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‘Beautifully Made’ in Rake Magazine
Here is an editorial entitled “Beautifully Made”, shot by photographer Derrick Santini in Tuscany, for Rake Magazine. The magazine’s bi-line is “The Modern Voice of Classic Men’s Elegance,” sounds good to me! They have a few articles archived on the website. Here are a few that swing lads might be interested in:
Puttin’ on the Ritz: An Introduction to Formal Wear
Miles Ahead: The Style of Miles Davis
Otherwise, enjoy this sexy, well-tailored re-imagining of the mafia in southern Italy…
Tagged: derrick santini, fashion, Italian, italy, mafia, magazine, men, mob, rake, suit, tailoring, tuscany
Hermes Fall 2010: Top Picks
My favorites from the Hermes Fall 2010 ready-to-wear show. Plenty of lady fops and dandies, with leather replacing tweeds in a mildly fetish twist. Like British super-heroines in some post-apocalyptic London… very Avengers. These women clearly need to be driving this car. Animal print umbrellas, pocket watches, leather gloves, bowler hats and netting veils, what’s not to like?
Tagged: bowler hat, Fall 2010, hermes, ladies, Ready to Wear, RTW, suit, top hat, tuxedo, women
Raquel Zimmermann & Freja Beha in W Magazine
I like this fun “Art & Commerce” editorial in W Magazine, Oct 2009. It was photographed by Inez & Vinoodh, styled by Alex White, and the two models are Raquel Zimmermann and Freja Beha. Love the white tuxedo they put Freja in.
Tagged: Alex White, Freja Beha, Inez, le smoking, Raquel Zimmermann, suit, tuxedo, Vinoodh, W Magazine, woman
Vintage Costumers, Seattle
Another great reason to live in Seattle! Costume shop Vintage Costumers specialising in authentic vintage styles to hire. Here’s a sampler, I think I’ll post some more later, there’s so many great things to hire!
7011 Roosevelt Way NE
Seattle, WA 98115
Monday to Friday 11am – 7pm
Saturdays & Sundays 11am – 6pm
Tagged: 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, beaded gown, Clothing, costume, fashion, flapper, forties, hire, men, seattle, suit, thirties, twenties, women, wwii
Jessica Biel does Menswear Chic
These were snapped back in 2008 when she was in Rome promoting Easy Virtue. The suit is, of course, YSL.
Categories: Celebrities, On CatwalksTagged: Jessica Biel, le smoking, menswear, suit, women, YSL, Yves Saint Laurent
David Beckham suits up for GQ December 2008
Tagged: 1930s, 1940s, David Beckham, forties, gangster, GQ, suit, thirties
The Blue Devils in crisp linen suits
The Blue Devils were a Kansas city jazz band in the 1920s and 30s, and above we have a photograph from 1932 of the saxophone section (Theo Ross and Buster Smith) welcoming their newest member, Lester Young, in the middle. For jazz fans, other big names that were in the band included Hot Lips Page, Bill ‘Count’ Basie and Jimmy Rushing. If you don’t know who any of those guys are, no problem – just look at how fine those 1930s suits are! Freshly pressed three-piece linen suits, and look at the details! Jazz orchestras knew how to dress. Perfectly matching down to the ties, the shoes, even the pocket handkerchiefs. And look closely, Lester is even holding a pipe.
Photo from ‘Jazz: A History of America’s Music’ by Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns.
Categories: Men's FashionTagged: 1930s, cream, fashion, jazz, Lester Young, linen, men, suit, thirties, tie, vintage
Yves Saint Laurent did not invent the tuxedo for women!
We’ve been enjoying a fashion comeback of tuxedo styles for women over the past few seasons, bolstered by the passing in June 2008 of famed designer Yves Saint Laurent. It’s true, in the 1960s and 70s, YSL was responsible for re-popularizing suit and tuxedo styles for women, in particular his 1966 creation, “Le Smoking”, a tailored tuxedo suit with a long, slender 1960s silhouette. But, with all respect, it’s ridiculous to say he was the style’s inventor!
I caught Elle Magazine with this little diddy from last year: “It’s no coincidence that in the week when fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent, the man who designed Le Smoking (the first tuxedo for women) passed away, the A-list are paying their respects in a way he would have loved- by wearing tuxedo jackets at every opportunity.” And even my beloved Wikipedia has this to say: “the Le Smoking tuxedo suit for women was the first of its kind to earn attention in the fashion world and in popular culture.“ What’s going on here? Yves Saint Laurent did NOT invent the tuxedo for women, and the 1960s was not the first time women fashionably wore suits and tuxedos. Every swing girl knows this!
Above and below, we have Marlene Dietrich, who wore this tuxedo in the film Morocco in 1928. In the scene she sings and even kisses a girl…
And here we have Josephine Baker, Gloria Swanson, Anna May Wong and Katharine Hepburn in the 1920s, 30s and 40s…
Rant aside, it’s brilliant that the look has been having a fashion comeback (even with mistaken origins). Here are a few celebrities, mostly care of Fashionising.com, who have been toying with the trend. We have Ashley Olsen, Diane Kruger, Naomi Watts, Anne Hathaway, Rihanna, Blake Liveley and Dita Von Teese.
If the Fall 2009 and Resort 2010 collections are anything to go by, it seems as if the trend will be with us for a while longer. Viva Le Tuxedo!
Categories: Celebrities, Vintage PhotosTagged: bowtie, dining, dinner, Dita Von Teese, girl, hat, jacket, lady, Marlene Dietrich, suit, tails, top, tophat, tuxedo, women, YSL, Yves Saint Laurent
Africa Appeal: Koto Bolofo for German Vogue January 2008
Tagged: africa, cheetah, chimpanzee, Deutsch, dress, elephant, German, Koto Bolofo, leopard, photographer, print, safari, shirt, suit, turban, vogue
Benjamin Bixby Spring 2009 Collection
As promised, here are some of the pieces from the new Spring 2009 collection of the Benjamin Bixby label, belonging to Outkast’s Andre Benjamin (a.k.a. Andre 3000). Much less preppy than the first collection, but still with a tailored retro edge that we love.
Tagged: Andre 3000, Andre Benjamin, Benjamin Bixby, Idlewild, linen, Outkast, safari, suit
Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers All In White 1937
The world’s most famous Lindy Hop troupe in history. Manager (and former Savoy Ballroom bouncer) Herbert ‘Whitey’ White – is the man in the middle. The troupe was performing at the New Cotton Club in Culver City, California while filming ‘A Day at the Races’ with the Marx Brothers.
Categories: Celebrities, Vintage PhotosTagged: 1930s, Cotton Club, Day At The Races, harlem, lindy hop, linen, savoy ballroom, suit, thirties, white, Whitey's Lindy Hoppers
Clark Gable and his Moustache
And with a moustache like that, stuff like this can happen:
Tagged: Clark, Clark Gable, Gable, Hair, moustache, slick, suit
Lady in a Suit
From the book Elegance – The Seeberger Brothers and the Birth of Fashion Photography by Chronicle Books.
Categories: Vintage PhotosTagged: suit