The Sartorialist

Unusually warm weather in New York this week, but very windy

Another great collection from Marc Jacobs.
However, this collection feels like it should be a Louis Vuitton collection in the sense that it’s so refined and dressed up. I guess I’ve always thought of Marc Jacobs collection as sportier and LV as almost couture.

This collection makes me even more curious about what the LV show will bring in Paris.

I love what Robert has been doing lately mixing caftans with tradition overcoats. Robert is ultra chic almost specifically because what he does is so subtle.

Garance dragged me to the Victoria Beckham show at 9:15 Sunday morning :(

However, I have to admit she was right.

I spoke to a few editors afterwards and they all mentioned that each season Ms. Beckham’s work gets stronger.

I think this is the first shot I have ever done of Ms. Wintour without her giant bodyguards framing the shot.

Finally, a collection for fall that actually shows women dressed for fall.

So many of the shows thus far have highlighted tiny “It Girl” dresses that are fine for Left Coast winter but not for the weather we have in the rest of the country.

This whole “Urban Lumberjack/Heritage” trend can get a bit bulky and unflattering, don’t you think?

With all the layers of flannels and thermals and buffalo plaids even a skinny guy can look overstuffed – or overfed.

Leave it to an Italian, such as the gentleman above, to find a way to slim down the look and make it a flattering one. The trick is the slim cut KNIT(!) peacoat. A popped collar doesn’t hurt, either.

I’d like to send a very big and public thank you to my gallerist, James Danziger of Danziger Projects, for recently selling several of my images to the Victoria & Albert Museum in London and to the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography. James has been one of my biggest supports from the very beginning. His faith in my work is quite humbling.

Actually, if you happen to be in Tokyo next week you can see my work in an exhibit called “Radiant Moments: Snapshots Cast Their Spell. ” I’m so proud to have my images hanging with photographers like Walker Evans and Paul Fusco.

Radiant Moments: Snapshots Cast Their Spell
Dates: from Dec.11, 2010 through Feb.6, 2011
Venue: Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography

P.S. James also has a great blog, The Year in Pictures. I’ve learned so much about the art of photography reading his blog for the past two years.

Somewhere (not New York) Winter isn’t so bad.

Sorry we are having a tech glich and the rest of the photos should be up soon.

Not to beat a dead horse, but this outerwear sleeve length isssue is really something to consider. It’s not something I’m just making up.

Actually, the first time I noticed it was when I was watching the Cary Grant movie The Awful Truth. There’s a fantastic scene with Ralph Bellamy dressed in formalwear for a night out on the town. There was something so chic about that half-inch of white shirt cuff peeking out from his perfectly slim fitting overcoat; it was the only thing I could look at for the entire scene. I’d never seen anything like it before.

It was one of those images I put in my memory bank. On those rare occasions where I still see it in person today, it rings so refined.

I mentioned in the post originally that maybe this was more sporty. As you can see in the photograph above, it does still look great in the most formal situation.

I was surprised by how dogmatic the response was to the original post – “A coat is supposed to keep you warm! You’ll never be warm with an exposed wrist.” Come on. I’m not suggesting you wear this all the time. If it’s freezing, wear a different coat. You can tell the guys in the pictures below are not freezing – it was maybe 40 degrees when these were taken.

What I am suggesting is…don’t hide behind “form follows function.” What I’m trying to do is not create a rule but share options that I’ve seen.

Last thing: Let’s take a special notice of just how perfectly Ralph Bellamy’s coat fits in this photograph. Another victory for the slim fit coat!

Not only do I think we wear our outerwear too big but I also think we wear the sleeve length too long.

As you see these two very elegant gentlemen wear a shorter sleeve length with a healthy amount of shirt cuff showing. Notice they are also wearing this look with a knit and not a suit. Maybe this sleeve length is a bit sportier?