Festive Tweed and Cords for Advent. . .

Above today, December 7th, featuring a jacket by J. Press, a Pendleton wool necktie, and a pink OCBD from Land's End. I have a few different wool tartan ties, but this one is my favorite, and it gets a lot of wear during December each year.

On the lower half, a pair of vintage Florsheim 'longwings', some wool dress socks by Dapper Classics, and a pair of dress corduroy paints again by Land's End.

My final day of classes for the current academic term today (Hurrah!), and now the grading, tallying of numbers, and online submissions of final course grades for almost 150 students spread across three courses can begin in earnest (Hiss!).

In any case, I felt like dressing with a nod to the season this morning, so here we are. A bit matchy-matchy, and even bordering on the dandy for some tastes perhaps, yet not an unpleasant ensemble by any stretch. It occurs to me that, should a man wish (or be asked) to "dress up" for any sort of holiday occasion -- parties, dinners, church services -- in the next few weeks that it's hard to go wrong in 2017 with a tweed jacket, cords, and tartan wool tie, and a pair of wingtip brogues. Still pulled together, mind you, but a bit more casual and relaxed than a full suit.

The latter item certainly has its place though, so be prepared should a more formal gathering call for it. My maternal grandfather and father, for example, always wore suits for Christmas Eve church services and Christmas dinners at home as recently as the 1980s and '90s. Sports jackets, cords, and, in the case of my father, a black or navy turtleneck pullover ala Steve McQueen worn with classic oxblood penny loafers were for parties during Christmas week or on New Year's Eve.

I like the particular combination of garments shown above so much, that I might just have to replicate it for our big Christmas Eve dinner and church service around the corner and down the street from our house.

Last but not least, we woke here at Totleigh-in-the-Wold to a seasonal dusting of snow and bracing Michigan cold early this morning. Can Christmas and cross-country (Nordic) skiing be far off?

-- Heinz-Ulrich

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