great dissection of the world around us is a sure fired page turner
A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
An endless tapestry of Indian life between Independence from the British and the émergé class three decades later. This insight into Indian life in the 1970s follows the untouchable members of society and their highly privileged offspring.
Don Quixote - Miguel de Cervantes
Poignant, funny, complete utter fiction, heroic and anti-heroic all at the same time. With it's experimental format the playful literature in this movie defined the modern novel.
The Periodic Table - Primo Levi
An Italian industrial chemist, eleven months living in Auschwitz. This collection of short stories associates events in the narrators life with 21 elements of the periodic table is not the easiest thing to put down.
The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
No words necessary. Just read it. And Leo did the movie.
The Master and the Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov
What if Lucifer found himself in an atheist Stalin operated Soviet Union with a freaky feline in tow? The effects are quite mesmerising
The Code Of The Woosters - Sir PG Wodehouse
No one has ever quite had a grasp on comedic literature like Sir Wodehouse. The Code Of The Woosters is the perfect gateway drug to segue yourself into a full blown Wodehouse addiction.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
Obscure potions, white rabbits, hookah smoking caterpillars and math jokes. What else do we really need?
American Psycho - Bret Easton Ellis
What's the difference between a serial killer and an investment banker? One is a soul sucking, evil heartless bomb and the other likes to kill people. Why not have both mixed up in one twenty-something, smart talking psychopath?
White Noise - Don Delilo
What claims to be Delilo’s most funny and unorthodox work is a novel following a Hitler studies professor, his crazy family and the fear of death.
What to watch during quarantine:
Kill Bill Volumes one and two
A vengeful bride, trained assassins, murder, Tokyo. No words will ever be enough for me to describe this must watch Tarantino movie.
This is Where I Leave You
A humorous way to deal with your father's death, unearth several buried issues and introduce your older therapist girlfriend to the family. The star studded cast only adds to the supreme script.
The Godfather
"I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse."
The Hangover
This movie will go down in history, not for having the best acting or for "re-defining" comedy but for just being the most universally hilarious motion picture to have ever existed... in my not so humble opinion.
The Princess Bride
The movie that spawned the most historic quote to have ever existed, "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."
5 pairs of shoes every man needs in his cupboard
A shoe is defined as a covering for a foot. But every modern man knows it's so much more. It's something that can give you confidence or help you fit into any place. The shoes on this list are essential to own and can be used so very much.
1. Loafers
A good pair of loafers can transition seamlessly from formal to informal and day to night. Perfect to wear with cotton shorts and Saint Laurent shades in St. Tropez, to a meeting or the pub for a pint. The best brands for loafers in my expert opinion are Tod's, which are owned by practically every man alive; Ferragamo, which makes the comfiest loafers in the world; George Cleverlys which have been called "The most beautiful shoes in the world" by Mr Graydon Carter, the editor of vanity fair; Gucci which has been designing loafers ever since the 1950s, with its iconic horse-bit metal piece on the lip, and have since been worn by the most stylish men world over and Tom Ford whose shoes and clothing need no introduction.
Tod's Grey City Gommino Driving Shoe - £330
Tom Ford Suede Edgar Tassel Loafers - £1160
Ferragamo Gancini Driver Moccasin - £435
George Cleverly George Ocean Suede Loafers - £455
Gucci Jordaan Horsebit Leather Loafer - £450
Wear it with:
Prada Cotton poplin T-shirt - £360
Prada Light covert trousers - £695
2. Casual Sneakers
The sneaker has become essential in every man's closet. Perfect for the grocery run or any other everyday errands, these sneakers will keep you comfortable, casual and stylish. These are the ideal shoes to wear and go anywhere in your time off like a dinner with friends or even Sunday lunch with the family.
Dior B01 Sneaker in grey - £460
Saint Laurent Court Classic SL/06 Sneakers in Embroidered Destroyed Canvas - £390
Maison Margiela Low Top Calfskin Replica Sneakers - £325
Common Projects Original Achilles Leather Sneaker - £290
Alexander McQueen White Oversized Sneaker in White Calfskin - £360
Wear it with:
Zadig & Voltaire Monastir T-Shirt - £80
Play Commes des Garçon Hooded sweatshirt in Ivory - £192
3. High Fashion Sneaker
Any sneaker on this list is sure to turn heads at fashion week and get you into an exclusive restaurant without waiting in a single line. Comfortable and fashionable these shoes will make a statement paired with even the simplest casual wear to trendy technical fabric pieces.
Balenciaga Grey Triple S Clear Sneakers - £695
Prada Cloudbust Sneakers - £600
Givenchy Jaw low sneakers in neoprene and leather - £595
Off-White Off Court 3.0 Sneakers - £415
Dior B23 low-top Dior Oblique Sneaker - £740
Wear it with:
Dior Cotton pants with strap detail - £840
Maison Margiela 'Recycled' Sweater - £625
4. Running Shoe
Every Healthy lifestyle includes exercise, and everyone knows the most crucial part of working out; the shoes. A good pair of running shoes can boost your speed, prevent injuries and help you maintain your aesthetic.
Yeezy Boost 700 Utility Black - £250
Off-White x Nike Zoom Fly Black - £150
Yeezy Boost 350 Bred - £220
Nike Air Max 720 - £155
Off-White x Nike Vapormax Black/Clear - £170
Wear it with:
5. Formal Shoe
The last on my list of shoes that every man must have in his closet is one that most might think can be substituted with a formal-ish loafer... And I'm here to tell them they're idiots. A formal shoe can tie together a smoking jacket and pants and make it suitable for even a gala where everyone else would be dressed in a tuxedo or worn with no-show socks and cropped pants for a poindexter retro look.
Prada Brushed Leather Derby Shoes - £550
Prada Leather Platform Derby Shoes - £620
Dior Derby Shoes in navy Blue Calfskin - £940
George Cleverley Adam Brown Calf Oxford
Wear it with:
Dior Tailleur Oblique Jacket in wool and mohair - £2200
Balenciaga Anthracite Checked Tailored Pants - £775
Slides
Slides have become an integral part of streetwear today. The trend was pioneered by celebrities and influencers like Justin Bieber and Rihanna. Pretty much every brand out there today makes slides, from lower-end brands like Fila and Champion up to high-end luxury brands like Saint Laurent and Gucci. The following is my list of favourite slides and what you can wear them with.
Wear it with:
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Kanye West Lookbook
Yeezy has long been a style icon, moving from heavily detailed Balmain biker jackets and skintight jeans to baggy and distressed streetwear. When Kanye released his Yeezy Boost 350s in 2015, they changed the game. They became something everyone wanted and showed that rappers could transition into fashion and cemented Kanye as a tastemaker. Kanye helped burst streetwear into fashion week with his Yeezy label that has been worn by everyone from Kylie Jenner to David Letterman. The following are his best looks.
November 11, 2016
September 5, 2016
August 29, 2016
July 6, 2016
June 3, 2016
May 22, 2016
May 21, 2016
May 2, 2016
April 23, 2016
December 19, 2015
September 12, 2015
September 6, 2015
July 24, 2015
March 6, 2015
September 20, 2015
February 12, 2015
January 24, 2015
Sweater Weather
September is over and October has started. A sweater is most certainly an essential in any guy's closet especially with a new season coming our way. As summer fades into autumn it's time to break out your ratty old sweaters or maybe get some new ones. The following are my favourite sweaters for the impending season:
Wear it with:
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The sneaker edit: Summer 2k19
Sneakers have become an integral part of fashion today. They are being featured in a wide variety of categories from streetwear to runways during fashion week. Many of the old guard brands have capitalised on streetwear and sneakers such as Balenciaga and Dior.
The bulky 'dad-shoe' silhouette has proven very popular lately. However, certain brands that have had the same classic shape as Maison Margiela's replica sneaker and the Common Projects Achilles heel have stayed popular ever since helping sneakers penetrate the barrier into high fashion.
All the while, traditional sneaker companies like Nike, Adidas and Puma have managed to gain clout by collaborations with celebrities and brands. Partnerships such as the Nike x Off-White and Nike x Sacai, the Adidas Yeezy Boost collaboration and the Puma x The Weeknd collaboration are flying off the shelves.
The following are my favourite sneakers for summer 2019.
1) Saint Laurent Andy Sneaker - £370
These low profile leather sneakers available in black or white show a new type of understated style with its low slung heel cap and lengthened togue. Despite having a shallow profile sole the shoe is surprisingly comfortable, perfect for an impromptu bike ride across Hyde Park.
Wear it with:
2) Prada Cloudbust sneaker - £600
This edgy-futuristically designed sneaker is undoubtedly going to turn heads. Favoured by many fashionable people including Asap Rocky, it's unique design, and bulky sole also is what makes it as comfortable to wear as they are. They are available in a vast array of colours and materials including with a velcro strap.
Wear it with:
Prada cotton jersey T-Shirt
- £295
3) Prada Cloudbust Thunder Knit sneakers - £740
This chunkier take on Prada's Cloudbust sneakers is following today's trend of bulky footwear and technical fabric while still keeping the Cloudbust's unique curvaceous sole. They look very cool paired with semi-formal athleisure wear or even baggy pants.
Prada Gabardine nylon pants - £545
Celine black frame 01 sunglasses - £330
4) Yeezy Boost 700 Tephra
The latest iteration of Kanye West's Yeezy 700's feature a dark oil colour scheme and a gum sole. The pioneering 'dad shoe' has become a favourite among streetwear aficionados. It's lines and use of intelligent materials ranging from technical fabrics to suede mark it out from the crowd of imposter dad shoes. Perfect for a long day on your feet or even travel.
5) Dior B17 Sneaker
These future classics can be worn with pretty much anything and transition seamlessly from day tonight. This is why they are perhaps the most versatile pair of shoes on this list. The shoe blends calfskin, canvas and rubber, giving a juxtaposition to the semi-formal design.
