The year 2023 saw much ceremonial: the sad event of a royal funeral and the happier one of a coronation. The array of uniforms was dazzling. We tend to forget that their complexity relies on rare tailoring and sewing skills that deserve recognition. I wanted to mention just one of the crafts people responsible for some of the displays of magnificence.  Sarah Wilkinson military tailor at Dege & Skinner of Savile Row Dege & Skinner’s military tailoring specialist Sarah Wilkinson joined the bespoke tailoring and shirt-making company based in Savile Row in 1983. During her ..read more

What is style? Pinning down the meaning of the word is like trying to grab a piece of soap in the bath. When we describe a man as 'having style' we mean that he has good style. A man could have style that's appallingly bad, but we assume when we say that he 'has style' that it's good. Leaving aside that that etymological quirk, let's attempt to identify what good style and is and how we achieve it. [Note that this is an update of an article that appeared here a few years ago]. Cary Grant - traditional style Style is Multifactorial What makes good style? It goes beyond how we appea ..read more

This tie came from @vintageprl  who, from time to time, sells high quality vintage Ralph Lauren through his Instagram account. It's just over 4" at its widest and is labelled Neiman-Marcus, a store founded in Dallas Texas in 1907 and which started to stock Ralph Lauren products in the late sixties (starting, I believe, with ties) and still sells them today. I don't know the date of this tie, but would guess seventies ..read more

I was very sad to hear of the death this week of Edward Sexton, that impeccable tailor and gentleman who was so much part of the modernisation of Savile Row since the seventies.  Always impeccably cut: Edward Sexton 1942-2023 I was lucky to interview him some years ago and to meet him on occasions since - the last in November last year when I took the photograph above of his celebrating both his new Savile Row store and his birthday. He will be much missed. Below you can read the feature I wrote in 2015:  After decades as a lawyer, essentially an uncreative and often d ..read more

Summer brings warmth and sunshine, but it also brings new scents after the long dark days of winter and the fresh green of spring: mown grass, hot sun on bare soil, sun on skin and that mood-lifting airiness of a sea breeze. This is the time to fill your senses with the cooling aromas of the countryside, of the mountains and seaside and to reflect these in the fragrances that you choose for the warmer months. The choice for men is vast, from Avon through the alphabet to Zadig & Voltaire there are scores of fragrance brands to select from. Many are suitable for men and women, addi ..read more

[Note: My apologies that I haven't posted for some weeks. security issues with the blog have  taken some time to sort out. I hope you enjoy this feature on collecting old military watches]. How many men do you know who are obsessed by collecting something? It may be cars, watches, clothes, cameras, books, golf clubs, rare birds, works of art or racing bikes. We're no doubt reflecting some ancient instinct which had us accumulating weapons, vital tools or whatever was required for our survival. British military watches from the forties to sixties - collectible style One item t ..read more

I had no idea until very recently that 1 in 4 black men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime, and more than 11,500 men die from prostate cancer in the UK each year – that's one man every 45 minutes! The handsome new Rotary 1IN4 x Prostate Cancer UK watch  To highlight these shocking statistics I am wearing the new Limited Edition 1IN4 watch that @Rotarywatches has designed in collaboration with Property Expert and TV presenter, @KunleBarker. The 1IN4 aims to increase awareness of prostate cancer and its increased risk amongst black men. There will only ..read more

Monk strap shoes tend to be overlooked in favour of oxford, derbies, sneakers and loafers, but they offer both comfort and style and are worth your consideration when next buying shoes for casual or formal use.  I wear Loake Medway suede monks (socks Peper Harow) - all made in England I acquired my first pair (pictured above) only two or three years ago when I was looking for something a little different. A suede pair of single strap monks made in England by Loake, they have proved invaluable worn with everything from tweed, through formal suits to knitwear and jeans. If you sear ..read more

There has been much discussion about the sartorial tastes of Britain's latest Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak. His close fitting suits with cropped jackets and ankle length trousers proved controversial with some (see end of this feature), but his preference for having his trouser cuffs above his ankle bone is a reflection of the upward trajectory of trouser lengths over the last few years.  While I personally wouldn't wear mine quite so short, I'd argue that the look is preferable to the trouser style of the former US President, Trump, whose trousers fold around his ankle and over his shoes ..read more

Early in the days of the blog (eleven years ago!) I began collecting articles on style for older men. I was looking through these recently and found that, while some are now quite old, they all contain good ideas so I've revived the feature and added some more recent material. If you know more, do let me know. Older men with different styles - I'm with Svante @theurbanhippieswe [Updated from the original 2011 feature] Here are a few of the better (and not too serious) newspaper and other articles on style and fashion for middle aged and older men. They are in no particular order; ju ..read more