Artisan perfume makers (Monocle)
“With a nod to the past and a wink to the future, Monocle takes a look at the world of perfume and the new generation of expert alchemists.”

Staying Stylish In The Heat (Mr. Porter)
“Our in-house experts offer a sartorially savvy executive three options for looking the business while staying cool in the heat.”

In Defense of Pleated Pants: A Rebuttal (The Cut)
“Pleats do for men what darts have done for decades in women’s clothing: They enhance fit while providing an extra, slight, design element — something to separate great chinos from all those other pants men in your office wear. Personally, as a guy who’s on the shorter side but has bigger upper legs (thighs, right?), the line that a pleat creates helps balance everything out. It creates the illusion of length. It’s similar to the way a wool suit’s pants should always have a crease running down them, the sole reason for owning an iron.”

Taking Great Care of Suede Shoes (A Suitable Wardrobe)
“Brush suede shoes with the Suede and Nubuck Brush after every wearing, taking care to brush dust out of the joint where the sole meets the upper with a welt brush or an old toothbrush. If you color your sole edges apply Saphir edge dressing to the heel and soles. Periodically spray shoes with Tarrago Nano Protector spray to keep them water resistant.”

Japanese Textiles | A simple guide (The Bandanna Almanac)
“This is a simple guide to Japanese countryside textiles. I hope you can gain a little insight from the simple descriptions, and I encourage readers to follow up on something that they might find inspirational.”

Kirby Allison – Luxury Hangers & The Care Of Your Clothing (ABITOFCOLOR)
“One size doesn’t fit all when it comes to your clothes. The same should be true when it comes to your hangers. This is why we have four sizes to almost every hanger. It is essential that a hanger extend all the way to the shoulder without extending past it into the sleeve head.Our 2.5” shoulder flares are also the widest available. They provide five-times more support than average hangers and most-closely mimic your natural shoulders. And our felted trouser bars prevent the trouser creasing caused by ordinary hangers.”

What Is Balance? (Put This On)
“If you’ve ever participated in online forums about classic men’s clothing, you may have come across people talking about a jacket’s “balance.” But what is balance? Sometimes, it’s a nebulous concept – just a way of someone saying whether they think a jacket looks off or not. Most of the time, however, it refers to something very specific: how a jacket hangs from the shoulders.”

Sartorial Love/Hate: Back Blading a Tie (Men’s Flair)
“My idea of ties is that they should be artistic but precise. A bright, patterned strip of material hanging down from the neck sounds like something wild and bohemian, but it actually represents the ultimate in formality in today’s dressed down world. For years, the tie has been tied by everyone (differences in knots aside) in much the same way; the back blade is concealed behind the front blade by utilising the ‘keeper’ – a loop of material that secures it in place. However, there is a curious fashion developing for displaying the back blade of the tie. And, like many fashions, it has an army of critics – and a cabal of supporters. Some call it contrived, others – interestingly, usually those who can’t speak a word of Italian – call it sprezzatura.”

Made in England | J. Barbour and Sons (A Continuous Lean)
“Barbour’s factory was almost entirely manually operated, there is very little automation and almost all operations are performed by hand. The amount of jackets in progress was impressively stupefying. I wasn’t expecting to see so much product in work, but the scale of things didn’t disguise the high level of craftsmanship that was on display. The level of proficiency and speed in which the sewers converted rolls of fabric into finished outerwear was impressive. And much like the other factories I have visited in the U.S. and abroad, everyone that works at Barbour was patient, kind and proud to show me around. It’s reassuring to know a product I enjoy so much comes from such a good place. It’s like meeting your favorite band and having them turn out to be great people; only makes the music better.”

How to buy a leather bag on a budget (Permanent Style)
“So the first way to save money is to buy machine-sewn bags. Dunhill, for example, has its Tradition line, which is hand-sewn in London. But it also has a much cheaper line which is not. The Single Zip Bourdon briefcase is beautiful and only a little more than you were planning to spend at £595.

For good measure (How To Spend It)
“Made-to-measure tailoring has become one of the most exciting areas of menswear. It essentially denotes alterations made to an existing pattern (often known as a block) to fit the individual. People can be sniffy about it, calling it “poor man’s bespoke” (bespoke refers to a unique pattern which is cut from a client’s measurements). But it has a major advantage: speed on delivery. While a bespoke suit typically takes three months to be made by hand, a made-to-measure suit, which is mostly machine made, can be delivered in as little as four weeks.”

Best Duffels for All Budgets (Gear Patrol)
“Call it the “Goldilocks of Bags” if you like, though sometimes it seems like more of a “Unicorn of Bags”: the perfectly sized and properly priced duffel can be elusive (hell, brands can’t even decide one way to spell it). When the occasion calls for light packing in something that’ll easily fit in the back seat or sling comfortably over your shoulder there are myriad options, but how many of them can be considered worth a buy? What follows are 30 of the best duffel bags to fit every budget. These represent a vast array of materials, styles, colors and purposes, but suffice it to say each of these duffels is just right.”

100 Years of Menswear by Cally Blackman (Put This On)
“Reading through Cally Blackman’s 100 Years of Menswear exposes you to all of them, from 1900 up to the mid-2000s, breaking down their clothes by vocational and avocational inspiration: worker, soldier, artist, reformer, rebel, peacock, media star, and so on. This organizing scheme roots the shifting aesthetics of all menswear in functionality, a flattering assumption — no useless, free-floating design whims for us men, thank you very much, even us men who happen to be designers — but not necessarily an incorrect one. Suitable dress helps all of us do our jobs, and that holds truer still for full-time rebels and peacocks.”

George Cleverley: English Bespoke Shoemaking Stripped Bare (Billionaire)
“Ahead of a Shanghai trunk show, we take a step-by-step look at the process of bespeaking and handcrafting footwear at this superlative shoemaker.”

Alfred Dunhill: Hell Bent For Leather (Billionaire)
The team has a century or more of practice between its members. “Each item is a reflection of the skills built up over years. In fact, add up the number of years of experience in this place and it’s pretty astronomical,” says craftsman Ricky Potts, “and I say that as one of the younger ones.” Its skills are increasingly highly prized. “Young people just don’t want to learn this kind of trade anymore. They all want to work in IT,” opines Gregory. But mistakes are still made. Or rather, the pernickety level of quality control sometimes rains on the parade: a slightest slip with the tool that is used to dye the exposed edges of any piece of leather and the resulting product is rejected; if a zip is a touch askew when stitched in (because of the way the component was made, not because of the stitching) then it means starting all over again.

In Japan, the Rise of ‘Geek Brands’ (The Business of Fashion)
“H Tokyo itself is a tiny 45 square metres store in cool concretes and warm woods dedicated entirely to selling men’s handkerchiefs. It offers over 200 SKUs in high quality cotton, but claims to make only 30 units per style, with new patterns abusnd styles introduced every two weeks. Designs include collaborations with artists and illustrators, and emphasise originality and uniqueness. Prices range from ¥1,200 to an impressive ¥4,000.”

When Skinny Suits Got Too Skinny (Women’s Wear Daily)
“Men’s wear thrives best when good taste and restraint are interwoven with creativity and innovation. And that goes for the new slim suit that we have all been talking about for so long. It’s fantastic that we are creating more awareness and interest in the world of men’s fashion, especially for the newer, younger customer who now wants to buy suits, but it’s perfectly acceptable for us as an industry to give ourselves a reality check once in a while. There is, without a doubt, a very fine line between great personal style and fashion irrelevance, and it is our job as designers to help discern the difference.”

Cracking the Dress Code: What to Wear to Your Next Party (Wall Street Journal)
“Dress codes were invented to give clear sartorial direction, but these days, it can be anyone’s guess. Good for rule breakers, not so much for the rest of us. Men, in particular, can have a tough time. “Men hate having to break from the norm,” says Emma Willis, who started her eponymous bespoke shirt label in 1987 and has spent the past 26 years holding many a client’s hand as they navigate the Dos and Don’ts of parties. “There was even an incident of a man being thrown out of a club because he wore a tie. No wonder everyone is nervous.””

How to Choose Your Underwear (Mr. Porter)
“Underpants. You might think they don’t matter because no one sees them, but you’d be wrong. What happens if you get knocked over by a bus and the medics remove your trousers? What happens if you spill a hot drink all over your legs and have to remove your scalding chinos in the middle of the office? What happens if you get lucky on a night you weren’t expecting any action? And don’t imagine other guys in the gym, gay or straight, aren’t going to notice either. With a little help from the purveyors of very public-worthy undergarments, Derek Rose, here are some considerations worth addressing.”

Charvet: Heart On The Sleeve (Billionaire)
““We also ask many questions so we can advise on the best shapes, collar, colours,” says Colban. A paper pattern is made, followed by a prototype that allows the fit to be precision-tweaked. It takes four to five weeks before the finished garment is ready. The process, she says, is a pleasurable one. Clients often spend hours choosing the perfect fabric and discussing the nuances of weight and hue.”

It Takes Five Tailors (A Suitable Wardrobe)
“With apologies to the biography of the late Adolphe Menjou, I have the less than ordinary habit of using several tailors each year. Each does some things better than the others which is the point of this post. So, for the gentleman who asked, here they are.”

People Behind the Industry – Michael Hill (DressLikeA)
“Although we produce a new tie collection every season within that there is a degree of continuity – we certainly consider it evolution as opposed to revolution and I suppose that is reflected in my own style. I will wear a simple madder neat or navy grenadine tie on a consistent basis, interspersed from time to time with ties that might have my favourite yarn developments for the season or colour combinations which we’ve been working on. I dress seasonally but mix up the fabrics and textures. I love the Winter, not least I confess because of the great cloth one can wear in those months but even then I love to wear a great tweed with a linen shirt for example. I spend the working day in a factory setting so there is a degree of practically to how I dress, a working uniform if you like, smart comfortable.”