Velvet Blazers, PLUS a Look at the NYT Style Magazine

Good stuff from the NY Times Style Section (er, no, wait, make that "T: Style Magazine" -- ugh) this week -- an entire section on Men's fashion. Get thee to NYTimes.com.

For the short-of-attention, I'll sum it up for you. The classy-casual look is currently all about the black (or navy) velvet jacket.




As an aside, I've always been a big Valentino fan (though for a while there, I felt like the only one in my peer group.) I'm real happy to see it getting hot again, and the R.E.D. line is looking especially new and snappy. Too bad the man himself is teetering on retirement (he's in his early 70s now) -- and there's the question of who will step in. Note that Marzotto, Valentino's corporate owner, also owns Hugo Boss.

OK, back to the fashion. For a less urban or edgy look than a rich, velvety jacket, I recommend corduroy (in brown, too) rather than tweed, which has got to be THE talked-about look of the season. More on why I disagree in a future posting.

Other thoughts on T: Style Magazine (or is it called The New York Times Style Magazine -- what's the deal here? Couldn't they make up their minds on a title?)...

Not surprised to see Andre 3000 featured prominently. Hasn't he been in every Esquire since Esquire discovered Outkast (which would have been about the time "Hey Ya!" was released)? There has got to be other quirky, well-dressed black guy out there that mainstream media feels comfortable hyping into a household name as a fashion plate. I'm talking about guys besides Bentley, who, while one sharp, sharp dresser, is running the risk of wandering into self-caricature territory (becoming a fixture on MTV can do that -- just say no, Bentley!) Good news is that Andre 3000 has a menswear line coming out in the near future.