Summer jackets 3: keeping cool with Richard James

I tried very hard to think of ways to sneak away with these three items from Richard James, but I suspect they would have noticed their absence rather quickly. I loved all of them. 

The cool pink check linen suit, below, would need (for me) a little courage to wear, but it fitted like a glove and on holiday somewhere sunny it would be an essential for the cocktail bar.  It was fun to wear, made me smile and I was reluctant to take it off after the shoot. This suit made me realise what a genius Richard James is. Clothes are to enjoy, not be serious about. I guessed its price to be some £1800; it's actually £825.

Richard James pink check linen suit £825
Linen shirt Dundas London
Brogues Loake
Socks Pantherella

This pale blue cotton gingham jacket (below) is light and comfortable. It would be ideal for beach or pool-side party and is casual enough to wear with shorts. I liked this one very much. Sarah Gilfillan's genius styling and sense of colour, pairing the Marwood tie with tan trousers and pale blue Dundas shirt, are clear from this photograph.

Richard James blue gingham jacket £595
Shirt as above
Tie Marwood

This sand lightweight fine wool poplin jacket (below, part of a suit) would be equally at home worn while thrashing out a business deal in a Bahamian boardroom or helming one's classic 1965 Riva across Lake Como; its crisp, tailored shape is perfect. On reflection, this is the one I would keep (the whole suit preferably).

Richard James sand fine wool suit jacket £825 (for two-piece suit)
Shirt Smyth & Gibson
Tie Marwood

Jackets like these are versatile. They may be part of a formal suit, or be worn with lightweight trousers, chinos or genuinely-faded denims. They go with t-shirts, cotton tops and linen or more formal shirts, with or without a tie. Here I wear a light blue linen shirt from Dundas (a brand to watch), a cotton shirt (made in Northern Ireland by Smyth & Gibson) and two ties from a favourite made in England brand, Marwood. Bright summery socks in fine Egyptian cotton from Pantherella. Brogues from Loake.

Suppliers:

Richard James

Dundas Shirts

Marwood

Smyth & Gibson

Pantherella

Loake

With infinite thanks to:

Styling - SartoriaLab

Photography - Nick Maroudias

This feature is not sponsored.

Richard James AW15 - wearable menswear with style

I always look forward to the Richard James show at London Collections:Men. While there's always something new and different, his menswear is wearable and ideal for a man of any age as it's so rooted in the classic; as you'd expect from Savile Row.

The collection finds inspiration in the Transandine Railway, constructed with British engineering assistance in Chile at the end of the 19th century.

Cutting through sheer mountainsides and dizzying drops, the railway runs through a dramatic landscape, the people and colours of which inspire the hues and styles of the collection.

Granite, earth grey and earth browns are set off with bright sky blues, red, yellow, turquoise, derived from the costumes of the Inca heritage of the area.

As you'd expect, materials are of the highest quality: flannels, Saxonies, prints, denim are among those used so effectively.

For me, the collection demonstrated the wide range of wearable style and fabrics available for men of all ages to wear. For more information, and to see the current collection, visit Richard James.

Cary Grant and classic simplicity - Recreating the Look

It's been a while since I added a post to the Recreating the Look series. Here's a very cool Cary Grant ordering a meal on a train in Hitchcock's North by Northwest. Naturally, he's dining with a beautiful woman (Eva Marie Saint). Grant's distinguished grey hair is echoed by the silver of his immaculate suit and tie. A plain white shirt helps keep the look clean. 

This photograph could have been taken at almost any time on the last fifty years; the look is a masterpiece of classic simplicity. The suit (which may or may not have been made by Kilgour of Savile Row) is generally reported to have been a subtle blue-grey Glen check (Prince of Wales check), a cloth that never shows up properly in photographs. The tie is said to have been grey with very fine polka dots, rather than plain.

As usual, I've found some products at different prices to enable you to recreate the look. The intention is not to exactly copy, but to give a similar style. You could finish it off with some brown Oxford or Derby brogues with burgundy socks and a subtle dove-grey textured silk pocket square that doesn't inject too much colour into this understated style.

The suits I've selected are off-the-peg, but you may prefer bespoke or made to measure for a perfect fit. I've spoken to Susannah Hall, tailor, who could make a suit for you from £850 depending on choice of cloth and style. Prices elsewhere for a tailored suit can rise to several thousand pounds, depending on the level of bespoke and the tailor you select

M&S Sartorial check suit £299

Richard James grey birdseye Hyde suit £795

Oliver Peoples Gregory Peck sunglasses

John Lewis Oxford shirt £35

Burberry £275 Mr Porter

M&S silk textured tie £17.50

Marwood tie and tie pin £280 - Mr Porter

For more in the Recreating the Look series click here. If you have any looks you would like me to recreate, please get in touch.

Suppliers

Marks & Spencer

Richard James

Oliver Peoples

John Lewis

Mr Porter

Marwood

Richard James SS14 at London Collections:Men - video

One of my favourites at LC:M earlier this week was the Richard James show.

 

Richard James A/W 13 - plenty of inspiration for the man of style

Here's a video covering the Richard James Autumn/Winter 2013 collection at January's London Collections: Men. 

I've discussed elsewwhere the exciting variations on classic designs shown here. Bold checks and sometimes subtle splashes of colour highlighting more neutral (and naturalistic) background hues. There is much to influence the mature man wondering how to dress stylishly this year.

See also my recent posts on fashion trends here and Richard James here.

M&S Mens - Savile Row Inspired: Richard James and Marks & Spencer

Following my open letter to Marks and Spencer on 10th January (to which I haven't had a reply), here is a video of Richard James talking earlier last year about the Savile Row Inspired range, possibly the way forward for M&S Mens if combined with improvements in the sales environment, quality and service.

I was interested to hear him comment on the Italian inspiration behind much of the M&S range and his wish to bring a sense of Britishness; points I mentioned in my earlier post.

And here Richard James introduces his suit range (and shows how dangerous is the word 'nice').

Richard James - more inspiration from London Collections: Men 2013

I've posted a couple of articles about London Collections: Men and, although I've had a gentle grumble about the youth of the models, there's no doubt that there was much to hearten the over-40 year old man. Well-made classics and a move away from skinny cut trousers and jackets signals a style that enables the older man to express himself easily, comfortably and in an age-appropriate way.

As a Savile Row inhabitant, Richard James is never going to be wildly avant-garde, but he adds a twist to his designs that mean you can stand out if you don't want to look too conventional. As such, his designs suit the stylish man of any age.

Here is my selection from his Autumn/Winter 2013 collection. There is much to like. I see colourful splashes in scarves, pocket squares and accessories, layers under pea coats and jackets, sober blues highlighted with mossy greens and yellows, traditional tweeds and knits - wonderful stuff.