Sartorialist flavour

This is just a little note on the blog 'The Sartorialist', its basically a blog where the editor travels the world and takes pictures of fashion  savvy people. I have selected some images from the blog from over the last year that I feel are a mix of fashion forward thinking and classic style

Dr Martens, really girls???

Ok, so this is all about woman wearing Dr. Marten boots, I mean why do they wear them? I continually see these so called style icons for woman wearing these boots and I cannot understand why? It really gives a lesbian art student edge to the look I guess and if that is what they are going for then I guess they have nailed it.

I am not saying that people should not buy Dr. Martens, they are a cool brand who know exactly what they are doing and who they are aiming at. My issue is why girls in their 20’s are wearing these boots? Do they believe they are being trendsetters? Because if everyone is wearing them then you are not a trend setter rather a follower. So can it be to look sexy? Well surly not, I mean the only people attracted to that are either girls who like other girls or men who consider themselves skinheads.

My advice is bin the boots if you want look stylish or sexy or cool or well not like a soap dodger. Maybe you are an art student and pink DM’s help you fit in or maybe you idolise Agyness Deyn and believe I am talking total sh*t, either way if you have an opinion please let me know.

THE OLD NEW COOL

Marni is not the newest brand in the world, it’s been around since 1994, yet it has emerged these last few seasons as a real force within men’s fashion and is creating a look which is really being taken on by all ages.

A/W 10

A/W 10

A/W 10

The A/W 10 and S/S 11 collections have focused on unusual colours like reds and mustards, with boxy tailored cuts the brand is beginning to define a look that others including the high street are trying to follow

S/S 11

S/S 11

S/S 11

Marni may not be everybody's cup of tea as it s possible to argue that the shoes look slightly orthopedic and the look a little school boy in his dads clothing, but if worn in the right way it can really look great. My advise is to try a piece 1st and see how it works for you 

WHERE HAVE ALL THE ICONS GONE?

I have recently started to realise that all the people thought of as icons are over 40 and the new breed of so called icons are I think weak at best. I am talking about guys that other guys look to as setting the standard, whether in lifestyle, fashion or just a way of being. Of course there are the classics, James Dean, Steve McQueen,  Keith Richards, the Rat Pack, Marlon Brando, David Bowie, Clint Eastwood the list goes on, these are great examples of Iconic men from yesteryear which always had a style and swagger about them that made them the pinnacle of coolness,

RAT PACK

JAMES DEAN

YOUNG MARLON BRANDO





My worry is that after Johnny Depp moves on to being less active there is no one set to carry on they work of their predecessors. I am talking about men who have their own style, get drunk, take more drugs then humanly possible, womanise and basically just have a great time while still be great and their chosen profession. Lets go through the possibilities.

JOHNNY DEPP

Ok so 1^st up is David Beckham, while he seems like a really good guy and is definitely a fashion and football icon around the world I am not sure he can be put into the same category of classic icon. There is also Colin Farrell who was on course to becoming the new proper badboy icon of Hollywood, but since he has got back on the wagon and settled down he has definitely lost a bit of his edge and now just kinda seems like a recovering addict, the same goes for Eminem who seems weak and a little frail compared to before. However these 3 will still go down in the books as icons of a sort.

COLIN FARREL

 So what about the very new generation from the US of A, Justin Timberlake and Usher have their own style and they are icons within the pop world but one started in a Disney show with Britney Spears and the other loves himself a little too much to be admired. You also have the Jonas Brothers, possibly the worst music ever made teamed with purity rings just makes them, well, a bit pathetic. I would be ashamed if a 4 year old thought they were cool. There is Justin Bieber (yes I know he’s Canadian) his floppy hair maybe a phenomenon but can you really see him graduate the levels of manlyness such as Keith Richards?

JONAS BROTHERS

For some reason Britain is pumping out these incredibly boring actors 2 at a time. I mean can you think of anyone more boring than Robert Pattinson, Orlando Bloom and Andrew Garfield? I mean watching an interview with any of them is like having your teeth pulled while being forced to watch an entire 5 day cricket test match between India and Nepal. Yet for some reason these guys are not only getting work they are getting huge roles, maybe movie directors like lifeless, style less pretty boys.

ICON? NAH!!

ORLANDO BLOOM

I am not saying there are no potential icons out there, but I don’t subscribe to the thinking that the guys from N-dubs or Chipmonk are going to take over the mantle, when they are more likely to get into a scrap outside Faces in Essex then smashing hotel rooms, doing last tours, winning Oscars or sleeping with a string of Hollywood beauties.  Then there are the footballers, Wayne Rooney maybe an icon on the pitch but off the pitch most self respecting men would probably just think he’s a bit of a nob. So please if you know anyone who is truely stylish, cool and talented  (and no Kanye West is none of these) please let me know, we will all have different opinions of whos an iconor whos the coolest, but the way I see it at the moment the world is in short supply of people to take over from these masters of cool.

UNSUNG KING

Jamie Redknapp is the unsung king of cool casual modern day cool, we have all seen him in his slightly too crotch grabbing shiny suit on sky sports, yet what most people don’t see is that the man knows how to dress outside of the studio.



Dolce hoody, PRPS jeans, Balenciaga high tops







Although there is no denying that David Beckham is probably the king of fashion forward British men there is also no denying that when it comes to off duty cool few do it better then Jamie Redknapp. He may not be the biggest risk taker out there but instead fuses very expensive high end key pieces in his own way without ever looking like a fashion victim.

LouisVuitton Scarf, Balenciaga High Tops

SWEATPANTS, THE NEW DENIM

I know this has been being done for a while now but I love the new wave of thinking that sweatpants as an acceptable form of going out attire. I am not saying we should ditch the jean or chinos completely but maybe they can get a rest for a while as a nice pair of tapered sweatpants paired with boot, high-tops or brogues can make a smart outfit, which is ontrend and without a lot of fuss. Here are some cool money saving options

Zara £19.99

ASOS £28

Zara £25.99



A slightly more expensive for the hipsters is Acne, the Swedish brand again nail casual cool to perfection.  The great thing about sweatpants is their ability to be dressed up or down. They really are great for wearing with a shirt and a blazer, but they are also cool with a t-shirt and jacket. If done correctly you can create a modern day James Dean/Steve McQueen look.

Acne £150

Yet the elder generation or les fashion forward f us should not fret, even the so called traditional fashion houses are doing it. With brands such as Paul Smith showing in the A/W 10 and now Bottega Veneta for S/S 11 the look is clearly here to stay and available from high street to high end.

Paul Smith £265

Bottega Veneta S/S 11

How Deep Should A Deep-V Be???

Deep v necks amongst modern men are riff, yet the question is, are they a fashion must or a fashion must not? That is a seriously hard question, on one hand you can look like a fashion forward thinking gent layering on top of it to give substance to a look or have your own sense of style and make the look your own. On the other hand you can just look like an x factor reject.

American Apparel

The really issue with the deep v is how much chest should a man really show? Yes a deep can look wicked with a just a pair of jeans in a modern day James Dean way, but get it wrong and the chest wig can make you look like a Greek shipping tycoon or if the chest is shaved then someone from JLS.

You must be wary of this look

 I believe or more to the point have been informed that the only way to pull off a deep v is to have strong shoulders and a well proportioned chest, yet if this is true why do people of all size continue to wear them? Thin skinny men are often used as models and fat geezers sometimes use a v neck to break up the whole upper body look.

ACNE £60

Some celebrities display their chests with pride, Jude Law for example is a great believer in the chest wigs right to be exposed, as is Ed Westwick of gossip girl fame. These 2 make it look simple but be warned it is not this easy and make sure you’re in a position to not look like a Topman stylist just threw up on you.

Ed Westwick

Jude Law



However here is a great option if you want a deep v,

Andrew & Charles £60