Tricker's fo' Très Bien Shop - Bourton Calf Navy Blue

Pick of The Bags Part Two

Brady Bag windsor khaki briefcase from Stuarts London

Mont Bell french guide pack in pine green from Oi Polloi

My previous post on summer bags. 

Converse Mackintosh Jack Purcell Jognny Ox Trainer

I am not normally a big fan of Converse but the Mackintosh Jack Purcell Jognny Ox Trainer are outstanding.

Watch Collection

From left to right1972 Omega Geneva, 1950s Omega, Longines gold pocket watch, my Swatch from the 1980s, 1960's RADO, 1990's  Tag Heuer F1, 2010 Uniform Wares.

I am thinking of adding another Uniform Wares stone watch to my collection this summer. 

CP Company Linen Flax Jacket With Goggle Hood In Green

I picked this up at Basilica Duo in Reading at the weekend, a great piece of design from CP Company

Pick Of The Denim Shirts

I have really started to enjoy denim shirts over the last couple of seasons and the following shirts are classic designs to fit into any mans wardrobe.

This is a Woolrich shirt I picked up on Yoox






















Universal Works from Oi Polloi

Everyday Essentials In My Bag

Inspired by Every Day Carry and my previous blog about bag essentials, my everyday essentials.

Bill Amberg selvage skiff bag in green
Porter shopper in blag
Bill Amberg wallet in brown
Ray Ban sunglasses
Folk keyring holder with Mulberry dog keyring
Swiss Army Knife
Il Brussetto coin purse
Antique wood business card holder
HTC android phone kept in a Bill Amberg card case
Nokia mobile
Moleskin diary
Berol pen

YMC Selvage Chinos Khaki

I picked up a pair of YMC selvage chinos in khaki at the weekend and I have just broken them out - beautifully designed.

A Great Look From Oi Polloi in Belstaff, CP Company, Edwin, Pointer

You Must Create (YMC) Navy Stripe/Navy Knit

I have already discussed how much I like YMC this season and just picked up this YMC knit from Basilica Duo in Reading.

Pick of the Nigel Cabourn Summer Jackets

Nigel Cabourn surface jacket in army/kahki

Nigel Cabourn aircraft jacket in blue

Nigel Cabourn naval parka in blue/white camo

Sartorialist Picture Of The Day

It makes me want to buy these Hollander bikes on Made.com ready for summer rides on the Thames path.

Our Legacy

I first started to get into Our Legacy last year when I invested in the classic chinos and a nice jumper from Oi Polloi.

One of the best menswear labels coming out of Sweden at the moment I would say the classic chino is a perfect summer investment.

I would also suggest the soft vintage denim shirt.

Summer Bags

Belstaff military bag

Engineered Garment duffel bag 

More bags

Great Picture From Sartorialist

Summer Essentials APC Striped Top

Summer Essentials

What are the essentials for summer?  I fell that it is always a difficult question to answer but here are my thoughts.

• The perfect blazer - I am currently into a lovely Dries Van Noten 
• A good raincoat - This year I have a smart McQ and a casual Nigel Cabourn 
• Sunglasses - Normally Ray Ban's for me but I might invest in a new pair of Persols 
• The perfect scent - Comme Des Garcons 
• Good moisturiser - Shiseido 
• Simple t shirts - Jil Sander, Dries Van Noten, Folk, YMC and Stone Island 
• A good cardigan - Folk this summer 

I would also say that some good jeans, shorts, Tretorn's and Church's Desert Boots.

A British Classic - Clarks Originals Desert Boots

Always a nice summer addition to the wardrobe and especially with this British Classic in light blue.

Great Picture from Sartorialist with Perfect Menswear

There is no need to show that awful pink flesh in the sun, perfect menswear. 

Pick Of The Best Men's Shorts

CP Company shorts on Oi Polloi

RAF by RAF Simons shorts on Yoox

What A Beautiful Day For Sunglasses

Alexander Mcqueen sunglasses from Yoox

Persol  sunglasses from Stuarts London

Everyday Carry

Everyday Carry is quite an interesting blog looking at the things we keep in our pockets and bags.

This is an area that interests me as in the previous bag essentials post.

Here is a picture of my everyday bag essentials. 

Bill Amberg Royal Wedding Canvas Shopper

Bill Amberg has created a royal wedding canvas shopper .

Monocle Support Japan Bracelet

I have been a big fan of Monocle since the launch, I have read every issue and the support Japan bracelet is something everyone should buy.

Spring/Summer 2011 Colour

I have been looking at my spring/summer wardrobe and I can see three prominent colours.

Blue - I love the colour and it is normally a staple in my wardrobe but I have really jumped on this colour this spring/summer.  I would say that the variety of shades have taken my breath away.



Grey - Another colour staple in my wardrobe but this season it is being used for accessories and shoes.



Stone - This is the new addition for spring/summer.  A great colour that I am using in my tops, accessories and shoes.



The two main patterns for me are stripes and block (but only a small amount of block), just like this Folk t shirt.

Uniform Wares British Designed Watch

My wife got me a Uniform Wares watch last year, it is a grey 100 series .

It is based on utilitarian British clocks and I can say that I have not really been using any of my other watches ever since.

I am even considering investing in the stone version for the summer.

Is Paul Smith Missing the Mark this Season?

I have always bought a lot of Paul Smith clothes for myself over the years but I have found certain times where I have become bored of the collection.  I would imagine this is quiet common for most people buying a designer for over twenty years.

Paul Smith has been at the forefront of British design for a very long time now, I have a lot of respect for him as a person and a businessman.

This season I have felt that the menswear collection has just been a little bit too "Paul Smith", there are not enough pieces pushing the collection forward.

The women's collection is very good this season with a great balance of fashion and classic design. 

New Bill Amberg Selvage Skiff Bag

The new Bill Amberg selvage skiff bag looks interesting.

I have had one of the old style bags for the past couple of years and I still really enjoy the bag and use it every day. You can see the green selvage skiff with my everyday essentials.

What a Great Look from The Sartorialist

What Makes A Great Digital Store?

I have been thinking about what makes a great digital store, a few points to think about.

Like all shops the product must be excellent quality and I can easily point towards Tres Bien as the best collection I have found this season.

Service is essential and this includes delivery, returns, packaging quality and keeping the customer informed, for me Oi Polloi have always been the best at delivering this service.

Finally the site design, I was trying to buy a new Bill Amberg bag the other day and gave up because it was so painful.  For design you can not get much better than Yoox.

All very simple points but very difficult to get right because the one thing that connects all of these stores is an attention to detail.

The detail is the key to successful digital stores.

Falling Back in Love with CP Company and Stone Island

Over the past few years I have flirted with the odd piece of Stone Island and CP Company, two brands that I loved back in the early 90's.

I was re-introduced to CP Company following a gift of a jacket from my brother.

Over the last couple of seasons I have purchased the odd piece, normally gloves or a scarf.

This season I have been really drawn to both collections and I feel the brand has actually gone back to it's true values.  Or it is that the younger people buying the brands, because they wanted to look like football lads, have stopped buying into Stone Island and CP Company?

I am not sure but I am happy to be enjoying the clothes again.

My Favorite Shops

It can be very difficult to get a shop just right , so I have put together a list of my favorite stores.

Oi Polloi
Not much that I can say about this shop that has not already been said a great collection and worth a visit if you are in Manchester.

Folk
Lambs Conduit Street is always worth a visit when in London and for me Folk is the highlight, great clothes and great service.

Margaret Howell
I am not much for the online store but the stores are always worth a visit, it just makes you feel comfortable and it a pleasure to buy a few pieces.

Yoox
Probably the best digital store around.

Liberty
I am not a big fan of department stores but it is a pity to call Liberty a department store.