GREY FOX COLUMN

Style Column

David Evans of www.greyfoxblog.com pays sartorial homage to Charlie Watts, and advocates experimentation within established formal dress codes www.greyfoxblog.com

At the time of the late lamented Charlie Watts’ death at the age of 80, I was pondering on the nature of style. Why do some people look great in their clothes while many of us struggle? While thinking what a stylish man the Rolling Stones’ drummer was, I looked up an image of him I’d used my blog a few years ago. It shows Watts wearing a beautifully cut Prince of Wales check suit, looking very relaxed with a beaming smile on his face. Another favourite picture shows him perched on “What goes round comes round in fashion and no doubt such Armani shapes will return in due course. When it does so, it will be a form of fashion rather than style. To me, style is about enhancement, not draping concealment”

the end of a sofa, legs wide apart, wearing a threepiece brown corduroy suit. Again, he looks totally at ease, as if he’s wearing an old jumper and jeans.

Herein lies the secret of personal style; looking good almost irrespective of what you’re wearing. Feeling totally at home in your clothes, with no self-consciousness, somehow makes clothes sit better on your shoulders – you wear the clothes rather than allowing them to wear you. In both these pictures Watts’ personality shines through, his suits reflecting the man within.

Watts was no typical rock star. He patronised many tailors in and around London’s Savile Row; a far cry from the battered jeans and T-shirts of his fellow Rolling Stones. Many of us assume that it is only in well-worn casual attire that we will feel relaxed, but a well-fitting suit made from a forgiving cloth, something soft and flexible, whether wool, cotton or linen, becomes, with use, like a second skin. In my years as a lawyer I wore suits every day; generally either grey flannel or dark blue pinstripe. I soon got used to the suit and tie uniform, and this familiarity removed any self-consciousness or stiffness after a few weeks. At that point I started to look and feel comfortable.

I recently carried out a straw poll on my Instagram account (@greyfoxblog) to ask for help with a definition of personal style. The main themes that emerged were that clothes must fit well to look good, that we must feel comfortable in them and that they must reflect the personality of the wearer. This last point is important; trying to wear clothes simply because they are fashionable, rather than because you like them and they suit you, leads to an awkwardness that means you won’t look your best.

One view that emerged from the poll was that not everyone felt the price of the clothes was important to achieve style. Certainly price buys quality which helps the fit, durability of construction and the feel of the fabrics, but it’s perfectly possible to look stylish with a small, well-selected and budgetpriced wardrobe. As a Rolling Stone, Charlie Watts was able to buy from bespoke tailors and he built up a large wardrobe of suits (he confessed to having over 200), but even in those images where he’s clothed more informally, he looks well-dressed.

Watts’ interest in clothes stemmed, like many men, from his father, who used to take the young

Charlie to his tailor when he was having suits made (probably unusual for a lorry driver). An interest in clothes, colour, proportion and an artistic sense all help a man in his search for style. Watts’ love of clothing gave a spark to even his most modest garments. In an interview on Desert Island Discs in 2001, he mentioned that he owned several items of clothing from the wardrobe of the late Duke of Windsor, and his understanding of the history of style enabled him to select clothes that had a slight edge. The wider lapel of the Prince of Wales check suits he wore (many of which suggest the work of Edward Sexton) is an example of a slight twist which prevents a suit from looking too ordinary.

It’s this ability to think slightly outside the box that adds something to personal style. I tried to take this approach on a recent visit to Glyndebourne. I’d normally wear black tie on such occasions but on this one I felt that a change was needed. Black tie is not obligatory at the Festival in May to August (Glyndebourne’s ‘What to Wear’ guidelines suggest that formal wear is no longer required) but they ask that guests take the opportunity to dress up.

I decided to experiment and to try a velvet smoking jacket from Oliver Brown, with silk shirt from Budd, a cravat from Cravat Club worn with black derbies, and a pair of formal evening trousers from the late Chester Barrie. I leave it to you to judge whether the combination worked, and I mention it simply to say that thinking creatively to combine clothes in perhaps slightly novel ways is one way of marking the individuality of personal style.

I should add that if black tie had been required at Glyndebourne, I would have worn just that. I take the view that a host’s dress requirements should be respected. With the party season fast approaching, we see a bewildering array of dress codes on invitations. If you’re not sure what ‘smart casual’, ‘cocktail’ or ‘dress to impress’ means, it’s best to check with the host. However, the great thing about ‘black tie’ is its simplicity. It means a black bow tie (although coloured bow ties – and even patterned ones – are often seen), white dress shirt, evening suit or dinner jacket and plain black shoes. While some mock what they see as its artificial formality, black tie is a chance to dress up and enjoy an event. Dinner jackets can be hired or bought for reasonable sums as vintage or ex-hire items, so it’s quite possible to dress well without a large financial layout.

For some reason, no doubt related to its soft velvet and slightly wide shoulders, the smoking

jacket reminded me of the unstructured, slouchy styles of the 1980s, as exemplified by Armani – although my jacket has none of the Armani slouchiness. I have to confess that the eighties slightly passed me by. I was busy establishing a career and starting a family and my lawyerly suits were fairly traditional in cut. However, it was difficult to miss the wide-shouldered, oversized looks that developed in the Thatcher years, as laissez-faire politics and the ‘devil take the hindmost’ approach to business led to the dotcom bubble and ushered in the self-centred egotism still apparent today. The use of Armani costumes in films such as American Gigolo (above) reinforced these less attractive money-grabbing, high roller aspects of the 80s. But such philosophies needed power dressing and Armani provided it in spades.

What goes around comes around in fashion and no doubt such Armani shapes will return in due course. When it does so, it will be a form of fashion rather than style. To me, style is about enhancement, not draping concealment. I’ve never been a fan of eighties styles, which did little for most physiques.

Finally, as usual I’d like to introduce you to a few smaller brands that you may not have come across. James Darby is a Manchester-based clothes designer and tailor who makes clothes with a real twist. I have one of his Ventile smocks (above), which is beautifully made and came in useful during our unusually wet summer: vintage mountaineer meets contemporary outerwear (www. jamesdarbyclothing.co.uk). For those who like vintage clothes, try Ben’s Vintage Menswear or Butterworths Vintage Company (with a store in Totnes, England) – both on Instagram. I obtained a gorgeously soft recycled cashmere jumper recently from Cut & Pin, who take a sustainable approach to a variety of casual menswear, while for nicely made four season casual shirts in cotton pique, try Cast & Lane.

Oliver Brown: www.oliverbrown.org.uk Cravat Club: www.cravat-club.com Budd Shirtmakers: www.buddshirts.co.uk Edward Sexton: www.edwardsexton.co.uk n

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