Unfunded Liabilities: a/k/a The Cloth Thread

[birdlives80]

Didn't they have to weave it together from discarded pocket squares, or something?

Just called their US rep, they dont have it anymore.

 

[MenWithStyl3]

Dear @MenWithStyl3,

Actually, you raised two questions; as far as the first is concerned, this is a muted ton-au-ton plaid, therefore, based on your trousers' choices you could make it a fairly versatile SC. It would need plain shirts (and polo shirts if you fancy them) in the "universal standard", i.e., light blue, white, and even light pink. For polo shirts, I would go for the two former, light grey, and navy blue.

As far as trousers are concerned, you may play with textures, depending on the cloth's own composition: for a w/s/l summer cloth I would select:
- light grey in tropical wool
- tan/beige in linen
- white in cotton and/or linen
- bone in cotton
These odd trousers could be matched with other SCs as well, increasing the combination's usefulness and versatility.

I will never use navy or any dark-colored pair of trousers with this SC. Especially in the case of dark blue/navy, the two blocks (SC-trousers) have to be in the same shade, different tone, not an easy task to perform correctly!

Best,

Dimitris

Out of curiosity, why would you not pair it with dark-colored trousers? For instance, charcoal / dark grey.

 

[dieworkwear]

I think that mid-blue jacket could look good with a white shirt and navy pants. But the navy pants have to be a cool color, not warm (so not purple-y).

 

[Bespoke DJP]

Out of curiosity, why would you not pair it with dark-colored trousers? For instance, charcoal / dark grey.

Dear @MenWithStyl3,

The aesthetic role of odd trousers is to either complement or to contrast the color(s) / design / fabric / texture of the SC.

Loro Piana (and other companies) used to have four shades of grey in their suiting bunches - worsted, flannel - let us assign 1 to light grey, 2 to light-to-mid grey, 3 to mid-to-dark grey, and finally 4 to charcoal; the discussion refers to odd trousers.

Charcoal (No. 4) is a very specific color, gentlemen overwhelmingly use it for suiting purposes, in business, semi-formal occasions. In light of our discussion it can only be used as a provider of contrast to a light-colored SC, called by some fellow members here: "northern lights". It is a nice alternative to the most conventional dark top block / light(er) low block. The fabric of your choice has a medium-colored tone, so things cannot work nicely here.

Light grey (No. 1) is frequently used as odd trousers to provide contrast to medium-colored up to dark-colored SCs, this is what you can easily do with pretty good and safe results, hence the suggestion in my initial post.

The two mid-grey colors are usually the perfect companion of a navy SC, the ultimate combination for us gentlemen from its inception (I believe it has a royal navy provenance). Moreover, they complement in an extremely nice manner warm color families like brown, burgundy (see NMWA plaid SC), olive / forest green to name a few. As we move towards lighter-colored top block (medium-colored like yours), one has to be very careful because contrast could not always be achieved. With medium blue shades, contrast is not present (probably in certain cases depending on the exact tone of the medium grey fabric, perhaps No. 2 might work here), and I am afraid that they cannot complement each other as well, belonging to a different color family.

As I mentioned in my initial post, this can only be achieved by the use of odd trousers from the blue color family, at a shade as close as possible to the one of the SC, and a tone that would visibly complement the one of the SC, might be darker or lighter. Alas, I have seen - even in this forum - uncountable poor-executed combinations of this sort, being the toughest of all.

I sincerely hope that this post provided some answers to your questions.

Best,

Dimitris

 

[Winot]

Well you can’t say that without providing pictures please!

Sorry it took so long. They aren’t great photos and the coat needs pressing but hopefully you get the idea.

 

[patrickBOOTH]

Winot, it looks like you could use some sleep.

 

[Concordia]

This was from Gieves?

 

[Winot]

This was from Gieves?

Yep. Davide Taub.

 

[Concordia]

Looks much more natural than the pics he had done before.

 

[brax]

While not strictly an unfunded liability as we’re at the fitting stage, here’s one that my tailor and I thought was interesting. We ordered the Smith Solaro but decided to make it up on the reverse blue side. I’ll see it live in a couple of weeks but, from the pictures, it seems subtle enough for a Solaro.

 

[Concordia]

Smith sells blue Solaro?

 

[brax]

Smith sells blue Solaro?

Well, no. But also yes. It is blue on the reverse side and we decided to do it that way.

 

[Concordia]

But not red. That may be new?

 

[brax]

Yes, the traditional is tan with a red backing. But they've also sold a green for a few years now (SW2574). The flip side of that is this blue. We have another length that will be made up as green a few commissions down the road. For now, it remains an unfunded liability. I'll snap a photo of the blue and green when I get home. The Smith website does a poor job of capturing the actual color.

 

[aristoi bcn]

Harrison's Saltire book (pure woollen Scottish cashmere) is mostly sold out. Really missed the chance to get this one. Any ideas where it can be sourced?
And out of curiosity, which Scottish mills are able to do this apart from Johnston's?