Your Questions, My Answers

Okay, so I've paraphrased...

What's with the whole Cable Knit Collegian, CKC, Cable Knit Charlestonian thing?
Well, I'm no longer in college so Collegian isn't quite appropriate. CKC's simply more catchy. Charleston's my home town.

Why Cable Knit? 
Why not? I've always worn cable knit sweaters and currently have around fifty. When coming up with a title for the blog, I spent several days thinking of a particular piece of style I find to be my own. I know only a handful of people, even fellow bloggers, to be fond of cable knits. 

What inspires you to keep blogging?
I'm inspired by the ignorance most men have regarding classic style. Growing up in an era where some guys think putting on a tee without stains is dressing up, I feel compelled to closely examine my own style and that of others so greater mankind stops looking like shit. But seriously, I'm inspired by other bloggers. When I finally started writing, I'd been given the confidence to do so by reading Maxminimus and An Affordable Wardrobe for several months prior. Now, I have a strong list of blogosphere acquaintances who keep me encouraged.

201 Down and Questions from the Audience

I occasionally receive emails from readers with questions about style - pattern mixing, smart shopping, building a wardrobe - those sorts of things. However, questions sometimes come along regarding my professional life and my personal interests, subjects I generally don't share. Though in the spirit of my 201st post (because a special 200th post is cliche), I've decided to answer several of these messages, and I'll be answering style questions throughout the week.

What do you do in the real world?
I run a graphic design studio called Camel Jockey Productions and am currently in the process of launching an advertising firm. I spend a great deal of time with my family and am involved with my church (Antiochian Orthodox), teaching Sunday school and advising the youth group.

You've mentioned your ethnicity before, but where's your family from?
I'm a bit of an ethnic mutt, but I'm predominately Lebanese. My mom's family is from Lebanon, while my dad's family hales from Germany and Great Britain. Oh, I'm also very slightly Cherokee.

Where did you go to school?
I attended two universities in my home state. I spent two years at a large university upstate before coming home and spending two years at a very small school where I received my degree.

Why don't you buy a razor and shave that damn beard?
I've received this question on several occasions. If you're visiting my blog and are more concerned with my facial hair than the hair of a cashmere goat, I urge you to find a hipster and criticize his scraggly beard.


What are some of your musical influences?
Ben Folds has played a large part in my musical interests, and I find him to be the most underrated artist around. If you've never listened to his music, please start now. Seriously, start up YouTube and learn. Aside from that, I enjoy almost everything from Beethoven to the Beatles. Opera. Ragtime. Jazz. Byzantine chanting... yep.


What sports do you follow and who do you like?
Basketball - Los Angeles Lakers.    Football - Minnesota Vikings.
Soccer - Liverpool.                         Baseball - Cincinnati Reds.
Hockey - Detroit Red Wings.          Golf - Rory McElroy.
Tennis - Novak Djokovic.               Rugby - Black Heath.
I also love to play every single one of these sports. 


Any more questions? Leave a comment!

Onward to my 301st...

My Suitless Birthday Suit

A style standard with a bit of boldness - what I wore on my birthday.

Shirt - Polo Ralph Lauren striped poplin

Tie - American Living repp paisley

Sweater - Polo Ralph Lauren mercerized cotton cable knit

Pant - vintage worsted wool

Shoe (not pictured) - Allen Edmonds black leather bit loafer

Mad for Plaid from Phineas Cole

Diesel Disasters

Want to know what you can buy at Diesel for $295? This half wool, half acrylic rock 'n roll intarsia poncho.


















Let's not forget to also pick up this $420 buffalo plaid poncho vest, fresh with holes and slits for that ever-popular homeless hipster meets urban lumberjack look.

J. Peterman

There's a place where fashion art meets product description humor by way of random quality goods in Lexington, Kentucky. What? It's the new J. Peterman catalog, of course.

I strongly suggest you visit the website to see their cool offerings. 

Uncommonly good, indeed. My standard messenger bag is the J. Peterman Counterfeit Mail Bag, an indestructible $300 leather pouch I picked up for $5 at a yard sale.

Peaceful in Purple

 Shirt - Polo oxford

Sweater - Merona cotton v-neck

Tie - American Living repp paisley

Belt - Harbor Bay braided leather

Pant - vintage worsted wool

Shoes - Allen Edmonds bucks

Seasonal Retirement

There comes a time each year to hide away all your cotton and linen ties. As temperatures hit the forties and fifties, I've come to realize that time has arrived.

 So I'll see you next spring, madras.

Goodbye for now, ginghams, paisleys and such.

Take care, tartans and plaids.



Okay, so this last group still has some play left before I make the rotation to wool, but I couldn't resist showing some of my favorite pieces.




What's your favorite summer tie?

Have a wonderful week!

Meet the Hilfigers and Run

With each new season's ad campaign, I ask myself why Phillips-Van Heusen just had to save the failing Tommy Hilfiger brand. Recently watching the new fall video, I felt ever so compelled to highlight several of the preppy-mansion-party-people.

A few of my least favorite buzz words come to mind.


Max - Authentic is everyone's least favorite frat boy looking stoned with with sloppy hair and ski goggles. Oh, and the ascot. Right.



Francis - Iconic in that sexually ambiguous hair cut. Maybe Max should lend this guy his facial hair.  Just below is Taboo from the Black Eyed Peas. Separated at birth? Hmm.

Luis - Tradition shines forth from another ski bum toting the whole late 90's ski goggles and fuzzy hair thing. Who knew Tommy Hilfiger drew inspiration from Seth Green? 

Emily - Heritage on cue from Annie Hall. Well, close enough.

Yes, I realize Ralphie uses these buzz words all the time and to his brand I hold great loyalty, but still I despise the grossly overused verbiage. If you're going to put an emphasis on WASP/prep/trad/whatever life, stay away from all this frat boy/beatnik/ski bum/hipster shit stuff. No, no, shit is more appropriate.

An Awfully Good Read

Tied Up Times Six

    

The same day I found my last set of ties, I also purchased these six bow ties.

Though all Countess Mara, I discovered these at three different locations.

The solid blue tie came from T.J. Maxx, the striped and dot ties came from Marshall's, and the paisley set came from Macy's.

While I'm certainly most pleased with the paisley ties, new to the Countess Mara collection this season, I was pleasantly surprised to see the other three slightly imperfect pieces hit the discount market.

Though I almost always stick to thrift shops and eBay for standard ties, bow ties are very rare at the thrifts, and unreasonably expensive on eBay due to high demand. Therefore I didn't mind paying for all six of these, a savings of 75%.

Which piece would you wear most frequently?

Lauren Ralph Lauren

Bad news - Lauren Ralph Lauren ties don't compare in quality to Polo.

Good news - Lauren Ralph Lauren ties don't compare in price point to Polo.

In fact, if you're willing to pay half the cost of a new Polo tie, you can't beat the LRL tie in the $40-$60 range.

The Macy's here has carried LRL dresswear for years with the exception of neckwear. That had changed when I stopped in last week during a sale and...

Better news - With the help of several discounts, I purchased these two at around $15 each.

Best news - More delighting than discovering this double deal (pardon the alliteration), I picked up six new bow ties the same day. But that tale awaits my next post.

Frankenstein

And you thought Boris Karloff played the original Frankenstein's creature.

A post not about clothing. So what?

Wish List

It's never too early to shop for winter.

Back to Basics in Blue and Orange

A friend of mine finds great joy in calling me Stripes, due to my propensity for wearing striped shirts, ties, socks, etc. Taking a challenge upon myself to wear everything solid for a day, I came up with this outfit.

Quite simple, yet bold enough for me. When not creating visual appeal from stripes, foulards, and plaids, one must rely on color to make a statement. This look rests with the thought of blue and orange being complimentary colors. The purple-blue oxford and blue chambray bow tie don't overpower the bright orange sweater. The medium rinse of the jeans plays with the tones of the chambray, and the orange-red tone of the loafers serves the sweater well.

Oxford and sweater - Polo Ralph Lauren.
Bow tie - Saddlebred.
Jeans - Agave.
Loafers - Allen Edmonds.

Or These

Any other questions? Comment.

Can't Pass on These

From the thrift shop today and into the CKC Shoppe tomorrow (well... soon).

Any questions? Leave a comment.

From the Thrifts

For many, Labor Day marks the beginning of fall and with it, fall shopping. All the thrift shops seem to be putting out sweaters which have been donated throughout the summer, and there are plenty of deals to discover. Here's my haul from today.

First up is a sweater from Schwabe-May, one of the landmark menswear stores in my city. Pink and green birdseye patten over a pale yellow background, 100% cotton and perfect for year-round use. I just need to wash out a few small coffee stains and it'll be like new again.

I've never been a Nautica guy, so this is likely to hit the CKC Shoppe. However, back in the 90's Nautica put out some decent stuff, especially this 100% wool, raglan sleeve piece. If you're a Nautica guy, well, enjoy wearing the hell out of that big N in fuzzy warmth.

Another cable-knit to the collection. Some white thread will fix this up quite well, then I'll be all set to cheer on the likes of Penn State.






Okay, I'm not a PSU fan, but thank goodness it's football season!

It's beginning to look a lot like super-loud-fuzzy-intarsia-adorned Christmas! A little snug for me but again I couldn't pass on this. Up for grabs soon at the CKC Shoppe!

The wool goodness continues from the Land o' Ire. Apparently Blarney Castle Designs (what a name) puts out a good argyle sweater.

Also making a return appearance to the thrift shop... scarves! Though beyond idiotic to buy a used cap, used scarves are fair game once cleaned up like any other thrift shop find. Dress Gordon by Murray Brothers and straight from Scotland.











Happy thrifting, ladies and gents!