The attraction of denim for the modern, sartorial man is easy to understand. 

In an age when clothing is increasingly casual, making tailoring less formal through the use of casual cloths is attractive. 

It retains the benefits of tailoring - the elegant lines, the flattering silhouette - but avoids alternatives like shrunken sizing or bright colours and patterns.

We have seen as a result, in recent years, a big growth in denim suits, cloths, shirts, even ties and shoes. As well as many indigo-dyed items that aim for something similar.

I wear denim shirts regularly, but have tended to avoid it in tailoring. (As well as steering well clear of denim shoes and ties).

This is because unfortunately, the very things that make denim attractive also make it difficult to tailor.

Its coarseness and stiffness are what make it a pleasure to wear in, beautifully personal as it fades, and hardy enough to last for years.

But coarse, stiff materials do not tailor well (particularly in a jacket, particularly when cotton).

They have no drape and are harder to shape with the iron. They risk losing those very benefits of tailoring we're looking to retain. 

I made my first exception to this approach last year with Parisian bespoke tailor Cifonelli. 

The prime reason was the material. It is a heavy Japanese denim, but uses a slightly finer cotton than normal denims to make it easier to tailor. 

For me, this is a better approach than trying to reproduce denim in wool (as Zegna have done, for example), using lightweight cottons, or sticking with regular denim (see Timothy Everest, Richard Anderson and others).

Its fineness means it won't wear in the same way as a normal denim, but it is the same in every other respect - the weight, indigo dye, the 3x1 weave. 

Unfortunately, Cifonelli aren't willing to talk about their supplier, so I cannot confirm how to source the same material.

The style is a typical Cifonelli double-breasted, with wide, curved lapels.

But I deliberately avoided their 6x1 configuration, where the lapel is cut to fasten at the bottom button. It's distinctive but - for me - a bit too showy. 

The buttons are dark-brown horn, the lining a matching silk, and the finishing (of course, being Cifonelli) absolutely superb. 

Ferdinando Caraceni used to say about cotton suits that the cheaper the material, the better the finishing should be - to raise it up and exalt it. 

This is certainly not a cheap material, but it doesn't have the luxurious richness of wools, and the Cifonelli finishing sits very well on it. 

There's almost no point mentioning the fit, it's so good.

We did take three fittings at Mark's Club (where Lorenzo now sees clients) to get it perfect, but perfect it is. 

The only thing I might have changed was to have a softer shoulder - Cifonelli do a version of a shirt shoulder, and I might have been better going for that.

It would have made the jacket a little less dramatic and easier to wear with more things. Although the lapels are pretty dramatic as it is.

It's something I can always change later on. 

In other regards, the jacket is wearing in nicely. A heavy cotton is a wonderfully comfortable and reassuring thing to wear, even if it is less practical than wool.

I'll be interested to see whether the material starts to wear and fade.

This is likely to happen less at bend points - such as the inside of the elbow, where you would expect it on a regular denim - and more at the openings to the pockets, the edges of the cuffs and so on. 

I've already experimented a little with a pumice stone on one or two areas, to see how that wears the cotton, but I want to avoid any chance of that being too much, too artificial.

I certainly don't want to start washing it, which I know Cifonelli can do and I've seen work with some success. 

Oh, and this is actually part of a suit - in that a pair of matching trousers was made at the same time. 

I'm unlikely to ever wear them as a suit (it's all rather too 1970s), but the trousers themselves are beautiful, and again incredibly comfortable. 

I'll include them in a separate post at some point. 

The cost of the suit was 6000 euros.

In both sets of pictures I am wearing:

• Brushed cotton shirts by Simone Abbarchi
• Linen handkerchiefs by Simonnot-Godard via Mes Chaussettes Rouges
• Grey flannel trousers by Anderson & Sheppard

Exterior photography: Jamie Ferguson @jkf_man

Interior photography: Private White VC, taken during our talk on British manufacturing.

It would be lovely to see as many Permanent Style readers as can make this, our US book launch.

The event will be at The Armoury, 168 Duane Street, 6pm-8pm on April 20th. 

Please RSVP to NYC@TheArmoury.com if you'd like to come. 

I don't get over to New York anywhere near as often as I'd like, so I'm looking forward to seeing everyone. 

Thanks

Simon

Our new book, The Style Guide is available to buy online through Permanent Style and in 35 specialist menswear stores around the world. 

Copies will be arriving in the stores listed below on Thursday this week. Please do visit and pick up a copy if you can. 

If you can't get to a shop, you can order online through the Permanent Style shop. 

As with The Finest Menswear in the World, I am offering personal dedications to readers for an initial period.

Anyone that orders this week - before Sunday, April 15th, can request a dedication. These orders will be sent out the week after.

The stores that will be stocking The Style Guide are:

• Australia, Melbourne:
  • Christian Kimber
• Belgium, Brussels:
  • Degand
• China:
  • Beijing: Brio
  • Beijing: Sartorial
  • Shanghai: NOOS
• France:
  • Paris: Cifonelli (bespoke)
  • Online: Beige
• Germany, Hannover:
  • Michael Jondral
• Hong Kong:
  • The Armoury
  • Attire House
• Italy, Florence:
  • Shibumi
• Japan, Tokyo:
  • Bryceland's & Co
• Korea, Seoul:
  • Unipair
• Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur:
  • WJ & Co
• Russia, Moscow:
  • L'Ago D'Oro
• Singapore:
  • Kevin Seah
• Sweden, Stockholm:
  • Papercut
  • Skoaktiebolaget
• Taiwan, Taipei:
  • Oak Room
• Thailand, Bangkok:
  • Sprezzatura Eleganza
• UK, London:
  • Anderson & Sheppard
  • Drake's
  • Edward Green
  • Fenwick of Bond Street
  • Private White VC
  • Trunk Clothiers
• US:
  • Chicago: Leffot
  • Denver: Beckett & Robb
  • New York: The Armoury
  • New York: Leffot
  • Provo: Beckett & Robb
  • Salt Lake City: Beckett & Robb
  • San Francisco: Beckett & Robb
  • Seattle: Beckett & Robb
  • Online: The Hanger Project

As with our post last week, here are some extracts from the book to whet the appetite - this time from the 'casual' chapter. 

The scarf as handkerchief

Michael Drake

• A mixture of blues, all just about different enough to provide variation in the upper half.
• A scarf stuffed into the pocket can function almost as well as a pocket handkerchief in adding a touch of style – and it looks rather more casual.
• Simple workwear jackets, like this in French blue, are often a good avenue to explore for sartorial men looking for casual alternatives. Green M-65 jackets are another example.

Wear tailored summer trousers

Adam Rogers

• The contrast between tailored, well-fitted trousers and spilling-out linen shirt.
• The very classic tortoiseshell-coloured glasses.
• The summery colour combination of white and green (no colonial-feeling tan or cream linen in sight).

The blues

Michael Browne

• A navy long-sleeved polo is used as an anchor for the bright-blue jacket.
• Unusually for tailoring worn with a polo shirt, the jacket is quite structured, creating more contrast between formal and casual, and therefore a slightly more showy look.
• The navy of the coat is sufficiently darker than the polo to act as a third shade of blue.

Jamie and I hope you enjoy the book!

Photography: Jamie Ferguson @jkf_man

Since we introduced the Trunk Show Calendar last year, it has become an increasingly popular part of the website. 

For those that missed the announcement (and the link in the site navigation, above), the Calendar was a way to bring together all the bespoke trunk shows going on around the world.

Customers of bespoke can filter the listings for their city, for a type of clothing, or for a particular maker, and chart their travels.

It meant that last week we could publicise the first real trunk show by a Japanese shoemaker in the UK: Masaru Okayama (above), who was in the Marriott Park Lane along with Vass shoes and several others.

And it means that this week we can help our friends Whitcomb & Shaftesbury, as they travel to Boston and Chicago for the first time.

Among other highlights coming up for readers over the next month are:

• Turnbull & Asser going to Korea and Japan
• Len Logsdail journeying across the US
• and Drake's and Orazio Luciano together in Hannover

As you can see, there is a broad range of both makers and locations, and new categories like glasses (EB Meyrowitz, above) and leather goods (Dunhill, tailoring shown below) are also making an appearance. 

And it's noteworthy that several tailors book well in advance: Henry Poole and Co, Benson & Clegg and Timothy Everest are already taking appointments for October and November.

We've added over 20 makers since the last post on our Calendar, but there will always still be some missing.

If you know anyone that is travelling near you, and you think should be on there, please contact us at info@permanentstyle.co.uk

We are also working on an email alert system, so bespoke customers can stay informed without having to check in every time. More news on that soon. 

Top image: Nackymade (at The Armoury, New York, at the beginning of June)

Below image: Enzo Bonafe (at Skoaktiebolaget, Stockholm, at the end of April)

Talking with Kenji Kaga of Sevenfold (and Tie Your Tie) recently threw up some interesting questions around what makes a tie appear vintage.

Kenji is heavily influenced by 1940s-1950s styles, as is evident in his tailoring.

But he freely admits that many of the tie and handkerchief designs he produces wouldn’t have actually been worn during that period. So what gives them a vintage look?

“Texture is important. We associate vintage silks and wools with a dry feel, and a matte finish,” Kenji says.

Colour, too, is key. Often old ties will have faded and be less vibrant than when they were first worn. So we associate more muted colours with a vintage look.

This is most evident in the silk swatches that Sevenfold offers to customers.

The set of three below, for example - a pink, a green and a blue - are all more muted, chalky shades that you would get from a Drake’s, Bigi or similar.

It was also nice to see more restrained designs in the swatch selection, because people can easily be put off by Kenji’s unusual - and often bold - designs.

It won’t be a surprise to readers to learn that most of the ties shown in the images here - from the Sevenfold showroom in Florence - aren’t ones I would wear.

But there are often subtle gems in the selections made by Barneys, The Armoury or other stockists.

The Armoury, for instance, stocks a lovely navy herringbone and olive jacquard alongside some much brighter vintage patterns.

And Ethan at Bryceland’s in Tokyo has some beautifully subtle navy and brown designs - which manage to appear both vintage and subtly modern. (Example below.)

The different brands can also be confusing, and come with a lot of back story. 

As briefly as possible:

• Tie Your Tie was an Italian shop founded in 1984 by Franco Minucci, which also later started its own tie factory outside Florence. 
• The brand and factory were bought by Sevenfold in 2011 - except for the rights to the brand in Asia. (The shop became Simone Righi.)
• Kenji Kaga was the manager of the tie factory, and became the creative director of the new Sevenfold/Tie Your Tie. 
• But in Asia, they can't use the Tie Your Tie brand, so they have used brand names Sevenfold, Kenji Kaga and now a new one, Atto Vannucci. 
• Ties labelled 'Tie Your Tie' in Asia are therefore from a separate company and separate factory. Tie Your Tie in Europe and the US, and the other three brands, are all from the same company and all made in the Florence factory. 
• This June, Kenji is opening a new Tie Your Tie store in Florence.

You can see how this could all be confusing - particularly so for retailers like The Armoury, who have had all three labels (not Atto Vanucci) on their ties in Hong Kong and New York over the years. 

Kenji is also now presenting 'Kenji Kaga' as a separate brand working with more unusual handwork and embroidery.

You can see examples of the designs below. Beautifully executed, but probably a little too quirky for me.

However, it's important to say that all ties out of the Florence factory over the years have generally been united by an attitude to precision and pressing.

The ties have tended to be lightly pressed, meaning the blade does not sit flat and square, but is more rounded at the edges - almost tubular.

This has the effect of feeling more natural, as if you are wearing a simple piece of rolling silk. The ties are often untipped to the same end.

The flipside is that the tie can feel less formal. But this is a tiny difference in an age when so few men wear ties at all. (And in any case the pattern and material will have far more bearing on formality.)

The level of precision is also very high on Kenji’s ties - as seen most clearly in the fineness and balance of the hand-rolled tips.

“Craftsmanship like this is something I’ve always loved working on with the tiemakers,” he says. “Getting it perfect and then seeing what else the technique allows us to do.”

The brands are brought together by this approach in the workshop (there are nine staff in Florence currently, making entirely for Sevenfold) and by Kenji's aesthetics.

In the UK, Tie Your Tie is stocked at Exquisite Trimmings and has recently started doing trunk shows in Selfridge’s.

Elsewhere around the world, it is stocked at Brio in Beijing, Double Monk in Melbourne, and various shops in Korea and Japan. 

In the image above, I am wearing:

• My Sartoria Pirozzi corduroy/cashmere suit
• Denim shirt from Al Bazar, Milan
• Cashmere tie from Drake’s
• White linen handkerchief from Anderson & Sheppard

And Kenji and I spent a while comparing our bespoke shoes - mine from Gaziano & Girling, his from Hidetaka Fukaya. His were beautiful though, he admits, not always the most comfortable.

Photography: Jamie Ferguson @jkf_man

He looks pretty suave doesn't he? Got a good lean on. 

Patrick at Swedish shoe shop Skoaktiebolaget recently posed for an article of mine, above, in How To Spend It magazine. (A supplement of the Financial Times, and arguably the top luxury publication in the UK). 

I've reproduced the piece below, for those that don't want to squint at the image. 

It was followed last week by a piece on the How To Spend It website profiling Stòffa - the super-stylish trunk show-based brand run by Agyesh Madan. 

I covered Stòffa in more depth a couple of weeks ago on Permanent Style.

It's really nice to bring brands such as these to a wider, mainstream audience.

As much as hyper-engaged, enthusiastic early adopters provide a foundation for a brand, it's only broader awareness that ensures their future. 

The Cult Shop: Skoaktiebolaget

It never fails to surprise me how little magazines analyse product when they cover a brand.

An article is more likely to be about the founders and their story than the product itself - setting it in context, comparing it to its peers, analysing both its quality and aesthetics.

Human stories are far easier to get a handle on and to write, of course. But it's the product that we buy. The product we have to make an educated decision about, and wear.

Such has been the case with much of the coverage I have read about The Worker's Club (TWC).

Adam and Charlotte Cameron (above) do have an interesting back story.

Both are industry veterans, having spent their careers designing for luxury and high-street brands respectively.

They set up TWC from a house in the Oxfordshire countryside, and have slowly expanded from one room into another since their first collection in 2015.

Adam was previously the head of menswear at Dunhill and is currently designing the Kingsman collection at Mr Porter. He is also responsible for the beautiful Driving collection at Connolly on Clifford Street.

But it is the product that is the most interesting thing about TWC - or more precisely, the concept.

Although TWC now sells everything from jeans to socks, it started with the idea of a shell jacket (above) that could be adapted to different weather conditions.

"Most outerwear is too heavy to be worn most of the year - and you end up needing two or three pieces," says Adam.

"We began with the pretty basic idea of making a shell that different layers could be zipped into, making it much more versatile."

So the outer shell is made from a water-repellent cotton canvas: the Italian version of Ventile, whose fibres expand in the same way on contact with water.

It has taped seams; a peaked, removable hood; and lots of functional details like perfectly placed hand-warmer and chest pockets.

Into this shell you can zip a gilet - the winter version is in Harris Tweed, the current model in a wool/cotton jersey (above).

This pushes the outer shell into cold Autumn days and mild winter ones.

And on the really cold days, you can replace it with the down-filled bomber jacket (below). This zips in in the same way, and is reversible between cotton drill and water-resistant microfibre.

The overall system is called 'The Works'. Both gilet and bomber jacket can also be worn on their own (though I confess the bomber jacket isn't really my style).

There are also some styling details I would change on the shell - such as the hardware, which is shiny gold rather than the antiqued metals often used on vintage-looking outerwear.

But as with other things Adam does, all the layers have the practical details absolutely nailed.

Those pockets I mentioned earlier (hand-warmer pockets are rarely in the right place); adjustable cuffs and hood; concealed snaps everywhere and big RirRi zips.

"The quality on everything is very high for such a simple-looking garment," says Adam.

"From the material to the hardware to the finishing - we wanted high-quality pieces that weren't too extreme-looking."

I've tried on the full range of pieces, and it is this practicality that hits home most.

I haven't bought and owned one myself, so I can't speak to wear over time. But seeing Adam's much-worn and much-loved version shows how attractively the cotton will age.

It's a nice, more practical alternative to Barbour and similar casual outerwear pieces.

Each piece is good value too compared to outerwear of a similar quality, with the shell at £545 and gilet £250. 

I won't comment at all on the other parts of the TWC range - jeans, knitwear, socks, both because I haven't tried them and because I don't have the context.

The Workers Club is sold exclusively on the brand's own website and through Mr Porter. 

The current season includes a black rip-stop version of the shell jacket, as well as a rubberised version in cobalt blue.

Choosing a block of acetate is not something I’d bet most people have done in their lives.

And it’s tricky. Looking at a slab of coloured plastic, and imagining how that will look as a pair of glasses, is very hard. (See examples from the General Eyewear archive below.)

There are parallels with picking a suit from a tiny swatch of wool.

But where with a suit you have to imagine how a pattern will look repeated and enlarged, with glasses you have to do the opposite - consider a piece of solid plastic and imagine what a 2-4mm cut-out will look.

I’d argue that it's actually harder than picking cloth.

Particularly when glasses inherently have more impact, being so close to your face and probably worn more frequently.

I’d also argue that if any suit is in a bold pattern or strong colour, you should try to see it made up before you commission it. The risk is too great, particularly on bespoke.

So you should definitely do so with a pair of glasses. Don’t just pick a piece of acetate. Pick from glasses that are already made up - and then at the most, consider other colours with the same pattern.

I've made that mistake before, and it felt like a real waste.

With my bespoke glasses from General Eyewear, pictured above, I'd learned my lesson. 

I went to General Eyewear’s studio in Camden, and spent a good while browsing through their huge archive of styles - looking for inspiration both in terms of design and colour.

My idea (again, very conservative following previous mistakes) was to start from the basic, classic panto shape I love (I brought my normal pair with me) and vary it slightly.

So from the archive we found a slightly chopped-off panto frame, which I liked; a nose shape without any ‘keyhole’ section to it; and a third with slightly rounded arms.

These three were then combined into the style you can see here.

But the biggest change was the colour of the acetate.

I started off assuming I would merely go for a lighter-brown version of what I already had. But looking through the General Eyewear collection (all made up with acetates they had in stock) brought up lots of other ideas for colours.

In the end I went for the more grassy-yellow, more mottled shade.

I never would have picked it from an acetate plate; but seeing it made up gave me the confidence to pick it - and I’d very glad we did.

The final glasses need some work in terms of fit.

The arm length is perfect, but they are a little too tight at the back and the nose pads need some adjustment.

Fortunately, these are things General Eyewear can fix, given the material is acetate (a moldable plastic) rather than horn or anything more precious.

The bespoke frames cost £450. They were entirely handmade in the UK.

Once a first bespoke frame has been made, General Eyewear can make subsequent pairs in the same design (with small tweaks or different materials) for £350.

For more on General Eyewear, see my post on them during our pop-up shop here.

I am wearing:

• Elia Caliendo jacket in Permanent Style tweed
• Blue poplin shirt from D'Avino
• Charcoal silk/cashmere vest from Cifonelli
• Indigo handkerchief from 45RPM

Photography: Jamie Ferguson @jkf_man

Taken during our pop-up shop on Savile Row last month, where General Eyewear featured. 

When I was in Japan at the end of last year, I was keen to see not just menswear crafts, but traditional crafts in other areas as well.

Previous articles on swordmaker Sasuke and kimono maker Motoji attest to some of that, but there were also three makers in and around Kyoto that were highly recommended.

Hosoo

One was a mill - Hosoo. And although it had many things that would be familiar to the weavers of Huddersfield or Biella, the end product was startlingly different.

Hosoo has long been a traditional weaver of cloth for kimonos and interior fabrics - going back to its establishment in 1688.

But in the past 7 years, Masataka Hosoo (pictured above) has transformed part of the family business into an incredibly innovative and fashion-orientated weaver.

He has taken traditional techniques and looms, and applied them to unusual and ultra-luxurious fabrics that have been used by the likes of Dior, Chanel and Commes des Garcons.

These are mostly for interiors, but the cloths have also been used on shoes, backpacks, and recently coverings for Leica cameras.

Below is an example of the most complicated cloth Hosoo has ever made - and perhaps the most complicated in the world.

Ten to 15 different layers of silk are woven together in different thicknesses across the cloth, creating a 3D effect that resembles and rolling gold landscape.

In another example, Japanese paper coated with gold leaf is shredded, and then woven into parts of the cloth. The base cloth itself is also woven so as to be virtually transparent on one side, but opaque on the other.

"The nice thing about these recent developments is that they make use of lots of different family businesses in the Kyoto area," says Masataka.

"We bring together traditional paper making, and gold work, and combine them into this innovative cloth."

Often the traditional 32cm-wide looms are used, but more recently large 150cm versions have also been co-opted, with dozens of alterations and new elements added.

"The market for kimonos has shrunk 90% in the past 30 years, so we needed to look at something different," says Masataka.

"Many of the traditional makers around here were closing too, but around 5 years ago there was a resurgence of interest, and now everyone in the area is working together to help support the survival of crafts."

Kaikado

One of those local makers is Kaikado, a 141-year-old maker of metal tea caddies.

I've owned and used a Kaikao caddy for years, having seen them in London at Margaret Howell on Wigmore Street.

Although outwardly simple, they are made with a precision that keeps out all humidity from the inside - without the need for a clamp.

Indeed, the quality-control test (shown above) is for the elder lady of the workshop to place the top on the caddy, and watch the speed with which it slides over the bottom. It should do so slowly but smoothly, not stopping until it is resting on the bottom.

Interestingly, no machine currently exists to replicate this process - the precision involved would require a bespoke piece to be created.

The workshop is down a small back street in Kyoto, behind a rather modern and attractive little shop (above).

Inside the workshop, around a dozen people work on shaping the metals (tin, brass or copper) and soldering them together.

It is ordered and efficient, but still very low-tech, with most work being done on the floor with workers sitting cross-legged.

The caddies were originally all made from tin imported from England, but brass and copper were added later for the outer layers (the inside is always tin).

All three materials age in different ways, gaining a variety of patinas.

Those patinas won't be to everyone's taste - the tin essentially turns black over a period of 50 years, with shades of grey in between.

But I like the copper (which mine is made of). Particularly the fact that the patina is heavily dependent on who uses it and how - I take it down every day, once a day, and have fairly oily hands, which creates a deeper, blotchier pattern.

The caddies are available at Margaret Howell in the UK, as well as Postcard Teas on Dering Street in Mayfair.

Kohchosai Kosuga

Last on our Kyoto tour was Kohchosai Kosuga, a fifth-generation maker of bamboo products.

A huge variety of things can be made with bamboo, but the most elegant are the plant pots and light holders made by weaving strips of the plant (shown above).

Tatsuyuki Kosuga showed us round, and explained how he had modernised the family's traditional designs in recent years.

"The products used to be quite narrow and suited to traditional decorations," he says. "We've added some practical things, as well as new looks - lacquered bamboo, for example, and a new technique for dying the bamboo black."

The workshop outside Kyoto is still family run and has about eight people working full time.

They are stocked in around 500 stores around Japan, and also in Postcard Teas in London.

Touring the various makers, it struck me how organised and international they were.

All knew each other and worked together (even if they were in the same field) and organised exhibitions, tours and collaborations.

The Danish design house OeO had worked with all three makers mentioned here, and its products (including a beautiful desk) were on display at Hosoo.

The increased interest in craft in Japan has come around the same time as that in the UK and elsewhere in the western world.

On the eve of London Craft Week here in the UK, it would be nice to think we could learn something from the way the Japanese have coordinated and worked together.

During London Craft Week I will be chairing a discussion at the French institute with master craftsmen Serge Amoruso (leather goods), Michel Heurtault (umbrellas) and Samuel Gassman (cufflinks).

The talk is on Wednesday, 3rd May at the French Institute, 17 Queensberry Place from 7pm. If you would like to attend, please email raphaelle.rodocanachi@diplomatie.gouv.fr. The makers products will also be on display in St James's market during the day.

Photography: Jamie Ferguson @jkf_man

The Style Guide has been wonderfully received so far - at the launch events in London and New York, but also online and through personal messages. Thank you all. 

There are a few things I realise I haven't emphasised so far.

One is that we proudly designed and printed the book in London.

This necessarily adds to the cost, and it's something no big publishers do anymore, but it gives us greater control and access to more interesting design options. 

An example is the binding. Known as 'otter binding', it opens along the spine, allowing the book to sit flatter on the table. Useful when you want to display that particularly inspiring image. 

We also changed the paper following feedback on the first Permanent Style publication. Although still matte in finish, it is not as soft, allowing for crisper images and detail. 

Small things, but then that's what it's all about. 

The Style Guide is available to buy in the Permanent Style shop and over 30 specialist stockists worldwide. 

Brand partners

The Style Guide was supported by four of our favourite brands: Anderson & Sheppard, Begg & Co, Edward Green and Vitale Barberis Canonico. 

We thanked them by putting together a photo-shoot that is included in the back of the book.

Here I wore my clothes from the brands, and Jamie and I constructed looks that have the same practical aim as the rest of the book - explaining why things work and when they don't. 

Below are three examples from that shoot. 

Knitwear as jacket

• Anderson & Sheppard's unique take on the shawl-collar cardigan, cut shorter and narrower, makes it dressier than most styles.
• A small scarf is worn at the neck, in natural-coloured cashmere that plays well with the brown cotton trousers.
  • Permanent Style ‘Wispy’ dark-natural cashmere scarf: Begg & Co.
  • Shawl-collar navy lambswool cardigan: Anderson & Sheppard.
  • Mid-grey cashmere crew neck sweater: Anderson & Sheppard.
  • Fawn cotton trousers: Marco Cerrato bespoke.
  • ‘Duke’ loafer, 137 last in mocha suede: Edward Green

 

Royal blue?

• There is little consistency among colour terms, but the flannel of this suit is definitely not navy, yet remains dark enough to be formal and smart.
• That makes a good foil for other blues – here a navy roll-neck, pale-blue cotton handkerchief and metallic lightweight scarf from Begg.
• For a brown shoe to work here, it has to be both dark and muted. Edward Green calls this colour ‘bronze’.
  • Royal-blue flannel suit: Anderson & Sheppard bespoke
  • Navy cashmere roll neck sweater: Anderson & Sheppard
  • ‘Oundle’ monk-front Top Drawer shoes, 888 last in bronze: Edward Green
  • ‘Wispy’ superfine navy-cashmere scarf: Begg & Co

 

The cream trouser

• There’s a reason so many well-dressed men used to wear cream trousers: they go with everything.
• Here they are a great balance to the boldly checked jacket, which is further restrained by a simple blue shirt, navy tie, white hank and grey (washed) scarf.
• Shiny shiny brown loafers, reflecting the brown elsewhere in check and jacket buttons.
  • Fawn-check double-breasted jacket: Anderson & Sheppard bespoke
  • ‘Kishorn’ lightweight, grey washed-cashmere scarf: Begg & Co
  • Light-blue spread collar shirt: Luca Avitabile bespoke
  • Navy grenadine tie: Drake’s
  • White linen pocket square: Anderson & Sheppard
  • Cream gabardine trousers: Anderson & Sheppard bespoke
  • ‘Belgravia’ loafer, 184 last in dark oak antique: Edward Green

 

 

Photography: Jamie Ferguson @jkf_man

This is going to sound rather cheesy.

Forgive me.

I believe in Permanent Style.

I believe in the value of investing in products made to last.

And I believe in style that lasts decades, even centuries. (Though maybe not forever).

I believe in the people that make the products that are made to last. Who work hard and long, for years and years, to become good enough to deserve to make them.

I believe in the beauty of dressing elegantly. Of dressing simply but intelligently.

Of looking like you are well dressed. And nothing more.

Fashions come and go.

Lately, there have been more people wearing luxury sweatpants, and sportswear to dinner. There has been talk of the cycle turning again.

I don't think these values of style and craft are going anywhere.

There may have been a fashion for suits, tie clips and handkerchiefs in recent years, and we (us; you; the many other blogs, fans and enthusiasts, who are much, much bigger than Permanent Style) may have benefited from it.

But we're still here. Just with fewer tie clips.

The media is still awful, just as it was 10 years when I began writing.

It may even be worse.

Magazines are nothing more than a parade of products, interspersed with unoriginal, sycophantic writing.

Social media is awash with people that define themselves by nothing more than a number, and then sell that number for another number.

But there are good signs.

Identikit department stories are struggling; independent men's stores are opening all over the world.

I believe we (mostly you) have had a hand in this.

Those who make a deliberate effort to know more, to buy better, and to tell others.

Who value a shoe more when it has been worn, and polished, and scratched, and polished, than when it came home in a shiny bag.

Who enjoy (note: enjoy, not fetishise) the roll of a perfect shirt collar.

I'm just as passionate as I was 10 years ago. (And try very hard not to take any of it for granted.)

Passionate about the unique, hand-wrought beauty of a bespoke jacket.

About the subtle sumptuousness of grey flannel, and calf leather, and white linen, and worn denim, and thick cashmere, and chalky printed silk.

I believe in it all.

Photography: Andy Barnham, from our book The Finest Menswear in the World

Photos taken from ateliers of (top to bottom): Zilli, Cifonelli, Anderson & Sheppard, Talarico, Breanish Tweed,Anderson & Sheppard, Drake's, Loro Piana, Cleverley

Last year, while in Japan at Bryceland's, Salvatore Ambrosi offered me two pairs of his new ready-to-wear trousers to try.

Regular readers will remember that the bespoke trousers I had from Ambrosi the previous year suffered from consistency issues. The fit was often good, but there were persistent mistakes.

Since then Salva has expanded into ready-to-wear, often with fit adjustments available.

The trousers vary between different stockists: Bryceland's, The Armoury NY and The Armoury HK all have slightly different styles, for example.

They're made to the same level as bespoke, so have a huge amount of hand detailing, tacks, pick stitching etc. That all makes them pretty pricey - around $800 at those three locations.

Having liked the fit and style of Salva's trousers, despite the issues, I was interested to explore adjusted RTW as an alternative.

I was also curious to see how things had changed - Salva had mentioned to me in passing that he was focusing more on order notes and production consistency.

When we met in Japan, he had new order sheets on which to note all the various requests, and assiduously took everything down.

(He also mentioned that, following my comment on his use of plastic buttons, all his trousers now use corozo.)

Ethan (Newton, Bryceland's founder) has two specific styles: one higher waisted with two pleats, the other slightly lower waisted with a single pleat and a more extended waistband (pictured).

I was particularly interested in the difference in rise in the former, which was much higher at the back than the front.

Most tailors will try to have a similar rise at front and back, with the view that a horizontal waistband is more attractive and flattering.

But I've often found that this can be at the expense of fit, and my bespoke trousers often end up being slightly higher at the back.

Ethan (below) agreed that most trousers fit better with a higher back rise - although it is dependent on the physique of the customer. And it is more useful the higher the rise.

I ordered one pair in each style - a tan cotton in the single pleat and a pale linen in the double pleat.

The results were much more accurate than before. The length and waist were perfect, and all the details were correct.

Indeed, one style point that I thought was wrong actually turned out to be correct - with Salva sending me a picture of the order form to prove it.

But there was one issue with the fit on the cotton pair. The seat appeared to have been made smaller, not bigger, and as a result they were very tight - almost unwearably so.

This is only one issue, but of course the problem with having trousers made in a foreign shop by a (differently) foreign tailor is that there is no immediate means of recourse. Salva doesn't currently do trunk shows in London.

I'll likely wait until Pitti and give them back to him, though I could also have them adjusted locally.

Aside from consistency, price might be an issue for Ambrosi RTW, as for $800 you could have good trousers made bespoke with the same level of workmanship.

That said, the style and fit elsewhere was perfect, as before.

Particularly nice touches were the extended waistband design and the gun-holster side adjustors on the linen pair.

I'll post pictures of those as I wear them. 

Salva, by the way, is wearing a beautiful black-linen overshirt from Bryceland's. 

Photography: Jamie Ferguson @jkf_man

I've always had a problem with Corthay shoes. 

Not so much the style - while many of the designs and colours are too brash for me, I've consistently found interesting light and dark browns to keep me interested. 

No, the big issue has been the last shape.

It is narrow, and the lack of widths has historically led me to size up to keep my toes comfortable, but have too much room in the back; or get the back right but be too tight around the toes. 

I have three pairs of Corthay shoes, pictured above and below:dark-brown suede Arcas, mid-brown suede Bucys and light/dark brown Wilfrids. 

I love them all:

• for the beautiful shape of Pierre's lasts, which manage to be elongated yet not pointy;
• for the heightened heel, which grips my narrow ankle better than any other;
• and for the internal structure, which is very stiff to start with but softens satisfyingly with time. 

Indeed, the Wilfrids were my first really expensive pair of shoes.

My first double-credit-card purchase - at Leffot in New York, the week it opened. 

But over the years, these fit issues have meant that all three have been criminally underworn. They've sat there, in the cupboard, gleaming peaceably while others have been selected in their stead.

I was interested to hear a couple of years ago, therefore, that Corthay had introduced a wider last - the Pullman, initially - to help cater to American customers. 

I finally tried that last, and picked up a pair of boots in it, a few weeks ago. 

It is a wonderful shape, still long and sleek, but subtly wider in the joints. Enough to remove my fit issues, but without sacrificing any of the Corthay look. 

The model is the Bella - an elasticated ankle boot, pictured below - in black. It's a striking shoe, and one that will have to be carefully worn. Perhaps with charcoal flannel. 

At the same time as the Bella, I had the staff at the London store look at my other Corthay shoes to try and improve the fit. 

The Wilfirds had long had a tongue pad put in them - a piece of foam that is inserted underneath the shoe's tongue.

I find this is by far the best way to deal with having too much room in the back of the shoe, as it pushes the foot down, where using an insole (the more common alternative) lifts it out. 

But the Arcas and Bucys had never had this attention.

The staff did a good job of stretching the Bucys (which were a size down from the other two, and therefore small in the front rather than large in the back), but have yet to find a solution to the Arcas.

Inserting a tongue pad is a lot harder there because they are a derby, and the tongue is therefore the whole front of the shoe. 

But assuming a solution to this last issue is found, it is happy days for me and my Corthays. 

The new releases for this year are largely not for me (the Cannes loafer primarily, below). But their sneakers might be interesting (only in white, not metallics or patination, again below). 

American podcast Blamo! recently featured an interview with me, which you might enjoy listening to.

Founded by ex-Armoury man Jeremy Kirkland, it interviews both fashion and music innovators to talk about their experiences.

Previous interviewees have included Nick Sullivan, Josh Peskowitz and Michael Bastian.  

Jeremy and I cover the ethos of Permanent Style, suit constructions, and why no magazines are helping men dress well. 

You can listen to the episode on the Blamo! website, or on iTunes and any other podcast service. 

Understanding formality is a cornerstone of dressing well. 

Only when you understand that flannel is more casual than worsted, and a derby more casual than an oxford, can you begin to understand the impression clothes create - and how to put appropriate things together. 

The basic variables are easy to understand:

• Texture is casual (tweed v worsted)
• Lightness of colour is casual (grey jacket v navy jacket)
• Strength of colour is casual (yellow tie v cream tie)
• Pattern is casual (checks v plains - and anything that interrupts, e.g. patch pockets)

Basically, formal clothes are dark, subtle and sleek. The more going on, the less formal a piece is. 

But can we assess the formality of a whole outfit? Can we construct some kind of scale? 

A reader asked this question recently, and I think it might be useful to try. 

It would enable us to do many things, for example rate each other, and consider that a certain ‘rating’ of formality would be appropriate to a certain event, or certain office. 

There will always be many exceptions and caveats, but it would remain a useful (if rough) tool. 

Some of the caveats include:

• Many things contribute to the formality of an outfit. We will concentrate on the most important aspects of the most important clothes: the colour and material of the jacket and trousers. But other things can combine to move any outfit up or down the scale. 
• How you wear things makes a difference - if something is sloppily made, or doesn’t fit, it is likely to be undermined. We won’t even touch on that. 
• Ideas of formality can be culturally specific. Americans see black tie as a quintessential wedding outfit, for example, where Europeans do not. 
• Some cultural associations can make things seem more formal. A pinstripe suit, for example, could be seen as more formal because of its association with business, than a plain one. Generally, these associations are recognised enough to be easily taken into consideration.

With those in mind, let’s go. 

1-2 Black tie

There are of course more formal things than black tie, but for most people this is as formal as it gets. It is today’s formal evening wear. 

A lack of colour and a contrast in textures rather than patterns makes black tie the most subtle and formal of ensembles. 

The above example is a particular formal example, given it is worn with a wing collar. But it is soft-shouldered, so not quite 1.1 (the highest rating). I'm going for 1.2.

2-3 Worsted suit 

The next most formal outfit is a worsted suit - the traditional business wear of much of the past century, but fast becoming formal wear. 

It is formal because it is made in a single cloth of a single colour, and because its worsted yarn (the wool) and finish make it smooth and sleek. 

There is huge variation in the category, between plain navy and a loudly checked brown worsted, but we will have to let those slide if we are to keep this scale manageable. 

I would probably also allow flannel into this category, given it is likely to be plain and grey, even though it is a woollen not a worsted (and therefore has greater texture). 

Above outfit: 2.6. It's a pretty informal colour, but is worn with a tie and formal shoes. 

3-4 Smart blazer and trousers

Once the jacket and trousers are of a different material, the outfit is immediately more casual. 

But it can still be smart: the classic is a navy blazer (in hopsack or cashmere perhaps) and grey trousers (in contrasting texture, so maybe flannel with the hopsack). 

I would allow into this category anything where the materials of the two pieces are relatively subtle and simple. Such as light-grey jacket and dark-green trousers, for instance.

Above: Perhaps a 3.3. Formal because of the tie and handkerchief, only informal element being the texture of the tie. 

4-5 Casual suit

This is a relatively broad category in one sense: it takes it every material from tweed to linen to cotton, and every colour and pattern imaginable. 

But it is also a narrow category, in that it is rarely employed. Few people wear casual or ‘knockabout’ suits today. 

When they do, they belong between the blazer and the tweed jacket…

The cord suit above: 4.3. Has a tie and clean white hank, but tie is wool and shirt is denim. 

5-6 Casual jacket, smart trousers

By ‘smart trousers’ read anything except jeans (any very casual, washed chinos perhaps). 

So this category includes a brown cashmere jacket with pale flannel trousers, a green herringbone jacket with tan cavalry twills, and lightweight wool jacket with cream linen trousers. 

There will be a wide disparity within it, depending again on the strength of colour, prominence of pattern and so on (see list of variables at top). But it is a cohesive category, and one which many more men wear to the office - and find it hard to put together. 

Above: The cowboy shirt and lack of tie brings this way down the spectrum, to 5.7.

6-7 Casual jacket, casual trousers

Primarily, stuff with jeans. It might be a tweed bespoke jacket, it might be a washed-cotton RTW jacket (think Boglioli), but the top half is likely to be soft and unstructured, to go with the casualness of the trouser. 

I might also allow into this category things like Teba jackets, sweater jackets and so on. The very presence of a jacket rather than knitwear or just a shirt immediately raises an outfit up the scale. 

Rating of outfit above: 6.5, given the rough texture of the boots and lack of tie

7-8 Knitwear

Without that jacket, we’re into a large and amorphous last category. 

If we assume something is worn over the shirt or T-shirt on top, then this is best thought of as the knitwear category.

It has almost bottomless things below it, down to a T-shirt, shorts and flip flops. But few people care by that point, so we will stop here. 

Formality of above: Fairly high at 7.2, given the trim, smart nature of the knitwear and the smartness of the shoes

The primary thing that makes a difference to wear an outfit sits in each category is probably the tie. Wear it with the casual jacket and smart trousers, and you’re immediately at the top of category 5. 

And the second is probably shoes. The formality of category 6 is transformed if you wear polished derbies with the jeans rather than beat-up trainers. 

These points also demonstrate that the categories could possibly overlap. Adding that tie to category 5 may push you above many things in cat 4. 

But the absolute formality of each category. They represent a constant that can be achieved in different ways. 

So how would you rate what you're wearing today? And those in your office around you? 

As is now customary (after three seasons we can say that, right?) I picked out my favourite 10 pieces from No Man Walks Alone's stock last week. 

I took advantage of being in New York to go through most things in person, and there are therefore some hopefully helpful points about texture, weight and feel. 

Piece here: Simon's picks

Bigi is in many ways what Drake's used to be before the expansion of its retail and collection: a small brand and a top-line tie manufacturer making for the world's top stores.

A third generation company, it has a workshop in the south of Milan run by Stefano and Paola Bigi.

Twenty-seven people work for the company, with 15 based in the workshop and a further 12 outside. Together they produce almost 40,000 ties a year.

My general awareness of Bigi was as an Italian tie brand that offered narrow ties - just because most of what I saw was 7cm, 8cm at the most.

But I've since learned they make every width (up to 10cm) and importantly the width doesn't vary much in the middle of tie - which determines the length of the knot (the key thing for me).

When I visited the workshop this month they had hundreds of designs on display, from big and bold to small and subtle.

A particular new area for them (as well as other tie brands) is variations on the plain grenadine, such as stripes and jacquard patterns. Given there are only four looms left in the world that can do a jacquard design on grenadine, it's an obvious selling point.

"We also try to improve little things all the time," says Stefano (below). "Paola and I look at a tie and ask ourselves, 'what can we do better?'

"So for the past two years, for example, we have been using pure silk in the tippings on ties rather than bemberg. It's a tiny thing, but it makes us happy."

The workshop is beautiful, and great to have so close to the centre of Milan.

Heavy doors, brass plaques and frosted glass. Walls filled with dozens of mementoes from almost 80 years in the business.

The wall of the showroom has an enormous piece of tapestry on one wall, which Stefano and Paola's mother created out of pieces of tie silk.

And in the hallway is a display which includes an exquisite piece of vintage silk weaving, depicting an Italian street scene.

"There are maybe just four other people or workshops making ties in Milan now," comments Stefano Bigi - always the effervescent salesman, next to the quieter Paola (below).

"But most of those are getting on in age now; there is one across the street who works on his own, but he doesn't really take on any new work."

Stefano has been in the business long enough to recognise the virtues of ups and downs in the market.

"In the nineties there were lots of neckties around, but all the product was cheap," he remembers. "Now it's harder to sell ties because fewer people are wearing them, but the quality and appreciation are higher.

"I think I prefer it now. There are a few great competitors - like Drake's - but only a few."

Oddly, Stefano says the Japanese market for ties took a big hit in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011.

In order to try and save power, the government suggested ("effectively an order, given it's Japan") that office workers should take off their jackets and ties so they could turn down their conditioning.

"It made a huge difference to the tie market - though thankfully not that much to us at the high end," Stefano says.

"Japan used to be the one place everyone wore a tie, but not anymore."

Stefano is also fond of quoting an old Italian saying about family companies: The first generation creates, The second continues, The third destroys.

"I only like it because hopefully Paola and I are proving it's not always true!" he says.

Although Bigi makes for United Arrows, Tomorrowland, Barney's and many others, many of the ties are under its own label.

There are in fact three names:

- WestPoint: The parent company, not used as a brand

- Bigi: Used in most places around the world

- StefanoBigi: Used in Japan as the Bigi brand was already in use

Bigi ties are also sold at No Man Walks Alone, Trunk Clothiers and Selfridge's.

Photography: Workshop photos, Bigi; display pictures at Pitti Uomo, Jamie Ferguson @jkf_man

We'll be taking a break from the Symposium series of talks this summer, because frankly the Style Guide and the Savile Row pop-up have just been too much. And there's another dinner to come. 

So I can finally enjoy an instalment of Pitti without having to worry about sound systems and wine suppliers.

Expect much less stressed-looking pictures, in a sunny panama and a sunny smile.

Simon

Shades of tobacco and tan are one of the loveliest things to wear in the Summer. 

As the weather warms up, I've put together three outfits here - all somewhere in the 5 to 7 formality range - that illustrate this. 

They are displayed on my wonderful Permanent Style valet from Honorific - demonstrating how I can and do use it for putting together potential outfits. 

The first, above, has my Ralph Lauren suede blouson as its hero piece.

Unlined, lightweight, in the most wonderful of suedes, it's a jacket that works best with slightly more formal trousers than just jeans. 

Here it is paired with off-white (more 'natural' linen than traditional cream) trousers from Ambrosi. (The second pair I referred to in my review of his ready-to-wear.)

This colour is not as formal as cream, which is helpful for pairing with the jacket, but is just as versatile. 

I've never held with the idea that suede is just for Autumn/Winter, by the way.

Yes, its depth and richness feel appropriate and reassuring on colder days, but the strength of colour also makes it great for summer (and fine in a jacket like this in many English summer days, if not elsewhere).

The Common Projects trainers are similar in formality to the blouson: definitely casual, but a particularly refined iteration (clean lines, luxurious materials) that elevate it into something smarter.  

Outfit two - above - keeps those linen trousers, but makes both top and bottom a lot smarter. 

On top is my bespoke jacket from Richard James, in Joshua Ellis cashmere.

It is a mid-tone, requiring something either a lot paler or a lot darker in the trousers to create sufficient contrast. 

The off-white trousers do that well, and are helped by the extra contrast (in colour and texture) of the shoes - my bespoke oxfords from Stefano Bemer. 

I've also deliberately not included accessories such as pocket squares or ties in these combinations, in order to focus on the three biggest pieces - jacket, trouser, shoe. 

But they would all be worn most often with some variation on a pale-blue button-down shirt (whether poplin, oxford or denim), without a tie.

As such, they are all useful options for the smart/casual look a senior or style-conscious man might want in a modern, creative office.

No pretension, no stuffiness, just lots of style.

Outfit number three uses my now-altered jacket from Sartoria Pirozzi. 

In my original review of this jacket (actually part of a suit) I criticised it for being too tight in the waist, and for having too much rope in the shoulders - making it too square to wear with a casual outfit such as this one. 

Nunzio Pirozzi made those alterations perfectly, and the jacket is now sufficiently casual to wear with jeans (these being my bespoke pair from Elizabeth Radcliffe at Levi's). 

I would hesitate from wearing those two pieces with trainers, however, and so the Stefano Bemer lace-ups remain.

A slightly more casual leather shoe, like an Edward Green Dover, would also work well. 

The jacket has already been worn several times, but will become more aged, personal and comfy the more it is used. Like that classic teacher/professor look, but without the stuffiness.

Photography: Permanent Style