The Linen Suit

Raketa Copernic Watch – Quick Review

Posted on October 12, 2011 by D Clothier

Raketa Kopernik

Since I have begun looking for and researching affordable watches I have developed quite a taste for old Russian watches. Until recently I knew nothing about the extensive history of Russian horology; now I find myself spending far too much time on watch forums and sifting through ebay listings for interesting, unusual and cheap watches.

I haven’t quite got the hang of photographing watches so apologies for the poor quality of the shots.

In any event, here are a couple of shots of the latest edition to my collection – a 1980′s Raketa Copernik or Copernicus watch. I don’t know much about the history of these watches. I’ve seen it suggested that they were originally designed to mark the quincentenary of the birth of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus but as that was in 1473 that would date them to the 1970′s. Alternatively, the name Copernic (or Kopernic or Copernicus) may refer to the way the round markers (it seems wrong to call them hands) circle each others with a planetary or orbital motion.

Fundamentally, this is a basic mechanical watch with the unique selling point of the unusual hands which are often referred to as planetary or a “sun and moon” as once an hour they form an eclipse.

This watch is in quite good condition and keeping good time. The case is a little worn showing what appears to be underlying brass but that just adds to the astronomical instrument feel of the piece. The crystal (actually acrylic) face is probably new as it shows very little sign of wear compared to the rest of the watch. The hands and face show a little wear. The dial itself has a CCCP marking dating it to the Soviet period, i.e. pre 1991, so it is at least 20 years old.

Overall, it’s a functioning timepiece that is interesting to look at and draws plenty of positive comments from colleagues and friends. I mainly wear it with a black suit for a sober but interesting appearance!

For those that are interested in the workings of mechanical watches there is a great series of photographs available here of a Raketa Copernicus being services.

The Linen Suit is on Twitter

Posted on August 16, 2011 by D Clothier

OK, so you now can follow The Linen Suit on Twitter at @thelinensuit, surprisingly enough. Now to start slimming down my rambling posts to 140 characters! As soon as I figure out the technical stuff I’ll link the site to the twitter account.

UPDATE!

So now I’ve installed a twitter feed and a follow button on the right hand sidebar. This twit is twittering…..

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Why I only Wear Cheap Watches

Posted on August 15, 2011 by D Clothier

The smart answer is that because that is all that I can afford but that is not actually the case, or at least, is only part of it. It is true that if I could afford it I would have a huge collection of haute horology and wear a different one every day to according to how feel. But as my budget is somewhat more limited than my taste, I have had to settle for a small collection of affordable watches that are suitable for the different looks that I wear.

I have to admit here that I love watches, most men do. They tick all the boxes for what attracts guys; they’re gadgets; they’re status symbols; they’re one of the few forms of jewellery for men that are acceptable; and, of course, they are useful. More importantlthan all that, or perhaps the effect of all that, is they are a statement of individuality (or not) even more readable than a man’s clothes. A glance at a man’s watch will tell you a great deal about him. So by choosing your watch you choose what message is being given out.

The Horological Arms Race

This may be why many men go for big expensive watches. It’s the sartorial equivalent of an open top sports car. And it is the case that I do fancy expensive watches myself. Personally, I would love a Breuget t one of them could set you back the best part of €20,000. Even that is relatively affordable; a watch from Irish master watch makers the McGonigle Brothers could be ten times that.

And right there is one of the problems with expensive watches. There is no effective limit on the amount that they cost so no matter how much you are able to spend there is always the possibility that you will come up against somebody with a more expensive watch on their wrist. And if your self-image is reliant on a “mine is bigger than yours” watch you may suddenly find yourself feeling very small.

Another issue is that your watch should fit in with the rest of your outfit. A €5,000 watch looks a bit odd under the sleeve of a €500 suit. More to the point, people may well make a negative assessment based on an apparently overly-expensive watch. Either you have a taste for bling or there is something you are not telling them about your income (bad move if it’s the revenue that is checking you out) or, far worse, you have succumbed to the lures of a cheap “replica” watch. Or a fake as they are colloquially referred to. And there is nothing more naff than a fake watch. In fact, such is the prevalence of fake watches today that genuine watches by some of the world’s most famous brands are in danger of being mistaken for them. Hence the reason the big watch houses put so much effort into pursuing and prosecuting the fakers.

Cheap v Affordable

Cheap is an unfortunate term, with its associations with low quality. I much prefer the term affordable, which signifies a certain level of quality at a reasonable price. Timex watches, for example, produce decent quality watches for every budget. The question of what exactly is affordable is more difficult. After all, Bill Gates idea of what is affordable is considerably more expensive than mine. Basically, what is affordable will be dictated by your own income. No-one else can tell you how much you can really afford to spend on a watch. As with anything though, there is a certain element of you get what you pay for. It’s worth going that little bit further to ensure value for money.

What To Look For In An Affordable Watch

So what does the well dressed man look for in a watch? How does he choose a watch that looks good, suits his style and doesn’t break the bank? Well, let us go back to the comments I made earlier on why men like watches and take it from there.

To start with the obvious one – watches tell the time. Actually, it’s debatable as to how important that is these days. In the early days of horology time was fluid and hard to pin down. But today most men have access to a myriad of time checks. Every electronic gadget, even your mobile phone, will instantly update you as to the time. And yet there is something reassuring about being able to glance at your wrist and get a fairly accurate update on the time. So, I am a traditionalist. By and large I like my watches to be easy to read and reasonably reliable. I say reasonably because, hey, I’m Irish, five or ten minutes either way doesn’t matter in the greater scheme of things. Seriously though, a watch should be accurate and fortunately, even cheap quartz movements are sufficient for reasonably accurate timekeeping. Readability usually means a clear dial with large hands pointing out the time but , having said that, there are many interesting timepieces available with alternative approaches to displaying the time and I may come back to them in later posts.

As for watches being gadgets, well they’re a one trick pony really. They tell the time and that’s about it. Well chronographs, diving watches and the like have some other useful and important functions but I go with the old design dictum of form follows function. For my everyday watches I want them to tell the time and for sports watches I want them to perform their subordinate functions efficiently and, again, clearly.

No, I think the really important factor is that watches are also an adornment, an accessory, even a form of jewellery if you must. And, as with any other accessory, a watch should be chosen for its style , for its design and for its look. Now that can mean one that catches your eye for any sort of reason or just one that matches your outfit (and if you’re fastidious about these things you can always make sure your watchstrap matches your belt which matches your shoes). I look for classic design in my watches and there are a surprising number of classic designs at affordable prices. The Mondaine Swiss Railway Watch is a good example and one that I wear as an everyday watch. If on trend looks are more your thing then dedicated fashion watch brands like Diesel or Fossil churn out hundreds of stylish and trendy designs every year.

Which does raise the issue of the status symbol aspect of a watch. If you are going for a more individual or unusual watch than you are relying on its style and design qualities to give the message that you are a man of taste and discernment. A good watch is about more than the price tag. Like a good suit or fine shoes it will give off a message of class and quality.

Where To Watch The Watches

Unless you wear the same outfit all the time (and where is the fun in that?) start putting together a small collection of affordable watches choosing them forspecific occasions, outfits or needs. That way you will always have a classic accessory on your wrist and you’ll give out the message that you may not have a fortune but you always have style. Consider what sort of watch you need for work, for sport or for dating. Take some time to look on line. Look at what the men you take design cues off of are wearing. Do plenty of research. Start right here on the internet. From Amazon to Ebay there are piles of watches to be discovered. Look at watch forums, I’m a big fan of watchuseek, and just use Google to search for interesting, alternative and affordable watches. There’s a whole wide world and web of wonderful watches just waiting for you.

I hope to post a bit more about watches here on The Linen Suit. In the short term I am going to start an occasional series of reviews of the watches that I own and, maybe, that I aspire to own, so watch this space and come back for more.

Posted in Men's Accessories, Mens Watches | Tagged affordable watches, best watches, cheap watches, men's accessories, mens watches | Leave a comment

Take A Bow If You Wear Real Bow Ties

Posted on July 17, 2011 by D Clothier

: Well, his bow tie seems to be getting plenty of attention, or maybe it’s the hat. || image © Jamie Duplass via photoxpress.com

I had to attend a literary award dinner recently (no, I was not the recipient of an award myself, just somebody’s plus guest) which meant digging out the formal evening wear as it was a black tie affair. And it took a bit of digging. Back at the height of the Celtic Tiger madness I seemed to be going to black tie events every other night, now that we’re all broke again it seems to be nothing but no tie events. In any event, I eventually found my tuxedo, a proper Marcella dress shirt and a black bow tie. Then I spent ten minutes in front of the mirror trying to remember how to tie a bow tie.

You see, the thing is if you are going to wear bow ties you have to wear proper ones. Ones that you actually tie to make a nice bow out of. The ready tied, clip on ones just do not cut it on a man who aspires to be well dressed. They just look cheap and lazy. And you run the risk of being mistaken for a waiter as in G.K.Chesterton’s story “The Queer Feet” and, indeed, as once happened to me at a wedding.

So, for formal wear, it must be a black silk hand tied bow tie (unless it’s “white tie” in which case it needs to be a white marcella tie but let’s not go there today). The other advantage of a real bow tie is that at the appropriate stage late in the evening, or early the next morning, you can untie it, undo your top button and drape the tie rakishly across your shoulders.

Not that I would limit bow ties to formal wear. Actually, for me I do, but I recognise that a bow tie is an acceptable form of necktie for the stylish man. Indeed, I notice them increasingly in fashion shoots and articles. They add a bit of individuality and eccentricity to an outfit. The classic look in mens bow ties must be the academic look; a brightly patterned, or even novelty, bow tie worn with a bad shirt and a tweed jacket, maybe even a tank top. Actually, it’s a good look although it can look like a bit pretentious. You would want to be confident that you could hold your own in academic discourse before trying it.

A more modern alternative is a bright, but not novelty, floppy bow tie with a really good suit. It softens the formality of the suit and certainly makes the wearer stand out from the crowd. It also works well with more casual shirts or non-traditional formal shirts, that is colored or patterned ones.

However you decide to wear it though, it has to be a real bow tie tied into a real bow.

And sorry about the title, I love puns and word play, it’s a weakness, sorry

Posted in Men's Accessories, Mens Suits, Ties | Tagged black suit, black tie, bow tie, bow ties, evening wear, real bow ties | Leave a comment

The Linen Cap – A Surprising Alternative Men’s Hat For Summer

Posted on June 14, 2011 by D Clothier

I don’t know what’s happened to the weather this year but here in Dublin it’s gone absolutely mad. I know we joke that in Ireland you get all four seasons in one day but it’s even more changeable than usual. Right now, at the start of June, the temperature is swinging from ground frost to the low twenties and it can go from bright sunshine to hail stones in the matter of minutes.

Naturally, this is making every day decisions on what to wear quite difficult. I’ve sort of settled on a light suit for work, with a raincoat for the showers and a tank top (or sweater vest in the US) for when the temperature drops. But I’m left wondering about the headgear. I’m a great believer in mens hats (see my about me picture) and that men should wear some sort of headgear when outdoors. This is particularly important at this time of year for those of us who are a little… how do I put it … thinner on top. In fact, having long ago resigned myself to the loss of my hair I now keep it shaved close to my skull. When I say I can do nothing with my hair, I mean it. But this does create a small problem with sun burn, and, believe me, like all pale Irish men I burn easily.

Normally, at this time of year I wear a sun hat when out and about, usually a traditional panama hat or some other form of white hat, typicallyy a fedora hat made from straw or light linen and, on Bloomsday (only) I’ve been known to sport a straw boater. The thing is they don’t seem to take the rain well and they do look slightly silly in the middle of a cold, grey, city downpour. The range of stylish sunhats for men is a bit limited at the best of times and I feel an old-fashioned felt hat is a little out of character in summer. I like to wear light colored and linen suits at this time of year and they just don’t go with a felt hat. Anyway, I was browsing through H&M while dodging a shower last week and I came across a linen cap which seems to tick all the boxes.

I have a soft spot for flat caps at the best of times but normally I would wear a traditional Donegal tweed cap. They’re great in winter as they are both warm and waterproof. They’re also easy to fold up and slip into a bag, or even a pocket, and as they come in an endless variety of colours I have a selection of them to go with different outfits. Actually, I also like traditional snapback hats or baseball caps too but they are too casual for wearing to work.

Enough of that, the linen cap is perfect, and cheap too. It’s a simple tan flat cap which looks quite smart in that sort of old Italian way I like. It keeps both sun and rain off the head and as it is pure linen it is also cool to wear. I imagine it’s easy to clean – I haven’t had the need to wash it yet – and it should last a few months which will get us through the short Irish summer. It also works with both my dark business suits and my lighter, more casual linen suits. Right now I’m wearing it with a tan raincoat and a pair of cheap shades, it’s that sort of weather. By the way, I only ever wear cheap sunglasses these days as I keep losing them and I really can’t afford to be losing expensive shades, what with the recession and all.

So, this week’s tip is, if you want something flexible and fun in mens hats, try a linen cap.

Posted in Men's Accessories, Mens Hats | Tagged linen cap, mens hats, sun hat, sun hats for men, white hat | Leave a comment

Hosni Mubarak’s Pinstripe Suit

Posted on June 11, 2011 by D Clothier

Your Name In Stripes

Want the ultimate in personal tailoring? How about a suit with your name worked into the pinstripes?

As has been widely reported here and across the blogosphere, former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, was caught on camera wearing a suit with a pinstripe that on close inspection was made up of his own name repeated ad nausuem. It’s certainly different and a talking point at parties.

However, a little further internet digging shows that this is not as unique as it sounds. Well, in the sense that there may be other people with their names worked into their pinstripes, I don’t expect there are too many with Hosni Mubarak’s name on their suits. But then you never know. Perhaps he donates his used suits to charity? Perhaps on a rack in some second-hand clothes shop in Cairo….

But I digress. It would appear that personalised pinstripe suits have been around for a few years. American clothing company Tom James have been advertising custom suits with personalised stripes for a number of years. The material itself comes from the leading Savile Row company Holland & Sherry who are one of the world’s leading makers of high quality cloth and suiting materials and they’re not shy about advertising it. You can read all about Holland & Sherry’s appropriately named signature cloth on their website.

So if you have a hankering for a pinstripe suit with a secret text woven into it… you might want to get saving. Reports are that a suit like this will set you back more than $10,000.

Posted in Mens Suits | Tagged Holland & Sherry, Hosni Mubarak's Pinstripe Suit, Name in Pinstripe, Personalised Pinstripe | Leave a comment

The Skinny On Skinny Ties For Men

Posted on June 2, 2011 by D Clothier

Writing the post the other day about the black suit got me thinking about skinny ties again. It is one of those fashion stereotypes, the skinny man in the skinny black suit with the skinny black tie. And it can look kind of cool and interesting on skinny young arty guys. Maybe that’s why that particular look gets a lot of bad press. I’m amazed at the amount of men’s style writers, bloggers and commentators that just dismiss the look out of hand. Having said that, I know skinny ties are back in fashion at the moment, although usually accompanied by all sorts of warnings about the supposed difficulties of wearing them and saying they are really for younger men.

I disagree. I think skinny ties have a place in the well dressed man’s wardrobe. I accept that they can be difficult to carry off but that is more to do with our preconceptions than anything else. You see, I was thinking about the whole black suit and skinny tie ensemble and I found myself thinking back to Marcello Mastroianni in La Dolce Vita (pictured right). I love that movie for all sorts of reasons; it is a brilliant piece of cinema that half a century on is still a classic; everything and everyone in it looks so stylish; and it set the blueprint for society, for style and for celebrity culture that is being followed to this day, very often by people who have never even seen the movie. But I love it most of all because Mastroianni is the epitome of cool sophistication. He spends most, or possibly all of the film, in a black suit, a white tie and a skinny tie. And you know what, he wasn’t some young skinny kid then either. He was a big, handsome Italian with an athlete’s body who was well into his thirties. And he still looked cool.

So what is the secret of wearing a black skinny tie? Well in his case it was about proportion. Although most stylists will tell you that a skinny tie is less than 2 inches, the reality, as with all menswear, is that it is about appearance. A skinny tie is one that appears skinny, narrow or thin on you. What really decides it is your own size and what you wear. The fat man’s skinny tie is the thin man’s wide tie. Look at Mastroianni again. His ties, while definitely narrow, are not overly so, they are certainly not the skinniest you’ve ever seen. For the well built man with a big chest a tie that is a little below average width will appear tastefully skinny. The same goes for the larger man. When choosing a skinny tie see how it looks against your chest rather than just comparing it to other ties. When you are wearing it that is what people will see and that is how they will assess it.

This classic style is quite straightforward to achieve. We’re looking at a black single breasted suit, a white shirt and a skinny black tie, the whole finished off, naturally, with a pair of black shoes. My taste would be for monochrome accessories in steel or silver tone too. If you are young, and thin you can get away with some cheap, shiny combination of the above but for the older, well dressed man, and in this case that means pretty much any guy who is not a teenager, you need to spend your time and money on quality clothing to get this to work. You need a good well tailored black wool suit. Likewise, you match it with a white cotton shirt that fits well and is clean and pressed. Finally the tie should be narrow enough that it is noticeably thinner than the average tie but not so thin that it looks like a string tie hanging lonely and lost against the vast white expanse of your chest.

And what about other colors of skinny ties, you ask? Well, I suppose very much the same rules apply although skinny colored ties don’t do an awful lot for me. They can have a slimming effect though, just as the vertical stripes on a pinstripe suit can make one look taller and thinner, wearing slightly thinner ties with your business suit can make you seem that little bit slimmer and younger. Just don’t overdo the skinniness of the tie.

Really though, as the song says, you want to be Italian. You want that casual elegance, that simple black and white style. It is very much the male equivalent of the little black dress. Dressed this way you can go anywhere at any time of day and it will carry you from the office to the party and, well, let’s just say it looks good at breakfast too!

Posted in Men's Accessories, Mens Suits, Ties | Tagged black skinny tie, La Dolce Vita, Marcello Mastroianni, skinny black tie, skinny tie, skinny ties, skinny ties for men | Leave a comment

Why I Wear A Black Suit

Posted on May 26, 2011 by D Clothier

Like Johnny Cash, I like to dress in black and have a penchant for the plain black suit. Now, I know the black suit can be a source of sartorial controversy for many men, as indeed can be using a country singer as a style reference, but for me it’s a main stay of my wardrobe. Black suits fill many roles including helping you look sharp and hip whether you are in a casual or formal situation.

So what sort of black suit am I talking about? Simplicity and quality are the keys. A simple lounge suit, single breasted, one or two buttons, slim fitting in a good wool will take you anywhere. What is important is that it must look sharp even if you are going to wear it in a casual way. The cut should be fine, the fit perfect and the material of the best quality. It should also be very, very black – which again is a sign of a quality suit as it is the cheaper materials that fade. When you wear a black suit it must be black as midnight not a faded charcoal. Although, an anthracite or charcoal suit is a good alternative for those who find black too, well, black.

So why do I dress in black? (Johnny Cash again). A black suit can go anywhere but this is where the debate begins. Some people will tell you that a black suit, especially in day time, is against the rules. But some people will say anything. I say, never mind the rules, sure they’re nothing but guidelines anyway. Certainly, it is the case that for much of the twentieth century the black suit was frowned on for all but the most sombre of occasions. But that is so last century. Armani et al are old men now and they’ve been making high end black suits for decades. Mind you, it is true that black is sombre. This is part of its attraction for the arty, alternative and even business set. Men’s black suits give them a touch of seriousness or even gravitas. And that can be fine tuned by what you wear with them. An all black suit is like a midnight sky against which you can create your own dreams and illusions.

If you’re young, a slim fit black suit with a white shirt and skinny black tie and shades will create a timeless classic look if you have the confidence to pull it off. But for the rest of us, ahem, more mature gentlemen, that just creates a certain funereal appearance and you should try to avoid looking like an undertaker or a mourner, unless that’s what you are of course. So add a bit a colour to the mix. A good tie with some color in it will counteract the monochrome instantly. Women discovered long ago that black is perfect for office to evening wear and so it is for men’s clothing. I work the day job in an office but spend a lot of my social time in a more arty milieu. The same black suit will take me from court to concert hall. When wearing a black suit to the office I like to choose an accent color for the ensemble, say purple, and combine the black suit with a shirt in that color or with a simple stripe of color running through it, and then match it with a sombre tie that picks up the accent color. A pocket square in the same color will finish it off. After work I can remove tie and swop the shirt for one in, say, a dark gray, which combination works well at night. My own favourite choice for a casual look, day or night, is a black suit over a dark, or even black, polo neck (or turtleneck in the US) which can, and does, go anywhere. Black on black can be a bit heavy but the great thing about black is that it goes with everything so you just need to find a color that suits your own coloring and build a look around it. In terms of individual coloring , too much black can be draining if you are very pale, and it can be a little too much if you are very dark. For those in between, though, it is a good choice.

I’ve been talking about wool suits until now but this blog started with me looking at linen suits. During the warmer months I find a black linen suit is ideal for casual wear. You don’t get the same deep black in linen as in wool but, being that little bit different from the run of the mill white linen suit, it does have a charm of its own. In this context I generally just wear t-shirts or polo shirts with the suit or lighter cotton, linen and even silk shirts.

While black is on one level easy to wear, it does take some thought to make it look good. Without some careful dressing it can look cheap and even tacky. A black suit is a statement suit and, as with any statement, you need to decide what you want to say and how you are going to phrase it.

Posted in Linen Suit, Mens Suits | Tagged all black suit, black suit, black suits, men's black suit, men's suit | Leave a comment

Pink Ties Go Great With A White Linen Suit

Posted on January 9, 2011 by D Clothier

When it comes to choosing a tie to go with your white linen suit there are many choices and they will depend upon the overall look and style that you are aiming for. If you are going to wear a tie with your suit then it can tie the whole look together (if you forgive the expression). However, pink may not have been the first color that sprung to mind. Most men gravitate towards sensible ties in solid subdued colors and patterns or else for loud novelty ties. Understandably, as they both have their advantages and attractions and work well in the right setting. Pink is often seen as too loud or too feminine or simply too difficult to carry off. But a pink tie can work surprisingly well with a white suit.

Pink is, of course, seen as a typically feminine color. But it is a color that can look well on a man and, worn the right way and with the right outfit, it will look just as masculine as any other color. Having said that, too much pink can be overpowering, a strong pink shirt smacks of Miami Vice! So a tie is a good way to introduce some pink into an outfit in a striking but manageable quantity.

For a formal look, a smart white suit with a crisp white will look good with a strong formal silk tie. Look for a darker, stronger shade of pink with maybe a simple pattern – slim stripes in contrasting silver would be good. For a dandified air match it with a pink pocket square in the same shade and even pink socks. For a successful formal look it must of course be a silk tie. But then, when would you wear a tie that is not made from silk?

A pink silk tie is just as suitable for an informal look. Well, a dressed down, less formal look. Here it is about playing around and finding a distinctive personal style. You can also introduce more color by wearing a shirt in a subdued shade of blue or gray that will highlight the pinkness of the tie and perhaps pick up on any pattern in it. For a more casual look you can play with fancy patterns and even pink novelty ties. Do try and avoid a pink shirt though, the whole tone on tone shirt and tie combination is very passé and for most guys a pink tie over a pink shirt would be just too much.

Bear in mind also your own colouring. Pink clothes look better on darker skinned men so if you don’t have a good tan you might want to avoid them. Certainly they can make pale men’s skin look washed out and they clash terribly a ruddy face. And that would include a bright red sunburnt face too!

Why not consider other forms of necktie too? A pink bow tie might be more suitable for an elderly academic on vacation but it could also be used with a white linen suit for a formal evening event. Of course white evening wear is uncommon today but it would certainly be lightened up by a pink bow. A more casual and sporty look would be to wear a pink cravat with an open white shirt under a linen suit.

Whatever type of pink necktie he chooses, the man who wears one is saying that he is not afraid for his masculinity. Nor is he afraid to try out new ideas and new looks. So for a striking look why not try one? After all, if you change your mind it’s easy to whip off a tie and slip it into a pocket.

Posted in Men's Accessories, Ties | Tagged matching a tie to a linen suit, pink bow tie, pink cravat, pink necktie, pink tie, pink ties | Leave a comment

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