Classic Style

  As above. S igh.  Another lousy day in paradise,  Breezy, sunny, upper 70s Fahrenheit.  Not much going on today except popsicles, water pistol fights, and bike rides with The Young Master.  Ahhhh. . . Another easy summer look tossed together from whatever was on top of the stacks in two drawers this morning.  I did need to press the shirt before wearing it though since this particular Madras number wrinkles badly in the dryer.  It's my absolute favorite summer sport shirt, and I've had it for a dozen years or more.   Sadly, the collar and edge of one sleeve are just starting to fray, but maybe I can get one more year out of it before relegating it to the pile of strictly mowing and yardwork clothes. -- Heinz-Ulrich So, below.  Skinny, pale legs part deux.

The view from the front walk this morning.  Just look at that sky!  The lawn isn't too bad either.  The results of twice a week mowing with a mulching mower since mid-May and an application of Milorganite , a slow release organic fertilizer 10 days ago.  We've also had considerable rain this spring, which really helps grass, plants, and trees. T oday marks the official start of Summer!  Let's all leave behind the dark, dank, cynical, and nihilistic world of hard-boiled private detectives, scheming dames, and two-bit losers for just a minute and do The Snoopy Dance .   The Grand Duchess continues to endure real hardship in The Pacific Theater.  She has had her obligatory volcano hikes and taken in a beach or two at sunset.  Her hiking boots were immaculate since I moisturized them before she packed.  Yesterday, she flew to another island where the actual conference takes place.  Opening convocations and related schmoozing were yesterday evening.  Time seems

The Phantom Lady herself.  Ella Raines lights a cigarette. M iss Briest had gone home hours ago.  I sat alone in my office late into the night going over the events of the last few days in my head one more time.   Another philandering husband trying to pull the wool over his wife's eyes.  An executive with a corner office on the top floor of the downtown corporate headquarters for some auto manufacturer.  Didn't matter which one.  Six figures a year, a healthy end-of-year bonus each December, and a large house in a leafy green neighborhood with well-manicured lawns on the old east side. What did matter was Kermit Goad's running around with a young secretary he'd hired a few months back.  Some shapely victory girl with auburn hair called Babs, who did her bit on the home front.  Couldn't file, answer the telephone, or make a pot of coffee to save her life.  Always fixed her hair and make-up while sitting at her desk though.  Immaculate fingernails too.  Ty

A Leslie Saalburg illiustration from 1953 that, Dad's cigarette notwithstanding, works well for today. E njoy the day in whatever form that might take everyone.  I've asked the Grand Duchess for an unstructured day.  So, after sausage, eggs, and toast for breakfast, I hope to spend a quiet day here in my den painting toy soldiers from the mid-18th century.  30mm Austrian grenadiers in this particular case.  You knew I was a complete nerd, didn't you?  In any event, the steady rain and cool temperatures outside today are highly conducive to an indoor activity although I will admit that the yard and neighborhood look deliciously lush when peeking through the window. -- Heinz-Ulrich

Another Leslie Saalburg illustration from decades ago.  An idealized image, yes, but the house depicted is kind of nice.  The car ain't too bad either.  A 1933 Packard I believe. C alm -- Quiet -- Understatement -- Moderation -- Sophistication -- Elegance -- Refinement -- Discernment -- Polish -- Grooming -- Restraint -- Kindness -- Gentility -- Care -- Planning.  Concepts to be aware of.  Ideals to strive for.  Rules to live by.   Naysayers might counter that most of  the qualities listed above, much like the illustrations accompanying this post, are themselves impossible ideals.  I would argue that it is entirely possible not only to aspire to such concepts, but to come pretty darn close to living them provided a person exercises careful forethought.   I suppose, however, that it depends on one's frame of reference and related vision of how life can be.  Do we really want to give up on the game before we've even tossed our hat in the ring, and continue w

Not the usual single-breasted, blue and white stripe combination that most of us probably think of, but a double-breasted model from 1935. W ell, darn it!  I missed it as usual.  National Seersucker Day was yesterday, June 13th.  It was quite chilly and rainy here in Mid-Michigan, so definitely not seersucker weather even if classes were still in session, and I had the occasion to dress in a somewhat more pulled together fashion than my more relaxed summer attire mentioned here on several occasions.  Still, it was fun to root through the folders on my computer desktop this morning after a check-up for our two cats at the veterinarian to dig up this old illustration.   As for me, I've got a vintage blue and white striped, single-breasted seersucker suit that enjoys a few outings in late August and early September at the start of each fall semester when it is usually still quite warm.  Topped off by my panama hat, it certainly stands out, once in a while even getting a complim

T oday is the last day of 3rd Grade for The Young Master, who will be home in a little over an hour just after Noon.  A half-day.  A popsicle with ol' Dad to celebrate the start of Summer in earnest will follow, and then he'll be off to countless afternoon adventures and mischief in the backyard.  The sunny, soft, breezy air is already redolent with the slight scent of organic fertilizer on the lawn, and the summer plants and flowers are well on their way, some already in bloom.  What better way to mark the start of 2.5 months of summer vacation than with a few classic menswear illustrations by the late great Laurence Fellows one from Mr. Saalburg, and another from Mr. Goodman then? -- Heinz-Ulrich

The upper half this morning, featuring a vintage Madras necktie, dyed and sewn in Sri Lanka, from Rooster.  The navy blazer -- with University of Wisconsin buttons added  a couple of years ago -- is a light weight wool number that I actually purchased a dozen or more years ago while visiting Mom and Stepdad one Christmas in Mexico when I needed a jacket for a New Year's Eve dinner party to which we were invited.  It's perfect for warm weather. The blitzed OCBD shirt is one of five or six of various weights in light blue that I come back to again and again.   And the lower half featuring some recently moisturized and buffed penny loafers from Allen Edmonds and some Land's End dress chinos in a light stone.  During the late spring, summers, and early fall, I come back to some iteration of the items featured today over and over again. A s I have written -- ok, lamented -- here before at Classic Style , once the spring semester and finals week concludes at the start

A reproduction of a 1934 poster advertising a menswear collection for the Viennese department store Jawo. K ind of quiet here at Totleigh-in-the-Wold what with the recent rains, no teaching duties, no one bothering me about anything having to do with other work commitments (they're all away for the summer), and a recent jaunt to the dental surgeon's chair to begin the lengthy process necessary for an eventual dental implant.  Ugh.   The one high point of the procedure was that I got to practice my German with the doctor, whose father is German, so he spent a large part of his formative years there.  You just never know when these languages will come in handy.  If you'll pardon the flagrant self-promotion, my Norwegian, Swedish, and German have come in handy at the oddest moments over the years, often far beyond the regions where those languages are actually spoken!  It certainly adds an interesting, and at times very useful, dimension to life. Returning to the poi