Camel is King

Well…Cash is king usually but here the idea is that camel is a great versatile color that goes with so many colors.  I will stop short of saying that it goes with everything but I will not say what the exceptions are as nothing comes to mind quickly.

By way of email communications I was talking with a customer who recently purchased the camel coat shown below and was contemplating a coordinating scarf.

Here are some options, but by no means should this post be considered a comprehensive list.  In fact one look at the scarf pages on my site will show that so many options work with that coat or one of similar colors.

I show here a Colombo cashmere scarf (pricey),

an Alex Begg wool angora (not pricey) and

a house label double sided knitted scarf. (very not pricey)

and more of the same:

3 up 3 down

PS(As in Pre Script):  If you noticed I added a tagger link on the right where you can Tag these posts on Delicious.com, please feel free to do so (yeah, spread the word, thanks!).

Anyway, I was informed that the following jacket which I have been labeling as a sports coat is in fact part of a suit but that would not make a difference here.

Here are some suggestions for the Black Check suit sent to me, I welcome thoughts and comments.  (Votes are nice too )

I was torn between these two squares, the ovals or the painted Paisley in rust and Black  which I show in this shot.  Meanwhile I went with the one on the right, a rich favorite of mine.

This tie shows more red here in the pic but its a ruby red grapefruit color in actuality.  A rather rich color as well.

The burgundy cashmere/silk blend works but it doesn’t much more than a subtle hello. (which is fine )

I love this tie, and I like the way that it gives color and life without having any burgundy in it. Its got greys, purple, rust and I think  it looks really nice here.  Quite probably my first choice with this jacket.

For some more on the subject, if you have been following my blog for a bit you will know that I posted about a similar jacket with similar coloration.  It was a Brioni suit but withlarger window panes.  Here is the post as well as here.  It bears looking over as I think the colors are similar even if the Brioni was more slated to a grey brown and this is a more distinct black check.

Two down, one to go…

Much in the same way that paisley patterns can be any color, its important to note that the name glen plaid cannot be categorized nor limited to a color as the term merely indicates a pattern (see link for history on GP).  That’s why one cannot simply state rules to follow when pairing shirts, ties and squares to glen plaid.

This particular Glen Plaid had a very feint (almost imperceptible) light blue check in it which invited in the light blue shirt.  Youc an see it in the pictures below, and I will add another on Wed (11/4) as a closeup detail)

Otherwise it was primarily a black check.  This is where the ties I used (Blacks and  Burgundies) came in as follows:

First up is a Cesare Attolini weave with a lovely hand.  The grey in the tie would be acceptable in and of itself as it works well with the Black of the glen plaid.  This had the added benefit of being a slate gray which is tinged with blue.  The burgundy stripe in the tie wakes it all up.  Again for the square I used the same universaly colored square as in the previous post.  Its got so many colors it works with ALL the ties below. (PS:  MB, I didnt accidentally leave it in the pocket, enjoy!)

The second is a burgundy dotted weave. I thought it a nice subtle entry of burgundy which is a great color for the ensemble.

For a bold contrast, this twill print, with both burgundy and blue dost in the neats pattern works well.

Finally in the same vein of contrast is the black weave with the light blue flowers.

Tomorrow, the plaid suit/sportscoat.

One down, two to go

Happy Monday to you all!  Here’s to a better week than the last one was.

Got a box today with one hard to work shirt and a Grey Glen Plaid suit as well as black check Sportscoat.

The history behind the shirt was that it was a gift from a business associate from overseas, and the subject was wondering if it could be worked into a business setting with a suit as said business associate would be visiting and the gift recipient wanted to show his appreciation.

The nature of the shirt made it hard as its a darkish blue color with a purplish tinge to it and almost to the point of looking a bit denimy. (that means like DENIM, DUH!)

Here is what I came up with, using a Navy pin stripe suit, and a universal color square (meaning there are so many different colors here you can almost use these squares for everything).

I think that this (its not really that tie, that tie isnt on the site, shame on me.  This is the pink/black version of that pink ) tie works best here. It gives enough color and contrast without being over the top.  Its not quite red, closer to a pinky black.  Its somewhat textured but the texture doesn’t compete with the shirts chevron weave.

This also works well for the same reason.  Its got reds, Blues and violets mixed in there.

Finally, this floral/paisley which doesnt look that special in the pic but is a nice match in person.  The darker colors of the tie almost blend perfectly with the shirt. (OK, OK, my wife thought it got lost against the shirt, but what who asked HER?)

Tomorrow we attack the Glen Plaid Suit.

Pink and Red?

Traditional pundits will tell you that Pink clashes with Red.  Like everything else, its only sometimes correct.

Here are some shots that might debunk that part truth:

The suit is navy, the shirt is light pink, the ties are various shades of reds.  I intentionally chose a deep red square to highlight the red of the ensemble.

The First Tie has red with blue cross stripes, which comes back to the navy suit.

This twill tie might be too red against the pink. (I would love to hear your thoughts)

Better and more subtle is this twill:

Initially I thought this chevron tie may have been too strong, but I think the white breaks it up.

Yes, I know that this tie is NOT red.  But I really liked the way it went with the pink shirt.  Highlighted with the square its a winner.

A Busy Day

Way too tired and drained for much.  To finish the previous ideas I bring you the following shots:

Maybe when I am awake I will post comment.

If you want to know what I was busy with all morning…

(EDIT: Fell asleep last night in the Lazy Boy before I got a chance to upload the photo!!!)

Contrasting with Layers

Sheesh peoples…Is it so hard to comment below or click on the stars above (when you click on the permalink for any  particular post)?  Not asking much here.

Anyway…needing to retake the shots of the cashmere silks (and I should probably retake most of my earlier tie shots) I figured I would incorporate the previous concepts of layering into the shots (and thereby kill two birds with one stone as I could shoot the vests and the ties at the same time).

As mentioned earlier, keep the contrasts coming and use the layer as an aesthetic accessory as well as a practical one.

Results are here.  Interestingly enough I used a NAVY cardigan vest yet it photographed like a black.  Both are acceptable.  The light Blue shirt, Colombo Cashmere vest and the Zig Zag Cashmere Silk tie in Blue and light Brown.

Made up of this:

Here is the squares twill cashmere Silk Tie,  the reverse,  beige vest with a Navy suit.  I like this square in here since the red shocks life into the Navy suit and the gold beige works with the vest. (I know that the square here looks nothing like the link, just dump it into the items that I need to retake folder.   )

Made up of this:

Your Attention Please…

Having opened up a pandoras tie box the other day by introducing the Cashmere/Silk Blends shown in this post, I was asked to pair a few up with the aforementioned swatch.

I kept the Colombo cashmere vests. (did I mention that these vests are only $300.  Pretty durned good for a 1 x 2 cashmere vest with a sublime hand and MOP buttons)  I like them in there but between you and me they dont have to be there to create that buffer I have been speaking about as this suit fabric is textured enough and the tie isnt that fuzzy.  I did swap the beige for a brown which I found to be more of a challenge and not the no brainer the beige was.

This time I also used the cream shirt which was the second request in the letter.

Here are some results (If you notice I substituted the burgundy square for a green floral paisley. As I have mentioned before there are probably close to if not 9 different colors in those squares:

Not a wool blend but sufficiently textured to allow this tie to belong in this post.

Now with the blue shirt.  I don’t know what your monitor shows but the reality of this ensemble is that it works.  The tungsten lighting is making the blue more royal than it should.

So Mark…Do I have your attention yet?

 

Before and After

As promised (I think a first for me) , here are two shots that clearly illustrate how the layering piece buffers and transitions between a smooth fabric and a textured one.  In the first pic, the tie looks in place.

With Layer

In the second, the tie looks like it doesn’t belong.

Without Layer

Enjoy the weekend.

The Buffer Zone

Another added benefit when layering is that it creates a buffer between a smooth fabric and a textured tie.  Ordinarily one would try and avoid mixing and matching textures but here you get some leeway being that the layer creates a buffer between fabrics and textures.

Here are some visuals. (The first two ties are less of an issue as even though they are cashmere blends since they have a fine finish.  The third also is not that big a deal as its a thicker weave.  Tomorrow though I will add some additional pics to further illustrate as well as to show what it looks like with and without the layer).

I rather like the effect that this cashmere blended tie gives the ensemble, with its strong contrast against the vest.

This burgundy cashmere silk blend gives a soft introduction of color into the set.

A knitted woven burgundy tie goes a little more bold and further illustrates the point, as its got texture. Technically one could get away with this kind of knit with a smooth finished wool. Definitely so if it was a silk.