What I Wore Today - Vintage Bow Tie Tuesday

That Dapper Chap shares his daily look. Today he goes for a vintage inspired outfit.

Full on vintage style in navy and brown

Today's look was built around this vintage waistcoat. It's predominantly navy in colour with an orangey brown check. So, with that it mind I went for a navy and brown ensemble. Because it's a true vintage item I also styled the look with other vintage elements to keep the theme specific.

The outfit flatlay as seen on Instagram

Under the said waistcoat is a slim fit plain white shirt and over the top is a simple brown cardigan to add an extra layer as it was a tad chilly today. 

Today's heritage look

New vintage style glasses in newsprint grey

I wore my brand new glasses today too, something old, something new, nothing borrowed and lots blue. Again these have a very vintage styling which compliments the overall look of this outfit. 

I had to have them made and shipped from the US as unfortunately they have no stores in the UK and do not even ship here! A huge thank you to Instagram's CameOnStrong for sorting the logistics for me!

Making my way back to the office

New hair, new glasses & vintage waistcoat & tie

Continuing with that vintage theme I opted for an original vintage pocket watch instead of a wristwatch, the new two tone brogues also make the look cohesive, continuing with the heritage focus and colour scheme.

Time for some vintage accessories

Leaning on a lamp post on the corner of the street

My new two tone brogues as seen on Instagram

The full look with vintage styling

A closer look at the vintage bow tie

Loving my new glasses

A close up of the pocket chain

Taking a stroll during my lunch break

A closer look at the two tone brogues

WHERE IT'S ALL FROM

Two Tone Brown Brogues - Redfoot

Brown striped socks - CNYTTAN

Navy 'Lawson' Chinos - Racing Green

Slim Fit White Shirt - H&M

Vintage checked waistcoat - Hunky Dory Vintage

Vintage Clip On Bow Tie - Ebay

Vintage Army Edition Pocket Watch - Ebay

Pocket Watch Chain - Ebay

Brown Cardigan - H&M - Similar Here

Newprint Grey Glasses - 'Watts' by Warby Parker

Brown Leather Briefcase - Rocha JohnRocha at Debenhams

THANKS FOR READING!

What I Wore Today - The Hammond & Co Three Piece Suit

That Dapper Chap shares his daily look, this time he wears a navy three piece suit from Hammond & Co

The three piece 'Chiltern' suit by Hammond & Co at Debenhams

A few posts ago(HERE)I showed you a jacket and waistcoat from the Hammond & Co range from Debenhams by designer and business man Patrick Grant. After some deliberation (all of five seconds worth) I decided to go ahead and buy the matching trousers so that I had the entire three piece suit.

My suit grid flat lay as seen on my Instagram page

As my office was doing a 'wear it blue' charity day and my home down football team were competing in a local derby I decided to go all out blue. Pale blue shirt and bow tie, blue suede brogues and even an entirely blue watch.

The look without the suit jacket

The suit is a great fit and I haven't had to get any aspect of it adjusted. Hammond & Co are good in that they not only produce great quality clothing for us regular sized blokes but they also do the same range in a 'big & tall' option so the more heighty among us can look just as dapper! A little bit of me is jealous that they get to be tall and smart looking I have to say, it doesn't seem fair! But there it is!

A closer look at the floral bow tie

As it was 'Bow Tie Tuesday' I wore this beauty, a little gift from an Instagram friend from overseas. he clearly knows my style well as it was the perfect gift! He also send me a beautiful tie pin which I'll show off in a future post. 

The daily walk to work

Keep it fun by adding some interesting socks

The three Hammond & Co three piece suit 

The blue faced watch, keeping the 'blue' theme going

Extreme close up of the pattern on the bow tie

A close up of my lapel pin and pocket square

Wristwear helps add interest and personality

Now you see me, now you don't

WHERE IT'S ALL FROM

Blue Suede Brogues: Savile Row W1

Blue Polka Dot Socks: Rock My Socks

Navy 'Chiltern' Three Piece Suit: Hammond & Co at Debenhams

Pale Blue Shirt: H&M

Floral Jacquard Bow Tie: Fine & Dandy

'Jetstream' Leather Strap Watch: Harding Watches

Bracelets: home made

Blue silk Pocket Square: Bruno Magli

THANKS FOR READING!

Nautical Prep

Craig of That Dapper Chap shows us today's preppy look accessorised with items by Paul Hewitt

I've been really keen on the preppy look for a while and have occasionally erred towards that genre of styling in my daily look. 

After receiving a great little parcel from Paul Hewitt, who sell some really great preppy accessories, I thought I'd use them to build a look to challenge the preppiest prepster.

Getting my preppy style on

The preppy preperation

I chose items in the same colourway and all with a nautical theme. The bright red bow tie is printed with lobsters, the red, white and blue bracelet fastens with and anchor and the nato strap on the vintage style watch is also adorned with anchors. The red and blue belt and pocket square help to bring the colour theme together.

If you like the Paul Hewitt accessories, check back on the blog again soon as I'll be carrying out a product review on their vintage style watch.

What I Wore Today - Grey Check Three Piece Suit

That Dapper Chap shows us what he wore today and tells us about this grey check three piece suit on this bow tie Tuesday.

Todays look, rolling up my sleeves to feel the sun

What a beautiful day today was! Spring is most definitely here! With daffodils and tulips bobbing their colourful heads in the light breeze, and the warmth of the sun tempting us into removing our blazers. It's now that the warmer weather gets us hunting for those sunglasses that were put somewhere very safe last September! Have you managed to locate yours?

The suit jacket and todays bag

I've only worn this suit once before, actually that's a lie, I have only worn the trousers and waistcoat once before. That's because I have only very recently bought the matching jacket. I wore the trousers and waistcoat for my shoot with Antoni Manuel and I'd totally forgotten how well it fits and how much I liked it! You can see an image from that shoot on the blog banner above.

The entire look with the three piece suit

The suit is 70% wool but it isn't a heavy suit, in fact it's quite light and very easy to wear. It is predominantly grey with a brown windowpane check. While I do not generally champion mixing grey and brown as I feel that they come from different colour families and don't compliment each other, I'm happy that this works.

A close up of the vintage bow tie and lapel pin

As the orangey brown check is quite prominent I decided to embrace the colour clash and chose a vintage clip on bow tie in a classic paisley design. It gives a very vintage look, particularly with a three piece suit and matches the colour well.

Taking time out to enjoy the delightful spring weather

Continuing with the vintage theme I wore my vintage pocket watch with a new chain. It's just a cheap replica but it does the job. It was just £7 from Ebay. I'd been looking for a more elaborate chain for sometime and while I could find plenty they were a little out of my price range! I'd love a genuine vintage silver chain, maybe that will go on my Christmas list!

My new pocket watch chain with elaborate charm

Stepping out in style

Again keeping with that slightly orangey theme, I went for orange socks. This adds a real shock of colour and a bit more personality to the look. I continued that colour story with the bracelets. 

Todays shoes are a vintage style brogue, again this maintains that overall theme. While they look good, they are not leather. They're now a bit worse for wear, particularly as I tripped on these steps and virtually ripped the heel off the right shoe! Time for a new pair I think!

Todays sock, shoe combo

The orange and brown bracelets pull the colour theme together

A vintage look in a new three piece suit

A look at my vintage army edition pocket watch from 1953

WHERE IT'S ALL FROM

Grey and brown check three piece suit: Next

Plain White Slim Fit Shirt: H&M

Vintage Clip On Bow Tie: Ebay

Vintage Pocket Watch: Ebay

Pocket Watch Chain: Ebay

Orange Socks: Next

Vintage Style Brogues: Goor

Leather Briefcase: Rocha John Rocha at Debenhams

Moon Lapel Pin: Ebay

White Cotton Pocket Square: Next

THANKS FOR READING!

Suit: High End, Mid Range or Budget?

That Dapper Chap shows us his three piece suit and asks if you can tell if it is a high end suit, a mid range one or a budget bargain. Can you tell?

I bought this wool mix suit last year after seeing it in a shop on London's Oxford Street. As soon as I saw it I fell in love with it and after a quick financial assessment I bought it. I did debate not buying the waistcoat as I only just had enough money on me to get it but opted in the end for all three pieces. 

What I'd like you to do, if I may be so bold, is to look at the pictures and read on while thinking how much you would consider paying for this suit. I'll let you know at the end of the piece.

Okay, so the wool content at just 10% isn't very high but it's enough to give it a bit of a bulk and helps make it a much warmer and heavier suit than it would have been without it. On first inspection the fabric looks like a tweed and everyone refers to it as my "tweed suit" when I wear it.

It isn't an elaborate suit, it doesn't have fancy lining or intricate pockets but simple patch pockets. The trousers are half lined to stop you getting itchy thighs from the wool content and having the waistcoat means I can add that extra layer in colder weather or leave the jacket behind when its warmer but still look smart.

I teamed the shirt with a retro style shirt which is covered in embroidered diamonds. The bow tie is an original vintage clip on from the 50's. With the classic styling I pulled out my tan leather brogues and threw on some fairisle socks.

For accessories I chose a few gold coloured bracelets to tie in with the tan of the brogues and my vintage gold watch. The leaf lapel pin and orange pocket square complete the look.

So, you've seen the pictures, you've read my description and where I bought it from. How much would you pay? Did I spend £60, £300 or £900? 

Drum roll please...................

I spent £59!

Yes! This three piece cost me just £30 for the jacket, £17 for the trousers and £12 for the waistcoat. It came from Primark and is part of their range by Butler and Webb.  Did you guess right?

Suit: Primark

Fairisle Socks: Next

Leather Brogues: Burton Menswear

Shirt: ASOS

Bow Tie: Esty

Pocket Square: Ebay

Lapel Pin: Home made

Briefcase: John Rocha

Wallet: Kjøre Project

Bracelets: Various sources

THANKS FOR READING!