All You Need: Master Interchangeability

 If selected carefully a man with only 2 suits, 4 dress shirts, 4 ties, and 2 pairs of shoes has 64 different combinations at his disposal (2×4x4×2=64 ). The key here is making sure your clothing is interchangeable; a core of classic colored suits and dress shirts complimented with time tested tie patterns will yield a higher return on investment than any trendy garment that only matches one other item in your wardrobe (Read More Here).

Via Artofmanliness.com

Read More

Brand Loyalty: Polo Loco

Music producer 88-Keys crazy obsession with Ralph Lauren Polo.  Switch it up and check out some lessor known logos here.  Our if you are strictly a 'Lo Head, here's how you can get them for cheap.

Read More

The Military Canvas Belt

Nice article spotted on ValetMag.com on the canvas military belt.  Why pay $60 bucks or more for some fancy designers version when you can get the original for $2.95 (here).  Military belts are also mentioned in GQ's 25 Rules to Dressing on a Budget listed (here).  I'll be making a trip to my local Army/Navy Surplus soon, I'll post what I find.

Read More

That No-Sock Look

I recently tried the shoes with no socks look with my boat shoes and chinos and while I prefer the look the Sunshine state heat poses a problem: foot perspiration. It's almost bad hygiene attempting to pull off this look here. The best solution: The Loafer Sock - no show socks which give that barefoot appearance, cut perfectly for boat shoes and loafers. The problem with some of the loafer socks is that they look like ballerina shoes. The so-called men's loafer socks from well respected brand Gold Toe (shown below) is an example.

I recently ordered a couple of pair from Banana Reublic who make an acceptable looking loafer sock and not just a liner (2 pair for $14 in black or white) making this the best way to pull off the look and avoid looking like this.  Update: Mocc Sock & Co., is another great alternative.

Read More

Miami Thrifting

 Here are the best of my finds from my trip last month to Miami.  Even thought I went to like 4 Salvation Armys, 3 Goodwills and 3 other local thrift spots one called Out of the Closet, and another called Douglas Thrift (Pictured Below) I didn't really clean up.  It just wasn't my day but below is what I got for under $20!

 Douglas Thrift, Miami

Levis 514's, and Brooks Brothers Polo,

Calvin Klein Shirt, Yet Another Christian Dior Tie.

Read More

How and When to Wear the Short-Sleeved Button-Up

If you're like me you haven't quite mastered the Short Sleeved Button-Up Shirt.  The DC Image consultants at Image Granted (featured on CNN and in Time Magazine) answer all questions regarding the when and how on this topic in the post The Long & Short of It All.  Here are the highlights:

The short sleeve shirt has its place in a man's wardrobe.  It is a variation of its long sleeve brother who is the gold standard we are familiar with.  However, its usability is vastly different.  The majority of short sleeve shirts are designed for sport and play while the majority of long sleeve shirts are designed for work. If you're attending a BBQ, hanging out at the beach, or running errands on the weekend, by all means wear a short sleeve shirt and go about your merry way.

However, if you find your yourself behind a desk at work; your job title includes manager, supervisor, lead, CEO; or if you find yourself at restaurants with white table cloths, then you'll just look like a putz in short sleeve shirt.  The garment is inherently casual and sporty and should stay that way.

If you've decided to take the plunge and drop a few stones on a couple good short sleeve shirts you best know how and when to wear them. If the bottom of the shirt is curved it usually should be tucked in, but due to the relaxed nature of the shirt this is left up to the wearer.  Flat bottomed shirts are designed to be untucked.  If you leave it untucked it should not cover your bottom like a long sleeve shirt.  Similar to polo shirts the sleeves should hit mid bicep and while they should show off your arms they shouldn't be tight.  The collar can be regular turn down or button down.  Most short sleeve shirts will come without collar stays which lends itself to the casual wearer even further and they can have a pocket or no pocket with  a short placket or long.  Throw one on in gingham, plaid, or solid in cotton, chambray or linen with your chino shorts, boat shoes, straw fedora and aviator sunglasses and you're good to go.

Read More

Fresh: Common Promoting 'Just Wright ' in Mister Cartoon Dunks

Rapper/Actor Common casually dapper with the black leather and the limited edition Mister Cartoon X Nike Dunk High AC designed by tattoo artist Mister Cartoon.

Read More

4 Ways to Wear a Trench Coat

Mens Health magazine delivers 4 Fresh (sorry Humphrey) ways to wear a Trench Coat, check it out (here).  Click here for off-season sales on eBay!

Read More

$25 Shopping Spree Lite: My Latest Finds

I cleaned up again this week at a 50% sale at Sunshine Thrift 3 Button-Ups, a Sweater, a pair of Jeans and a Polo for about $25...I may never go to the mall again!

Top to Bottom: Gap Shirt $2, Haggar Shirt $4.50, Yves Saint Laurent Shirt $2.

Express Sweater $1.50

 

Citizens for Humanity Jeans $4

Burberry Polo $12

Read More

How to Choose a Tie

How To Find a Matching Tie For Your Suit on Howcast

• Combine Patterns with Solids.
• Pinstripe suits with Plan ties.
• Combine suits/ties with small Patterns with ties or suits with larger Patterns.
• Plain shirts with Patterned suits and ties.
• Patterned shirts with Plain suits and ties.
• For a challenge, wear Striped shirts with color-coordinating Paisley, Dots, or Box-patterned ties.

Read More

The Beginner's Guide to Thrifting

Nice comprehensive Thrifting Guide from SethBrundle covering everything from being patient to sanitation.  Check out the post (here).

Read More

The Sharpest PG in the Game Also Buys Used

Excerpt from the Baron Davis interview by GQ in the current issue. He made $12,150,000 this season and he still buys second hand and doesn't use a stylist like Wade, Melo, Kobe (Must Click!) and LeBrick.

The vintage route "Accessories are where you really get to present your creative spirit. I'm into hats, shoes, ties, scarves, and pocket squares. All that. I go to a lot of antique stores when I'm on the road just to find hidden gems."

Read More (here).

Read More

What to Expect at the Tailor

Recently I made my first trip to the tailor, thinking it probably would be cheaper to get some ill-fitting pants (and 1 shirt) altered instead of buying new pairs of pants.

So I have 3 pairs of pants and a dress shirt to the tailor, try everything on let the tailor now what I wanted. When my total was tallied it came to $140! Granted I had a lot of alternations but I was still shocked, I thought I was being hustled.

Here's the Breakdown of the Alternations that I wanted and the cost:

Dress Shirt

Sleeves Narrowed/Tapered - $18

Sleeves Length/Taken up - $12

Pants #1

Waist Taken In - $13

Pants Hemmed/No Break - $12

Pants #2

Waist Taken In - $13

Pants Hemmed/No Break - $12

Pants Narrowed/Tapered - $16

Pants #3

Waist Taken In - $13

Pants Hemmed/No Break - $12

Pants Narrowed/Tapered - $16

Well I ended up getting alternations on Pant#1 (before and after pictures to come) and upon further review the tailor wasn't a hustler.  Using my recent experience, GQ, and other sources I compiled a pay scale with no wide price ranges but an average cost for several common alternations.

Jacket

Sleeves Narrowed $18

Jacket Sides Taken in $26

Shirts

Sides Narrowed/Tapered $16

Sleeves Narrowed $16

Pants

Hem Shortened $11

Pants $15

Waist $14

Turn Around time is about 5 days.

Read More

Avoid Bidding Wars, Snipe

What is a Auction Sniper? a sniper automates the process of placing your eBay bid in the closing seconds of any eBay bidding auction, which dramatically increasing your chance of winning
Why snipe? Since eBay is using proxy bidding, a legitimate question is - why snipe at all? If you submit your bid at eBay early, and if your maximum bid is higher than that of a sniping user, you will win regardless. While this fact is true, user experience and even some scientific research conducted says that sniping does pay. Here are some reasons why.

1. Your early bid is important information for other bidders. Other bidders may realize true value of an item only after you submit your bid. By bidding early, you are helping them, and that's against your own interest.
2. Bidders tend to be overly optimistic, and therefore enter value lower than what they are really ready to pay. Leave them time to bid again after being outbid, and you will end up paying more, or lose the item you are bidding on.
3. Bidders get excited during auctions, and are often ready to bid way more than what is rational.
4. Ever been victim of shill bidding? It's a fraudulent practice used by some sellers to inflate the price of an item by using another eBay ID to bid on their own item. If you use sniping, fraudulent sellers have no time to conduct shill bidding.

Gixen features:

• No download required!
• Gixen automatically places your bids on eBay at the last moment.
• Entirely automatic - your computer doesn't have to be on.
• Unlimited number of snipes.
• Gixen is provided to you completely free, no catch.
• Gixen is completely secure.
• Gixen is 99.5% reliable.

 I've also successfully used Justsnipe.com.

Read More

Warby Parker: Boutique-Quality Bargain-Priced Eyewear

New glasses label Warby Parker delivers high-end quality vintage inspired prescription eye wear for $95 that's frame and prescription lenses.   Check out their online store here pick up to pair you like and they will send you the samples free of charge, after you decide which pair(s) you like send the samples back (no charge) and shortly after you'll receive the frames you selected with the prescription lenses in place.  Or you can also upload a photo of yourself to see how the different frames look.

Read More

The Sartorialist: Toddler Edition

Some of the freshest kids I've ever seen, they're definitely off to a good start, Props to the Parents.  Especially little man with the two-button blazer and scarf.

Click Image to Enlarge

Read More

Pretty Fades but Fly is Forever

Two very trendy college kids...the one thing better than Fly? Flyerrrr.

Read More

Esquire Best Dressed Real Man Top 25

After eliminating guys with 3 outfits or less, guys wearing suits in all 3 to 5 outfits, dudes with super skinny jeans, guys that were a little to "runway" and guys that just tried too hard it comes down to a two man race for this years Esquire Best Dressed Real Man.

Wale O. 29, Lawyer from Philly

VS

Zeph C. 20, Student from NYC

See all 25 finalist here.

Read More

Guerrilla Photography, JR

His name is JR. That's all he goes by. His subjects live in the favelas of Rio, the blood-crusted shanty-towns of Liberia, behind the barrier wall in Gaza. He takes pictures, he tells them. He holds his camera six inches from their face and asks them to do anything but smile. Then back at home in Paris, the twenty-six-year-old Frenchman blows up his black-and-white photos to the size of city buildings. Works big enough to be visible from outer space.

Some photos go into custom art books, but most take up space on the battered city and slum canvases where JR first shot them. India. Sudan. Sierra Leone. Cambodia. With a bucket of glue and paint rollers, he and his friends rappel down crumbling brick walls at night, slop on the glue, and smooth the gargantuan images over. It's guerrilla art, as unavoidable as it is imposing. Read full article here.

Below is some of his work.

Read More

For Sale Now: Christian Dior Tie Clip

At Shopgoodwill.com Ends Thursday afternoon, current bid at $3 click here to view auction details.

Read More

A Couple of My Other Spots

Here are a couple of spots I like outside of Salvation Army and Goodwill that have locations in multiple states.

Sunshine Thrift has Florida and Michigan locations and they have monthly 50% off sales and a mailing list.

Plato's Closet is a franchise with locations in over 40 states, most items will be over $5 but you won't have to dig because they're very organized.

You can also check TheThriftShopper.com they have a National Thrift Directory, probably with shops somewhere near you.

Read More