“Fashion fades, style is eternal.” — Yves St. Laurent
I was having a conversation with my older son a couple of weeks ago, as he wanted a new suit. We’re about the same size, so I had him try on one of mine.
“They’re too baggy,” he said.
The pants had a little room in the waist but were a perfect length, the hem ending just above his foot, with no break.
“Too baggy?” I said. “There’s no pooling at the ankles at all. What do you mean by baggy?”
What he meant but was unable to explain was that the lower part of the trousers weren’t tapered. You see, he’s of the generation of the moment that prefers skinny pants that hug the calf and that end some two inches above the ankle.1
I’m shuddering.
You see, I’ve always believed in classic style — style that transcends trends and fads. Of course, I wasn’t always in charge of my own wardrobe…
Mistakes in the 1970s aside, there are style elements that can withstand the buffets of the fashion world. Style isn’t rooted in any particular era, but is the result of what has remained on the beach after the tides of fashion have gone out.
Consider style as the cumulative knowledge of apparel, while fashion seems to have no institutional memory, living only for the moment.
Fashion is what’s responsible for the varying width of things like ties, lapels, and trouser legs. It’s what moves the buttons up or down the jacket or gives us low-rise pants.
“All this I see, and see that the fashion wears out more apparel than man…” — Conrade in William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing
Fashion is never subtle and often flashy, doing more to highlight the clothing and the trend rather than to be a personal statement.
Classic style allows more mixing and matching of pieces, creating a versatile wardrobe so that observers don’t immediately think “Oh, he’s wearing that again!”
The challenge of course, is that style isn’t something that can be developed with one purchase. Style is something you have to appreciate and develop over time.
For me, it has been through regular deliveries of Ben Silver catalogs2 and books like Dressing the Man: Mastering the Art of Permanent Fashion (a lovely coffee table book that makes for fun browsing as well as a resource), True Style: The History and Principles of Classic Menswear, Clothes and the Man: Principles of Fine Mens’ Dress, and The Philosophy of Style.3
All of these serve as templates and drawing boards, from which you can assemble your own ideas of what you like and what you don’t.
Developing your own sense of style also comes through observing people whose style I admire, figuring out what I like about it, and making additions and adjustments to my own wardrobe to suit my taste.
And one of my secret delights is perusing fashion illustrations from the 1930s and 1940s. I’ll have a separate entry on some of these artists and their work at some point, but here are a few that represent what I consider to be the high point of mens’ style.
Of course we don’t wear hats, carry walking sticks, or use gloves in warmer weather any more, these snapshots in time are useful in demonstrating what well put-together outfits look like and show us classic lines, drapes of material, and coordinating colors.
Finding these illustrations in their original publications is difficult due to the scarcity and collectability of the magazines in which they originally appeared (such as Apparel Arts or Esquire)4, but the good news is that Instagram has plenty of menswear specialists who have scanned and share these items for your electronic delectation.
Look for style, not fashion, to inspire your sartorial choices.
That’s Classy AF.
P.S. Always remember: a bow tie never goes out of style, simply because it’s never in style.
With no socks, of course.
Their retail items are usually much too expensive for my pocketbook, but you can sometimes find Ben Silver products in vintage clothing stores and on eBay, if you know what you’re looking for.
In assembling these links, I realized that two of the four are by Alan Flusser and another has a foreword from Flusser. It’s hard to argue with the master of style.
Oh, you doubt me? You have to see it to believe it.
Hats have got to make a comeback. Maybe for women too. I think could pull off a nice cloche. But definitely for men.
I feel this pain. We just went to Von Maur to buy Jeff a suit for his son's wedding because we thought we'd be safe with Hart Schaffner and Marx. However, what we ended up with was a suit with a barely acceptable lapel width and trouser width, same. And the fabric (wool) and lining (?) was so thin that the yoke of a standard dress shirt creates a line across the back. We still bought it, however, because we were out of time. We then learned the tailor would only address sleeve length, hem and waist, and upper seat. I predict they will still be tight in the crotch but we'll have to wait til we get back and take them to a different tailor to address that because I'm not the one (this time). To wit, for the older kid's wedding I had to rip and rework the waist and seat on some ridiculously slim pants selected by the rental place's AI program to fit a reasonably fit 64-year old dad bod! (Fail.) To their credit, I guess, they did not charge us extra for returning what was essentially a different pair of pants.