Staples: The Dark Debonair

If there’s one thing that helps me get dressed in the morning, it is my imagined persona. Embodying such a character helps streamline the task of picking things out of my wardrobe vast as the facets of my idiosyncratic personality. I’ve gone through quite a few in the past, most of them too shameful to reveal, but this one, I believe, will stick around for quite a while.

Beloved readers, meet The Dark Debonair.

He is gentlemanly, smart, and refreshingly proper---but at the same time elusive and intriguingly weird. Think young Sean Connery as the old James Bond in head-to-toe Comme des Garcons taking a private jet to the Maldives to do a performance art piece solely for his three wire-haired dachshunds.

Aramis had approached me to share my staples, and I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to introduce you to The Dark Debonair. Suave yet relaxed, with a penchant for the charmingly odd, The Dark Debonair keeps ten things in his arsenal as he goes about his business and trots the globe.

The Dandy Project's Dark Debonair Staples: 1) Comme des Garcons black blazer, 2) vintage black lace-ups, 3) black-faced Rolex, 4) Thom Browne cashmere wool tie, 5) Number (N)ine sunglasses, 6) Hong Kong, 7) Erotic Poems by e.e. cummings, 8) Seth Price mix CD, 9) Goldwell hair gel, 10) Sabatino Tartufi truffle honey

Here they are in detail:

clothing: the Comme des Garcons Homme black blazer

The soft tailoring on this Comme des Garcons Homme blazer in subtly crinkled black wool makes it an easy versatile piece, and the luxe red silk lining makes putting in on a simply delicious experience.

footwear: vintage black cap-toe lace-ups from London

These shoes, scuffed beyond decency, have been with me through two re-solings and one painful breaking-in. The classic almond-shaped cap-toe is perfect, and the patina adds that touch of street-grit shiny new shoes just can’t give.

time: black-faced Rolex

I’ve had it since I was a child, and wore it to elementary school with its original bezel of pavé white diamonds, much to the puzzlement of my classmates. Ah, the beginnings of a grown-up eccentric...

neckwear: gray houndstooth Thom Browne cashmere wool tie

Handsome and understated, and the soft cashmere makes it such a pleasure to stroke.

eyewear: round tortoise sunglasses by Number (N)ine

There’s something about round glasses that connotes eccentricity: John Lennon, Willie Wonka, Freddie Aguilar… The tortoiseshell gives it a softness that makes it more versatile than black.

travel: Hong Kong

The glossy boutiques of Hong Kong may carry all the goodies that the dark debonair needs to fill his closet with joy, but it’s the noisy, smelly, neon-hazy streets of authentic Hong Kong that fill his nights with wonder. He meanders about Kowloon, possibly lost on the way home to his hotel, he makes eye contact with a stranger or two, and is convinced he is Chow Mo-Wan from In the Mood for Love.

literature: Erotic Poems by e. e. cummings

e. e. cummings’ love notes embody the way the dark debonair lives his life: passionate and irreverent. The best subway read.

music: Seth Price Fashion

New York-based conceptual artist Seth Price put together a mix of both smooth, danceable beats and hauntingly jarring sounds for his latest collaboration with Tim Hamilton on the designer’s Spring 2011 line. The CD, a limited-edition giveaway at the Tim Hamilton presentation, is a carefully orchestrated audio file featuring Severed Heads, Philippe Besombes, and Zsa Zsa Laboum.

grooming: Goldwell hair gel

How else does the dark debonair achieve his bulletproof slick-back but with the thickest, most high-tech hair gel available? Goldwell’s Lagoom Jam is thick to the consistency of jam, yet washes out cleanly with warm water.

entertaining: Sabatino Tartufi truffle honey

Generously bespeckled with black truffles, this honey is a jewel in the dark debonair’s kitchen: slathered on cheese and crackers, drizzled over buttered pasta---or even on ice cream.

Here I am channeling my alter-ego du jour in a bruise-inspired color palette of black and blue:

Comme des Garcons blazer, Eton of Sweden shirt, Margiela denim cummerbund, Uniqlo jeans, and vintage lace-ups

details: round collar on the Eton shirt and a vintage astronaut pin with a moonstone head

Fellow menswear bloggers Mat of Buckets and Spades and Pelayo of Kate Loves Me have also collaborated with Aramis on similar posts on their ideas of how to be a gentleman. Check out theirs and other bloggers’ posts here:

Buckets and Spades

Kate Loves Me

Guerreisms

Impossible Cool

Man of the Cloth

photographs and collage by Hudson Shively

blog post written in partnership with Aramis

The Perfect Tank Top

Tank tops have, arguably, crossed over from the realm of underwear to being articles of clothing acceptably worn out in public. In the caramelizing heat of New York City, bereft of personal automobiles to ferry you around in air conditioning, it is only just that these sleeveless shirts for men be allowed. I think Blood is the New Black makes the perfect tank tops: the fabric is soft and thin but not flimsy, the front cut flatteringly low and wide, and the armholes not obscenely low. I'd size up on their tank tops for extra breeziness.

Number (N)ine sunglasses, Blood is the New Black x Brian Lichtenberg tank top, Topman trousers, Margiela shoes

Blood is the New Black collaborates with various artists for the prints on their shirts. The print on mine is Brian Lichtenberg's rendition of Martin Margiela's infamous hair jacket. To further the tribute to the designer who had since left his eponymous company, sunglasses that are reminiscent of his L'incognito shades:

shield sunglasses by Number (N)ine

and shoes from when Martin was still at Margiela:

Margiela ivory laceless cap-toes

photos by Pop, Bop and Snap

The Weekend Prepster

Preppy is not a term I'd use to describe my personal aesthetic, but there is some fun to be had in taking the unexpected and making it your own. I was in Boston for a weekend, and thought it could be amusing to dress up as my own dark-dandy version of the sherbet-colored prepsters that roam the old city.

Illesteva sunglasses, slim-fit Lacoste L!VE polo shirt, J. Crew belt, H&M jeans, Tod's loafers

My arm ornaments for the weekend:

rose gold pavé ring by Lanero, bracelets from Hermés, Number (N)ine, Susan Rosen, and Philip Crangi, Rolex watch

burnished periwinkle-blue Tod's penny driving loafers

buffoons in the background mocking the blogger

If you want to make like me and take a crack at being a weekend WASP, have a look at Lacoste clothing sold online at JD Sports.

photographs by Mikee Tuason

Marmor Eye Armor

In the search for summer's new sunglasses, the finalists were these two: the Illesteva Leonard sunglasses in olive, and the Leonards in marmor---a black, gray, and clear mottled marble. The lovely sales associate at Assembly said the olive ones looked really good, and the ones in marmor might be a little too "art dealer". Guess which pair I went for.

Illesteva Leonard sunglasses in Marmor

Central Park, 5/16/11

photographs by Mikee Tuason

Minimalist Eccentricity

Often, when I try to convey individualism in my mode of dress, I tend to pile things up in an incoherent jumble. Not that there's anything wrong with being a beautiful mess, but very few can articulate a powerful fashion statement in three garments or less.

Houman Farahmand in a Whyred coat worn over a sheer Helmut Lang turtleneck. Note the beautifully-stitched narrow shawl lapel.

The entire outfit:

Helmut Lang turtleneck, Whyred coat, Acne leather pants, vintage Western ankle boots

I think the key to being so elegantly concise with an outfit would be to have well-tailored basics of exceptional, yet subtle design.

back detailing of the Whyred coat

The shoes add a sense of history to an otherwise clinically Scandinavian look.

vintage Western ankle boots

And carefully-chosen accessories keep the look personal. The rings may be multiple and large, but they are of the same color and of complementary designs. Even the narrow moustache (not pictured) speaks volumes.

glasses from Jeremy's, vintage gold rings

DIY: Dandy Does Womenswear

Though I often look to it for inspiration, complicated old womenswear really isn't my realm. I find something charming in letting creativity grow within the set confines of menswear, and to be frank, an ease in just breaking the gender-mold and calling it a day.

But my dear sister came to me, asking for help: she expressed a need for something different to wear to her after-prom party. (This was after she had explained the reason behind such seemingly superfluous social event.) I was home and bored to the point that spurs craftiness, and thought I'd make a little project out of this.

So I took one of her favorite shift dresses and had my tailor render it collarless in clean, off-white denim.

I wanted to paint a print on the dress, but God forbid I do one more thing in paint splatters. I was vaguely inspired by Balenciaga Spring 2008's saturated florals in sharp shapes: vivid, graphic, feminine. I thought of experimenting with sponge painting, and drew up a plan.

The dress would be taped off in a V in front and a wide stripe at the back, to allow me to just paint all over it.

Here's what I did:

I taped off the shapes three times over, as tight as I could.

Then I created my painting implements: rounds cut out of dishwashing sponge.

For texture, I shaved off bits from the tops of the sponges. (Please note that the red nails are clearly not mine.)

I then lay on my first layer of color, twisted-on circles of deep purple acrylic paint: sullen, painterly buds. I let my blooms set with a hairdryer before adding another layer over.

Then a bright blue, slightly watered down to let the colors sort of run into each other and blend.

And for foliage to sustain my flowers: a bold grass green twist-sponged all over. I then layered all three colors about two times more for depth.

As a highlight, abstract stamens of pastel yellow applied with the end of a bamboo skewer, randomly dotted around in ones, twos, and threes.

I then (excitedly) peeled off the tape and hung the dress out to dry for about a day.

close-up of the texture on the finished painting-dress

Here it is worn:

vintage sunglasses, DIY handpainted dress, Aldo wedges

her hoof-shoes, a staple of the Brooklyn hipster ilk, and gift from yours truly

scarlet lips and tortoiseshell Persol 0649's

The Easy Shirt

There was just a yard and a half left of this cream and chocolate printed textured silk at the fabric shop, but I knew I had to get it and have my tailor make it into something. I envisioned a short-sleeved shirt in a relaxed silhouette: easy and comfortable, yet elevated by the luxe fabric and the subtle touch of a slightly stiffened collar. This is one of a series of vaguely Dries-inspired shirts I've collaborated with my tailor on. Here's what came out of it:

printed silk shirt, my design

Christmas lunch was at my grandmother's house, right above her balut factory. I was feeling slightly plumped from all the holiday face-stuffing, and it was just way too early in the day to step out in one of my kooky concoctions, so I deemed it the perfect occasion to don my "easy shirt".

Number (N)ine sunglasses, shirt of my own design, Cheap Monday trousers, ASOS shoes

My grandfather's delightfully ostentatious steel and gold and diamond-encrusted Rolex, culled fresh from the safe. I thought my pile of dark metal bracelets (Philip Crangi, Susan Rosen, Number (N)ine) helped tone it down a notch from naff to somewhat ironic.

natural leather woven shoes from ASOS

My go-to shades since summer, these Number (N)ine keyhole sunglasses provide that subtle eccentricity I think every outfit could use a little bit of.

The Ultimate Flying Outfit

'Tis the season for traveling across great distances in inhumane conditions just to be home for the holidays. Wearing head-to-toe oversized university apparel might be physically comfortable in those merciless skies, but I couldn't imagine how great of a beating my self-esteem would take having to be dressed so poorly for all those hours in transit. Hence, I constantly find myself on the quest for pieces that straddle the line between comfortable and stylish---gems that comprise my travel arsenal. Taking on the challenge by my friend Brandon to "bring style back to the skies", allow me to share with you what I wear when I fly:

1. Large black sunglasses hide jetlagged eyes and double as a sleeping mask when the airline you fly is too stingy to provide you with one.

black shield sunglasses by Number (N)ine

2. A relaxed jacket comfortable enough for you to sleep in, rendered in a luxurious fabric such as silk satin or jersey to keep you looking polished for both the authorities and the onlookers. This one comes in a palatial black-on-black silk brocade, with a shot of lime in the lining.

silk Chinese jacket by Shanghai Tang

3. Roomy pants, because sharp tailoring can almost be piercingly painful at the fourteenth hour on the cramped coach seat you've been tossing and turning on. I got these trousers in extra-large and belted them to my size, folding in a pleat under each of two belt loops to create my very own quick DIY pleated pants.

trousers by Cheap Monday

4. Rings, both sparkly and colorful, keep me sufficiently entertained during those short windows of time at take-off and landing when use of any electronic device is prohibited.

bird head and "incomplete traffic light" rings from the Brooklyn Flea

5. Slip-on shoes, because though lace-ups may be handsome, hopping about to get them on at the end of a security line of annoyed travelers isn't.

slip-ons by defunct footwear label 3:33

6. And a bag of the perfect size, spacious enough to carry all your documents and a couple of snacks, yet not so big as to tempt you to stuff in half your apartment, causing you to look like a weighed-down wanderer.

Saffiano leather travel bag by Prada

Here they are all together:

note how wearing all of The Dandy Project's travel essentials head-to-toe makes one look more Asian than usual

I've once made the mistake of wearing stretch skinny jeans on a long-haul flight that started to pull at my leg hairs after a few hours up in low-moisture altitudes, resulting in prolonged excruciating pain. Do you have any flying foibles you'd like to share?