Make 2017 the Year of Men's Accessories!

 The new Ivy Style necktie work on Monday last with a Harris Tweed jacket and the usual light blue OCBD shirt.

Happy belated New Year everyone!  It has been a busy few weeks since the start of the spring semester back on January 9th, hence the absence of new posts since New Year's Eve.  But fear not!  Classic Style (for the Average Guy) still lives.

Besides my usual exhortation at this point each year for men to live a life less ordinary by dressing better and minding their day-to-day manners more closely than has become the sad, pathetic norm for society at large, let's throw interesting accessories into the mix for 2017.  Of course, while it is possible to go overboard with bling, one or two tasteful -- Yes, I realize I'm setting myself up perfectly for a take-down here! -- accessories can help bring an otherwise nondescript ensemble to life, providing added visual interest and even personality to a suit or combination of odd clothing items.  

Of course, if you work in one of the few remaining conservative professional environments that maintain business formal dress Monday through Friday (God bless you!), you need to exercise great care and restraint lest you get noticed for all the wrong reasons.  Subdued neckties and maybe understated cufflinks here, guys.  But it's probably best to leave the eyebrow rings and earlobe plugs at home and keep those full sleeve tats covered in the office, Maynard.  Let's call it a hunch.  If, on the other hand, your workplace is business/smart casual, it is a bit easier to have some fun by way of your accessories without raising too many eyebrows.  Included with this post are but two examples from this very week of my own forays into accessory territory.  

Somewhere, I have a couple of photographs from November 2016 of two Chipp dog breed neckties that I treated myself to after rounding the half-century mark (Oh, God no!) just after Halloween last year.  These, featuring black Poodles and West Highland White Terriers, dogs my family has had in the past.  Both have been fun to trot out a few times since then and always seem to get a positive reaction from my undergrads (as did today's pocket square below).  Guys tend to be amused while the young women typically make no secret of their approval.  Certainly not the reason that I make attempts to dress better than average, but it is nice when someone pays you a compliment.  If I can find these, I'll share 'em here in a later post.

In any case, occasional future posts here at Classic Style will highlight the various types of accessories that I include in my own wardrobe,and how you might also work them into yours.  Make 2017 the Year of Men's Accessories!

-- Heinz-Ulrich 

P.S.

Thank you for the nudge Old School!

A new Put This On silk pocket square (purchased at a considerable discount) worn for the first time today with another Harris Tweed jacket, a Fair Isle sweater, and university stripe OCBD shirt.  Brown corduroy jeans and 'duck shoes' from L.L. Bean completed the combo for today along with my dark green, very heavy duffle coat and a long University College-Dublin woolen scarf that I've had for about 20 years.  A Christmas gift from Mom and Step Dad in the late 90s.  No necktie though since there was snow to clear this morning before I could make my way to campus.