Stinson R. Ely  2011 Fall/Winter

Collection & Swatch Book

Confirming his intent to become a power player in ultra-luxe men’s dress slacks, Freshman designer, Andy Stinson, today announced adding Holland & Sherry fabrics to its hand-crafted dress slack collection.

Jun 01, 2011.  San Diego, CA.  Andy Stinson, luxe fashion’s longtime brand imaging whiz turned menswear designer, today announced striking a second fabric alliance for his soon-to-launch, Stinson R. Ely Collection. This latest, with Holland & Sherry, is for dress slacks, exclusively, and dramatically expands the fledgling brand’s ritzy array of brightly colored, winter-weight gabardines and flannels.

Today’s announced deal adds Holland & Sherry to Lochcarron of Scotland as Stinson R. Ely’s two cloth resources and allies what are arguably the world’s two oldest and most prestigious weavers of luxury woolens. It also promises a slack collection interpreted in heavy, English-style “winter weights.” Both Britannia weavers, Savile Row’s Holland & Sherry touts a near-170-old history matched only by Lochcarron of Scotland, itself a 200-plus-year-old, still family-owned boutique weaver whose River Tweed mill crafts the world’s most luxurious, artisan crafted Tartans and flannels.

Strategically, the between-the-lines message in today’s announcement predicts nosebleed pricing and signals an even further narrowing of Stinson R. Ely’s already sliver-thin focus on a target audience of well-heeled dandies who habit menswear’s ultra-luxe niches. Rochester, New York’s Adrian Jules – itself hailed by in-the-know sartorialists as America’s premier maker of artisan hand-sewn clothing – will hand-craft the Collection’s dress and formal slacks.


Although Stinson declined to reveal retail prices, the combination of Adrian Jules’ Old World hand-make with cloth weavers Lochcarron of Scotland and Holland & Sherry, assures a dress and formal slack collection without rival, the world over, and promises retail prices in the $600 to $700 range, a wafer-thin niche with barely a handful of rivals.

Though few in numbers, Stinson R. Ely’s short list of rivals – all top Italia brands – rank among the world’s most aggressive fashion marketers and include the likes of Kiton, Zanella, Brioni, Barbera, Incotex, and Canali. All are rivals Stinson has successfully battled before on behalf of his agency’s list of Americana clients.

A widely renowned dandy, Stinson’s own design rep is for tastefully juxtaposing often flamboyant design twists atop classic design themes, then interpreting his retro-modern design cocktail in bold, adventurous coloring. His inaugural collection delivers on those expectations, in spades. Anchored by a risk-the-ranch revival of the iconic, ‘40s-era Hollywood Waistband dress slack, an Americana fashion classic that hasn’t been voguish in nearly 70-years, Stinson’s double-dare collection also reprises pleat fronts and bets heavily on their returning popularity.


Once the signature of the silver screen’s most dashing, matinee idols, the Hollywood Waistband’s physique flattering, sleight of hand knack for transforming Tinsel Town’s legendary leading men into long-legged, he-hunk Adonises won the Hollywood Waistband dress slack its enduring sobriquet and turned its high-waisted design into the world’s top fashion craze of the 30’s and 40’s.


A faithful reprise of the original design, Stinson modeled his line-up of Hollywood Waistband dress slacks in a mostly two-pleat front silhouette. But his most avant garde look is the Astaire Collection, a design modeled after the 4-pleat-front, Hollywood Waistband slack Fred Astaire re-designed and nicknamed his “third dance partner.”


Equally risky, Stinson chose a color story that snubs the expected list of Fall-hued earth-tones and instead touts a Spring-like palette that tilts heavily toward jewel-tone brights and includes Ketchup Red, Eggplant, Raspberry, Burnt Orange, Butterscotch and others.


Despite his luxe label’s freshman status, Stinson ranks a veteran designer who boasts an enviable list of design clients. Over his brand imaging firm’s 22-year tenure, Stinson and his longtime partner and co-designer, Robbi Ely, created the press and editorial collections for a bevy of top American and British luxury labels, including Robert Talbott and Audrey Talbott, Cole-Haan, Martin Dingman, Tommy Hilfiger, Insignia Design Group, Pantherella, Seaward & Stearn and others.


About Stinson R. Ely:
Born from the 22-year-old, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners, Inc. – the brand imaging, design and PR firm formed in 1988 by Andy Stinson and Robbi Ely — the debut collection of their luxe menswear brand features neckwear and pocket squares, dress slacks, sport coats, hosiery and dress shirts.


Bereft of basics, it’s a dandy’s collection, exclusively, its designs inspired by the Duke of Windsor and popularized by Hollywood’s dashing, silver screen idols.


Completed shortly before her passing, 18-months ago, Stinson R. Ely pays tribute to the design genius of co-designer, Robbi Ely, an ardent minimalist whose own design influence, time and again, proved the ageless saw that the most visually dramatic designs are those reduced to their simplest elements.


Stinson R. Ely — along with its parent, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners – are headquartered in San Diego, California, at 8775 Aero Drive. Zip code is 92123. Website is http://www.stinsonrely.com. Fall-Winter 2012 “look book” is available in print or PDF versions. Phone for Stinson/R. Ely & Partners corporate offices, Stinson R. Ely, or its co-designer, Andy Stinson, is 858-573-1698.


Stinson R. Ely is a founding member of the Alliance of American Luxury Makers (ALM). Visit the ALM blog at http://americanluxurymakers.tumblr.com/



Contact:
J. Andy Stinson, co-designer
858-573-1698 
http://www.stinsonrely.com


Bobbi Koller, associate designer
858-573-1698 
http://www.stinsonrely.com

June 24th is Take-Your-Dog-To-Work-Day.

Support your pooch with Baade II’s Alpha Dogs Cufflink Collection.

Alpha Dogs Cufflink Collection by Baade II

Astaire Collection by Stinson R. Ely

Drawing on two-decades of period movies and archival studio stills from the ’30s to mid-1940s for its design inspiration, Stinson R. Ely’s Astaire Collection revives the Hollywood Waistband slack Fred Astaire designed and called his “third dance partner.”

San Diego, CA. May 4, 2011.  Freshman designer, Andy Stinson, may be the gutsiest designer since Ralph Lauren’s own contrarian gamble on the wide-tie struck pay dirt in the late-’60s.

No shrinking violet, the one-time brand image guru turned luxe designer, pinned his collection’s success – along with the future of his Stinson R. Ely brand — on a sink-or-swim redux of the 1940s-era, Hollywood Waistband slack, an Americana fashion icon that hasn’t been voguish in 70-years.

Like Lauren’s own wide-tie wager, Stinson’s high waisted, full-cut slack gambit cuts cross grain against prevailing fashion trends and pits his full-cut, Hollywood Waistband slack against the opposite and still red hot, plain-front, slim-cut silhouette.

With pleats only now flirting at fashion’s leading edge, Stinson’s mostly 2-pleat-front line-up is already a high- stakes bet on a pleat-front revival. But it’s Stinson’s most aggressive model, his four-front-pleat, Astaire Collection, that ranks his boldest, and certainly most audacious, risk. Named for the legendary dancer, Stinson’s four-pleat Astaire group is modeled after Fred Astaire’s own re-design of the Hollywood Waistband slack, a pant he called his “third dance partner.”

Once the signature of Hollywood’s most dashing, Silver Screen legends, thank the Hollywood Waistband’s physique flattering, sleight-of-hand knack for transforming the era’s most debonair cinema icons into slim waisted, long-legged, he-hunk Adonises for its movie star cachet and eponymous, “Hollywood” sobriquet.

Inspired by the slacks from the Duke of Windsor’s famed “Drape Suit,” the Hollywood Waistband slack boasts a tall waist and full-cut thighs stylishly enhanced by dropped belt loops. Absent a waistband, a fluid, uninterrupted drape sleekly tapers from its high waist to narrow, pegged cuffs. The figure flattering lines of its tall, streamlined, “V”-shaped silhouette creates an athletically masculine look that magically slims the waist and adds the illusion of long legs.

Hollywood Waistband’s heyday was also the salad days of song-and-dance musicals and tinsel town’s top “hoofers,” from Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly to Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, instantly made the Hollywood Waistband slack their own. Beyond its physique flattering look and illusion of longer legs, the slack’s one-piece design, pleated front and full-cut leg delivered an rivaled freedom of movement and comfort that dancers found irresistible. Fred Astaire, added his own twist: To its sometime one, but typically two-pleat-front, Astaire added still two more pleats; his totaling four-front-pleats, a hat trick that gave Astaire the freedom to work his legendary dance magic.

Drawing on two-decades of archival film and vintage studio stills that spanned the early-’30s to the mid-1940s for its design inspiration, Stinson R. Ely’s Astaire Collection includes both a belted style and another configured for braces, its tab buttons rigged for outside placement ala ’30s style.

Astaire, tells Stinson, wore both styles with equal aplomb, favoring the added freedom of suspendered versions for suit scenes and belt loops for slack-and-sport shirt shots. To his casual scenes Astaire, added yet another flair that became his personal signature: A silk four-in-hand tie threaded through his belt loops. Still another Astaire-created fashion twist, one that sparked its own craze, was a traditional belt but buckled at his left side, rather than at the front.

About Stinson R. Ely: Born from the 22-year-old, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners, Inc. - the brand imaging firm formed in 1988 by Andy Stinson and Robbi Ely - the debut collection of their luxe menswear brand features neckwear and pocket squares, dress slacks, sport coats, hosiery and dress shirts. Bereft of basics, it’s a dandy’s collection, exclusively, its designs inspired by the Duke of Windsor and popularized by Hollywood’s dashing, Silver Screen idols.

Stinson R. Ely — along with its parent, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners – is headquartered in San Diego, California, at 8775 Aero Drive. Zip code is 92123. Website is www.stinsonrely.com. Fall-Winter 2012 “look book” is available in print or PDF versions. Phone for Stinson/R. Ely & Partners corporate offices, Stinson R. Ely, or its co-designer, Andy Stinson, is 858-573-1698.

Stinson R. Ely is a founding member of the Alliance of American Luxury Makers (ALM).

Contact:

J. Andy Stinson, co-designer
858-573-1698
www.stinsonrely.com

Bobbi Koller, associate designer858-573-1698
www.stinsonrely.com

Sportcoat : Adrian Jules Regatta Stripe cashmere-wool sportcoat. All handmade. $1,075.

Adrian Jules Custom Bespoke Clothing
1392 Ridge Road East Rochester, NY 14621
585-381-1111 
www.adrianjules.com

Pant: Stinson R. Ely by Adrian Jules wool flannel Hollywood Waistband slack with double-pleat front. All handmade. $675.

Stinson R. Ely by Adrian Jules
8775 Aero Dr. #330 San Diego, CA 92123
858-573-1698
www.stinsonrely.com

Daringly adventurous designs, bold coloring and avant garde silhouettes signature launch of ultra-luxe men’s collection by fashion’s top brand imaging gurus. Risk-assertive collection contradicts all trends, revives long absent, ’30s and ’40s movie star fashion icons, boasts American hand-craftsmanship, exotic fabrics and stratoshperic prices.

San Diego, CA. March 16, 2011 

Andy Stinson, luxe fashion’s longtime branding whiz and co-founder of Stinson/R. Ely & Partners — the brand imaging, design and publicity firm he co-helmed for 22-years ago with partner, Robbi Ely — today announced launching Stinson R. Ely, their eponymously named menswear label. 

Bereft of basics, it is a dandies collection, exclusively. Unarguably, it promises to be luxe fashion’s most buzzed-about new men’s label.

Throughout, It is resolutely modern and visually dramatic, a salute to the seamless melding of what otherwise would be contradictory design talents between the dashing Stinson and Ely’s understated minimalism. http://www.stinsonrely.com

A narrowly defined collection, it woos a risk-assertive sartorialist, a man who effortlessly marries elegance and modernism with daring, yet sophisticated, flamboyance.

No shrinking violet, its designs, coloring and silhouettes contradict all current menswear fashion trends. Radically avant garde, it dares to take risk at every corner.

Therein its dandy’s appeal.   

That it “dares to take risk” is an au contraire description considering it’s designs are minimalistic simple and void of extraneous detail. Motifs are simple, timeless classics. Its palette, for the most part, shaved to just two colors.

Despite its simplicity, its sledge hammer wallop and dandy’s pedigree are won from a few sleight-of-hand design tricks that magically transform minimalist simplicity into daringly adventurous. The unexpected surprise of Spring patterns are transported to Fall-Winter, then powerfully executed in bold, over-sized motifs.

Vibrant colors – juggled in visually dramatic combinations – pit neutrals against the surprise of Spring’s jewel tone brights, role-reversed and unexpectedly used for Fall-Winter. Its seldom seen silhouettes – all classics resurrected from the ‘30s, and ‘40s – have been absent from contemporary fashion’s dialog for decades.

Proving the cliche that it takes-one-to-know-one, no better a dandy’s designer than a dandy. A widely renowned dandy and, with partner Ely, one of the most prolific image makers in the fashion business, Stinson’s own design reputation is for juxtaposing flamboyant design twists atop classic fashion themes.

Completed before her passing, 18-months ago, Stinson R. Ely pays tribute to the design genius of Robbi Ely, an ardent minimalist who time-and-again proved the most visually dramatic designs are those reduced to their simplest elements.

Despite their freshman status, Stinson and Ely rank veteran designers and boast an enviable list of superstar clients. Over their firm’s 22-year tenure, they co-designed the press collections for a bevy of top American and British luxury labels.

Four times a year, Stinson and Ely re-designed the seasonal lines for as many as 10 clients, transforming otherwise ho-hum collections created to be commercially successful into ultra hip “looks” with trend-setting attitude and the edgy, “fashionista appeal” demanded by fashion editors.

Shrewd marketers with a hi-octane design flair and an uncanny grasp of the luxury market, their Stinson/R. Ely & Partners championed American and British brands throughout its 22-years, successfully transforming once-obscure, Anglo-Americana labels into global brands with powerhouse reputations, from Martin Dingman, Pantherella and Cole-Haan to Robert Talbott and Audrey Talbott, Tommy Hilfiger, Traflagar-Ghurka, Lochcarron of Scotland, and others.

Using bright colors and exotic fabrics to interpret their modern take on traditional classics, Stinson turned to Rochester, New York’s Adrian Jules to hand-make its dress slacks, then tapped Carrot-Gibbs Bespoke for hand-crafted neck wear and pocket squares. Mel Gambert Bespoke is crafting dress and formal shirts while New York’s British Apparel Collection is creating its hosiery. Lochcarron of Scotland is weaving its Tartans and richly textured flannels.

Although Stinson declined to disclose retail prices, industry insiders predict a RTW collection trafficking at nosebleed prices with barely a handful of rivals and a sliver thin niche of superstar retailers that, beyond Neiman Marcus, Saks, and New York’s Bergdorf Goodman, counts less than 100 stores, nationwide. Thanks to its artisan hand-make and exotic fabrics, pundits guesstimated dress slacks at $600 to $700, neck wear in the $150 range and pegged dress shirts at $240.

About Stinson R. Ely:
Born from the 22-year-old, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners, Inc. – the brand imaging, design and PR firm formed in 1988 by Andy Stinson and Robbi Ely — the debut collection of their luxe menswear brand features neck wear and pocket squares, dress slacks, sport coats, hosiery and dress shirts.

Bereft of basics, it’s a dandy’s collection, exclusively, its designs inspired by the Duke of Windsor and popularized by Hollywood’s dashing, silver screen idols.

Stinson R. Ely — along with its parent, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners – is headquartered in San Diego, California, at 8775 Aero Drive. Zip code is 92123. Website is http://www.stinsonrely.com. Fall-Winter 2012 “look book” is available in print or PDF versions. Phone for Stinson/R. Ely & Partners corporate offices, Stinson R. Ely, or its co-designer, Andy Stinson, is 858-573-1698. Stinson R. Ely is a founding member of the Alliance of American Luxury Makers (ALM)

Contact:
J. Andy Stinson, co-designer
858-573-1698 
andy@stinsonrely.com
http://www.stinsonrely.com

Bobbi Koller, associate designer
858-573-1698 
bobbikoller_stinsonely@yahoo.com
http://www.stinsonrely.com

###

Signaling its intent to battle Italy’s top brands for a chunk of men’s ultra-luxe fashion niches, Stinson R. Ely announced inking a fabric alliance with Lochcarron of Scotland that promises an artisan-made men’s collection without rival, the world over.

San Diego, CA. February 23, 2011. Andy Stinson, fashion’s longtime brand imaging whiz turned luxe men’s designer, today announced striking a fabric alliance with Lochcarron of Scotland. A 200-plus-year-old, still family owned boutique weaver whose River Tweed-based mill crafts the world’s most luxurious – and priciest – woolens, Lochcarron of Scotland boasts a reputation as the world’s premier weaver of artisan crafted Tartans and flannels.

Strategically, the announcement signals Stinson R. Ely’s focus on menswear’s ultra-luxe niches, exclusively. It also predicts nosebleed pricing and narrowly defines his target audience as dandies and well-heeled sartorialists.

The between-the-lines message in Stinson’s announcement left no mistaking his ambition to capture a chunk of the men’s ultra-luxury slack market, a niche that seamlessly dovetails with his longtime marketing expertise. More importantly, it tattles Stinson’s intent to aggressively go toe-to-toe against a sliver thin clique of powerhouse rivals that includes Italy’s top brand dynasties. To date, Stinson’s upstart is the only American label with the daredevil audacity to challenge this Italian juggernaut and their longtime domination over menswear’s priciest fashion niches.

Stinson’s just announced Lochcarron deal unites what is arguably the world’s premier luxury cloth maker with Rochester, New York’s Adrian Jules, itself arguably America’s premier artisan hand-maker of men’s luxe clothing, dress and formal slacks, included. Stinson R. Ely’s savvy allying of Lochcarron of Scotland with Adrian Jules dramatically bumps-up-the-ultra-luxe-bar and, even more significant, promises a collection of dress and formal slacks that are without rival, the world over.

Beside predicting a slack collection retailing at ultra-luxury retail prices, Stinson’s deal with Lochcarron of Scotland also tips his design hand, promising dress and formal slacks that tilt heavily toward Tartans and richly textured flannels. A widely renowned dandy, Stinson’s design rep is for tastefully juxtaposing often flamboyant design twists atop classic design themes, then interpreting this modern take on traditional classics in bold, adventurous coloring. Extrapolating forward, Stinson R. Ely is expected to be chock full of vibrant colors, despite it a Fall-Winter edition.

Although Stinson declined to reveal retail prices or designs specifics ahead of the July launch of his Stinson R. Ely label at Mrket’s New York venue, pundits claim the combination of Lochcarron cloth with Adrian Jules’ artisan hand-make argues for a RTW slack collection trafficking in the $600 to $700 range at retail, a very narrow, nosebleed niche with barely handful of rivals. Though few in numbers, Stinson R. Ely’s short list of rivals – all top Italia brands – rank among the world’s most aggressive fashion marketers and include the likes of Kiton, Zanella, Brioni, Barbera, Incotex, and Canali.

Despite his luxe label’s freshman status, Stinson ranks a veteran designer who boasts a vaunted, if not enviable, list of design clients. Over his brand imaging firm’s 22-year tenure, Stinson and his longtime partner and co-designer, Robbi Ely, created the press and editorial collections for a bevy of top American and British luxury labels, including Robert Talbott and Audrey Talbott, Cole-Haan, Martin Dingman, Tommy Hilfiger, Insignia Design Group, Pantherella, Seaward & Stearn and others.

About Stinson R. Ely: Born from the 22-year-old, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners, Inc. – the brand imaging, design and PR firm formed in 1988 by Andy Stinson and Robbi Ely — the debut collection of their luxe menswear brand features neckwear and pocket squares, dress slacks, sport coats, hosiery and dress shirts.

Bereft of basics, it’s a dandy’s collection, exclusively, its designs inspired by the Duke of Windsor and popularized by Hollywood’s dashing, silver screen idols.

Completed shortly before her passing, 18-months ago, Stinson R. Ely pays tribute to the design genius of co-designer, Robbi Ely, an ardent minimalist whose own design influence, time and again, proved the timeless saw that the most visually dramatic designs are those reduced to their simplest elements.

Stinson R. Ely — along with its parent, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners – is headquartered in San Diego, California, at 8775 Aero Drive. Zip code is 92123. Website is http://www.stinsonrely.com. Fall-Winter 2012 “look book” is available in print or PDF versions. Phone for Stinson/R. Ely & Partners corporate offices, Stinson R. Ely, or its co-designer, Andy Stinson, is 858-573-1698. Stinson R. Ely is a founding member of the Alliance of American Luxury Makers (ALM).

Contact:     J. Andy Stinson, co-designer

                     858-573-1698

                     www.stinsonrely.com

Avant Garde Collection Weds Daring Flamboyance To Understated Minimalism; Revives Long Ignored, ’30s And ’40s, Movie Star Fashion Classics. Au Contraire Designs And Colors Woos Dandies and Hi-Fashion Sartorialists, Exclusively.

San Diego, CA. February 14, 2011. Stinson R. Ely, the just launched ultra-luxury men’s brand, promises to be fashion’s buzzed-about new label. Born from the 22-year-old, San Diego-based, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners, Inc. – the boutique brand imaging and design consulting firm formed in 1988 by Andy Stinson and girlfriend, Robbi Ely — the inaugural collection of their co-eponymously named menswear brand features a small but tightly edited line-up of neckwear, pocket squares, dress and formal slacks, sport coats, hosiery and dress shirts.

 All, save for its hosiery, are artisan handcrafted in America. All were co-designed by Stinson and Ely shortly before her tragic passing, 18-months ago.

 A tribute collection dedicated to the minimalist-influenced, Robbi Ely, their debut collection celebrates her unswerving vision and design genius which, time and again, proved that the most provocative and visually dynamic designs are those reduced to their simplest elements.

Anchored in timeless classics, it tastefully weds Stinson’s bold panache with Ely’s understated minimalism.

Boasting a colorful elan and an edgy, southern California flamboyance that references their West Coast roots, Stinson R. Ely is a retro-inspired, back-to-the-future collection that touts designs, pattern motifs and silhouettes inspired by the Duke of Windsor and later popularized by Hollywood’s most dashing, silver screen idols.

Bereft of basics, it’s a dandy’s collection, exclusively, daringly colored and adventurously designed.

A revolutionary collection that contradicts every current and popular fashion trend, Stinson R. Ely unarguably marches-to-its-own-drummer. Many of its designs are once trend-setting but now seldom-seen styles resurrected by Stinson and Ely from the ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s and since long absent from contemporary fashion’s style dialog.

Despite their freshman status, Stinson and Ely rank veteran designers and boast a superstar list of design clients. Over their firm’s 22-year tenure, Stinson and Ely co-designed the press and editorial collections for a bevy of top American and British luxury labels. Twice, and as often as four times a year, the pair would re-design the collections for as many as 10 clients, transforming collections created to be commercially successful into the ultra hip, fast fashion “looks” with trend-setting attitude and the edgy, “fashionista appeal” demanded by fashion editors.

About Stinson R. Ely: Boasting an edgy, southern California flamboyance, the daringly designed and adventurously colored Fall-Winter collection of Stinson R. Ely is a dandy’s collection, exclusively. Touting American artisan handcraftsmanship and exotic fabrics, the ultra-luxury brand’s inaugural line-up of neckwear and pocket squares, sport coats, dress and formal slacks, dress shirts and hosiery features long-ignored fashion icons inspired by the Duke of Windsor and later popularized by Hollywood’s most dashing, silver screen idols of the ‘30s and ‘40s.

Stinson R. Ely — along with its boutique, brand imaging parent, Stinson/R. Ely & Partners – is headquartered in San Diego, California, at 8775 Aero Drive. Zip code is 92123. Website is www.stinsonrely.com. Phone for either Stinson/R. Ely & Partners corporate offices, Stinson R. Ely, or its co-designer, Andy Stinson, is 858-573-1698. Stinson R. Ely is a founding member of the Alliance of American Luxury Makers (AALM).  Stinson R. Ely’s Fall-Winter 2012 “look book” is available on request in both print and PDF versions.

Contact: J. Andy Stinson, co-designer
858-573-1698
www.stinsonrely.com

Bobbi Koller, associate designer
858-573-1698
www.stinsonrely.com

Adrian Jules’ Town & Country Collection Revives An Era Of Dashing Dandies And Debonair Bon Vivants. Drawing Design inspiration from The Sartorially Elegant Wardrobes of Manor Borne, English Country-Gentlemen, Adrian Jules’ Au Contraire, Retro Revival Resurrects Richly Textured But Near-Forgotten, Old World Scottish Tweeds And Lofty English Flannels.

“At heart,” quipped British novelist, J. B. Priestley, “all Englishmen want to be country gentlemen.” Therein the inspiration for Adrian Jules new Town & Country Collection of tweed and flannel suits, sport coats and color coordinated flannel trousers. An unmistakably seasonal line-up, it denounces both the idea and ideal of a year-round-suit and a cloth-for-all-seasons. It’s an Op-Ed letter from the past addressed to the future: Men have never looked as elegant, or as stylish, as they did when seasonal clothing was last all-the-rage.

A retro-inspired, back-to-the-future collection, it recalls an era of high-fashion elegance; a time of dashing dandies and debonair bon vivants. On the one hand, it fetes uniquely distinctive fabrics, all richly textured and colorfully woven. And on the other, resurrects the now-near-forgotten notion of seasonal wardrobes: One to handsomely vanquish Fall Winter’s frigid temps. Another – lighter, breezier and more colorfully spirited – for Spring Summer. In suit, sport coat and trouser it reprises the now almost forgotten idea that a gentleman’s wardrobe is expressed in the nuanced language of fiber and fabric, its dialog in fluent harmony with the seasons. All – whether suit, sport coat, or trouser – are meticulously artisan handmade in America.

Shunning today’s lightweight worsteds, it’s a woolens collection, entirely. Cloth is British, throughout. All woven in England, Scotland or outer Hebrides of Scotland. Much like Coco Chanel’s own rule-breaking marriage of pairing coarsely textured, menswear tweeds to femininely shaped lines, Adrian Jules’ Town & Country Collection is likewise an au contraire counterpoint that flies in the face of conventional wisdom. In both cloth and design thematics, it is purposely meant to butt-heads with a bevy of modern menswear trends.

It emphatically snubs the now popular notion of a year-round suit; assertively faults its premise as not only flawed, but absurd. Does anyone really believe that one suit can keep you cool-as-cucumber in a sweltering, 100-degree Manhattan heat wave? Then, three months later, keep you warm and toasty while it goes toe-to-toe, against an ornery, Nor’easter arctic squall? Ridiculous! Do the math, again: One suit. Versus two seasons. First, it effortlessly battles 100 degree heat and 90% humidity. Then, just as easily, keeps you warm and cozy in wind-chill-driven, 15-degree-below-zero temps? Not a chance. That’s why cars, homes and shopping malls all have air conditioning and heaters, remember.

Country Collection. Classic, 14-ounce thistle-proof tweeds, now near to impossible to find, along with lofty, heavy-weight flannels, anchor the Country Collection. Unlike treated worsteds, all are water resistant, thanks to natural wool’s rich stow of lanolin. Many of the fabrics are first hand spun, their colorful medley of twisted fibers then hand-woven; most on antiquated looms no different today than 400-years ago when tweeds and woollens were once the keep of Scots and Irish cottage crofters.

The collection’s hues and shades – all a high contrast mix of vibrantly colored earth-tones – are rendered from country-side dyes; blackberries, moss, fuchsia and lichens. A mimic of Mother Nature’s own environs, their flecked collage of colors a clever charade that creates the cloak of camouflage, their slight-of-hand disguise designed to deceive foe and prey, alike.

The visual wallop from their surprisingly vibrant color medley hastily lays-to-rest the notion that earth-tones are a fashion snooze.

Whether flannel or tweed, all apropos, if necessary, for coursing wild boar or fleeting grouse in bramble and hedgerow, alike. Their mien equally appropriate for raiding corporate quarry on Wall Street’s mean streets.

Throughout, it’s a line-up of three-piece suits and sport coats – all single-breasted, exclusively – along with flannel trousers color coordinated to the sport coats. All styled in a classically English design vocabulary; side or unvented, 2-button jackets touting peaked lapels and patched pockets. The crisply tailored, economic lines of its single-breasted suits chicly counterpointed by “broad-belly,” double-breasted vests.

Town Collection. Touting a strong shouldered line atop a powerfully styled, double-breasted silhouette chicly finished with peaked lapels, the visually dramatic Town Collection is unmistakably a CEO power suit, its authoritative fashion statement dynamically delivered in lofty flannels and nappy cashmere. Their mostly micro-patterned motifs and discreetly colored palette chock full of shades of blues and grays, their colors a perfect foil for visually striking accessories.

Executed in a now high-fashion, 6-button double-breasted silhouette that Town & Country designer, Arnald Roberti, loosely modeled after “The Kent” – a once hugely popular style eponymously named for the Prince of Wales’s younger brother, Prince George, Duke of Kent, credited with first introducing it during the 1920s — it features a smoothly draped chest and a longer lapel line that rolls and buttons at near the waist, creating a stylish swagger and the sleight-of-hand illusion of an athletically slim, masculine physique and added height.

Whether Town Collection or Weekend Sport, designer Roberti faithfully hewed to the Duke of Windsor’s fashion caveat when creating this unmistakably Fall-Winter collection of elegant business suits: “Brown in town should never be seen.”

While grays and blues signature the Town Collection’s subtle pattern-motifs, the Weekend Sport Collection veers opposite; no shrinking violet, its kaleidoscoping palette of vibrant colors isn’t for the milquetoast or pusillanimous.

Weekend Sport Collection. Co-anchored by a striking, classic colored Regatta Stripe sport coat paired to winter white flannels, along with the traditionally colored bright red that signatures the Lady Margaret Boat Club Blazer – itself stylishly joined to pearl gray flannel trousers — the Weekend Sport Collection touts single- and double-breasted woolen sport coats hand-crated from cashmere, wool and lambswool-alpaca blends, all wed to a collection of woolen flannel trousers, itself a line-up that bookends fashion’s largest color offerings of flannel slacks.

About Adrian Jules:  Founded at Rochester, New York, in 1962 by Adriano Roberti and Julio Volantere – both guild-trained, Italian Master Tailors – Adrian Jules now ranks the oldest, and largest, still-family-owned maker of men’s and women’s custom-bespoke, made-to-measure and RTW clothing in America. Currently co-helmed by Arnald Robert and Peter Roberti, the second generation sons of co-founder, Adriano  Roberti, Adrian Jules is retailed by 200 of America’s premier, luxury niched specialty stores. In addition to custom-bespoke suits, sport coats and slacks, it also counts top coats and full dress coats, as well as wide range of tuxedos and formal wear  among its men’s and women’s clothing categories. Led by a luxury appointed, flagship boutique in the heart of Rochester’s premier shopping district, a retail division was added in 1982.

One of two “Grade 6 Makers” remaining in America, Adrian Jules has won more Blue Ribbons for Excellence from the Custom Tailors & Designers Association (CTDA) than has any other American Clothing Maker.

Adrian Jules, Ltd., is headquartered in Rochester, New York, at 1392 Ridge Road East. Zip code is 14621. Telephone for either corporate offices or Arnald Roberti, co-CEO and Town & Country Collection designer, is (585) 342-5886. Telephone for Peter Roberti, co-CEO and director of retail operations is (585) 381-1111. Website is www.adrianjules.com.

A founding member of the Consortium of American Luxury Makers (CALM)

At the peak of the Arrow Collar Man’s popularity in 1920, sales of its detachable collar men’s dress shirts had soared to a then mind-boggling, $32 million annually! But just three years later, the fashion phenom that socially schismed America into a white-collar versus blue-collar society had all but vanished, itself a victim of WWI.

After being nearly extinct for almost a century, detachable collars are suddenly all the rage again, popping up in the world’s top men’s fashion labels from elite custom shirt makers like France’s Charvet and America’s Mel Gambert Custom-Bespoke Shirtmakers, to Brooks Brothers and Italy’s Brioni and Brunello Cucinelli.

Detachable collars are suddenly all-the-rage and popping up in the world’s top shirts brands, from elite custom shirt makers like France’s Charvet and America’s Mel Gambert Custom-Bespoke Shirtmakers to Brooks Brothers and Italy’s Brioni and Brunello Cucinelli.

Originally, detachable collars delivered two, very compelling benefits. Because collars could be washed separately, they slashed laundering and ironing time, dramatically. Replacing worn and frayed collars proved their second benefit. Then, fabrics, were far less durable. And beards and stubble, the norm. Consequently, collars frayed and wore out considerably faster.

But today’s detachable collar craze has zero to do with laundry chores or spiffing-up threadbare collars, tells Mel Gambert, the second-generation Gambert to helm the iconic, 75-year-old company, itself legend for the still talked about shirts it created for Michael Douglas’s Wall Street portrayal of Machiavellian financial tycoon, Gordie Gekko.

“Its mixing-and-matching different fashion collars to a shirt that’s propelling their resurgence,” explains Gambert. “Today’s fashion dandies want to swap around their collars on a whim. They want one look today, then a totally different one, next week. Add an interchangeable collar to any custom shirt and it’s suddenly a hi-fashion multi-tasker,” sums-up Gambert.

Re-dubbed “interchangeable collars” to better describe the mix-and-match collar craze propelling today’s neo-fashion revival, it’s Mel Gambert’s choice of over 400 collar styles that reigns world’s King-of-the-Collar. Stoked by a bevy of editorial praise in hi-profile men’s fashion magazines and an off-the-charts internet buzz from top fashion blogs like Fashion As a 2nd Language - a must-read site which touted Gambert’s detachable collars as “suddenly relevant” and a “good investment” in “clothes that can multi-task” - Gambert has watched his usual tally of 200 detachable collar die-hards swell to nearly 500, in just two-years.

“Being the latest ‘in-gimmick’ among fashionistas has also revved-up its buzz and ‘gotta have’ cachet,” tells Gambert, who credits trendy hipsters and their unrelenting quest to snub the status quo for a big chunk of the detachable collar’s resurrected popularity.

Despite their embrace by fashion’s top brands, it’s Mel Gambert’s choice of over 400 different collar styles that makes the third-generation, family-owned company the world’s undisputed, King-of-the-Collar. And for good reason: The detachable collar has remained a steady seller for the 75-year-old artisan shirtmaker since 1928.

“Our interchangeable collar clients buy four or five different collar styles with every shirt, including a couple of white collars for Spring-Summer months,” tells Gambert. “They might prefer a tall, sartorially elegant cut-away collar for serious business dress. But for Saturday night’s country club soiree, they’ll swap it out for a more casual, ‘Martini Shirt’ look - a tall, wide-spread collar with French cuffs, worn without a tie. Scrap the collars, completely,” tells shirt guru Gambert, “and Voila!, you have a now-stylishly shirt, band collar shirt.”

Collars aside, it’s interchangeable cuffs — more than five-dozen different choices of cuff styles — that give Mel Gambert an unrivaled trump card. When Mel Gambert was founded, detachable cuffs went hand-in-hand with detachable collars. A Gambert exclusive that’s noticeably absent from its newly-arrived rivals, interchangeable cuffs are particularly important among dandies who demand all-white French cuffs to match their white, contrast collars.

About Mel Gambert Custom-Bespoke Shirtmakers:

Mel Gambert Custom-Bespoke Shirtmakers, founded in 1928 by Joseph Gambert, has since been nicknamed “America’s Charvet” thanks to its reputation for meticulous Old World artisan handcraftsmanship. The now 75-year-old Mel Gambert Custom-Bespoke Shirtmakers (www.gambertshirts.com) ranks America’s oldest, still-family-owned custom-bespoke shirtmaker.

In addition to true, men’s and women’s custom-bespoke shirts, Mel Gambert offers made-to-measure (MTM) shirts as well as a just launched, limited-edition ready-to-wear (RTW) collection, Mel Gambert Bespoke. All are retailed by over 400 of America’s premier, luxury-niched specialty stores.

A founding member of the Consortium of American Luxury Makers (CALM)