Put This On

Your Fall/ Winter Scarf

As the temperatures begin to dip, it will be important for you to have a few scarves on hand. If it’s cold enough, you’ll obviously wear yours with an overcoat or some kind of heavy winter outerwear. If it’s not, however, a scarf can be even more important, as it may be your only source of warmth. 

When buying one, it’s important to pay attention to a few key things:

• Material: Generally speaking, cashmere will be softer and warmer than wool or lambswool, but it really depends on the quality. A lambswool/ angora blend by Alex Begg, for example, will be nicer than any cheap cashmere. You can also get scarves in either silk or cotton, but those tend to not be as warm. Whichever you choose, I recommend staying away from acrylic. There are too many affordable, good scarves, made from natural materials, to justify buying an acrylic scarf. 
• Nap and size: Pay attention to the size and nap. I personally prefer scarves to be around 70” long, and never go below 63”. As Will from A Suitable Wardrobe shows, if your scarf is too short, you won’t be able to tie it. You’ll also want to pay attention to the width. If your scarf is too thin, it will hang like a silly noodle around your neck. Lastly, note that rougher materials, such as some lambswools, will be more difficult to tie into knots.
• Color and patterns: As I’ve written before, I think scarves are worn best when they complement, but not match, the rest of your ensemble. That means picking one with complementary colors or a secondary color that matches your jacket or coat. I personally find solid colored scarves, or those with plaids, windowpanes, and stripes, to be the easiest to wear, but you can also get scarves in Fair Isle, dip dye, or houndstooth designs. 

So with that, what are some of your best options? 

• For under $40: There are a surprising number of good scarves for under $40. In terms of value, it’s hard to beat Johnstons of Elgin’s, particularly their cashmeres. Sierra Trading Post often has them for under $40 once you apply their Deal Flyer coupons. In addition to those, there is also Barbour, Dent’s, and Amana Woolen Mills. Amana Woolen Mills’ are particularly cheap at $16-18, but they’re very thick and a bit itchy. I found them last year after seeing someone rebrand their scarves and sell them for $166. Kind of hilarious. Note also that Amana isn’t limited to just those Fair Isles; they’ll cut any of their blankets into scarves if you request them to. 
• For $50 to ~$100: This is where most of the action is, so you’ll find a wider range of patterns and colors here. My favorites include Brooks Brothers, J Press, Howard Yount, Lochcarron, and Berg & Berg. I’ve also been charmed by these Howlin’ scarves, which Unionmade carries, but I haven’t handled one yet. 
• For ~$100 and above: Most scarves priced above $100 are by high-end fashion brands such as Burberry, Zegna, and Moncler, or luxury-end houses such as Colombo and Begg. The designer/ fashion brands are all very nice, but you’re obviously paying some premium for the name. If you don’t mind that, you can find them at Saks, Neiman Marcus, and Barneys. For luxury-end houses such as Colombo or Begg, check Four in Hand, Unionmade, and Kabbaz and Kelly. Kabbaz and Kelly has particularly good customer service. Brooks’ cashmere scarves (which I believe are Colombos) and Drake’s of London are also very nice. Lastly, A Suitable Wardrobe carries some really handsome scarves. I’m particularly fond of this navy one with an ecru overcheck. 

Of course, there are hundreds of good scarves to be had, so the above list isn’t meant to be exhaustive. If you’re on the market to buy one, however, the above can be a good place to start. 

Q and Answer: How To Get the Stink Out of a Barbour Jacket

Warren asks: I bought a Barbour jacket on ebay a while back, and unfortunately it’s got a musty smell.  I’ve been hanging it in my garage for most of the spring, and put it outside on sunny days in an attempt to let the sun clear the smell out… but the musty smell remains.   Any ideas on how I could get rid of it?  I’d like to avoid having the scent transfer to my other clothes…

There’s a reason that an English farmer keeps his Barbour in the foyer by the back door and not in his coat closet. Barbour jackets are musty.

Partly this odor is due to the proofing itself - the wax sealed into the jacket that keeps it waterproof. Partly this is due to the fact that the jackets can’t be washed without ruining said proofing.

It’s not usually an overwhelming odor, and for a lot of folks it just reminds them of the great outdoors. For others, it’s a dealbreaker.

There is one way to dramatically reduce the smell, if you so chose. You can have the jacket cleaned and re-proofed. In the United States, the primary company that does this work is New England Reproofers. They’ll strip the jacket, clean it, then re-proof it. The cleaning costs $30, and the reproofing costs $45. They’ll also repair your coat for you if it needs it.

Just remember: even sparkling clean, Barbour jackets have a smell.

Jules B in the UK is having a pretty interesting sale right now. Of particular note are their selection of items by Gant, Anderson’s, and Barbour. I particularly like this Anderson’s suede belt (which also comes in navy) for $56; quilted Barbour jacket for $107; and cashmere Gant blazer with suede elbow patches for $267. All seem like great items for this coming fall season. 

That gentle rolling sound you hear is menswear bloggers across this great nation crying softly to themselves.

Of course, we’d have had to see Barbour’s birth certificate…

Q and Answer: Clothing for the Field

Michael asks: I’m a biology student and as my classes become more advanced, more field work becomes involved. This means trekking through woods, wading in streams, getting on all fours to collect mushrooms, or turning over rocks to look for insects. Is there something I can wear for all of this that is fashionable and practical? I’ve no problem dressing myself well out of the field, but I’d like to look a cut above the traditional jeans, sneakers, and t-shirt that are prevalent in the field.

Right now, Michael, thousands of cool kids are sitting in pools of their own drool, wishing they had an opportunity like this.  At this moment, nothing is cooler than classic field clothing, and you have the chance to wear it for reasons beyond simple fashion.  Enjoy yourself.

The best outdoor clothing has a hundred-year-plus history.  The clothing that British ramblers and American sportsmen wore in the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s remains just as functional and beautiful now as it was then.

Spend some time with brands like Filson, Barbour and Orvis.  Look for vintage pieces from companies like L.L. Bean and Abercrombie & Fitch which made fine quality outdoor clothing for many years before turning mallward. (Even now, the real outdoor and hunter’s clothing at Bean is some of the best they make.)

My advice is to focus on a simple kit.  Buy some great khaki pants, some solid shirts, a wool shirt or two, a great knit, a Barbour or Filson coat, a pair of amazing field boots and a pair of boots for wet work.  The outerwear in particular should last a lifetime with proper care.  Take care with fit - contemporary style suggests a closer fit than most legacy brands offer - this can be corrected with careful sizing or a bit of tailoring.  There’s no need to go overboard in this direction, though, if you plan to keep your gear for decades.  And remember: all the most durable items in your kit are probably available used.

Q and Answer: Mixing Fall and Spring

Clifford writes: Is it okay to wear clothes designated for the Fall during the colder Spring days?  This is the only time of year where I get a little confused.  Yesterday I wore a tweed herringbone sports coat because of the chilly night wind but wasn’t sure if it was seasonally accurate.

Absolutely.

Remember that for the most part, the seasonality of clothing is about practicality, not some arbitrary outside rule.  There are a few items of clothing (holiday sweaters, white shoes, wool ties) which are very specifically seasonal.  For the most part, though, you should wear what feels right.

A good guideline, other than weight/warmth, is to remember to wear seasonally appropriate colors.  Spring is a time for brighter colors, fall a time for earthier tones.  Your colors should to some extent reflect the world around you.  So the green Barbour coat above can comfortably do double-duty in a way that a brown tweed might not.  Even still, that brown tweed, brightened with the right accessories, could be just fine.

All I Want For Christmas: Nick Sullivan

In our series All I Want For Christmas, we ask men we like what style item they’d like to get for Christmas.

Nick Sullivan is the editor of Esquire’s Big Black Book, and writes Ask Nick Sullivan for Esquire.com.  Unfortunately, Esquire.com is kind of hard to navigate, so the best link for that we can give you is this page of pieces he’s written.  He’s also a supremely nice guy, though it should be noted that we’ve extrapolated that piece of information solely from the fact he sent us a nice email about our first video.  So, what does a fashion editor want for Christmas?  Three things, as it turns out.

BRUNELLO CUCINELLI BROGUES
Just as its clothing sits in a unique niche entirely of its own making between dressy and casual,
Brunello’s soft hued brogues span the gulf between proper grown up shoes and trainers.  There is nothing hybrid about these shoes but they are extremely comfortable, and they knock the stuffing out of a suit and add they chutzpah - or whatever the italian word for it is - to jeans or khakis.

VINTAGE BARBOUR INTERNATIONAL
Less the huntin shootin fishing style of the traditional Toffs outerwear, the Barbour International was conceived for and worn as a two piece suit by motorcyclists from the 30s on and adapted for use by World War II Submarine captains, and later even up to the present day by NATO
Cut shorter and slimmer than the country coats, it also had assymmetric pockets on the chest for ease of access when astrid a BAS or Triumph.

SMART TURNOUT MILITARY SOCKS
Stripey socks are my schtick. Lurid combinations of pink and yellow, red and blue, lime green and orange. I wear them with jeans and occasionally with suits. I should point out that since I have never served in the The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, nor occupy my mis-spent youth at Eton, Harrow or Stonyhurst, I don’t technically have the slightest right but damn do I like those colors.  Somehow for me, in America, socks are ok. But ties are not.