Wears and Wants
Passing my State of Shopping onto you
Thus begins a recurring-end-of-month-series: Wears and Wants. A collection of things donned, purchased, and desired over the last month-ish. I try to avoid being in a constant SOS, but sometimes it’s hard.
Welcome to A Well Worn Dispatch, an at-least-weekly newsletter about dressing well, feeling good, and giving a damn. With an emphasis on style that’s personal and a focus on intentionality and craft, I answer reader questions and invite you to go window shopping with me for the finest jawns the internet has to offer.
Fits Thrown
It cooled down enough in Austin (the high was in the mid-60s for ONE DAY) so that I could finally wear the glen plaid suit I’ve been waiting to wear all year. I dressed it down with a denim shirt, no tie, and brogue boots (image left).
Inspired by the fit in the center I saw (back when I was on Instagram months ago) I put together my own version. I love wearing non-blazer jackets with a tie: chore coats, field jackets, Barbours, and denim jackets are all prime candidates. I built an outfit around a yellow Drake’s tie and a worn-in denim jacket. On my walk to the coffee shop to knock out some work, I had a lovely run in with a woman who asked me if I worked in fashion and told me that it was so nice to see someone “so dressed up on a Tuesday”.
Acquisitions
At this point, I am working to upgrade the things I wear most often, or fill gaps in my closet, which means I have to be a little bit more discerning with what I add to my closet. At least, that’s what I tell myself.
Despite my appreciation of corduroy, my closet was somehow devoid of wales, wide or narrow. When I saw the new collaboration between one of my favorite writers, David Coggins (seriously, pay for his newsletter, it’s phenomenal) and Quaker Marine, I knew it was the perfect opportunity to bring some corduroy back into my life. The white pinwale cord western shirt is perfect for fall and it took a lot of power not to add the chore jacket to my order too.
I must admit something. Despite my love of clothes, I have only ever rented tuxedos. I wish I had more occasion to wear a tux, but my life is largely devoid of galas and operas and black tie affairs. Now though, I have a black tie wedding on New Year’s Eve to attend. I decided it was time to commit to a tux of my own. From previous experience with rental tuxedos (my absolute last resort) I know that having my own tuxedo shirt is a must.
I started with a tuxedo shirt from Sid Mashburn. I opted for Made to Measure (I’ll talk about why I love MTM more later). It feels amazing putting on a shirt perfectly cut for you, and when dressing in something not often worn, I think it’s important that your clothes help you feel as good as possible. I have a vintage tux jacket but it needs some tailoring, which I will make sure to document in a future dispatch.
Desires
Back in August, before a trip to the desert of West Texas, I picked up a straw Stetson. I’d wanted one for a long time, and the sojourn to Marfa seemed like the perfect way to justify that purchase. The first wear admittedly felt a little weird, but by the third day of putting it on, it felt like “me” and I spent the rest of the warmer months reaching for it a few times a week when I left the house. As the weather is mercifully cooling down, it’s time to swap the straw for felt. Since I love the shape and the cowboy crease, I decided to run it back and get another Open Road. Now I just have to choose between chocolate or silverbelly.
I have a small, but growing collection archive of Barbour jackets. What started with a Beacon, and has turned into a series of eBay alerts and Grailed saved searches. I do not need more, but the archive must grow to be a good archive. At least that’s what I tell myself. End Clothing often has great sales on Barbour, and this McQueen Roslin jacket has been calling my name. It’s lighter weight and shorter than the oft-seen Bedale/Ashby, the almond brown is lovely, and the offset chest pockets are a great bit of visual interest. At $207, it’s a tough price to resist.
Last is not so much a single piece as the entire Throwing Fits x Mr Porter collection. The write up by Articles of Interest host Avery Trufleman is perfect and full of fire fits. The Kaptain Sunshine suit she’s wearing (image right) is probably my favorite, but I’m really feeling the Diemme boots and NN07 knits.
Thanks for reading. If there’s anything that you’ve been wearing or wanting that you’re excited to share, drop it in the comments.
— Bruce