What I Wore Today #40 - Autumnal Shades

Craig of That Dapper Chap shows us what he wore today, taking inspiration from the changing autumnal landscape and showing off his new boots from Chatham Footwear

Autumn is well and truly here, the leaves have turned a mixture of stunning ochres and deep reds, the nights have got darker and colder and it's time to pull out your winter coat.

I bought this coat last autumn from Zara while on a trip to London. It's still great for this year with its slim fit and classic military shape. As often with Zara they added a twist to this classic, and used a very contemporary fabric, making it stand out from other coats on the high street. Unfortunately it isn't available this year but there is an equivalent in a large black and grey check. It's also available in a blazer too, and it's something I've added to my Christmas list.

Think of layering I chose a floral shirt with a very autumnal colour scheme and wore this under a cardigan with hues of burnt umber. The tie is vintage and helps to bring the colour scheme together while making a bit of a statement against the floral shirt.

Footwear has to be substantial at this time of year so I opted for these beauties. These are the 'Stornoway' tan leather and tweed boots from Chatham. I recently listed my top five pairs of shoes and boots from Chatham and these were number one in my list. See the article HERE

Where It's All From

Stornoway Leather and tweed boots - Chatham

Wool check trousers - Topman

Floral print shirt - Burton

Brown cardigan - H&M

Vintage diamond check tie - Ebay

Coat hanger tie clip - Stitches of Style

Wool check coat - Zara

Leather gloves - Zara

Sunglasses - Primark

Leather suitcase - Vintage

Thanks for visiting! Come back soon!

What I Wore Today #28

That Dapper Chap shows off his new two tone brogues by London Brogues in his latest outfit post

One of my most commented on pairs of shoes are a pair of tan leather and blue suede brogues by London Brogues. I thought they were the only ones but London Brogues offer five different varieties of two tone brogues along with three plain pairs in tan, black and dark brown.  Wanting another pair I chose the tan and black leather option which I think go really well with this outfit.

As the tan leather has a richness to its colour I chose orange accents to compliment the tan of the shoes and the chinos. keeping the look fairly formal I wore a blue unlined summer cotton blazer.

The orange paisley tie is a fun and funky addition, bringing some individuality to the look. The bracelets are hand made and continue the colour story as do the socks with their orange and blue stripes. 

Where it's all from

Two Tone Brogues: London Brogues

Striped Socks: H&M

Tan Chinos: Next

Slim Fit Plain White Shirt: Primark

Orange Paisley Tie: Zara

Tan Belt: Primark

Blue cotton Blazer: Jasper Conran

Bracelets: Home Made

Briefcase: Rocha; John Rocha at Debenhams

Watch: Paul Hewitt

Trouser Chain: Home Made

Sunglasses: Oscar Wylee

Tie Clip: Vintage from Ebay

Pocket Square: Korbata

THANKS FOR READING!

What I Wore - The Next Skinny Fit Suit

That Dapper Chap shares his daily look and shows off his new skinny fit suit from Next

Next have been making great affordable suits for years, dressing the likes of you and me in the latest cuts and fabrics and making sure that we look the part at that meeting, wedding or on that date.

This is my latest purchase, advertised as a 'rust' skinny fit suit which for me conjures images of rich deep oranges I'd say this is more berry coloured or deep burgundy.

Due to the weather conditions and the need for some additional warmth I also wore my checked coat, a patterned scarf and some leather gloves. I would have frozen for sure without them.

 

Under the suit I wore a burgundy and white striped shirt and a knitted burgundy and white polka dot tie which I held in place with a quirky little tie clip in the shape of a coat hanger, alluding to my love of fashion and my blogging career.

Jack Spade:Double Breasted Weller Suit Jacket Fall Jacket 

I accessorised with a matching watch strap with was made specifically for my watch by an Instagram friend. The leather loafers continue the colour palette and the lapel pin maintains the gold highlights.

I am really please with this suit, the fabric is great as it the fit. I first wore it while at London Collections: Men a could of weeks and and received some very nice comments about it. 

So with lunch packed in my leather briefcase and hand made pocket square in place I was ready for whatever the day had in store.

Where it's all from

Burgundy Leather Loafers: Vintage, from Beyond retro, London

Burgundy Socks: Uniqlo

Skinny Fit Suit: Next

Stripped, Button Down Shirt: Next

Patterned Scarf: Next

Watch: Daniel Wellington

Watch Strat: Bespoke, BWeiss Leather

Leather Briefcase: John Rocha at Debenhams

Knitted Polka Dot Tie: Ebay

Wool Check Coat: Zara

Gloves: Next

Pocket Square: Gavin Pierre-Medford

Tie Bar: Stitches Of Style

Stag Head Lapel Pin: Ebay

THANKS FOR READING!

Tudor print

During my recent trip to Birmingham I stopped into the Zara store and among the usual shirts this teal green and white patterned shirt jumped out at me. Looking at the pattern I initially thought it was a Christmas print as it encorporates stags and trees. 

Looking at it a little closer, other images came to the fore and it soon became apparent that it is a medieval or Tudor design. Move over Henry Viii.

After grabbing the shirt I strode off towards the fitting room and on the way this diagonal striped tie caught my eye. The colours went really well so that came with me too! 

The trousers are a new purchase too, they're a skinny fit design and went well with the style of the shirt. As the trousers have a black trim on the pocket I opted for black loafers and my black leather briefcase and belt to complete the look.

The tie clip is a vintage slide on style which I embellished with a metal pistol charm and a bit of glue. The green teal bracelets are also a home project.

Black leather loafers: Scooter by Monk

Socks: Topman

Dress trousers: Next

Shirt: Zara

Tie: Zara

Tie clip: Vintage

Sunglasses: Oscar Wylee

Briefcase: vacation purchase from Tunisia

Bracelets: handmade

Watch: Timex Weekender with nato band

THANKS FOR READING!

Vacation Styles

That Dapper Chap takes us through the styles that he wore of this summers vacation

Standing in the Coliseum in El Djem, Tunisia

At the beginning of 2014 with snow on the ground, we set off to the travel agent to book our summer vacation. Looking through brochures and reviewing locations and hotels we started to get confused. Is it just me or after a while do they all start to look the same?

We ended up booking to go to Tunisia in North Africa. We'd been there twice before and knew the deal. Guaranteed heat, great hotels and culture and difficult to beat on price.

The coliseum at El Djem, Tunisia

A couple of weeks ago I posted an article about what to take on vacation so to follow that up I'll now take you through what I did wear to show the proof in my pudding.

Arriving tired and sweaty we checked in, showered and changed for dinner. I chose a dusty pink pair of shorts and a white long sleeved shirt. The shorts are from H&M at £25 ($43), the shirt is also H&M at £10 ($17). The bow tie is vintage from Etsy at £10 ($17), the belt is Primark at just £3 ($5) and the tassel leather loafers are from Ebay seller Withamyshop at £23 ($40)

A dapper vacation look

The pool side at the hotel in Port El Kantaoui 

The next evening after a day by the pool working on the tan I again opted for a look with shorts. These pale blue cotton shorts are from Burton Menswear at £27 ($46) and a light cotton bird print shirt from Zara. The shoes are from Primark at £12 ($20)and the bow tie is again from Etsy.

Dapper in a Zara short and vintage bow tie

The beautiful Zara bird print shirt

The next look was a slightly more preppy affair with a red, white & blue check shirt from GAP at £40 ($68). The pale coloured shorts are by Primark at £12 ($20). The vintage clip on bow tie is again from Etsy. The belt and hat are both from Primark at £3 and £5 respectively. The shoes are by Converse and the sunglasses from Burton Menswear.

The next look is a floral shirt by Boden which I bought on the sale for £25 ($43)and I teamed them with a pair of charcoal coloured cotton and linen mix shorts from Primark at £10 ($17. The shoes are again by Converse. 

A relaxed holiday look

A close up of the floral print

I followed the floral look with this one which seems to be a favorite with the Instagram crowd. The white cropped trousers are from Ebay seller Withamyshop and cost just £16 ($27) to keep it very fresh I chose a bright blue light cotton shirt from H&M at £20 ($35). The belt is again from Primark at £3 and the shoes are also from Primark at £12.

White for the sand and blue for the sea

A closer look

The colour of the pool matches the shirt perfectly

The next day we spend at the Medina, haggling for bargains. The amount of fake items that you can buy in Tunisia is astounding and this will be the focus of a forthcoming blog piece. That evening I opted for a white shirt from H&M at £10 and beige shorts from Primark at £10. The brogues are by Red Tape at £25.  The bow tie is vintage and again from Etsy.

The entrance to the Medina in Sousse

Around the Medinas narrow walkways

Colourful plates at the Medina

The next look is all about this Topman printed shirt. I bought it a couple of years ago but it still looks great. I cannot remember how much it cost me but it was probably around the £25 mark. I teamed it with the same white cropped trousers as before and the tassel loafers

 

I went for a green theme the following day also with this green and turquoise checked shirt from H&M at £20 and added a bright green pair of shorts. the shorts started out as a pair of chinos but because they looked a lot like a Doctors scrubs I decided to make them in to shorts!

We visited the Coliseum at El Djem the next day and I chose to wear the light coloured shorts from Primark along with a floral short sleeved shirt, also from Primark and a straw hat by John Rocha which I found in a charity shop. For comfort I opted for a pair of red converse.

The view of El Djem from the Coliseum 

A close up of the floral shirt pattern

Waiting in the hotel for the coach

For the final look I again chose a classic white long sleeved shirt and put it with a pair of paisley patterned tailored shorts by Topman. The shorts are part of a suit. I don't know how I feel about a short suit but the jacket and the shorts are great pieces in the own right (I didn't buy the jacket though)

The belt is plain black leather and the shoes are again Converse. I wish I'd taken a pair of black tassel loafers with me but for some reason I didn't. 

A close up of the shorts

The shorts have received a lot of attention. Firstly a shop owner in Tunisia asked if he could have them when I left. When I refused to let him have them, he offered to buy them from me or swap them with goods from his shop. Again I declined as I like them so much.  In addition to this an Instagrammer commented that they are too long and suggested that I go for a shorter length for a cleaner look. I disagree with this and I'm pretty sure that the designers at Topman know what they are doing. It was made as a suit so clearly the longer length was intentionally made to creat a smater tailored look. Buy hey, each to their own!

 

Of course I did a lot of swimming and I was pleased that they had a smaller, quieter pool in which I could swim lengths. With an all inclusive holiday I needed to make sure that I was doing enough exercise to off set all the food I was consuming (not that I over indulged). Of course I needed swim shorts and I took two floral pairs by H&M and Boden along with a short short pair in navy by H&M and a pale blue pair by Next.

Shorts by H&M

Shorts by Next

So, now back in the UK, slightly darker skinned that before I left and planning what I'm going to wear to work this week. No maid service, no waiter offering my an ice cold Gin and Tonic by the pool and nobody clearing my plate after my evening meal. Sad times, but I'll just look forward to next year. Maybe it'll be Tunisia again? Who knows! The bigger question is what will I wear!

Thanks for reading!