On page one of this three page guide, you will find some essential notes and illustrations from the editors of Vanity Fair regarding the good taste of 1918 (as well as the simply awful).
The Well Dressed Man Confronts Bad Taste (Vanity Fair Magazine, 1918) Read More »
A Parisienne with a good many thoughts regarding menswear goes to some length to impart that men are dressing worse, not better, and the substitution of the dinner jacket (read: Tuxedo) for the tail-coat is an example of the slovenliness to come.
You are entirely wrong in imagining that we pay no attention to the way men dress…The truth is that while we may say nothing, we do not in the least consent, and we find, messieurs, that for some time now you have been very much changed, and for the worse.
Click here to read about the fashion legacy of W.W. I…
To read about one of the fashion legacies of W.W. II, click here…
Click here to read about the origins of the T-shirt.
The Decline of Masculine Elegance (Vogue Magazine, 1922) Read More »
Attached herein, you will find the fashionable coats, suits, shoes and cufflinks for men from the harsh winter of 1919 that had been approved by the Fifth Avenue swells of the VANITY FAIR editorial department.
The Well Dressed Man in February (Vanity Fair Magazine, 1919) Read More »
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1952 College Fashions (Gentry Magazine, 1952) Read More »
In merely nine paragraphs the attached men’s fashion magazine article from 1950 outlines the style and fabric that was put to use in the manufacturing of men’s underwear between 1890 through the Forties (wool to nylon).
The Elegant Story of Men’s Undergarments: 1890 – 1950 (Men’s Wear, 1950) Read More »
There is only one retail establishment in the world that is able to boast that they had retained the patronage of both Thomas Jefferson and Andy Warhol, and that would be Brooks Brothers.
Diplomats and prize fighters, dukes and bankers, Cabinet members and theatrical luminaries stroll every day through the ten-story building on Madison Avenue. The sight of Secretary of State Dean Acheson trying on a new overcoat, or Clark Gable testing a new pair of shoes, or the Duke of Windsor undecided between a red or green dressing gown causes scarcely a flurry. The reason is simply that the store itself is a national legend, as noted in its own right as any of its patrons.
The attached five page article lays out the first 132 years of Brooks Brothers. It is printable.
– from Amazon:
Brooks Brothers: Generations of Style, It’s About the Clothing
A History of Brooks Brothers (Coronet Magazine, 1950) Read More »
Tom Wolf and Mark Twain have not been the only men to have lamented the drab hues so prevalent in manly attire: now you may add to that list a new name: H. Dennis Bradley. The late Mr. Bradley was a tailor in London’s Old Bond Street some time back, and he was quite vocal concerning the issue of men’s fashions. Being a true man of the cloth, Mr. Bradley was certain that, prior to the unpleasantness of 1914, men’s fashions were headed in a healthy and aesthetically sound direction, but when the boys came home, the promise was not kept.
We may not go back to the rainbow shades and wonderful stuffs of the bucks and the dandies of olden times–do what we will, we live in utilitarian days–but whatever comes do not let us revert to the hideous hues and shapelessness of the Victorian era…
Click here to read a 1929 article about the Dress-Reform Movement.
The Need for Color in Men’s Fashion (Current Opinion, 1919) Read More »
A few short paragraphs from a late-Twenties issue of Literary Digest recalled the terribly unproductive plans of the short-lived dress-reform movement and the frustrating nature of the human male in most matters sartorial:
The male is a shy creature, and has always been particularly fearful of appearing conspicuous…
Click here to read an editorial about the need for reform in men’s attire.
The Dress-Reform Movement and Male Attire (Literary Digest, 1929) Read More »
In the early parts of the 20th Century serious attention had been paid in some quarters to what was called dress reform. An article from the August 14, 1929 magazine The Nation pointed out that
The Life Extension Institute weighed the street clothing of the women in New York City last June. The clothing of the women…averaged two pounds, ten ounces, while that of the men was was eight pounds, six ounces.
The Italian Futurist Ernesto Thayaht offered his remedy for the fashion maladies of the day with the design of a one piece garment that many Americans chose to see simply as pajamas. Needless to say, it didn’t catch on.
Click here to read a 1929 article about the Dress-Reform Movement.
Click here to read an editorial about the need for reform in men’s attire.
Read about men’s fashions from 1937 and the break-through in color that had been so sorely needed.
The Dress Reform Movement (La Nazione, 1919) Read More »
The attached men’s fashion article concerns the a brief autumn visit to the country; recalled by an anonymous fashion scribe whose charming prose allowed us to envision a leisured life in the late Gilded Age.
Shooting Tweeds, Riding Breeches and Evening Clothes (Dress & Vanity Fair, 1913) Read More »
