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Sartorial

ROARING TWENTIES

Digby Fairfax delves into various retail outlets to assemble a wardrobe suitable for a 1920s chap

£199.00

FOOTWEAR

The ideal twenties style is a button-up boot constructed to resemble boots with spats. These are only made by a few bootmakers and are therefore rather pricy. Those from Adjustable Costume (adjustablecostume. jp) will set you back 96,580 Yen, or around £650. Stacy Adams in the US (stacyadams. com) makes a more basic version, the Madison Spectator Spat Cap Toe Boot for $135. A cheaper way to achieve the look is with a pair of plain black ankle boots and a pair of spats from Darcy Clothing (darcyclothing.com) for £65. The other footwear option is a pair of corespondent shoes, available from Shipton & Heneage for £199.

£65.00

£395.00

£124.00

JACKET

The three-piece suit was the most common suiting style of the 1920s, and Simon James Cathcart have nailed it with their Charcoal Check Eden Jacket (£395), available with matching trousers and waistcoat. Peaked lapels on a single-breasted jacket seals the deal for the 1920s look. This jacket would also work for those who prefer to don floppy Oxford Bags (see next page).

SHIRT

Separate collars are de rigeur for the 1920s, as the attached collar was in its infancy. Darcy Clothing make every style imaginable, as well as the collarless shirts to go with them, while Simon James Cathcart remove the fiddly insertion of collar studs with their Goji and Regatta Blue Club Collar Shirt at £124, made from 100% cotton sateen. A spearpoint collar is another choice, with many colours available, including marine blue and navy striped ribbed cotton with mother-of-pearl buttons, from Some Like it Holy at £59.

BOATING BLAZER

For a more relaxed, outdoorsy look, head to vintage suppliers such as Savvy Row (savvyrow.co.uk) for an authentic 1920s boating blazer. The new version, in the club colours of your choosing, is available from Walters of Oxford, with prices varying from £200 to £350. The budget option, though veering more towards a mod look, comes from Atom Retro (atomretro.com) at only £99, tailored by Madcap England. Paired with the right £199.00 accessories, this will cut the mustard for a 1920s style, as long as you avoid the matching trousers at all costs.

£99.00

WAISTCOAT £149.00

The 1920s look requires a doublebreasted waistcoat, to set it apart from the single-breasted ones that arrived later, when wartime rationing limited fabric usage. Some Like it Holy make a rather dashing pinstriped wool example for £149, with the eight silver buttons forming a V at the front. The lining is authentic vintage cotton, with a blue silk back with adjustable buckle. Also available in grey French check and tweed versions in a multitude of colours.

£139.00

HEADWEAR

The 1920s was a flamboyant decade and there £32.95 is no room for subtlety when it comes to headwear. The straw boater is the ideal titfer, angled for maximum rakishness.

Olney is the brand most respected by chaps, and their black-banded boater is available from classic-caps.co.uk at £49. Cotswold Country

Hats (cotswoldcountryhats.com) offer one with a navy and burgundy band at £32.95, while those who prefer a higher crown may head over to Village Hats (hatsandcaps.co.uk) for a striped boater at £37. Flat caps and baker boy caps have a strong place in a 1920s wardrobe, and the Edward Cap (£100) by Stanley Biggs (stanleybiggs.co.uk) provides the perfect combination in British tweed with a blend of rustic colours. Sussex Tweed’s collaboration with Geoff Stocker has yielded a splendid red linen cap with a fabulous silk £80.00 lining at £80.

TROUSERS

Those chasing the authentic 1920s silhouette will need a pair of Oxford Bags, which in the 1920s reached staggering hem widths of 44 inches. Some Like it Holy (somelikeitholy.com) provides a more modest 11-inch width at the hem with a two-inch turn up, in a cream flannel at £139. They have a double-pleated front, three-inch waistband with six shell buttons and three-inch belt loops and two adjustable side buckles. Due to the high cut, you have to supply a measurement taken two inches above your normal waist size. They are also available in pale blue, striped and checked designs, as well as in heavier fabrics.