Pop Yo Collar

The Dos & Don'ts of Collar Popping -

Don'ts:

Hopefully these fashion faux pas are quite evident.

Polos & Shirts - Don't pop the collar on a polo shirt, button down shirt or rugby shirt. At no time, ever, ever, ever.  A collared shirt should not have an erected collar, unless you are at a costume party or you have a nickname that starts with "The" and ends with "Situation".  Keep the collars down and keep the compliments up.

Jacket - Sport coats & suit jackets should have the collars down, creating a sleek, slim look. Only in extreme weather should the collar be popped and only to keep yourself warm, not as a fashion statement.  Otherwise you will look like your hanging with Crockett & Tubbs, which is no bueno.  And please for the love of all that is stylish, do not push up the sleeves of your jacket.  Don't even think about it, it's just wrong.

Dos:

Overcoats & Trench coats - With as much passion as I beg and plead you keep the collars down on your shirts and polos, I beg and plead that you to keep the collars of your overcoats up. Overcoats & Trench coats are meant to have popped collars.

Peacoats - the naval Peacoat has to have the collar popped, it is the only proper way to wear the coat.  Without the collar standing at attention, the jacket looks boring and quite mundane.  Keep it cool and keep the collar popped at all times.

Weekend Brunch Fashion

Weekend brunch is great time to kick back, enjoy a meal and some good friends. It's a time to eat plenty of good food, chowing down on anything and everything from well cooked lamb roast to giant waffle with strawberries fresh whipped cream and plenty of honey. What other meal are you allowed to mix two great foods like that?  Plus it is socially acceptable to enjoy a few mimosas or adult beverages, all before noon. Could there be a better way to enjoy a three hour meal that starts before noon?  A weekend brunch always begs the question: "what to wear?"

For a weekend brunch I want to look nice, modern and successful, but also look relaxed and use the bright day to my advantage. During the summer, a brunch is the perfect time to wear a linen suit or your favorite white/off-white suit.  Fresco also works great in the summer as well. But now that we are in the fall and heading to winter, how do you dress appropriately for a nice weekend brunch?

I think brunch is a perfect occasion to break out the odd jacket. The jacket that comes in an interesting color, fabric or texture or all three. It is the least formal blazer that you own. It is the one that you wear on occasional Fridays to spice up the wardrobe. The odd jacket you choose should stand out in the crowd for its great combination of colors, without looking gaudy and out of place. The odd jacket should also utilize some fun colors that work well in the early afternoon sunlight. I always love an odd jacket with a great accent color like: light blue, purple, yellow or pink. It can be further accentuated with a playful and colorful pocket silk.

The Weekend Blazer from Indochino is the perfect brunch jacket. It has a classic check design with a yellow/goldish accent color.  It has two front patch pockets to make it more casual. It is also single
breasted three button, roll to two button design, which I think rock and look very Sprezzatura.  Wear the odd jacket with crisp dark raw denim jeans, a pair of well polished boots and a button down shirt that accents the jacket.

With the Weekend Blazer I would stick to a plain white shirt, or a white shirt with a pale orange check or stripes, as the orange would work well with the yellow in the jacket, without coming off as too matching. For the area of the country that are little colder wear a v-neck sweater over a crisp white shirt for extra layering. The sweater could be a mid-gray, pumpkin, brown or a light yellow.

For a good weekend brunch, let the jacket be the stand-out piece.