Look of the Week

Look of the Week is today illustrated by new illustrator to The Rakish Gent, Mr Thackshila Udage. Thack is a graduate from Birmingham City University in Fashion Design. He currently works a a designer of menswear and children's wear for a clothing manufacturer. Prior to this, he worked as an accessories designer in Sri Lanka. As well as working as a designer, photographer and artist, Thack is a brilliant illustrator. Working in pencil and charcoal, watercolors and digital media. When he sent me this image a couple of days ago, I was blown away. I am thrilled to have him on board. 

As usual with Look of the Week, I styled the look that Thack has so brilliantly illustrated. A great raincoat is a must in this terrible weather and this Christopher Raeburn one is gorgeous. Cool, practical and featuring the trademark lizard motif it is crafted from cotton gabardine cloth. Under the raincoat, is a sweater from one of my favourite labels. A.P.C are my go to brand for no fuss, great quality garments and this cotton and silk blend sweater is a perfect example of that style. Steady Eddie Nudie Jeans in regular fit, with Maison Martin Margiela suede and leather panelled sneakers complete the look. All of the items featured in this post are available from Mr Porter. 

A huge thank you to Thack for his brilliant illustration. I am constantly impressed by the talent of the illustrators that have created art for The Rakish Gent. You can find out more about him on his own website, and follow on Twitter & Instagram. 

Best Dressed of the Week - Grammys Special

This week saw the 56th Grammy Awards take place in LA. Here are some of the best looks of the night, starting of course with Mr Jay Z, in Tom Ford. Who else?

 

Mr Pharrell Williams in Lanvin and that Vivienne Westwood hat. 

Mr John Legend in Gucci

Mr Kendrick Lamar in Dior Homme. 

Images courtesy of Mail Online/ E Online and GQ. 

Shop - British Boxers

New brand, British Boxers is the brainchild of founder Deborah Price, former Head of Buying for Bonsoir of London, who left her position during the recession to set the label up. She decided to manufacture boxers shirts, utilising her knowledge of UK production, buyer and factories. Combined with these skills, was the fascinating story of Deborah's great great great grandfather, Jem Mace, the first world heavyweight boxing champion in 1870. It is his image, and the story of his colourful life that decorates the brand's distinctive packaging. 

The range that Deborah has produced is a strong one, and I have no doubt that success will continue for the label. All of the boxer shorts are 100% cotton and are available in sizes from S to XXL. Having trialed a pair for myself this week, I can vouch for their comfort, breath ability and of course, style. The product is a refreshing change from heavily logo-ed boxer briefs that are skin tight. Colours are traditional and muted - navy blue, red and grey in contrasting patterns of gingham and check. Here are a couple of my favourite pairs from the current collection: 

Red, White and Blue Check (£22)

Navy Gingham (£22)

Red, White and Blue Stripe (£22) 

Plain Mid Blue (£22)

You can shop British Boxers at their website which offers gift wrapping for only £2.95 and normal delivery costs, at select UK independent retailers or at Not on the High Street. 

New articles for Chasseur Magazine

I have recently started writing for a new publication,. Chasseur Magazine, which is a quarterly digital magazine,  Inspired by global, urban, youth culture, the magazine features a diverse mix of photography, art, streetwear, music and fashion. My first article for the magazine was a look at the WOOD WOOD 2014 collection and my second piece, was a review of the Per Gotesson graduate collection. Links to both articles in full are below:

WOOD WOOD SS14 collection

Per Gotesson 2013 Graduate collection

Today I'm Wearing

Work sucks, but at least I look good. For another day in the office, I am wearing plain white shirt with moss green Marks and Spencer tie, with grey one button suit and green pocket square both from Reiss. 

The Reiss sale is pretty amazing. I picked up of a couple of colourful, Art Deco style pocket squares over the weekend. 

Shop at Reiss. 

The Rakish Gent & Sunflowerman

I am thrilled that The Rakish Gent has recently been illustrated by Sunflowerman. Sunflowerman is illustrator Matthew Miller and his design agency, focusing on men's fashion illustration for business to business work and product design for consumers. The Daily Fashion  feature asks men to submit images of themselves, which Matthew illustrates, highlighting trends, styles and patterns within the fashion community.  The image that Matthew has illustrated of me, is based on the below photo. You can read my comments on the fashion community at the following link:

Daily Fashion - Tajinder Hayer 

I am a big fan of the Daily Fashion Project which has a big online following, especially via Instagram. You can find out more about the project on the website and also follow on Twitter and Instagram.  

Follow The Rakish Gent on Instagram 

Look of the Week

One of the most common New Years Resolutions is to spend more time at the gym. It is also one of the easiest to break. This weeks look of the week, illustrated by the brilliant Clare Nield of Clare and the Bear is a look at luxe sportswear, which has to be one good reason to spend more time working out. 

The look that Clare has so awesomely illustrated, styled by me consists of a cotton jersey T shirt from Alexander Wang worn with cotton jersey sweat pants from Orlebar Brown. The chicest gym bag in the world is surely this leather trimmed canvas holdall in grey from Mulberry. The trainers are the brilliant Flyknit range from Nike. The sweatpants are available at Matches Fashion while the T shirt and bag are available at Mr Porter. 

Massive thanks to Clare for her hard work in creating another great illustration for The Rakish Gent. You can find out more about Clare and follow her on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. 

Guest blog post - Tails Clothing

I recently had the pleasure of producing a guest post for Tails Clothing, a website that is the place to go to for contemporary & traditional clothing that is authentic in origin and of a high quality. Their website stocks a brilliant selection of clothing, footwear and accessories, all of which stay true to the brands ethos. 

For my guest post on the site, I looked at the range and picked out my favorite Winter essentials, styling a full look made up of coat, jumper, shoes and hat. Head to the link below to read the post in full, and to shop the website:

Winter Essentials 

Best Dressed of the Week - Mr Kanye West

There is not much Kanye West can do wrong style wise. His choice of clothing for shopping in Paris is spot on. Spotted coming out of the Dior store in Paris, where he has been attending a number of couture shows, Mr West is seen wearing a soft white oversize sweater with black leather jeans and lace up high top sneakers. The knee length camel coat is chic and classic and works really well in this casual look. Love the small gold necklace too which is worn over the knitwear. 

If you want to get a similar coat,Reiss have a double breasted camel coat named Kanye which is a beautiful piece of outerwear and the perfect option to get this look. 

New articles for Spashion

A couple of articles that I have recently written for sports and fashion magazine Spashion are now online. Covering an array of subjects from snowboards at the Winter Olympics, to new football boots and fashion trends, head to the below links to read them in full:

Burton Snowboards x Shaun White

Lyle & Scott x Jonathan Saunders

Limited Edition Nike Tiempo XX Pack

Van Doren collection from Vans

Asos Spring/ Summer 2014

January Column - British Style Bloggers

My January 2014 column for British Style Bloggers is now online. 

For January, I have compiled a list of 10 simple and easy rules for men to live by. Its called the new style rules and the article features insightful advice on British brands to shop like Sunspel, A. Sauvage and Grenson, to how to dress for your shape and for an occasion. 

The British Style Bloggers January 2014 post can be read in full at the below link:

The Rakish Gent on the new style rules  

Contribution to Menswear Style

My latest article for website Menswear Style is now online. 

The article is called "Unisex Style" and looks at the items that are easily worn by men and women. Head to the below link to read the article in full:

Unisex Style

Look of the Week

Look of the Week is this week illustrated by new artist to The Rakish Gent, the talented Stacey White. Stacey is a recent graduate from the Birmingham Institute of Art and Design, in Visual Communication. She specialises in illustration and her pencil created works are inspired by fashion, beauty and current trends. I love the beautiful and realistic quality that Stacey has filled her illustration with and cannot wait to work together with her more closely in the future. 

The look that Stacey has illustrated on the handsome and pensive gent above is styled by me and is perfect weekend casual wear. He is sporting a navy vintage wash stretchy jeans from Reiss  with a heavy knit emerald green roll neck, also from Reiss. The contrast leather lace ups are from Sergio Rossi at Matches Fashion and the weekend bag is available at Topman. 

A huge thanks to Stacey for her first contribution to the site. You can find out more about her and her work at her website Stacey White Illustration. 

Best Dressed of the Week - Mr Jared Leto

Attending the first major event of awards season this week, the Golden Globes, actor and musician Mr Jared Leto offers his unique take on red carpet dressing. He is the undisputed best dressed this week, for looking comfortable and completely himself in his choice.  

The slim Balmain Homme black tuxedo is made to look extra dapper with the addition of a black silk scarf. In keeping with a major menswear trend of the evening, he also sports a smaller than normal black bow tie. It is the knotted half bun hair that really makes him stand apart though. There were many men sporting beards and facial hair at the awards, but none that looked quite so rakish doing it. 

New article online

A new article that I have written for Debater is now online. It is called "The Obesity Problem" and is a look at the different ways to combat obesity, which is rapidly on the rise. 

Head to the link below to read the article. I would also recommend taking a look at some of the other pieces online. Debater has some great content on current social and political issues from some very talented writers. 

The Obesity Problem

Inside the LCM Showrooms

Whilst shows and presentations were carrying on all around London, the Hospital Club played host to the LCM showrooms. The showrooms allowed designers to present small samples of their AW 14 collections to buyers and the fashion press, and were a wonderful opportunity to look closely at collections, speak with designers and get some first hand knowledge of inspirations, fabric and the design process. Established brands such as Sunspel and Christopher Raeburn stood with new labels like Alex Mullins and Berthold. Floors were broken down into contemporary ready to wear, luxe basics, ready to wear emerging and streetwear, and designer Paul Costelloe had a private showroom. 

As with last weeks LCM posts, the below highlights just a handful of some of the collections shown. Over the coming weeks and months, I will be devoting more time to individuals brands. 

Jean Machine

 

Jean Machine are specialists in well cut, casual menswear. Relaunched in 2012, it is the go to place for clean, contemporary and effortless denim. The jeans on show were slim, straight and relaxed whilst a tightly edited collection of ready to wear included a denim jacket and some great shirting and knitwear. Jean Machine are the perfect label for the concise and modern man. 

Lyle & Scott

A wonderful back to basics collection from Lyle & Scott that looked to the heritage of the label . I loved the slim rollnecks with the motif on the side of the neck, and the fantastic range of shoes. New for Autumn is the collection created with designer Jonathan Saunders which stayed true to the aesthetics of the label, but experimented with new more muted colors. A highly wearable and colorful Autumn collection that will cater well for fans of the brand. 

Common People

A really strong range from Common People, concentrating on interpreting familiar clothes in new ways. The knitwear above is a great example, where two colors and fabrics are seamlessly blended together to create a different jumper than you would see on the high street. Really strong and a great price point too. I can't wait for this stuff to be available for sale. 

Tobefrank

 

 

I was really impressed by the collection shown by new brand Tobefrank. Focused on some fantastic knitwer basis, I especially loved the statement check trousers with the unusual green and purple blend. These would really stand out with a great white shirt, or make a bolder statement when worn as part of a suit. The shirts also had wonderful detailing - contrast bibs and smaller collars which made the collection really stand apart from other brands. 

Universal Works 

Simple garments lovingly crafted, Universal Works showed a small collection of garments that were modern and urban, of great quality and made in the UK. For each day of LCM, the Universal Works collection was re-styled by different teams such as the Sartorial 7, and Individualism. This was a great way to show off as much of the range as possible and pass on the pressures of styling to others. 

Stutterheim 

Now famed for their raincoats, the new range of Stutterheim played with new colors and textures. The coats were all still thoroughly modern, crafted out of premium cotton and water resistance but came in neon green, raspberry red and a lovely off white. The traditional navy, black and grey were all still available with new details on buttons and collars. 

Youasme MeasYou 

Specialists in high quality and jerseys and crafted using modern techniques, the high standard of this range needs to be felt to be believed. All of the items were incredibly soft to touch. Made of the finest Italian yarn and with sustainability in mind, this was a focused range full of really wearable clothes that can easily be incorporated into your existing wardrobe, and an absolute must for any wool and knitwear collectors and enthusiasts. 

Natural Selection 

Another really great collection - Natural Selection color palette of red, white and black are perfect for Autumn/ Winter. The black coat above was a stand out item from a range that had some great ready to wear pieces. 

Berthold

Moving away from a monochrome color base, by incorporating fuchsia pink into the collection, this was a street collection full of great bombers and outerwear. The color panels on the shirts were fantastic, as was the use of neoprene which featured heavily throughout the collection on coats and bags. 

House of Nines

One of the strongest collections I saw was from relative newcomers House of Nines. The collection featured some superb tailoring, with garments cut close to the body for a slim silhouette, with great subtle details like leather collars. The shirts were also pretty outstanding - great collars that really stand out. My idea of the perfect evening out wardrobe, for that effortlessly stylish but perfectly put together look. 

Wearfore 

 

 

Quite simply some of the most beautiful shirts that I have ever seen, each of which could have a very happy home in the rakish gents wardrobe. Established only last year by designer Anne Marie Ng, the label draws inspiration from world culture and tradition whilst being designed and crafted in Britain and Europe. Concentrating on timeless style, and small trend changes, Wearfore showcased whiter than white shirts, with some fantastic Japanese selvedge denim and brushed cotton pieces. 

James Perse

Los Angeles based label James Perse specalise in great quality, easy to wear items. The lounge wear deserves a mention - all T shirts are 100% cotton and the sweatpants are all made from vintage cotton. All of the items were simple items that you won't want to take off. 

Alex Mullins

 

 

Launching his debut collection, Alex Mullins presented 32 pieces that created a graphic world drawing on the masculinity of hard wearing, practical clothing reinvented by splicing large scale paintings. A stunning range that featured deep indigo denim, silks and velvets with panelled melton wool coats.  Alex Mullins is definitely one to watch. 

Paul Costelloe

Established brand Paul Costelloe was the designer showroom at this years LCM. The garments on offer stuck closely to the designers theme and will no doubt do incredibly well with his fan base. Suits on offer drew inspiration from English heritage and Italian luxury with wide lapels and window pane checks featuring alongside lapel pins incorporated into the suit jacket and deep red and green velvet.