The new J.Press catalog showed up in my mailbox last week. There’s always some good stuff in there to drool over like the new soft make Lovat sport coats, the all cotton wide wale corduroy pants that which are becoming increasingly hard to find, and the re-emergence of moleskin pants There is a whole lot more, but this post is about one image that really stood out to me.
Check out the picture above. It is so good. The tan corduroy sport coat. The checked shirt. The silk knit tie. Even the notebook adds something. It’s a classic look with Dustin Hoffman Graduate vibes, but it also looks contemporary. The corduroy sport coat straddles the line between dressed up and dressed down nicely reflecting our current sartorial climate. It might be the perfect fence sitter. Same with the knit tie. The natural pose helps make him look comfortable in these clothes. This is what makes for good looks books and for good fits in real life. One thing that surprises me about this fit is that I would have never picked a shirt with a pattern in these colors, but it sure does work here. Yes, I know there is no collar roll. The youngsters will get there. This is Pennant Label J.Press not mainline which still has that good collar roll. I am not sold on the 5-pocket cords with the different color corduroy jacket, but since they are obscured in the pic I I am going to let it ride. Hats off to whomever styled this one.
Dustin Hoffman & His Killer Cord Jacket in The Graduate
This seems like as good of a time as any to use my bully pulpit for personal gain. I have been and still am on the lookout for a similar jacket. My size is sold out at J.Press or I’d bite. It’s probably the reason why I liked the pic so much. My ideal set up is a 3/2 roll sack cut with swelled edges, a welted chest pocket, patch and flap lower pockets, and center vent in this color. This gold tan color is the best cord color imho with olive trailing just behind. It works with chinos and it works with jeans. I’d love a good deal on a vintage 3/2 roll corduroy sport coat, but if you know where a new one is send it my way as well. Here’s the rub. I am about a 37s (17-17.25″ shoulders, 20-ish” ptp, and 28-29 length from boc). Thanks for keeping me in mind!
Simon Crompton of Permanent Style recently did a post about baseball caps and logos (see here). I think the gist of his post was about authenticity and that ball caps can look good. He prefers a logo that means something to the wearer and doesn’t care for made up logos. I said something similar about ball caps and authenticity in 2016 (Are baseball caps trad?), but I don’t mind made up logos, no logos, or luxury caps. Why I am writing about this is that Simon’s post created a lot more controversy in a trad/ivy related sub-reddit that I follow (here) than I would have anticipated. Specifically the part about wearing a ballcap with tailoring. Some people like it, but people that don’t like it seem to really really hate it.
I will add my 2 cents on the subject. I don’t think of the ball cap and blazer look as anything new. I used to have a great floor to ceiling window in my old office which was located near a few banks, the courthouse, and some law offices. I have seen men downtown in blazers, sport coats, and suits put on a baseball hat when it’s windy, raining, or very sunny for well over a decade. Keep in mind this was in a smaller city. In Ohio. We are talking main street USA not LA, NYC, or London where Simon mentions that he has never seen the look. Maybe it’s newer that men are wearing ball caps not for weather protection, but for style or maybe it’s new that it’s featured in look books and advertising. I am not sure. I seem to recall a Muffy Aldrich or Ivy Style blog post about men in NYC wearing ball caps with blazers 7-10 years ago, but I couldn’t find it. I have a more open opinion than many it seems. I think like most things it can look good or it can look bad. It just depends.
I leave you with a few pics. The first is man that I spotted on the street about 4 years ago. He was a wearing a 3/2 roll patch pocket blazer, p3 type glasses, OCBD, foulard tie, khakis, tassels, and a tan baseball hat. I thought that he looked cool so I snapped a pic. He reminded me of the men that I described above. An old school guy throwing on a ball cap outside of his office (probably to protect his head from the sun). I highly doubt that this guy reads about menswear trends online. The other two pics are of me. I am wearing a hat in one pic because it was rainy and in the other because it was very windy. My down vest will probably cause as much pushback as the cap, but I like it. I thought that the cap looked pretty good too. Hence the pic. The hat is from a golf course that I played in case you were wondering.
People seem to be excited for the new J.Crew gitant-fit OCBD (see it here). It reminds of the the warm welcome that the Gap Giant fit OCBD received a few years ago (see here). I get it. An affordable all-cotton-must-iron OCBD with collar roll is not easy to find these days. I have my doubts that this the best OCBD for your dollar though. Below are a few thoughts and a few options for OCBDs under $100.
I heard about the new J.Crew OCBD through the grapevine. I took a look. It looks pretty good, but I am not sold on that collar for $98 (top image). I wondered if they were a better buy than the alpha sized not made in the USA $98 Brooks Brothers OCBD (pictured above). The collar size looks better here. I know that nobody is planning on plopping down $100 for either shirt. Just waiting on that inevitable sale price. The Brooks are Currently $78 on sale (see them here) , but I have seen them on sale for 4 for $250 which gets the price down just under $65 a piece. I guess the question is how low will the J.Crew price go?
There are a few more players in the all-cotton must-iron OCBD for under $100 and not all of them are alpha sized. For example, you have Spier & Mackay which get a lot of fanfare starting at $58 (see here). I have never tried one. My size is never available, but I digress. From what I have seen they look good. You can get a custom fit one from Ratio for $79, but only in white (see here). Other colors are $89-$139. You could also go to Proper cloth for $95 (see here). Both of these have a really nice collar roll and you can add most of the bells and whistles. I think that about does it for under $100 options. Am I forgetting anyone?
Based on the above I think that Ratio or Proper Cloth are the best bang for you dollar. However if the custom sizing and return process are a turn off than it is probably Spier & Mackay. If, you can get one. I have also heard that making returns at Spiers is painful. If the Brooks Brothers alpha sizing works for then it’s not a bad deal in my book. If all the above fails then I might turn to the new J.Crew OCBD.
If my last post (End-on-End Madras by HTJ) left you wondering what exactly end-on-end madras is you are not alone. I myself was a little confused by it so I reached out to an expert to get their input (Still waiting to hear back), a reader and ivy style enthusiast gave some good input, and I re-read HTJ’s article several times looking for more clues. Now let me tell you how I went down this rabbit hole in the first place.
A light as a feather, breezy, well worn, frayed, and almost completely see through contrast collar end-on-end broadcloth shirt from Brooks Brothers is what sent down this rabbit hole (Top image). I actually think that it’s the same shirt that HTJ mentions wearing with a suit in his post (Illustration above). A contrast collar isn’t the easiest thing to wear when you aren’t dressed to the nines. Luckily this shirt is beat to death making it easier for me to style it casually. it’s a beautiful shirt. The alternating warp of blue and white yarns creates a subtle variation of color that I find very pleasing. Plus it’s the coolest wearing shirt that I own even beating out my madras shirts. In my opinion it’s the perfect fabric to wear in the summer and I wanted a new solid blue one button down version.
DJA Sea Island Light Blue End-on-End
Thomas Mason Goldline Light Blue End-on-End
Stanton 120s Blue End-on-End
A slight detour. Prior to remembering the HTJ end-on-end madras post I was working with Proper Cloth to get a few shirts made. At this time I was simply trying to replicate my contrast collar end-on-end shirt as the madras portion had not entered the equation yet. I ordered a few swatch sample including the Stanton 120s blue end-on-end, Thomas Mason Goldline light blue end-on-end, and a DJA Sea Island light blue end-on-end. I ended up choosing the the Stanton’s for a few reasons. I was after a shirt with a similar variation in color, weight, and transparency, but a touch darker blue. The Stanton’s end-on-end had the right color and color variation, but is a little more opaque than I wanted. I think that it will get more transparent with time. It’s a great shirt and I have loved wearing it, but it doesn’t have the texture that HTJ mentions.
*If you want to give Proper Cloth a try follow the link (Proper Cloth) for 10% off your first purchase.
Another short detour. While I was trying to find more info on end-on-end madras I remembered a shirt that I owned over a decade ago. This was a lightweight blue shirt with some color variation and a flap pocket from Huntington Clothiers. It was a cool shirt with that flap pocket. I had always thought it was a chambray shirt, but I started to question that. I really questioned it after blog reader Irving left an insightful comment about how Ebay sellers often mistake end-on-end madras for chambray. This shirt was one of my early thrifts. I even did a post about it (see here), but sadly I let the shirt go because it was a tad big. I regret that now as I think I’d like the fit these days. Live and learn. Anyways I looked up the old blog post and upon zooming in I did not see the the end-on-end weave, but I still miss the shirt. I tried to track it down to no avail.
Here is where I am now. After reading the HTJ post several times this is what I surmised. I think that by end-on-end madras he meant an end-on-end weave in a cotton fabric that is not broadcloth. I say this because broadcloth has almost no texture even in an end-on-end weave or so I thought. During my search for this fabric I found a few end-on-end fabrics on Mercer and Sons’ website. When I read the description of the cloth I had an aha moment. Mercer says of their venerable blue 60s end-on-end weave, “The most basic and versatile blue broadcloth. Its uniquely textured weave and its progressive softening over time make it a true favorite.”. The uniquely textured weave and progressive softening jumped off the page. Then I saw their Thistle end-on-end which HTJ also mentions. Now I might be on to something! Priced at $240 per shirt at Mercer I need to make certain this is what I am after before I plunge that far in the deep end.
If the jumble of words above leaves you confused I will try to summarize. I have an amazing vintage end-on-end broadcloth shirt from Brooks Brothers and I want another, but in button down format without contrasting cuffs and collar. I ordered an end-on-end shirt from Proper Cloth to as the replacement which I think will work out nicely. While waiting for my Proper Cloth shirt I remembered an old post from HTJ about end-on-end madras. Then I wanted one of these shirts as it aligned with what I had been after but sounded even better. The problem was that I didn’t know exactly what this fabric is or where to find it. I thought that it was a end-on-end cotton that wasn’t broadcloth. Then I found a fabric on Mercer and Sons website that seems to fit the bill, but it is broadcloth. So broadcloth is back in the pool of consideration and most likely the answer. However, no conclusion has been reached at this time. The search continues. Stay tuned.
This is a re-post from the now defunct and my favorite trad blog ever, Heavy Tweed Jacket (HTJ). I stumbled on this old blog post as I was researching the fabric of old end-on-end shirt that I have. In this post from May 2013 HTJ goes in depth on his favorite summer fabric, end-on-end Madras. He touches on all the reasons that I like end-on-end fabrics in the summer, introduces a term that I was not familiar with (end-on-end madras), and of course takes us down memory lane. Buckle you seatbelt and prepare for a blast from the past.
As far as favorites go, end-on-end Madras runs a pretty close second to oxford cloth for me. Though this very thin fabric looks great with tweed and can be worn year round, it really comes into its own in the warmer months of the year. End-on-end Madras is both light in weight and highly breathable, hence its great utility in the warmer seasons of the year. In the past, these shirts were often seen in both solid colors as well as candy stripes. Many men’s clothiers also offered shirts made of end-on-end Madras in both button-down and straight point collars. End-on-end is a very thin fabric that looks great when starched to paper thinness and worn with a jacket, though it also dresses down equally well with khakis and loafers for those who like a bit of casual rumple. The shirts pictured above are from bottom to top: Brooks Brothers Brookscloth (blue); Mercer & Sons (blue); Huntington Clothiers (blue): Brooks Brothers (blue): Brooks Brothers Brookscloth (brown candy stripe); Brooks Brothers Brookscloth (spice candy stripe); Brooks Brothers Brookscloth (blue candy stripe); and Brooks Brothers (blue candy stripe).
End-on-end Madras is a fabric known for its alternating warp yarns, usually one in white and one in color. It is also known for its distinctive box weave formed by slightly thicker yarns repeated at intervals on the weft. I’ve always understood that this bit of texture created by the thicker yarns why it is referred to as ‘Madras’. J. Press used to offer shirts made from their own unique fabric called ‘Madralyte’ which did not have the box weave effect. I’ve never had one of these shirts, but I imagine it would have been like an end-on-end broadcloth: a shirt with the feel of end-on-end but without the box weave. With end-on-end Madras, when seen from a distance, solid colors such as blue or pink appear as truly solid, but when examined closely, a very fine white box or check-like pattern gives the shirt a subtle texture. The true character of end-on-end Madras lies in its durability and thinness, becoming softer with age. This is a very light and breathable fabric that is at its best when the collars and cuffs are unlined or lined with only the thinnest of fabrics. When starched, the collars and cuffs become as thin as paper offering an elegant counterpoint to tweeds or summer linen, silk and wool blends. Shirts made of this cloth were once a very common staple for men, but today these shirts have become somewhat hard to find. About the only places that I can think of that still offer shirts of this fabric are Mercer & Sons, O’Connell’s, and J. Press (more on that below).
However, I thought that it would be interesting in this post to take a historical look at how venerable clothiers such as Brooks Brothers, Chipp and J. Press have offered these shirts over the years. It remains mystifying to me why more clothiers do not offer this unpretentious, hard-wearing and yet elegant shirt.
Brooks Brothers, Spring & Summer 1962. Brooks Brothers offered an English end-on-end broadcloth button-down shirt in this catalog from half a century ago.
Brooks Brothers, Christmas 1971. The striped shirts in #143 (a) certainly look like they were made from end-on-end cloth. They also have that very definite heavy-early-’70s-vibe happening. It really is hard to believe that only nine years separate this catalog from those immediately above and below.
Brooks Brothers, Spring and Summer 1980. The Brooks Brothers solid blue end-on-end Madras was the gold standard for this shirt. Brooks unlined polo collar and narrow unlined cuffs gave this shirt a certain understated yet beautiful simplicity.
Brooks Brothers, Fall & Winter, 1982. Brooks Brothers used to offer these shirts year round and the fall and winter catalogs seemed to feature them more than the catalogs for spring and summer.
Brooks Brothers, Fall & Winter 1981. Throughout the 1980s Brooks Brothers also offered a solid blue end-on-end shirt with contrasting collar and cuffs.
Brooks Brothers, Fall 1987. I had one of these in the broadcloth version in the 1980s, and it wore well with suits or with a blazer.
Brooks Brothers, Christmas 1980. Brooks Brothers also offered an easy care polyester and cotton blend called ‘Brookscloth’ that came in both solid and candy striped end-on-end versions. The shirt construction was the same as the all cotton shirts, and to me at any rate, it was also far superior to the contemporary non-iron shirts made by Brooks Brothers today. As I’ve said before, the non-iron shirts of today are almost too well made – perfection rendering them somewhat lifeless. These older Brookscloth versions were, if I might say it this way – pretty cool.
Brooks Brothers, Fall 1988. A somewhat rare photo catalog showing both solid and striped end-on-end versions of this shirt. Other than oxford cloth, I can’t think of a more useful cloth for daily wear wear than this.
Chipp (The New Yorker, 10/16/1954). However, in addition to Brooks Brothers, Chipp also offered a ‘Peppermint Stripe Madras’, which I am betting was their version of a candy stripe end-on-end Madras. These were offered in blue, grey and brown stripes. I wish I could call Chipp up on the phone and order a couple of these.
J. Press, Fall & Winter 1977. Of course, J. Press also offered end-on-end Madras in solid blue with that distinctive box weave. J. Press also offered ‘Madralyte’, a fabric with much of the same character as end-on-end Madras, but without the box weave effect. The J. Press stripes were also very distinctive, with hairline and block striped Madralyte offerings.
J. Press, Fall & Winter 1980. This page from the 1980 J. Press Brochure is a great example of their lineup with solid blue end-on-end, hairline Madralyte, pencil stripe Madralyte, block stripe Madralyte, as well as crayon stripe broadcloth and the old standard oxford cloth candy stripes. I would also like to have a telephone that would connect me with J. Press in 1980. Now that would be my kind of smartphone.
I’ve included some photos that show mainly Brooks Brothers’ end-on-end shirts from the 1980s, as well as Huntington Clothiers and Mercer and Sons’ shirts.
‘Makers’ All Cotton, Blue Candy Stripes. Late 1980s.
Brookscloth (65/35 blend), Blue Candy Stripes. Late 70s, early 1980s. A 60/40 cotton/polyester blend came out after this (see below).
‘Makers’ All Cotton, Blue. Late 1980s.Brooks all cotton solid blue version was a lighter shade of blue.
Huntington Clothiers, Egyptian Cotton, Blue. Late 1980s. Huntington’s version was closest in color to Brooks’ all cotton version.
‘Makers’ Brookscloth (60/40 blend), Blue. Late 1980s. The 60/40 blend version. Pretty nice collar roll.
Mercer & Sons, All Cotton, Blue. Mercer’s version is very nice indeed. I like a full cut shirt, and these shirts are absolutely comfortable to work in all day long.
A new-old-stock Brookscloth in a brown candy stripe. This Brookscloth blend may be a decidedly ‘unhip’ 65/35 poly-cotton blend, but these shirts are just as well made as their all cotton cousins and have that “Brooksy” button-down collar roll. If this makes me unhip, then so be it. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Brooks Brothers seems to have forgotten how to make shirts like this. I keep hoping that they will wake up like Rip van Winkle and reclaim their place as ‘Makers’ of ‘The Most Imitated Shirt in the World’.
So whether one needs solids or stripes, end-on-end Madras shirts are a classic choice that can be worn all year round. Today, one might be a bit hard pressed to find these shirts at Brooks Brothers. I couldn’t find much that looked like this on their website. However, one need not lose hope. O’Connell’s, J. Press and Mercer & Sons all still offer shirts cut from this cloth. O’Connell’s selection, though not wide, offers a standard blue end-on-end button-down. J. Press offers a solid blue end-on-end in a not often seen straight point collar; a pink button-down; as well as a hard to find blue thin stripe end-on-end button-down. Mercer & Sons can make shirts in a various shades of end-on-end blue, as well as the colors “thistle” and peach. They also offer a candy-stripe-like “Bold” stripe end-on-end in blue. So choices are still available for this type of shirt. The weather is only going to get warmer, so it is only natural that shirts like this will no doubt find a frequent place in the rotation. End-on end Madras: A classic workhorse of a shirt that I can only hope will continue to be offered for years to come. The world needs more living traditions such as this.
