USA$49-95 Canada '$74-95 D ressingtheMan is the definitive guide to what men need to know in. qrd~ tQ dress well and look stylish. without becoming fashion victims. Alan FLusser's name is synonymouswi th taste and style. With his new book, he combines his encyclopedic knowledge of men's clothes with his signature wit ancl eleg~ce to address the funda- mental paradox of modern men's fashion: 'Why, after men today have spent more money on dothes than in any other period of history; -are there few~r well-dressed men than· at any time ever before? According to Flusser, dressing well is not all that difficult; the real challenge lies in being ahle to acquire the fight person-al-ized Instruction. Dressing well pivots on two pillars-proportion and color. Flus,ser believes that '"Permanent Fashionibillty,J) both hi,s promise and goal for the reader, starts by being accountable to a per- sonal set of physical trademarks ·and not to any Jcind of .random, seasonally se.rved-Llp collection of fashion .flashes. Unlike fashic;m. which is obliged to cha:q.ge each season. the face's shape, the neck's height, the shoulder~s width, the arm's length. the torso's strucwre, and the foot's size reJnain fairly con- stant over time. Once a man learlis how to adapt the :fundamentals of permanent fashion to his physique a:nd complexion,_he's halfway home. Taking the reader through each major cloth- ing das15i£cation step-by-step, tW.s user-friendly guide helps you apply your own specifics to a series of dressing options> fro1n business casual ·and fotmalwear to pattern-on-pattern coordina- tion, or how to choose the m0_st flattetihg doth- .ingsiihouette for your body type and shirt collar for your fa~ e. A man's physical traits represent his individ- ual .roadmap, and the quickestroute toward forg- ing an endn ring sty1e of dress is through exposure to the legendary practitioners of this rare mascu- line art. Flusser has assembled the largest and most diver-se collectien of sty.lishly mantled 1nen everfound in one book Nlany nevet-before-seeh vintage photographs from the ern of Cary Grant, (conti11ued on &~ckjlb;p) t002 (aontim1ed fr(:)m front j1a.p) . Tyrone Power, and Fred Astaire are etn.ployed to help illustrate the range and diversity of a1,1then- tic men's fashion. Dr~s#tg the Man's sheer rpagni- tude of options will enable the xeader to expand both d1e grammar and verfuiage o.fhis petmanent- fashion vocabLuary For thosemen.hoping to find sarto~fu1 - fillm.ent somewhere down the road, tethering their journey to the mind-set of permanent fashion will deiivet them there earlier rather than later in life. ALAN FLUS S'ER ls the President of Alan F1usser Designs, a company he founded in I979- He received the 1985 Goty Aw~d as Top Mc~.nswear Designer and the Cut.ty SarkAwardin1987for his first two books' ''ilni.que contribution tQ the Utera- tute of menswear." He attracmd natiohal attention for designing Michael DOL~glas"s wardrobe in the movie Wall Stret;t, as well as acclaim for hJs work on the HB 0 m0yie Barbarians at th~ Gate and the ·6lm Scent of a ~ro1.rtatl; He is the author ·of four books; Jnduding Style and the Man, clothes and ih.e Mart, and Mak~rtg the Mq:n. l-Ie has two daughters and lives in New York. Jacket design by Joel Avirom and Jason Snyder &ant cover photograph: Getty Archives. Back c:::over photographs: top: Illusfirated..Ne~vs, l ondon; m~dcUe: Culver PJ1otqs; bottom: courtesy of Polo Ralph lauren Author photograph by James Murray Harper~ollinsPublishers ~ -www.harpere0.ll.in:s.com ALSO BY ALAN fL USS I R Style and the Man Clothes and the Man Making the Man • PERMANENT FASH ION 2 HOSIERY 1-IARMONIES 170 THE PO\¥ER OF COLOR 16 FOOT DECORUM 186 • PROPORT ION: T HE fOUNDATION OF STYLE 34 ACCESSORIES: THE MAJOR IMPORTANCE OF 1/[INOR THINGS 210 • THE PREROGATIVES OF PATTERN FORMAL WEAR: BLACK- AND -WH I TE ET I ~ETTE 232 THE SUIT 78 BUSINESS CASUAL 254 ODD JACKETS, TROUSERS. AND WAI STCOATS 100 GLOSSARY 277 THE DRESS SHIRT 120 BIBLIO GRAPHY J06 NECKWEAR 144 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 307 4 DRESSING THE MAN J• HU~IJ4)1't IWHft; I,AS ,"lcrtltly \/(nl ~t ll.'tt):,' fl()l,l)P.)rt ~\tJift•lr Almt Male adornment has blo~~o med. in p<1rt. because of the cultural shift toward personal expression and individuality that took place in the latter third of the twentieth century. During the 1950 . the typical businessman literally hid behind hi gray flannel uir. The era's political cli- mate mandated fashion conservatism and uniforrnity. ln some circles. men who dared to dress diFferently ·were viewed with derision. as outsiders. Fortunately for men's fashion. the tradition- toppling sixties provided the jump start for males to shed their stereotyped personas. By the dawn of the new mHienrtium. a peacock had stepped out of the gray Aannel cocoon. One positive outgrmvth of the sixties tw-bulence was the legitimacy that the period gave to clothes as badges of communication. Masculine attire vvas svvepr up in the quest for broader social freedoms: conformity came to be regarded as almost an infringement of personal! iberty In the image-oriented eighties. men dre, sed to look wealthy and powerfld. By the nineties. sophisti- cated men looked upon fashion as another means of discourse in an information-driven '"'orld. However, i.n one of fashion ·s less forhmatc ironies. when asked to name those public figures \vho now exemplify this ne,,found interest in male decor. American style gurus and menswear professionals come up relatively empty-handed. Like·wise. fashion journalists from other Westernized countries are equally baHlcd. unable to produce even a foursome of domes- \\II t.UM f10t\UR\" f,IIHW llroAir JU~KI'rl 1'. w-IIH!~&K SJ'r>rl"rtn 11 (\XTitO:SY J. mU:Xt:t. RtOOt.~, J K. lhtln;r Mon OUliC'U.~:J rAikiJAlC ,._l"', 'J~. Mqtl,., l'fnurt tf(t~r ntr.u "'TAIAh 'J'IJtNIU T • • t ,•\IIU~ftf~ R(JIUlll. f'JflN ,frthllrtl r. ,\MJiltaS~ CI.Ak~ SpcwtJ!IItm • 1AUIIA~~ r!rl.ll FlJfi"ufrr LEFT: Mencifstyk circa 19JOS1 cap tared head-to-toe. OPPOSITE: Men cifstyle, circa 2oooJ pictured in celebrity hea.dshots . tic male fashion exemplar. under the age of si.'ty And no one is tqring to come up with such iconic elegantes as film legend Cary Grant or Italian industrialist Gianni gnel li; justa couple of high-:Bying social or busLness magnates or even the odd Hollywood leading man with an affin- ity for the random sartorial flourish ·would do. How is it that aft~r almost three decades of unprecedented fasb ion consumption. so few capable practitioners of this ma ·culine art form have been bred? If d:ressi ng well were sim - ply a matter of donning the latest designer duds or owning an expensi\'e wardrobe. fashion nabobs should be in abLuldance. My quick response is that learning how to dress welJ is much like trring to build a classically beautiful place to live. ~o amount of professional decoration or priceless fu rnishings will ultimately make much of a difference if the :floors or \•valls that they :.1re to adorn re~ton ~l shaky foundation. ln trying to survive in ::u1 increasiJ1gly competitive Jrena, the men's retailer decided to ride on the coattails of the high-profile designer brand.Je:.:t\'ing the customer I i ttle cho.ice bur to base his dressing style on the shi Fri ng sands of fashion. U nfortu- nately. when the style '"'inds change. and they always do. the trend-captive man Found himself standing omewhere other than terra firma. Lec.1 rn ing how to dress '"'ell is not as diFficult as i r may seem. Mud1 I ike the newly fashion- able pastime of golf. stylish dressing is an acquired skill that can be honed and impro;ved with correct practice. /\s J Cormer low-handicap go.lfcr. f am often srruck by the Fact that the vast majority of participants in both activities spend an inm·dimlte amount of time repeat- ing the wrong techniques. h 1rthcr ingr~lin i ng tbe same faults into their swings, orin this case. in to their closet . \iVh ile the go I fing enthusiast can engage a recognized profession;1_l +or instruction. d1e +ash ion follower lacks a body of objective experD\ to call upon fo1· indi,·idual gu.idance. Al1)' go'l f pro will confin11 that v.rithout the proper grip, stance, and balance- the Fundamentals-a]! the practice iJ1 the world will not enable the most dedi- cated goJfcr to fulfill his potenrial. Developing a Aattering mode of dress is no diFferent: without a ·working knowledge of the basics, a man can not achieve true stylishness. -- - PERM ANENT FA SifiON Dressitlg,vell rests on two pillars-colot ari.d propon ion. O nce you learn vvhich colors enhance yoLu· complexion and why specific proportions flatter your physique, you are haJ-~vay home. And '~rhar does i r take for a man to grasp these two critical ae. thetics? Nor nearlr as much aptitude or savoir faire as you might think C€msider rhis: the classic m.ale tu:xedo confers ins tan r;;u1eous ·elatl on aU corners, yet this old- world regime is composed of only two colors, black and whjte. lf such a simple color scenario qlll help any m.an appear debonair, you don't need m be smne kind of Kandinsky to look your best. As for proportion. here's the kind of mind-set responsible for the current state of sartorial confLls.i.on. 'Men. tlS \~ reJI as women, invatiably i.nqu.ire whether tie widths will become lat·ger or smaller. F-Tovvever. the aJ1S\Ne r lies not in the world of fashion but it1 the realm of personal architectLu·e. The vvidd1 of a w:an's .necktie should relate to that ofhis jacket's lapels. which, in turn, are govctned by the size of the coat's shoulders. (See chapter 3, "Proportion: The Foundation of· Style.") Should a1nan be broad-shmddcrcd. a slightly wider necktie will harmonize better with the jacket's ti-tUet proportions: if small-shoulderecl a na1-.r.ower necktie vvould be the liJ.ore flattering choice. Fashion should be accountable to a specific ·set of physica1 trademarks and not to some random. seasonally served-up set.of±ashioo Hashes. \tVith this. indiYidual i.zed app170ach, leac~:ning bo'w to dress vvell begi.ns to take on a cer- tain logic, if oot clarity However. men intent upon improving their dressing skills are often stymied by the lack of access to intelligent and personaLized instruction. UnforwnateJy: no mat- ter hovv sophisticated a store's merchandise, without a knowledg~ab le and experienced sales staff the right clothes have l-ittle chance of ending up 011 the right back in the right \(\.ray. Due to l.J.llStablc financing, debt-ridden balance sh~ets. or stocld1older pressures, many larger retailers have been discoLmlg~d from th iJli.Jng about the long term.· And with profits squeezed by increasing overheads.. sa.lcs training and service are the first to· suffer. Most retailers m·e reluctant to invest much in educating :a new hire. Although the exceptional retaileJ- or indi- vidual sales e.,~ecutive might take the initiative to lean1 about the history and traditions und.er- lyi n.g fine rnenswe:;tr. he or she is not the norm. Nowadays. the distinguished salesperson is either promoted up to management or hired a,;vay by.a competitor. l'artiarhtrly at the top end, where expectations for professionalisn1 and superior service are justifiably h.ighcr, retail expertise has sunk to an all-time low. }vlost better-quality retailers have traded up to more expensive mer12handise, ceding almost all responsibility for the education - - . . --- - - _--=~ - ·----~---~~-~~~~~-~~~~~~~-- - -- 7 PERMANEN T fASJ-II ON OPPOSITE 0. LEFT: Two paragons of ,.seasoned simplicity": Sig110r Agnelli and Doug Fairbm1ks Jr. blanketed in the quiet asserrive11ess of a two-color ensemble. - -- ~ --- 8 DR ESS I NfJ TH·E MAN of its sales staff to their suppliers, which is like letting the fox loose in the henhouse. As expe1·i- enced veterans retire or are pushed our to make '''ay for a more youth-ful and cost~ efficient sell- ing Staff. ItlCll 's clothing floors become increasingly bereft cif those qualified tO jnstruct anyone imetestcd .i.n the finer points of this masculine ·art fortn. vVith most selJers' incomes derived primarily from commission., fash.ion advice is too frequently prejudiced by the p rospect of a sale. It's rare to find a salesperson inclined to dissuade a customer frorn buying an ill-fitting or w1Aatteri.ng garment because of tbe pressure to ·sustain or increase bis fjgures. Too ofte11, personal opinion and ~i friendly smile are respons.i.b.le for the fashion-challenged's slu·u1.king closet space. And ~N ·ith the econon:Jic realities currently operating in men's f~1s hion retailing, there is not n1uch reason to expect immediate i.Jnprm'ement. 'vVhereas rhis might sotmd like chapter and verse li·om any period in t\ventieih-century menswear. such vvas not always the case. T he tv.renty-year span bookended by the tvvo worl.d wars marked theh.igh poi.ntofAmerican men's retaiLing and fashion. This was the lasttimethatthe man- ufacturing, retailing. and editorial sectors of the mensvvear industry worked together to ~ nsurc the del.ivery of what it prcnriised: authentic style and correct taste. Even though the I920s and J930S VI'C t~e de cad~ of considerable econon1 ic uun td dar America, they produced the best- c:U·e~'Sed gener- ation it1 the t-vven:tieth cenhuy But the lesson from th.at bygone time vvas. not how well kitted-out the well -to-do ,;.,,·ere, but r;;)ther that the ~1verage mc,m's dressing tastes were not th:rt±ar behind. During that period. the American male was the beneficiary of some very favorable sartorial cir- cumstances. The period b~gan by catapulting the most important single force in m.odern men's fashion onto tbe -world stage. Whi.le still not yet ] ing of England, David \i\lind$or was regarded in Americaa5 the undis- puted King of Fash1on. The yeUov\r-haired heiJ· to the thro11e. Yariouslv knovvn as the Prince of \tVales and J . 1ate.r as d1c Duk~ ofvVindsor, visited the United States in 1924 and made front-page news . . .Plmtographers trailed him from the Long Island estates of America's wealthiest families to lunch with President Calvi.n Coolidge, with detours to the races at BeL11onr Park and the polo 111atches at Meadowbrook. The Prince qfwales: The Beau of the Twentiet11 Century. 1\s British menS\i\rear's greatest u aveling salesman. th~ young Prince of'vVales ap.d wh<lf he w01·e \.vere matters of deep interest wbe.rever he. we.nt. On September l O, r924, 1vlcn's \iVear magazi.ne reported, "The average young man in America .is mote inter- ested in the clothes of the Prince of\Vales than in any other individual on earth." T he travels of this sartorial Pied l)iper elevated rhe new men's o rder to center stage. \Vhen the ·rock market crash came. \\'h icb one would haYe expected to S\\'ecp fa:h ion awa)~ it .had the opposite-effect. \iVai I Sn·eet might have laid an egg but Fashion didn't The Grear De pres ·ion rcLUrned style supremacy ro the hands of the lucky fc\\' "·ho could still aFf-ord co dress'' ell. General business conditions did the vvo d~ of the thrc11hcr by eliminating the chaff or those followers of Fashion. lc;:n·L.ng the kernels. those men ofinAuentiaJ positions in finance and societr ro do the leading. T he new cafe society"s dressing habits. wate[i.ng holes. and social acti\·ities monopolized the attentions o l~ the -fashion press. Their intact fortunes <lnd inbred sense of security emboldened these men to imprm·ise <md break the fashion rLJe ·. Ironically. despite the Depression. or rather. becau~e of it. the next decade proved to be the most important per.iod in rwentieth-ccnmry menswear. The ·intet\:va,· period signaled the last rime thm the introduction oF a new men's Fash- ion (or a different wa) of rigging out an old one) gra\ itated down from the upper bracket· to the lowe!'. In other words. before the hot polloi could sign up for it. the high ~class had to sign off on tt Any fash ion innovation ·first required the approval of those men considered reliable arbiters of popular taste. Only when a ne\\' wearable \\·as adopted by a sufficient number of these style setters would fashion bibles such as .-\pparcl , \rts or Esquire magazine t·ecom mend it to the greater buying public. tvluch like the French vinegrower's Appellation Contn)lcc. c8ch new item of apparel faced a rite of passage before it could be ccr6fied :18 "authentic fashion." If this system did not foster a high enough level. oF cl1m;umer trust. the retailer v\·as i 11 tum expected ro assume final responsibility for hi.o.; establishment's fashion crcdibilil:)z As Appctrel I \rts ad,·ised. " 1 o merchant can devote his time to better use than to emplo) it in a constant effort to dis~ ti nguish between real and bogus t:1shion. A man who GLilllOt buy with confidence will nor buy at al l.'' This point of vie-w became a regult.1r theme o( the periodicRI's momhly 6di11gs in the 1930s. Stores .selling men's apparel that lacked the con·ecr pedigree or that ended up prematurely out of fushio!'1 Camels Hai1' Coat Mahare1.jahs. of b~.dja original us€rs I Adopted by British army officers f9r,vear after polo games I Worn in E11,gland on furloughs Noted at pol.Q matches and society I Brought ro U.S. by American socialite travel.ets I Worn at Newport gatherings telilr;ti.s n:tatches Coconut Straw Hat Bahamian §tt:aw w0ven by NassaLt natives I Sold by 1t[ary Wilso11, Nassau Purchased by British and Anierican sociali res and won1 in P~ Beach_ and Newport Thence. national pqpuJ ari:t:y Norwegia11 Slippers Norway to London To NassaLL To Palm Beach To N(:wport and U.S., hatlonwide EXAMPLE S OF H OW I930S T AS T ES BECAME PERMANENT FA S H f ON. PERMANENT Fil S /liON favor could expect the victim to promptly transfer his loyal t)' else,vhue. By the thirties, nevl men's fashions appeared fast an.d furious. Formal evening and d:1y attire were supplauted by more· casual garmentS; such as the dinner jacket the three-piece lo unge sui:t. and the dress hirt with attached soft coUar. 'vVith the advent of i11creased leisure time. the odd ja~ket and ~l acks ensemble, active and spec- tator sports\:veat attd all types oflight·weight rewrt garb pressed the.i r ·way into vogue. The thirties fashion ~co nscioLL""l Jiiale de~-per­ ately needed both info[med and individual ~qvicc. And an'lazingly, that is e--xactly '"'1hat he gor! for all America's sarto1ial shortcomings to follow and fo r all the legend of England's supremacy in the field of hlen's d o.thcs, durir1g those i11tervvar years, America evolved in large part through a process of cuhural mimests into the best-dressed ll<ltion in the "'INorld. Pictures of gents aTtending sporting events or simply enxoute to work corroborate this. O ld newsreels and periodicals reveal a SLtrprising number of well-dressed chaps. with the average Joe very much a part o·f the equation. The question a1·ises: 1:-low di.d the so~call ed hapless American .male end up on top of the styJe-leader board? And ho,vwas the id ~al of masculine elegance so widely disseminated dm:i.ng this decade.? Three factors helped the-Ametican male step out Fmm uninfonned mediocrity and up the proverbial ladder toward sty'le supetiority- ·rhe prcvalenGe of credible role models. "bespoke" fashion, and _generally accepted stancL1.rds of taste. From the early twenties through the late thirties. that elusive but convenient charact~r. "the average mJ.Il."'~'a.." exposed to more visual "aids'' in the fbrni of stnartl.y attired public t1gm·es than he could shake a stick at. Well-dressed sociaLites, such as the 13.iddles and the Rhinelanders, and fa!ShiOll- savvy business leaders, such as Charlie 11.LtbJ1 and NUlton Holden, fo~·med just t\vo of the