Crisp.
2
Category Archives: Shopping
Wardrobe Maintenance Kit: Essentials
It’s not about “babying” your clothes: the long-term goal of maintaining clothes regularly is to make sure the money you invested is not wasted and your material possessions will stay in pristine condition as long as possible. It is a practical and eco-friendly approach that has nothing to do with being “obsessed” with your wardrobe. Would you shame someone for taking their car for a check-up and an occasional repair?
This list is a starting point for building a maintenance kit that will serve you well as the occasional mishap occurs and threatens one of your prized menswear pieces. I am on a mission to convince people to not over launder and dry-clean their clothes, so you’ll find several tool that will help you stretch the time between loads.
Feel free to expand this list by suggesting other items in the comment section or on the forum.
Last-Minute Gifts You Can Still Get Delivered By Christmas
The clock is ticking: Christmas is on Friday and if you have not finished your Christmas shopping, your options are narrowing by the minute. Here are some last-minute suggestions for the loved ones you find hard to shop for, and for those persons you don’t like that much in the first place. I’ve only chosen items that, if you shop RIGHT NOW, can get to the intended recipient before Christmas, albeit at a premium and assuming the USPS doesn’t collapse in the coming days.
This year, it seems that Zoom family get-togethers are inevitable, and at the very least, you can avoid having to make awkward excuses and blame it on AT&T if you have to pull a figurative as well as literal plug on the virtual celebrations. Also, don’t bother asking: I don’t know how to get a PS5 either.
Styleforum Gift Guide 2020: The WFH Warrior
I read somewhere that in womenswear the cardi-coat -already a casual staple- has replaced the blazer as the WFH unofficial uniform in 2020.
Men, at least from what I’ve witnessed on Zoom meetings, have adapted less well, and run the gamut from “I’ll going to wear a college tee shirt just like I did in college” to “Jacket and tie, pants optional”. Note that I’m just guessing on the pants part, but we’ve all seen enough pantless Zoom bloopers by now to know that this happens with alarming frequency.
Consequently, it might be wise this holiday season to give gifts that nudge men towards clothes that suggest a third way to dress, neither inspired by a dorm room nor by the pre-pandemic boardroom minus the pants. I think I’ll name it after Ryan Gosling “Ryan Gosling’s off-camera clothing” just so more guys will adopt the look. However, remember that you are not Mr. Gosling, and that results may vary.
Styleforum Self-Indulgence Kit #1: “It’s Sunday But I Do Have to Take Out the Trash”
If you are in the Northern Hemisphere, fall is probably winding down now. Outside of my house, it’s in the 30s and 40s, the trees are completely bare, and there have already been a few days of snow.
During this season, I like to keep on my pajamas, have a coffee and a donut, and maybe binge on some Netflix. Of course, this being 2020, time has lost most meaning, and it’s actually Thursday, which is not unlike Sunday, except that I have to take Zoom meetings and take out the garbage.
Here are some creature comforts that might make the rest of the year seem like every day is a calm, lazy, Sunday, rather than an interminable Monday.
Autumn Stuff I’m Excited About (But Can’t Wear Yet)
Enamel Craft and Design
If you hadn’t heard about Scottish watchmaker AnOrdain before, you might have been introduced by their collaboration with The Armoury, offering a co-branded version of their Model 1, a 38mm time-only model with heat-blued hands and a striking, glassy dial.
AnOrdain’s dials are made in Glasgow from vitreous enamel, using a process called Grand Feu: a slow, high-temperature fabrication that melts multiple layers of powdered minerals onto a metal base. The completed dial is smooth and almost organic in form, yet uniquely shaped during the layering and heating. The charm of the Model 1 is in the slightly imperfect enamel dial, which is part and parcel of being handmade, says Mark Cho, The Armoury’s co-founder.
AnOrdain x The Armoury
Men’s Face Masks – Shopping Guide for the New Necessary Accessory
Shopping for face masks is only the latest of a series of habits that define our “new normal”.
We are now advised to cover our face partially in order to help slow the spread of coronavirus whenever we are outside in the presence of other people.
Face masks do not replace social distancing, which is still the most effective way to curb the spread, but they offer an additional layer of protection for both the wearer and the people around him/her.
Since it is imperative at this stage that people do not buy and hoard medical equipment essential for frontline workers, we scoured the web (and our affiliate list) to find alternative options. These masks don’t take away equipment from front line workers, and they might help keep these companies afloat while they wait to resume their regular production.
If you’d rather try your hand at sewing following the tutorial of a tailor, check out this tutorial to create your own face mask using any cloth you like.
Happy shopping and stay safe.
E. Gucewicz Sunglasses: Handcrafted From Home
Like so many other parts of previously normal life, the work of craftspeople has been disrupted and displaced by the current epidemic. Factories and workshops have been closed, like the stores which sell their finished products.
Yet individual makers have persevered where they can. Continuing to exercise the skills that have taken years to sharpen. And we’ve seen the return to a mode of production common before industrialisation: individual, artisanal craft in the home.
Black-Owned Menswear Businesses to Support
The black community is hurting, and it’s time we come together to amplify the voices that need to be heard.
This list, albeit incomplete, represents an effort to highlight the talent of black creators and businessmen in the menswear community.
If you’re unable to support these businesses with your wallet at the moment, remember that you can make a difference by simply following their accounts on social media, engaging with them, and sharing them with your friends.
Feel free to help us expand this list by leaving a comment with a link to more brands, shops, and talents.
