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The Sartorialist

 
 
 
 
 















Sunday, April 30, 2006

Cesar Padilla of Cherry Boutique


What I really like about how Cesar Padilla of Cherry Boutique buys vintage, is that he does it with an eye to making the items relevant again. No 40's music, no wishing for a bygone era to return, Cesar treats his treasures with a healthy amount of disrespect than strips away the preciousness and makes them feel like that could be an important part of your wardrobe again instead of "my gimmicky vintage top."

Visiting Neighbors Seniors Talent Show

Visiting Neighbors sponsored a Seniors Talent Show yesterday. The gentleman above sang a love song so heartfelt it was almost painful to watch.

Saturday, April 29, 2006

Jim Shay, Sales Director for Z Zegna

On The Street.....Pink Shoes, West Village , NYC

Friday, April 28, 2006

The Benefit Of A Strong Shoulder


What struck me about the suit on this very nice gentleman ,visiting from New Orleans, was how well the roped shoulder on his jacket worked to give the impression of a more narrow waist. This gentleman really was as round as a ball but by buying a good suit (Isaia) in a sturdy fabric and spending the money to have it expertly altered he has succeeded in cutting a dashing figure.

On The Street......Ninth Ave , NYC

On The Street........57th & 5th, NYC


When I go out shooting I never really know where I will end up, that is part of the fun.

Because of that I don't "dress-up", I think I look stylish but I might walk seven miles, in all kinds of weather, in all kinds of neighborhoods so blending in is more my game plan.

So I see this guy, ask to take his photo, he agrees, I shoot, we talk briefly, he walks away - then he comes back, shakes a finger at me and says "You should dress better.", then walks away again

On The Street.....West Village , NYC

Novelist Jonathan Carroll Writes About The Sartorialist

The novelist Jonathan Carroll wrote a very kind and thoughtful post about The Sartorialist on his blog today

CarrollBlog 4.28

A fan of Simon Haden (maybe it was even Haden himself in disguise) sent a link to a website that made me smile. It's called "The Sartorialist" and run by a guy who loves men's, and to a lesser degree, women's fashion. He goes around the streets of New York taking photos of well dressed people and posting them with short comments on his site. Besides being witty and insightful, what I like best is his obsession/passion for the subject. Whether it is postage stamps, armadillos, meerschaum pipes, or fashion, it's always a happy moment to meet up with someone who's obsessive in an original way about something. That's one of the reasons why I chose to write about the very real Josef Kyselak in GLASS SOUP: I just loved the idea that someone could be obsessed with the usually mundane act of writing your name. What's enjoyable too about The Sartorialist are the expressions on the faces of his subjects. They're almost all smiling in happy, unposed ways. It's obvious they're delighted to have been stopped for this picture. Flattered that someone in the know, a stranger, said to them out of the blue you're dressed wonderfully today. Can I take your picture to post on my website? There isn't an ounce of smug in any of their expressions. In fact many, no matter how old or sophisticated they are, are smiling with real delight. They're thrilled by this nice surprise and the expressions on their faces are an inch or two away from the joy of children.

Thursday, April 27, 2006

Barry Miguel of Z Zegna

On The Street.....That Smile , NYC


This young lady has done a great job at creating a clean and feminine silhouette without pulling any attention away from that million dollar smile. Sometimes clothes should just be background.

On The Street......Yes! The Skirts Of Spring , NYC

This is a vintage skirt worn high on the waist with a wide leather belt - she looked so great

On The Street......The Modern Bogart, NYC


I can't decide which I love more

- the pale yellow turtleneck with a DB suit
or
- the gloves
or
-the hat.

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

On The Street......True Elegance, NYC

Talk about Elegant.
What I really loved about this look was the mix of a very classic Chanel-ish core ( the jacket/blouse had a great peplum detail in the back) mixed with an almost edgy Comme/Yohji shawl.
The women I have seen "of a certain age" that dabble in Comme often go a bit overboard and the Chanels get a bit dowdy but this lady has done a great job adding a little edgy to her couture. Of course, I have no idea if these items are Chanel or Yohji or Zara but you get the idea.

On The Street......Polo Back, NYC

Don't look for this in a Polo store near you. I shot this down the street from the Ralph Lauren design studio - I assume it is a tech sample. I use to know someone that had ,as part of their job, to come up with new pony/shirt color combos for RL polo shirts.

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

On The Street......Greyt, NYC


This is the second time on The Sartorialist for this young gentleman. You guys (guys being a non-gender-specific term) might remember this Sartorialist from the Ralph Lauren show photos. As this photo can attest he has transitioned to Spring beautifully.

On The Street........Hickey Freeman Casual, NYC

Jay Morales of Hickey Freeman is making his second apperance on The Sartorialist. He reminded me that I shot him during The Collective, it must be nice to be so well put together so often.

On The Street.......Chloe Shoes, NYC

The shoes make her legs look great & visa versa?

On The Street........Uptown Sartorialist

Ok, now I get it
Uptown - cool old guys in suits
Downtown - cool young guys in suits

Graduate Of The Carine Roitfeld School Of Sexy

I know so many girls that would kill to be able to pull off a Roitfelsesque type of sexy glamour

Monday, April 24, 2006

On The Street........Domenico Vacca - Donna


I already knew that Domenico Vacca did a great job with men's so I should not have been surprised when this Sartorialiste said she was wearing all Domenico Vacca.

Sunday, April 23, 2006

Trad or Thom Browne?

I knew I would capture an image like this sooner or later.

Ok Trads, you're really closer to the Thom Browne aesthetic than you may want to admit.

Let review the elements
- Slim, shorter jacket
- At or above the ankle pant hem
- Plenty of shirt cuff showing
- Buttondown Oxford shirt
- Classic wingtips

On The Street........Fashion Insider?, NYC


So is this young lady a fashion insider?

Caffeine - check
Cigarette - check
Fabulous chunky knit layered over well-worn jean jacket - check and check

Saturday, April 22, 2006

On The Street........A Sartorialist On Madison Ave.

Ok, now it is getting really cool when I stop someone on the street and they already know all about The Sartorialist! - It is just icing on the cake when they also look really stylish.

As the giant 650 in the background will tell most fashion insiders, Mike works at Ralph Lauren. I think it is such a testament to Ralph's work that on the same day I shot Mike, I also shot a retired gentleman (I will post later in the week) in a twenty year old Ralph Lauren suit and both looked perfectly rigged for their age group.

On The Street........Looooong Jeans, NYC

It is hard to describe why some things are sexy. This long jeans over shoes look has a bondage-y, Japanese footwrapped kinda thing going on.

Friday, April 21, 2006

On The Street........Outside Domenico Vacca


Notice the Spring-inspired flair of the pale green belt.

On The Street........57th Street Girl. NYC

Thursday, April 20, 2006

Fantastic Man-gazine

I finally got my first issue of Fantastic Man,

At $20 a pop I just couldn't pull the trigger on buying one myself but a friend , Cesar Padilla (owner of Cherry Vintage) who wrote a piece for the latest issue gave me a copy.

I have not made it all the way through but I just finished the cover story on Stefano Pilati of YSL and it was really great!

Written by the multi-talented Tim Blanks with photos by superstar photo team Inez and Vinoodh (I'm not going to try the last names!) i now have a new appreciation for Mr Pilati. I have always liked his work, especially men's, but he always seemed a little stiff to me but the photos make him seem so much younger and more modern than I have ever seen him. I emailed Tim the tell him how much I liked the piece and he confided how intense the interview was - Tim has one of those happy faces that i guess people feel comfortable opening up to.

I hope as distribution increases, the price comes down but the more I pick up the magazine and find something new to love I think I will feel less hesitant to buy the next issue.

Ask Richard Chai- Update

I'm getting a lot of great questions - thanks !!
Keep them coming


I'm still finalizing a date to interview one of New York's most important designers but in the meantime ,this Friday, I am meeting with one of tomorrow's most important designers - Richard Chai.

Along with the Proenza boys, Richard is one of the few young womenswear designers I'm really pulling for. He has a great background, an evolving aesthetic and has experienced the ups-and-downs that make a designers business stronger if it doesn't kill it first.

Richard's recent work with Onward Kashiyama has spawned a new store in Soho called Nave. The work and the store look really good. I use to work at Kashiyama years ago so I know to achieve this result must have been an epic struggle in its own right - I can't wait to ask him about it - and tell him a few of my crazy Kashiyama stories! Remind me to tell you guys some of my crazy Kashiyama stories sometime!

Since I have such a tapped-in, style-savvy readership I wanted to give you guys a chance to ask Richard a few questions. Just email me your questions for him with "Richard Chai" in the subject line of the email and let me know how to credit you if I post your question.

Thanks, I think this could be fun.

Here is Richard Chai's bio

Richard Chai, a New York native, began his career in fashion at an early age with an internship at Geoffrey Beene while still an undergraduate at Parsons School of Design. Upon his graduation from Parsons, Chai moved to Paris to continue his education at the Lissa School, during which he worked as a sketcher at Lanvin.


Immediately following his return to New York a year later, he became an assistant designer at Armani Exchange. He then joined the design team at Donna Karan as a designer for the DKNY and D collections. From 1998 to 2001, Chai held the position of Design Director for the Marc Jacobs’ men’s and women’s collections as well as launching the Marc by Marc men’s collection. In September 2001, Chai was appointed Creative Design Director of all TSE brands, including TSE men’s, TSE women’s, and TSE Say. As a designer with a strong background in luxury goods, he was an invaluable asset to the continued growth of TSE worldwide. His appointment marked the first time in the company’s history that one person oversaw every line under the company name.

Through these experiences Richard has built a foundation of knowledge crucial to launching his own collection and after two years working at TSE, Chai decided he was ready to found his own company, which was established in the summer of 2004.


During New York Fashion in September of 2004, Chai launched his collection of women’s wear for spring 2005 in a formal runway presentation. His debut collection, which was sophisticated yet elegantly understated, reflects his aesthetic sensibility with clean structured lines and touches of classic craftsmanship, truly setting him apart from his contemporaries. Chai’s collections reflect the emphasis he places on the craft of making clothes, creating modern clothing by utilizing truly old world techniques such as hand stitching, bias tapes, and French seams. Chai prides himself on the fine detailed finishes he gives his clothing, creating precious yet wearable garments.

His debut collection for spring 2005 as well as his second collection for fall 2005, received an overwhelmingly positive response from both the press as well as major retailers. His collection is available exclusively at Barney’s New York as well as Lotte in Korea and Villa Moda in Kuwait.

Earlier this year, Richard Chai was a finalist for the Rising Star Award from the Fashion Group International which recognizes new fashion designers in a variety of categories, including women’s ready to wear. In addition, he was the recipient of the annual Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Award 2005, which honors emerging new talent in fashion design.

On The Street........University Place, NYC

I love the pink knit when mixed with a tie and cargo pants.

Sempre Napoli - Travel & Leisure - May

Guy Trebay did a great piece in the new Travel & Leisure titled Sempre Napoli . In addition to insightful descriptions of the duality of modern Naples, large sections of the text are devoted to the Sartorialists of Naples.

Easter Parade, The Gentleman, New York 2006

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

120th Street Style, Harlem, NY

Easter Parade, The Tin Man, New York 2006

Easter Parade, The Perfect Cut, New York 2006

What a beautfully cut suit.

Easter Parade, New York, 2006

As we have seen in the previous posts, the Easter Parade can be a great place for the "dramatic gesture" but there are also a few understated looks that are just as lovely.

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Sartorialist Of The Year 2006 - 2nd Nominee

Are we still making men to take this gentleman's sartorial position twenty years from now?

Easter In Harlem, New York 2006


So I see this lovely couple walking home from church on 128th St. and Fifth Ave. in Harlem. Mr. Gant is the Deacon Emeritus of his church, a title he proudly displays on his jacket.

I asked how long they lived in the neighborhood - like any long married couple they answered simultaneously - him "52 years!", her "51 years!". They spent the next few moments arguing the dates. He then turned to me and said that the neighborhood had always been nice, "People watch out for each other in our building-it's a family building. When one of us gets sick, we do the best we can to care for that person." Of everything he could have told me about living in Harlem for over fifty years, the first thing he mentioned was taking care of others.
Friends and family back in Indiana sometimes ask me how I can live in New York with so many people piled on top of each other. My answer? Neighbors like Mr. Gant.

Easter Parade, Retro Modern, New York, 2006

If this is all vintage then it is done with the most modern take I have seen in a long time.

It love the textured sleeves peeking out from under the jacket.

I love the skirt and don't get me going on the hat!

This was my favorite look of the day. Bravo!

Easter Parade, The Boss, New York 2006

Can anyone spot the famous face in this picture?

Monday, April 17, 2006

Easter Parade, Top Hat

On The Street........The Cardigans, NYC

The just-long-enough cardigan with the just-long-enough summer top.

Under The Radar - Lawrence Covell Turns 39!

Some stores seem to always fly just under the radar of the fashion press.

Everyone knows Louis Boston, Wilkes Bashford or Stanley Korshak - they are always tagged in "where to buy" sections of magazines and listed in ads by designers etc.

One store that I hardly ever see mentioned but ,in my opinion, is one of the most elegant shops in the country is Lawrence Covell - the Bergdorf Goodman of Denver Colorado. (I bet they get tired of hearing that)

Talk about a sophisticated and well balanced line-up

Mens: Borrelli, Lobb, Kiton, Barbera, Oxxford, Avon Celli - and for the more adventuresome Etro, Paul Smith and Margiela

Womens: Cucinelli, Dries Van Noten, Etro, Barbera, Paul Smith, Yohji, and Viktor&Rolf

When I was doing sales for different designers, Lawrence Covell was always the first shop I would call in Denver. They are the kind of store that doesn't just "buy the big name designers", they manage to keep the integrity of the designers vision while still merchandising their buy in a way that makes sense for the lifestyle of their customers. That truly is the art of buying.

A few years ago, after returning from a trip to Denver I was meeting with a Saks buyer who mentioned business had never been good in Denver because there just wasn't a designer customer there. I gently corrected him by saying that there was a designer customer in Denver but they were are all shopping at Lawrence Covell. I he didn't like that answer very much.

I just found out the store will celebrate its 39th anniversary at the end of the month!

Congratulations, Cathy and Lawrence

Thanks for giving designers a place to ship to other than New York, Texas and California.

Sunday, April 16, 2006

Easter Parade, New York 2006 - 1

So the Easter Parade was really great and I got a lot of great pictures both on Fifth Ave. and a few great shots in Harlem. I will be posting them over the next two days.

Easter Parade, New York 2006 -2

Saturday, April 15, 2006

The Sartorialist "Must Have" List For Summer 2006


It is much more difficult to be a Sartorialist in the melting heat of summer than any other season of the year.

To beat the heat, I asked one of the coolest guys I know , Tommy Fazio - the new Fashion Director of Bergdorf Goodman Men's, to put together a list of what I should be looking to buy for this summer.

1. The perfect 2-button cotton suit in tan. When well tailored, all men look Professional, Stylish and most of all handsome. This suit can take you thru all occasions in the spring/summer season.

2. The perfect wing-tip brown shoe. Nothing says style more than a well-polished wing tip. Worn with your suit pant just the right length, with or without socks, it looks stylish and modern.

3. Aviator sunglasses. All guys looks great in an aviator sunglasses. Oliver Peoples has the best new shape. Smaller in size and so chic.

4. Charvet custom-made shirt. Fits like a dream and shows a sense of style and confidence.

5. The Bergdorf Goodman rice stitch v-neck sweater in navy. The perfect weight for all seasons. The new basic for men.
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