Shirts that fit

This is my roommate Stephen. His clothes fit. How pleasantly surprised was I to find out that his shirt was custom made in Bangkok? (Mom and Dad, this post is for you.) No wonder! Cheap, good material, and made-to-order. Jeans are Lucky Brand. He's not wearing any shoes because we're home (sorry for all those who wanted a complete outfit.) Doesn't he look like a Social Studies teacher here? Yes, that is our dining room.

One of the biggest complaints I hear from my male friends is that their shirts don't fit. Because shirt sizes are measured by the width of the collar and not the torso, shoulders, and arms, you will be hard-pressed to find a mass produced shirt that fits well. If having shirts custom made is out of your budget (and too much of a hassle), you can always purchase slim fit and super slim fit shirts now available from retailers like Express and Banana Republic to Brooks Brothers and Thomas Pink. Of course, there are still issues with these shirts, but for the most part, they do the job.

A brand to look out for in the Washington, D.C. metro area is Hugh and Crye. They specialize in making shirts that are cut for a man's body type whether he is short and lean, tall and broad, or something in between (which fit are you?). I stopped by their office in Georgetown to check them out for myself.

Check them out for yourself online. They make ties now too. I would like to suggest that they begin making bow ties, so I can wear a nice wool grey or silk black one with this rounded collar shirt. (Yes, I wear men's shirts. Sometimes boy's clothes look cuter on girls.)

DC power suit recharged

They say to always follow your [proverbial] gut, or in this case, my stomach because it is always right. Well, it's a good thing I take this piece of advice to heart because my midnight craving for gelato introduced me to Summy, a man who just might have the coolest job in D.C.

Summy works for urbandictionary.com and curates words that are already on the website, as well as, fact-check the entries that are submitted. "There is a degree of validation," he says, to the social and cultural meanings of words. "You can't just submit a word and have it mean what you says it means."

Summy's favorite words are "handy" (definition #2, though I am skeptical...) and "recharge" (though the definition he mentioned is not listed. Hmm, perhaps I should have heeded my mother's advice about not talking to strangers....)

Anyway, I like how his pants fit because it is rare these days to find a man whose pants don't gather at the bottom or hang loosely from his hips in hideous pleats. I was also admiring the charcoal grey color of his suit (not black, brown, or navy as so often seen on the Hill), his metal bracelet from Istanbul or Islamabad (probably the latter, I forget), and his display of just enough cuff (though I can't tell if his jacket fits in the shoulders because he's slouching, but let's hope so). Hill power suit or not, I'm sure we can come up with a word or two to describe his simple, but done-right style.

Shipley & Halmos

With the great fortune of August recess and a less-than-stellar social life, I was able to dip out of the office at 5 on the dot and make my way to Barneys Co-Op in Georgetown this evening to meet Sam Shipley and Jeff Halmos of Shipley & Halmos on their "Fill in the Blank Photo Tour."

(Is Sam modeling in that top photo?) He asked me tons of questions about myself as he was photographing me and all I could do was ramble and make no sense, just noise. But when I said I went to Rutgers, he replied, "Oh, great school." I totally don't deserve to be in their tour lookbook (published and sold at Barneys this fall).

In the end, they were super nice and adorable, and they design clothes I cannot afford on my sad, staff-ass salary but love. Carry on, boys and travel safely.

Polo prep, DC street style

Meet Shon and his sunglass-print shorts. I couldn't help but notice the patterns he combined, including the rhino and elephant wooden necklace he purchased at a souvenir shop in Georgetown and the red and blue fish bracelet he made at a church function (can you say Etsy?) against the backdrop of his orange, Polo madras shirt. Shon's style is unlike that of typical DC youth (see: Chinatown), but ironically enough, he says their lack of style serves as his motivating factor to up the ante.

Late summer seersucker

Just when we thought fall was around the corner in DC this weekend, Mr. Mills brought summer back with a great seersucker suit by Penguin.

Follow that knapsack!

This first post could not have been possible without the help and encouragement of a great friend. Thank you. And of course, thanks to this guy who allowed me to take these photographs.