Diorable Luxe For Less

Century 21 Department Store, Financial District, New York City

Shock! Horror! Who says you need to be a millionaire to dress like one? Indeed, not this gentleman for I seem to battle no hindrance towards finding top designer products for a mere fraction of the cost. With each rising day, I'm perpetually yearning for new ways to express myself through fabric which is achieved simply by knowing how and where to shop.

Each week, for the past month or so, I find myself hopping on the E train eagerly journeying to the Financial District. One might assume I'm heading down to J&R Music World to check out the latest arrivals of imported UK music. Instead, however, I'm steadily marching towards the biggest off-price department store in Manhattan known simply as, Century 21. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, this massive retailer is where you'll want to mark your next shopping trip (That is unless, of course, you'll mind the immense amount of tourists floating about the shop shortly after their visit to the WTC construction site). After several instances of bumping and banging my red shopping trolley into oncoming consumers, I managed to scoop up some rather lovely designer pieces that would normally cost a shiny penny.

Raspberry pink Valentino scarf with tassels (95% wool, 5% silk. Ooooh, classy fabric composition! - made in Italy) and a SAND raspberry-pink/orange/pink tie (100% silk, made in Italy)

Valentino scarf: Retails at $350. Purchased for a mere $50

SAND tie: Retails at $120. Purchased for $30

I think perhaps I will be a boy pretty in pink tomorrow. Diorable Style, indeed.

Givenchy two-sided blueberry & black 100% merino wool scarf (Made in Italy)

Givenchy blueberry mini-diamond pattern 100% silk tie (Made in Italy)

Scarf: Retails at $250. Purchased for $30

Tie: Retails at $200. Purchased for $20

Total retail price: $350 + $120 + $250 + $200 = $920

Total price paid: $50 + $30 + $30 + $20 = $130

Total savings: $810

The epitome of all discounted designer purchases occurred only two weeks ago when I snatched a lovely extra-extra-long, runway-featured Givenchy scarf. Retail: $800. Paid: $40. (I do believe, however, this to be vastly mis-marked)

Super-long, 100% virgin wool runway scarf by Givenchy Homme.

For locations, store-hours, and directions:

http://www.c21stores.com/

"Many people dismiss couture as being something that is only for those who are very wealthy. But it is possible for men and women to be elegant without spending very much money on their clothes." - Christian Dior

Fall 2011: Classic Brit for a Modern Male

Isaia's wool suit, Hickey Freeman cotton shirt, Canali tie

English tea, English politeness, English gentlemen, English fashion...

The well-tailored gentleman look has prominently returned to modern day fashion and is in full effect. It's quite typical for me to dress in a traditional English-tailored full ensemble which includes: Oxford-button down shirts, classic woolen waistcoats (vests), jackets/blazers/overcoats, rounded out with my two favorite accessories, the necktie and scarf. More of my fellow gentlemen should be dressing in such inimitable style to which I refer to as "proper" attire. British culture is amongst my favorite and their eminent history with fashion is undeniably chic and flawless.

Just yesterday evening, as I was paying for cup of tea at a local cafe, a lovely cashier prompted a conversation with me:

Her: "Do you always dress like that?"

Me: "Typically, yes." (I was wearing an outfit similar to the one described above)

Her: "That is so awesome. You always come in looking great. More guys should be dressing like you."

Me: "Thank you kindly and I couldn't agree with you more. "

It ended with mutual smiling and a departing salutation, one of which I greatly appreciated and respected.

The average fellow should abandon thoughts that such outfits are only worthy of special occasions and embrace what fashion has gifted us with: tailored, timeless, fashionable looks. Once again, I'm a gentleman that dresses traditionally and takes full advantage of these looks as they will never go out of style.

Next fall sees fashion retailers offering classic British styles in tweeds, herringbones, plaids, and flannels using fabrics which provide more body and pattern.

Ben Sherman jacket, John Varvatos wool pants, Paul Stuart Tie

Perry Ellis jacket, Oxxford wool pants, Kenneth Cole wool coat, Hackett tie, Gitman Gold shirt

Joe by Joseph Abboud wool jacket, Hart Schaffner Marx wool pants, Isaia cotton shirt, Steven Alan tie

"It is the fitting that helps to emphasize the loveliness of yourself and to hide the little faults you may have. A good fit is something very difficult to obtain and you can never spend too much time on it." - Christian Dior

Color Chronicles: Black is Beautiful

Diorable in Black

Not only as a New Yorker, but as a fashion-conscious male, black is quite simply the most integral color to own in one's wardrobe. In other words, you can never go wrong with black. I've always noticed that I tend to predominantly dress with a foundation in black during all seasons, so I suppose it's safe to say that black is my favorite fashion choice. As striking as it is, the color exudes elegance and boldness while remaining an undeniable classic. Long gone are the outdated ways of black being widely and negatively regarded as a mourning color. Instead, fashion consumers today have fortunately realized that:

A. It is the most slimming of all colors.

B. It can be paired flawlessly and effortlessly with any other color.

C. It masks body imperfections quite easily.

Indeed the aforementioned three bullets regarding black are apparent, so why not use this invaluable color to your advantage? Quite simply, if you're going to buy an article of clothing, be sure that black is your first and foremost selection.

Above is a photo of yours truly dressed mostly in black. Gentlemen should be wearing more black overcoats which, as you can see, is a top favorite selection of mine for the fairly unforgiving New York winters. Classic as it is timeless, it will never go out of style. Sitting around my neck is an infallible and intricately-knitted black wool Dior Homme snood. Large enough to show texture, small enough to remain elegant and not pretentious (I've received endless compliments on this remarkable piece and also own it in gray, another integral color I will blog about soon enough.) Black makes your face stand out, so take note how the color easily draws the viewer to your face. The simplest way to pull this off is to don a knitted black scarf.

Let's take this one step further, shall we?: how about dressing in full-on black? Sounds daring or somewhat challenging, doesn't it? Kindly put, wrong. If executed properly, a full-on black ensemble is commanding. Just this past Friday morning, I walked into class where my professor was fully donned in an all-black ensemble looking stunning. Wishing I had taken a photo, she wore a pair of black pants, a beautifully-knitted black sweater, a black fur vest, with her elegant black leather Prada handbag and rounded out her look with applying deep and classic red lipstick. She executed the look quite stunningly.

The simple rule to successfully dressing in all black: texturize! Yes, ladies and gentlemen, select pieces of different fabric composition and texture if you want to properly achieve such a bold statement. If your heart desires denim, by all means slide on those tight, sexy black jeans, but be sure to wear a top of contrasting texture, such as wool, silk, or cashmere. Top it off with a leather belt and throw on a lovely wool scarf or snood if you can to simply round out the entire look (I suppose a nice knitted black necktie for the conservative males will be a more appropriate suggestion for those not ready to be so risky). Undeniable style guru, and one of my ultimate favorite fashion icons, Victoria Beckham, has no problems with this technique.

Black Posh

Spicy Textures

Another historic and integral item to any woman's wardrobe is the little black dress. Ladies, be sure to own at least one simple and timeless black dress in your closet to pull out for interviews, events, or a night out. Chanel will approve.

Notice the different styles of little black frocks worn by my absolute favorite group, Girls Aloud.

Black Aloud

"You can wear black at any time. You can wear it at any age. You may wear it for almost any occasion. A 'little black frock' is essential to a woman's wardrobe. I could write a book about black..." - Christian Dior, 1954