Blaze a trail with these great jackets March 29, 2012 It wasn’t so long ago that a blazer was the brass-buttoned item your dad wore to the golf club dinner. It was Alan Partridge’s jacket of choice, a garment wheeled out for occasions demanding that dreaded “smart-casual” dress code. Its rehabilitation has coincided with a blurring of the lines between smart and casual. In the [...]
THE LOWDOWN ON TAILORING March 29, 2012 Ozwald Boateng “You must always wear a suit that’s flattering to your form. You need to educate yourself and understand your form – it’s all about proportions and balance. Each designer or tailor has an approach to that question, and you must find the one that works for you. Or make a visit to Savile [...]
Get shirty with ill fitting shirts. Try going bespoke March 29, 2012 Buying a shirt to wear with a suit should be a straightforward process. It’s the item of clothing most men possess more of than any other – but getting the right one can be vexing. Given the complexity of the human body and the variety of physiques out there, the chances of finding a shirt [...]
Add a dash of colour to your life – but not too much March 29, 2012 Buying a suit is easy. Any idiot can do it. Wait, hear me out. With a suit comes a tailor who, in theory, should stop you going home with something you’ll come to regret. At the very least it should fit. But there is no such luxury when you’re in House of Fraser contemplating a [...]
Don’s as sharp as ever. Are you? March 29, 2012 The wait is over – the suits are back. Mad Men started up again this week, gently lowering us back into a world of lunchtime whisky, indoor smoking and suits so sharp they could do some serious damage. But Don Draper isn’t the only sartorial heavyweight gracing the small screen. From Harvey Specter’s effortless cool [...]
Put your very best foot forward March 29, 2012 Good dressing starts with what you put on your feet. A smart outfit can be destroyed by shabby footwear, while sharp shoes may save the day if your suit’s a bit worn out. And a downright fancy pair of shoes can give you instant playboy status. Such is the case with the remarkable bespoke and [...]
Vive la revolution in online shopping March 29, 2012 It wasn’t long ago that people winced at the thought of ordering a book online, let alone something as complex and personal as a suit. But a new crop of retailers have perfected the formula and online shopping for high-end menswear is amongst the fastest growing areas in the retail sector. The internet now accounts [...]
Video conferencing: Beyond the office March 28, 2012 IN all aspects of business, employees are increasingly demanding greater freedom of choice as to how and where they work. And giving employees this freedom of choice makes sense for a business – if work can be carried out from any number of locations your company can be more efficient with lower overheads and so [...]
Crisis turning into real threat for PM March 26, 2012 IT still seems likely that the coalition will last for a while yet. But the pressure is mounting again, with the resignation of financier Peter Cruddas as Tory party Treasurer and fresh allegations about party funding dealing another blow to David Cameron. Many in the City have become too complacent about the longevity of this [...]
UK and Europe on a collision course March 13, 2012 IT is the elephant in the room, the issue nobody wants to talk about. But the growing, irreconcilable gulf between what UK voters and their continental counterparts want from European integration will eventually become as important a question as the fallout from the economic crisis. The scale of the challenge is laid bare by YouGov-Cambridge [...]