Morris Stockholm - What a Life

Brands are notorious for trying to promote a lifestyle, but most of them come across as ridiculous or outrageous.  Abercrombie comes to mind, they promote a lifestyle with their clothing but it's a life of washboard abs, shirtless escapades and homoerotic games of tackle football.  This is not exactly a life I can relate to or I would call aspirational.

But someone like Morris Stockholm, they promote a lifestyle with their clothes.  A lifestyle that includes refined elegance and an ellusion of filled bank account and a long tradition of taking the yacht out or trips to Wimbledon.  The Morris Stockholm lifestyle is one that I can support, and for some reason feels attainable, if I just have the right sweater or the right red socks.

Take a look at the inspiring Morris Stockholm collection and journey with me to the world of jaunts to the Swiss Alps and overnight excursions to Venice, Italy.  It certainly helps that the clothes are spectacularly gorgeous and the colors juxapositions are eccentric yet attainable.

Carhartt Now More Than Ever

I have always loved quality and functionality.  I think they are both essential to my personal style as I like to buy something and wear it for years.  That is why I always recommend building a wardrobe on classics and not fashion.  But sometimes style and fashion converge, as we are seeing now in the rugged workman and lumberjack looks.  So now more than ever I recommend Carhartt.

Carhartt has made the best work wear for years.  Classic, durable, and great for cold weather.  The stuff can stand up to the worst abuse or the coldest conditions.  I highly recommend the Carhartt Chore Coat, as shown above.  It comes with blanket lining and a great classic look.  Suitable for a casual cold day around the city.  Wear it with jeans and a flannel or chambray shirt.

I also think they make a great looking vest and jeans.  The vest is not the horrible vinyl shiny look that you see everywhere, but instead a nice simple plain design.

The jeans are worker jeans.  They are relaxed fit and baggier than what is trendy but I like that right now, for an occasional variation to the slim fit jeans.  Go with the Duck Brown and wear them with Red Wing Boots, they will look better with boots, as they look like the belong worn with boots.  Just don't wear the jacket, vest and pants at the same time, that is just wrong.

So if you want classic and durable go with Carhartt and forget the APC colaboration with them, it just feels too forced.  Since when have the French and workwear ever mixed well?

Winter Boots: Warmth in Style

Utilitarian style is certainly a departure for the typical business man.  Aside from a trench coat or over coat to protect him from the elements, most modern men do not utilize utilitarian clothing on a regular basis. The suit and tie are certainly far from utilitarian and while a sweater adds warmth and style, it would be hard to call it utilitarian.

Yet some utilitarian pieces are so iconic, they themselves become stylish: motorcycle jackets save your hide in a fall and look great, Sperry Topsiders keep you on your feet while on a wet sailboat, and duck boots keep your feet warm and dry even in the heaviest rain or snow storm. The look of each of these items is designed to help facilitate the task in question. A motorcycle jacket is made from rugged thick leather, it has padding in all the right places and is streamlined so that nothing will catch in the wind.  Topsiders have rubber soles with wavy cuts in the sole to help prevent slips, they are designed to get wet, holding to the foot better as they get wet, since the feet are sure to get wet they are designed to be worn without socks, as no one enjoys wearing wet socks.

As for duck boots, the soles help provide traction in the snow. The rubber, water proof sole wraps from the bottom of the shoe upward to cover the vamp.  Halfway up the vamp the leather upper boot begins, covering the foot and leg in warmth and water protection. The boot is typically fur lined and has a water resistant lining. Sorel the maker of the infamous Caribou boot, a variation on the duck boot rates the boot for up to -44 degrees.  This boot will keep your feet warm and dry. In addition to the great utilitarian value the boot offers, it also is quite stylish. The iconic look of the duck boot means that you can stay out of the elements and look good while doing it. Nothing flashy or ostentatious, just plain old utilitarian style, a man always looks good like that.  In my opinion the best looking and most functional pair of duck boots is manufactured by Sorel.  There Caribou boots sell for $110 and may be on sale for a few bucks less. These are the pair I choose to cover my feet.

Fall Essentials - Trench Coat

Everywhere you look there are trench coats. Every designer, store and runway show have variations of the jacket. This is one of the looks that I love for the fall, mainly due to it be a utilitarian fashion trend.

Living in Los Angeles, I do not have a use for a full cashmere trench coat (except for the business trips), but I do have a use for a rain trench coat. I think the look is very sophisticated, with or without a full suit and can be very versatile this fall and winter. I do think that the trench coat looks best with a tie, or at a button-down and sweater combo.

Aside from the rain trench coat, the other trench coat that you will see in stores is trench with a large collar and toggle clasps. Burberry makes a cool version of this trench. I think this jacket makes more sense for cool weather cities as it needs to be wool or cashmere to look good.

When picking out a trench, be sure it is tailored and slim. Make sure it has large lapels and plenty of buttons or toggles. It should have a nice modern fit and hit you on your thigh above your knee. In the rain coat version it should be double breasted, in the toggle version the toggles should be interesting, large and wooden.

This is a fall fashion that will be cool to wear now and useful to wear in all future seasons.