Keep Your Eyes Peeled. . .

The GREAT Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie as Jeeves and Wooster (the latter in a tweed three-piece). Besides the wonderful storylines based on the Wodehouse stories, the series is a feast for the eyes when it comes to period architecture, decor, cars, and clothes.

As average guys who have embarked on revamping and building your wardrobes -- and, perhaps, are also watching their pennies -- it pays to be vigilant, think ahead, and keep your eyes open when it comes to classic male attire. That might very well mean purchasing an item when you see it in a thrift/charity shop or online even if it's out of season with your current climate and weather conditions.

The J. Press tweed suit in question. I've been on the look-out for something like this for several years.

For instance, I was able (amazingly) to score this J. Press tweed three-piece suit recently on Ebay for a song. I won't bore you with a crass enumeration of actual retail costs versus my savings, but clearly no one else watching this item was thinking ahead to next fall and winter yet. We are really only getting into the swing of springtime here in my corner of the world after all.

The labels inside the jacket and pants. Never thought I'd actually find anything like this that I could afford. Dumb luck, eh?

In any case, that will give me ample time before cooler weather arrives once again, in October or so, for a few alterations and dry-cleaning. Needless to say, I cannot wait, and the suit should look fantastic with a wool necktie and a pair of heavier full brogues, ether my old Florsheims or Phi Bates. Perhaps I should rechristen this blog Confessions of a Classic Menswear Nerd?

All of my silly fanboy drivel aside, the lesson for today is that you should never turn a blind eye to a sought after item of attire simply because it might be summer, and you're not yet thinking about winter coats and boots. Look for future potential and, when the price is right, snap up whatever it might be. That vintage fedora, Harris Tweed sports jacket, or genuine Ancient Madder necktie you've spotted might not be there an hour later.

-- Heinz-Ulrich

Update. . .

Sigh. The tweed suit above arrived a couple of days ago, and. . . It is far too small. More a like a small 38R, or even a 36R. The jacket is much too tight in the shoulders, the vest/waistcoat is too tight, and the pants, even if the waist were let out an inch or so, are, again, too tight for a suit. What a disappointment, since it was advertised, and the various measurements listed, as a 40R or 41R. Fortunately, the seller has been very nice about taking it back and offering a refund, but what a sartorial disappointment. Back to the ol' drawing board. Grumble, grumble, grumble. . .

Up North Style. . .

Bad Dad makes a friend. YMP and Bad Dad on the shores of Lake Michigan. Or was that Crystal Lake? The Grand Duchess takes a selfie in her kayak. How NOT to impress the girls sunning themselves along the river. YMP and Bad Dad kayaking on the Platte River headed toward Loon Lake. J ust back from a week in Northern Michigan in a charming and spacious house on the banks of the Betsie River outside of Thompsonville. A largely pleasant seven days despite some challenging episodes with the Young Master, who has picked up some very questionable habits and language from his friends in the 8th Grade during the school year just ended. But otherwise, we enjoyed ourselves and contemplated remaining for a few days longer since the house was available. In the end, we decided to return home as planned originally since neither my wife, nor I wanted to spend the remaining days chained to our computers in Zoom meetings from our vacation destination. I actually managed to leave the laptop and ip

Mid-June Thursday Style. . .

A nother pretty typical variation on the theme for late spring, summer, and very early fall. I'm a huge fan of Madras and have several such shirts in the seasonal rotation. Lightweight, exceedingly comfortable, and even dressy when pressed and tucked in, which is the usual way of things here at Totleigh in the Wold. Now, if I had my druthers, I'd still rather be skiing the trails in the upper half of "The Mitten" (of Michigan), in the Upper Peninsula, or Ontario. But summers ain't so bad either, and I'd look pretty funny walking around in cross-country ski attire during June. -- Heinz-Ulrich

A Lazy Saturday at the End of June. . .

A sleepy first half of the weekend here at Totleigh. Warmer and quite humid ahead of an approaching cool front here in Mid-Michigan. Perfect for yet another pair of chino shorts an a seersucker shirt -- tucked in of course -- with the usual leather deck shoes and ribbon belt. Otherwise, not much accomplished beyond a page or so of writing and monkeying around with audio settings for an upcoming podcast episode. However, I was not completely useless yesterday! I made a huge fruit salad for dinner, which the Grand Duchess and I enjoyed a short while later at the table on the back porch. The Young Master, as is his wont on Saturday evenings, took his dinner on a tray in the TV room upstairs where he whiled away a couple of hours on Flight Simulator, flying some sort of commercial airliner to some destination across the Atlantic or Pacific. I would have loved that sort of technology at about nine or 10 way back during the late 1970s, aka The Stone Age. As it is, my sister and

Mark HollingsworthApril 21, 2014 at 3:19 AM
What a find! Cannot wait to see the tailored finished product. Perhaps a pocket watch and chain as well to add to the vintage look?
WSTKS-FM WorldwideApril 21, 2014 at 6:35 AM
Thank you! I am excited, and yes. I actually own a lovely old Swiss pocket watch with chain that good ol' Mom gave me many years ago, so I will indeed add that to the ensemble when cool weather returns.

Best Regards,

Heinz-Ulrich von B.

Classic Style

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