A pair of wingtips is an absolutely essential piece of any well dressed man’s wardrobe, and while we already have a couple pairs, we are giving some serious thought to adding another one to the collection. By serious thought, we mean we have been spending far too much time drooling over a number of pairs online. Though we aren’t positive which pair will make it’s way into the rotation, we do know that the next pair of wingtips we buy will be in boot form. Currently, one of the frontrunners in our search is the Zachary ($360) by Walk-Over.
A few weeks back, we were approached by an up and coming brand out of South Carolina called Southern Snob. At first, the name threw us for a bit of a loop, but after doing some research, we realized that there was definitely a place for the brand on Bows & Boats. Southern Snob is doing their best to remove any negative connotations associated with the word “Snob”. In their eyes, it is simply an acronym for Sportman, Naturalist, Outdoorsman, and Boater. In fact, 10% of Southern Snob’s profits are sent directly to various conservation groups. Last week we received quite the care package from our friends at Southern Snob, and now they want to send one out to a lucky Bows & Boats reader.
The tree is trimmed, the stockings are hung, and the halls are decked. Now all we need is a little bit of snow (only a little, please) to really feel like Christmas is here. With no snow in the forecast for the foreseeable future, we’ve decided the next best thing is to break out some Fairisle pieces, and luckily this year it seems like many brands are having the same thought. One sweater that has really caught our attention is the Holiday Fairisle Toggle ($278) by Tommy Hilfiger.
You never know what you might learn about via Twitter. Sometimes we are left questioning why we followed a certain link, but, more times than not, we end up thanking someone we follow for the heads up on a great find. Luckily, it was the latter that occurred about a month ago when we looked into something posted by our friends over at Back Down South called Old Try. It turns out Old Try is a print shop that does things a bit different than most these days, and their prints ($40) are just fantastic.
Recently, we were turned on to an invite only only clothing store that has created a model unlike any of their competition, Everlane. If you haven’t signed up for an invite yet, you absolutely should. While many invite only sites offer great prices on products from other brands, Everlane is producing high end goods of their own, and selling them at extremely reasonable prices. Needless to say, we absolutely love their Flannel Plaid Reversible Bow ($35).
Tis the season for list making. Whether it is a list of people to send Christmas cards to, a list of presents to give, or just a list of things that we hope Santa leaves under the tree, it seems that wherever you look on our desks there is some sort of list. Apparently, the gang at Southern Proper has been in the list making mood as of late as well. The result is their Top Ten Reasons Sweet Tee ($32*).
Across the world of fashion, military inspiration can be see in everything from jackets, to shirts, to pants, to footwear, and beyond. While some of these pieces are a bit too hardcore for our look, many fit into our wardrobe perfectly with simple classic lines that will never be out of style. One of our favorite brands from across the pond, Smart Turnout, frequently draws inspiration from the military, and they have done an absolutely fantastic job paying tribute to one of the most famed military units in the UK with their Household Division Narrow Silk Tie ($75).
We tend to talk a lot about the weather here at Bows & Boats, but honestly Annapolis has it pretty easy when it comes to the elements. Sure, we have cold spells from time to time, and occasionally we will see more than a foot of snow, but in all actuality it never really gets “that bad.” Unfortunately, our friends in New England can’t say the same. On the bright side, the tough winters to our north have led to a ton of great brands who produce some of the best gear out there. One of our favorites is Penfield, and their Bayfield Knitted Shawl Collar Jumper ($130) is now officially on our Christmas list.
Believe it or not, we were the kids who were happy to get back to school after summer break. No we’re not saying that we were eagerly awaiting the school work, or even the classes, but there was just something nice about getting back into a routine after some time away. Well, we’re in the same boat after being away from the office for the last few days. Of course, spending Thanksgiving with family and friends was a great escape from the norm, but this morning we were actually happy to hear the alarm ring. Because we will probably spend most of the day behind a desk playing catchup, we are keeping things a bit more casual with the Selvedge Poplin Shirt ($129.50) from Lands End Canvas.
It may be getting colder, and we may be layering up more than ever, but we just haven’t been able to bring ourselves to retire our boatshoes for the Winter. Needless to say, it probably isn’t prudent to run around sockless in unlined shoes for much longer, and thanks to Sperry Top-Sider, and their Winter A/O’s ($100), we won’t have to.
