OFFICIAL Simon Crompton thread (PermanentStyle.com)

[TomTom]

Kirby always gives off the impression that he's cosplaying as some "European gentleman".

I dont mind his cosplay of an English gentleman, good for him . I met him once in London with his camera crew and he was really nice and we had a 15 min chat . Very humble and pleasant in person.

 

[JibranK]

Ultimately the first few years of his blog were excellent. Then he started getting freebies from A&S and Huntsman (10 and 15 thousand dollar suits respectively) and it went way downhill. I posted the Huntsman cutter (and other team members’) response to his clueless critique here some months ago. It dates from several years ago. Everything since that event horizon has been another version of the same.

 

[Markus123456789]

Personal question: What is your opinion of Knize bespoke? On my last trip to Vienna in 2014
I was very impressed with their window display: jackets cut exactly to my taste. I did not bother
to enquire because I had neither time time nor budget to have anything made in Vienna. And
besides, I am not aware that they travel to the US, like many Savile Row or Italian bespoke houses.

Unfortunately, I have no experience with them. I buy my suits (and jackets) off the rack from Caruso in size 46 because with some alterations they fit me very well.

But interesting that you raise this point. What is not really well known in the Anglo-American world is the long and profound tradition of tailoring in Vienna. I would say that Vienna might be a good alternative for some to London and Naples. The below link might be of interest to you.

An Epic Sartorial Walk Through the City of Vienna

www.parisiangentleman.com

 

[Markus123456789]

@Markus123456789 another Viennese tangent: do you ever see traditional Loden coats in everyday life in Austria? Simon does not seem to be a fan and considers them a bit too costume-y, but I think they're rather nice and wonder how common they still are there.
I did not see any when I lived in Germany, but I was above the Weißwurstäquator

In Vienna, you see loden coats very seldom, and nearly never with anybody below 55-60, because they are associated with a rural non cosmopolitan style.

By contrast, in the countryside, in certain more Alpine areas of Austria, you often see them (most often in Upper Styria, Salzkammergut). There they are normal everyday clothing in winter.

Apart from these areas, and apart from events and activities where they are common (traditional costume weddings, fairs, hunting), Austrian traditional costumes, which also include classic loden coats, are politically relatively charged. If you wear them in an urban area, you are to a certain extent expressing a conservative, to a certain degree even right-wing political or monarchist attitude and worldview.

So to answer the question: I wouldn't wear them, certainly not in Vienna and also not outside Vienna.

 

[TomTom]

I used to wear one when I lived in Vienna, not sure where I got it. I think it was from a traditional shop in Innsbruck . Could not give a poo what my liberal left win friends thought. It was a lovely garment but I lost it when I moved back to London.

 

[Markus123456789]

I used to wear one when I lived in Vienna, not sure where I got it. I think it was from a traditional shop in Innsbruck . Could not give a poo what my liberal left win friends thought. It was a lovely garment but I lost it when I moved back to London.

Well, that's a personal decision. I was just explaining how it could be perceived. Of course, if you're not Austrian or German or even wear such coats outside of Austria / Germany, the whole issue is different. I also wear a safari jacket, which some people in England might find negative because of colonialism, but here in Vienna this is completely neutral and unproblematic.

 

[DorianGreen]

Soft / sloping shoulders might look better on people with wide shoulders. But for people with sloping shoulders the more structured shoulders are usually better. It's a matter of balance. In Simon's case, accentuating his very sloped shoulders with a soft / sloping shoulder jacket doesn't look good to me because it makes his look bottom heavy.

This silhouette looks very good:
View attachment 2316919

This silhouette not:
View attachment 2316927

Your pictures perfectly exemplify my thoughts: the first one shows a slightly extended and a bit concave shoulder that counteracts and balances the natural sloping shoulder of the wearer, the second one shows a very soft and natural shoulder, following faithfully the one of the wearer and resulting in a pretty unflattering silhouette.

 

[DorianGreen]

Isn’t that a matter of personal preference?! I do prefer a softer, rounder silhouette on him, but I get that this might not be the case for everyone.

I think @Markus123456789 post is very interesting. My only issue with the blog also is that you do not know why some brands/products keep being pushed and how objective some of what’s written in those articles really is. The rest (aesthetics, the shift from formal to more casual…) is more a matter of personal preference and I feel that some of the critics Simon has earned in this thread aren't always objectively justifiable.

Agreed, I also feel that many critiques are moved by hate and biased aversion rather than objectively founded reasons. I wonder why Simon seems to have so many haters.

 

[ppk]

Unfortunately, I have no experience with them. I buy my suits (and jackets) off the rack from Caruso in size 46 because with some alterations they fit me very well.

But interesting that you raise this point. What is not really well known in the Anglo-American world is the long and profound tradition of tailoring in Vienna. I would say that Vienna might be a good alternative for some to London and Naples. The below link might be of interest to you.

An Epic Sartorial Walk Through the City of Vienna

www.parisiangentleman.com

Visited Austria quite a few times - Vienna and Salzburg - and found that people are very stylish but conservative.

It was really cool to sit outside, drink an espresso and people watch. Salzburg is more mixed because of a higher percentage of tourists.

I found the style level higher than say London or Berlin.

 

[SailingIvy]

On the topic of Loden-Coats: I saw quite a lot of them in Florence during Pitti. And I got to like them a lot. I think the major selling point is the high back vent. I also love this details on the Drake's Raglan Coats. I think they actually copied that from those Loden-Coats

 

[DorianGreen]

Visited Austria quite a few times - Vienna and Salzburg - and found that people are very stylish but conservative.

It was really cool to sit outside, drink an espresso and people watch. Salzburg is more mixed because of a higher percentage of tourists.

I found the style level higher than say London or Berlin.

The average style level in Berlin is sadly pretty low.

 

[ppk]

Come on now @ppk that’s not a good faith post.

We are all fully aware that if you post pics on the internet you have to expect some criticism. I don’t think anybody is grinding their teeth in jealous angst and contemplating taking out a hit on those fellas at Pitti. They can have as much fun as they want but among some well dressed lads there is more than a hint of risible clowns. Same with any catwalk show, Met opera opening night, Oscar red carpet etc etc. there is always an element whereby aspirations of being stylish play a distant second place to ridiculous attention seeking and playing to the camera.

That's fair criticism. Sarcasm rarely works in text - at least I'm not a good enough writer to pull it off well.

I guess my point is - just ignore the attention seekers and clowns. We all know who they are. By commenting on them, you're actually giving them what they want.

Many of us are here to learn and improve so let's focus on the Manishs and Charles Cordeauxs of the world. They are both amazing, BTW.

I'll end with that.

 

[Ivylaces]

I think SiCromps wear's very nice clothes, but I don't think he is at all stylish. He does have the fairly brilliant ability to take the ineffable quality that is style and deconstruct it, quite helpfully. He just doesn't seem all that able to reconstruct it when he actually gets dressed himself. To me so much of what he wears either looks so unremarkable as to hardly even be described as well dressed, or just plain awkward and very unnatural.

Still most of the 'great dressers' some of you guys posted here to me look extremely boring, conservative or dorky to my eyes.

Simon can at least identify and appreciate the meeting point between stylish, cool and sexy. He's just quite unable to recreate it himself

 

[SailingIvy]

I'd be interested in what you consider good or great style.

I think SiCromps wear's very nice clothes, but I don't think he is at all stylish. He does have the fairly brilliant ability to take the ineffable quality that is style and deconstruct it, quite helpfully. He just doesn't seem all that able to reconstruct it when he actually gets dressed himself. To me so much of what he wears either looks so unremarkable as to hardly even be described as well dressed, or just plain awkward and very unnatural.

Still most of the 'great dressers' some of you guys posted here to me look extremely boring, conservative or dorky to my eyes.

Simon can at least identify and appreciate the meeting point between stylish, cool and sexy. He's just quite unable to recreate it himself

 

[Keyser_Söze]

I'd be interested in what you consider good or great style.

I think it's pretty clear from looking at various different posts of what people wear on here that the range of what people think is "good" is large. Some people wear middle-aged office worker and think it's good because it's "traditional" while others view it as boring. Some people look like they are cosplaying a different time. Others wear bright colors and different patterns that are questionable as well. Everyone is entitled to their own style though.