Men's Style Archives - Page 2 of 3

April 15, 2013 By Nick Joelson 2 Comments

Dead Man’s Shoes Part 1 – J. M. Weston Black Monkstraps

It’s been a while since I have written about shoes. Not since last year when I bought my pair of Pembroke Country Brogues by Crockett & Jones. Even though I may not have written much, a lot has happened to my shoe collection since.

Not only has my collection expanded via a few purchases and a birthday gift, but a number of pairs have been gifted to me out of the blue (as a stroke of “pure manifestation genius” according to my partner and blogging inspiration, Laura) by my lovely aunt.

It started when I received a call from her saying that she was clearing out some old unwanted boxes of clothes from a friends storage unit and that she had found a number of interesting looking shoes in a box. My aunt, who was made aware of my passion for shoes one birthday when I asked for a pair of shoe trees that cost £60, thought of me as some of these shoes had similar looking wooden trees in them.

Obviously I said that I was very interested and not to do anything with them until I got there. I had no idea what to expect and the only description I got was one pair had some buckles on them and the other were a type black brogue.

I arrived to be greeted by the strong smell of musty clothes that had been in storage for over a decade and among other things a pair of J.M. Weston Black Monkstraps.

Here they are after a quick clean. I have to point out that these shoes are at least 10 years old were totally unworn. Amazing! I would not be one to buy monk straps and have never previously owned a pair, but the fact monkstraps have made a comeback this year makes them all that more a appealing.

Anyway, here they are in the full glory, enjoy…

It’s worth noting that J M Weston have recently opened a brand new store at 60 Jermyn Street
London SW1Y 6LX.

I’ll write a follow up post shortly for the other 2 pairs so stay tuned…

April 15, 2013 By Nick Joelson 10 Comments

Latest Purchase Review: Edwin ED-71 Slim Jeans

I love raw denim jeans but finding new pairs that are both a good fit and made from decent denim can be hard these days. If you’ve read any of my previous posts you’ll know I am an aficionado of Red Ear denim which unfortunately are no longer readily available, meaning I have to look elsewhere when purchasing new jeans. My journey so far has taken me to try Natural Selection and A.P.C., both of which are ok, but I just have not fallen in love with them.

Lay your hands a on a fresh pair of raw Edwins here

The A.P.C. Standard’s stretched way too much around the thigh to retain a good fit and the (Chinese) denim is way too soft for my liking. I am not sold on the cut either. The 35″ come with a standard inside leg of around 36″ which is way too long for me, even after a first wash and I loath getting jeans hemmed.

With the Natural Selection (Italian denim) I washed them a little too soon. They are OK and have started to fade nicely, but again the denim is very soft, which some may like, but for me it disfigures too easily losing the original cut that was originally purchased.

So last February, whilst doing some last minute shopping before a family holiday to Marakech, I nipped into Liberties to see what was on offer. After a careful browse through the usual offerings I was drawn to particular pair of Edwins. I have only ever owned an Edwin denim jacket, as all the jeans I had tried on previously where always a little too relaxed a cut for me.

The Edwin’s that caught my eye were the (affiliate link) Edwin ED-71 Slim made from red seamed selvedge denim. The denim was a lovely dark indigo and stiff but not overly waxy as some raw denim can be now. A quick glance at the label said that they were saniforized which means that the denim had undergone treatment to minimize the shrinkage on the first wash/soak. This helps getting the size right knowing the jeans won’t shrink 5″ around the waist when you first wash them.

I went for the w34 32l costing £130 – it’s refreshing to still be able to buy jeans with good options on for an inside leg. They felt great trying them on, the 14oz denim felt snug and strong enough to hold the cut over time without becoming too distorted.

For the first time ever, I gave the jeans a soak, as to the manufacturers recommendations. Normally I do not bother with the soak, and just try to wear new jeans for 6 months before a wash, but these, due to the organic dying process, started to bleed indigo die over my suede shoes and white boxers straight away!

To soak them I wore them for 10 minutes whilst under the shower. The jeans bled huge amounts of die so if you value your undergarments and shoes, I suggest that you do the same if you buy a pair. Letting them dry and putting them on again showed that they had shrunk very little and had stopped bleeding – just as the instructions said they would. Fortunately the raw look remained.

The build quality is excellent and they are incredibly well put together using good quality 14oz selvedge denim. Although the only thing I am not overexcited about is the ever-so-slightly excessive back pocket stitching – the double U effect. It is a take on the Levi stitching and has been executed well. Personally I would prefer a little less stitching on the back pockets as I prefer a more understated look.

Nevertheless, these have become my new go to jeans, I love them. They have been worn most days since purchasing, during which they have been worn in Marakech, around the dusty souks and side streets, Provence in France ,where they were used to chop firewood and mow lawns plus a quick trip skiing to Norway. Despite this, they have hardly stretched or disfigured.

Here is how they look after one soak and two months hard wear:

As you can see, the jeans are breaking in exceptionally well, with some nice fading and whiskers forming in the places you’d expect them to.

Overall these are a great pair of well made Japenese jeans and if you are thinking about buying a pair and are just having a read around to help make a decision then these jeans come highly recommended by me. I paid full price on the high street but if you already know what size you need , then grab them from Amazon here and save over £20 (affiliate) Edwin ED-71 Slim.

Either way, if you do get a pair let me know how you get on with them or if you have discovered some great mens selvedge denim, please let me know.

Check out the latest Edwin denim collection at Liberties

Update: 6 months have past since I wrote this review. Edwins after 6 months wear and no wash here.

November 28, 2012 By Nick Joelson 8 Comments

Latest Purchase Review: A.P.C. Raw Denim New Standard for Men

Anyone who has read my blog will know about my long standing passion for raw denim jeans. Therefore I have decided to write about my latest purchase, the A.P.C. New Standard Jeans for men.

My favorite place to buy raw denim is here

A.P.C. is a minimalist French fashion brand owned by designer Jean Touitou. Before the opening of their Dover Street store in London, their clothes could be bought from outlets such as Urban Outfitter and Liberty. Being a massive fan of raw denim, I first noticed the A.P.C. jeans in Urban Outfitters a few years back. I actually tried them on and liked the cut, but because I had literally just purchased a pair of Red Ear raw denim jeans, I had to pass on them – there is only so much breaking in a man can do at once!

About a month ago, after my girlfriend requisitioned a pair of my jeans for her own, my wardrobe had an opening for a new pair. As I am a creature of habit, when looking for new jeans, I first look to the Red Ear range by Paul Smith. However I have not seen them do any styles of raw denim that I like for a while now so have been forced to look further afield. My previous purchase was a pair of UK made Natural Selection, which unfortunately I washed too soon due to impatience. Although I like them, I do not love them and have felt compelled to try something else.

Check out the latest A.P.C. denim collection at Liberties

This is where A.P.C. step in. I remembered having tried them on a few years back so when I saw they had their new store on Dover Street, I thought I’d check them out again. At £110, they are very reasonably priced and whilst searching online for reviews, I read that they got good fades and relatively quickly. The selvedge denim is medium weight and is made in China (so any Japanese purists will have to move on). Don’t let this put you off, the fabric quality and construction is as good as any of the more expensive brands.

The noticeable difference with the A.P.C. New Standard Jeans is the lack of any embellishments or branding. There is no leather or cloth patch, no tabs off the back pockets, no fancy stitching or extra belt loops, in fact other than the branded patch on the inside of the waist, the jeans are anonymous. I like this a lot. I will add that I am not a fan of jeans that over do any part of their styling. Pet hates are jeans with seams moved from the side, sticky out pockets, pockets with button or poppered down flaps, fake creases, fake fades, any trying too hard to look fatigued or anything too over branded (unless you want to pay me), to name just a few.

Moving swiftly on…

One thing I noticed while trying them on was the tighter than normal fitting of the jeans. They are saniforized, which means they have been pre-shrunk so in theory you can go straight for a well fitting pair. However, my usual size, 34″ were very tight and I would have got nervous when it came to the first wash as I always experience a large degree of shrinkage. So I opted for the slightly roomier 35″. The jeans are a pretty straight cut with space around the calf area and fairly snug around the waist and bum. However this has stretched out a lot since purchase, but not excessively, so I am glad I went for the 35″.

Anyway, one month on, here is how they are looking with moderate wear and a bit of cycling to boot:

So far, so good. You can see slight fades and whiskers forming with some good creases. The waxyness is also starting to leave them. I like the way things are going. My only concern at this point is that the inside leg of the jeans appear to be slightly longer than I am used to. I usually go for turn ups until the jeans crease up and shorten naturally, but I think I will either always have to have turn ups with these jeans or have them shortened, which for me is a big no no as unless it is done properly as it looks like your mum’s been at your wardrobe…

My favorite place to buy raw denim is here

I just want to add that I tried on a great pair of Rag & Bone raw denim jeans last week, they were amazing but unfortunately to get my size in the style I like, which happens to be their staple (RB15 Slim Straight), I’d have to order from the U.S. store.