Morris Stockholm: Fall 2009 Collection

Morris Stockholm called their Fall 2009 collection, Preppy Autumn.  An apropos name for the feel and look of the Fall collection.  I have become a fan of the Morris Stockholm look.  A look that is preppy, sprezzatura, carefree, classic and modern.

Morris Stockholm utilizes the classic F' 'em pants in the both their Spring and Fall collections.  Appropriately, the Fall collection are strong classic colors, base colors; red, blue & green.  The Spring F' 'em pants are in pink, pastel blue & pastel green.  Each season the color pallet changes and this is well recognized in the collections.  Heavy usage of colors, but the appropriate colors for each season.

A classic corduroy blazer, with elbow patches and leather buttons in a modern slim fit.  The sleeves are trim, which make the blazer look quite trim.  Navy patterned tie and patterned v-neck sweater, worn over a blue oxford shirt.  This is a nice combination of colors and patterns.  I also like the combination of wheat colored coat with gray slacks.  A mix of colors that is quite fall.

The lines on this outfit are very modern: slim, trim and clean.  The jacket is beautifully cut and in loud and broad colors in a great plaid pattern, this jacket will certainly stand out in the crowd.  I also love the tan shoes, both color and cut. 

The clean cut blazer in this outfit is gorgeous.  It is elegant, classic and has a modern cut, a great mix of two worlds.  The purple socks are an amazing touch with this outfit.  They are a pop of color that is otherwise not in the outfit.  That is the definition of artful dishevelment, sprezzatura.

I love the red flannel lining the underside of the jackets collar.  It adds a great unique element to an otherwise classic jacket.  And with this kind of jacket, you should actually be wearing it with the collar popped.  On overcoats, it is okay, on polos, it is a disgrace to your entire family.

Red plaid shirts are quite popular right now.  They are being worn in a variety of ways, but paired with tan/wheat colored corduroy pants it is not seen that often.  It is a great way to wear the shirt without channeling lumberjacks or farmers.  The oilcloth jacket is nice as well.

The story here is the red scarf with an otherwise purple outfit.  This is a beautiful mix of colors, but a very unusual one.  The addition of a red scarf takes this outfit to another level, something to remember when picking out a scarf in the future.

If a red scarf is the story in the last outfit, the red belt is the story in this outfit.  Once again the outfit is trim and modern in the fit.  Which makes the classic pairing look young and modern.  Add a bright red belt, as the sprezzatura element on the outfit, and you have an amazing outfit.

More bright colored F' 'em pants cut in a modern slim fit.  I personally would opt for a charcoal jacket, instead of the black featured here.  I actually think it would help make the whole outfit more cohesive.

Enjoy the weekend.

J. Crew 2010 Spring Collection

J. Crew in my opinion is the one of the best brands for presenting Sprezzatura style.  Thanks to Frank Muytjens, J. Crew has created a very uniform style over the last few years.  Especially in the last year or so.  I feel that the brand represents the modern male fashion, preppy, tailored, sprezzatura, elegant, classic, cool while not being try hard.  They seem to be blazing the trail, while the other brands are trying to keep up with their brand representation.  I personally love the look and find quite a bit of inspiration in it.

Here is how J. Crew sees the 2010 Spring/Summer.

Navy Suit - The most classic suit in the classic American wardrobe, a navy suit.  This is a lighter navy, which makes it stand-out from the crowd.  It also prevents it from being misdiagnosed as a black suit.  It has a modern slim fit without looking ridiculous.  It also has the appropriate level of Sprezzatura: no socks, chambray shirt, slightly rolled cuff.  It also has the appropriate level of classic elements: rounded toe wingtips, pocket square and navy suit.  A great outfit.

This outfit looks like something worn by a Kennedy on Holiday in Cape Cod.  Classic sunglasses, Sperry Topsiders, chinos and a button-down.  A very casual cool weekend uniform.

The best part of this outfit is the tan shoes.  I prefer the shoes to be oxfords and not bluchers, but I do like the bulk of the blucher, especially for a casual outfit.  I also like the tie for this outfit is light colored and almost gets lost in the outfit.  It is very Sprezzatura to wear the tie lose with a tie bar, very cool.

Tan suede desert boots, slim straight destructed jeans and a red chambray shirt.  It doesn't get much more casual than this outfit, yet due to the color and textures it is still stylish.  This outfit is appropriate for errands on a Sunday, but can still be worn on a casual date.

This is my favorite outfit of the J. Crew collection.  This outfit would be cool in 50s or 60s or today.  The outfit is a great representation of the American style while not looking cliche or overplayed.  The green jacket with red plaid lining is a standout piece, without being over whelming.  The blue shirt, gray sweater and chinos is classic and stylish and cool.  The washed chinos make it sprezzatura and the slim lines make it modern.  Also, the outfit is much more casual with the shoes, a more formal.

Chino suits are great for the summer, so are topsiders.  The combination is classic and contradictory, a good thing for any outfit.  I would lose the bow tie though.

Nice weekender bag, it looks like his father owned it, exactly the right look.  A denim shirt and denim jeans can look horrible and the epitome of style, but due to the shoes, the Sprezzatura way the shirt is haphazardly worn and tucked in and the slim fit jeans, the outfit looks modern.

Who doesn't like a sweater with shorts?  I always love a gray undershirt, that look never gets old.  Throw on topsiders and the outfit is complete.  I would lose the ugly ass big bag though.  For the love of all that is manly, leave the purse carrying to the women.

Shawl collar cardigan fantastically classic and modern.  It is a look that never leaves the closet of the stylish but is now being added to the closet of the fashionable.  I still think you should wear it, I know Steve McQueen did.  The chambray shirt adds depth to the outfit.  Also, shorts with desert boots is the sartorial contradiction that is both modern and Sprezzatura, it is completely unexpected and appropriate.

In this photo I really dig the white blazer.  It is a look that is perfect for the Spring/Summer.  Make the blazer a shawl collar, slim fit and washed, and no one will think you just walked out of Saturday Night Fever.  I also appreciate the chino suit jacket paired with the navy suit pants, it is a nice color combination.

The blue chino slim fit pants in this picture (on the left) are great.  The color and the fit make them enormously useful.  They go with almost any color in a closet and make an outfit standout.  All that while still being classic and not standing out and making you look like a jackass.

Here is a close-up of the chambray shirt.  It is an interesting shirt a good color and has depth since it has multiple levels of blue in the fabric.  The tab color also makes it more interesting than the standard shirt.  The military green belt is also a great touch.  It is rugged and aggressive but also very stylish, especially when worn with a nice pair of chinos.

Could you add any more colors or patterns?  Probably not, but the outfit still works.  This is the ultimate Sprezzatura, it looks like he dressed himself in the dark, yet still "luckily" got it right.  This is modern fashion at its best, unexpected, daring, classic and incredibly interesting.

J. Crew inpires me.  Good job Frank Muytjens.  By the way, Frank Muytjens personal style is also quite interesting.  The shoes and purple socks are fantastic.  I love that the socks match nothing on the outfit.

Uniqlo - A Visit to New York

The New York trip is finally done and I am finally posting again.  You'll just have to get over the little break I had (I am sorry).  But I am back with a vengence.

The store is 3 stories - the main floor is men and women, the upstairs is for men and cellar is for women.  Every wall was lined with colorful and folded clothing from floor to ceiling.  It is almost a daunting amount of clothing, quite impressive.

In the front of the store Uniqlo is pushing their Heat Tech clothing.  The water wicking under clothing that is also meant to keep you warm.  Very similar to the same stuff that Nike & Under Armor promote.

Past that display the store opened up to a main show room showing off the cashmere sweaters, wool peacoats and outerwear.  The cashmere sweaters were ultra soft available in every color imaginable and only $99 for the V-neck and $129 for the cardigan.  The Peacoats, which came in gray, black, navy and light gray glen check were only $99 and a great way to supplement a winter coat collection.  I wouldn't use Unqilo coats for the coldest weather, but they certain will keep you warm on cold and snowy days.

Upstairs I went to the plethora of clothing upstairs.  More cashmere sweaters, more Peacoats as well as plenty of essentials and non-essentials a like.  The essentials collection was great and something I would utilize more if I lived in NYC.  They were selling a great collection of socks, 4 for $9.  The socks were in the best colors: gray, navy & khaki.  The boxer briefs were 2 for $9 and a nice selection of patterns and colors.  They also were not covered in half naked men staring at you, which was a very pleasant change when shopping for under garments.  The under shirts were in every color and were $4 a shirt.  I went with light heather gray shirts, as they are less visible under plain white dress shirts.

They also had a jeans in various colors, washes, fits and prices.  The jeans ranged from skinny to relaxed and ranged in price from $39 to $79.  The selvedge denim was the more expensive jeans while the normal denim was only $39.  I would have opted for the regular denim in slim straight cut.  I would buy my selvedge from a top manufacturer like APC or Stronghold.

I was very impressed by the Lambswool sweaters in V-Neck, Crew neck & Cardigan at $19.99 to $29.99 for the latter.  They had the basic selection of colors for the sweaters and they were good weight, not too bulky or too fine.  I would highly recommend the sweaters as a way to supplement your closet with colors that you might not otherwise purchase, like purple & yellow.

I also highly enjoyed the collection of oxford shirts.  They had white, light blue, dark blue, light red and a gray all for only $19.99 a shirt.  A great deal.

The flannels were also nice.  They came in either heavy weight or light weight and in a bunch of nice color combinations including red and black buffalo check.  The off white with window pane navy blue check was very appealing and reminded me of my favorite shirt from high school.

As for pants, they had a nice collection of chinos, both washed and dressier versions; $29 and $39, respectively.  All of the pants in the entire store came in either 32 or 34 inch inseam.  The good news Uniqlo would tailor them free of charge, the bad news it would take a minimum of a week for them to complete the job.  I do like the idea and would encourage the practice for more stores.

The selection of wool pants was slim pickings but I found a pair I loved in light gray brushed wool for only $49.  They are slim straight and will have to be hemmed.

Uniqlo also had an encouragingly large selection of non-iron dress shirts and a disappointingly small selection of suit coats.  When I was there, the only coats were tuxedo trimmed velvet jackets in burgundy, black, olive and navy.  I am still deciding if they are cool for a night out or just plain cheesy.

The store also offered a bag to carry all of the goodies, which means that more people than just make a large purchase of clothing at the store.  Next time you are in NYC check out Uniqlo and let me know if you have the same experience or not.