Polo gingham shirt and seersucker short | Brooks Brothers linen bow tie | Florsheim vintage saddle shoe

Polo vintage glen plaid tweed sport coat and oxford | Brooks Brothers bow tie | Allen Edmonds belt | Florsheim Imperial shoe | Ralph Lauren Romance Silver cologne | J. Crew pocket square

Bills Khakis oxford, Merona intarsia shawl cardifan, Levi's 541 denim | Polo paisley bow tie | Vasque alpine boot

Polo plaid shirt, silk cableknit sweater, trouser and foulard bow tie | AE boot sock | L.L. Bean boot

Polo twill workshirt and corduroy trouser | Brooks Brothers lambswool shawl sweater | vintage dupioni silk bow tie | Polo nubuck Ranger boot

Today at the Thrift

Today at the Thrift

Today at the Thrift

Today at the Thrift

Four in One

First bow tie purchase of the season.

Inspiration

Last days of tweed.

Whiskey Cotton Sale

One of my favorite new companies is having a fantastic sale. Stop by Whiskey Cotton for a great selection of American made bow ties in unique patterns and color combos.

Boweautiful

Approximately 425 bow ties are shown here... 426 if you count the one being worn. I hate to waste time tumbling through Tumblr, but this photo was absolutely worth finding. One of these days, I'm setting up my ties like this. I may only have 37 bow ties, but I have more than enough regular ties to fill a wall.

Four in One

My latest purchase from Macy's.

Today's Outfit - Spring Fever

As West Virginia weather goes, we're experiencing a week of warmth and sunshine shortly after a bizarre blizzard. So, today I broke out this rather springy combination of pastel pink and blue.

Today's Outfit

Polo tartan oxford shirt - Belk, $23

Polo cotton/cashmere cricket sweater - eBay, $30

Countess Mara bow tie - Marshall's, $8

Polo slub twill chino - ralphlauren.com, $42

Smart Turnout Argyll and Sutherland socks - courtesy of Smart Turnout

Chaps bucks - Kohl's, $12

Bow Tie Blowout

1 visit to Macy's.

2 purchases with 2 coupons.

6 bow ties.

$50.

Mellow in Yellow

Bad photo, good outfit... at least I'd like to think so. As autumn slowly rolls in, I plan to get back to posting more outfits. I'll start here.

Polo Ralph Lauren oxford
Polo Ralph Lauren cotton vest
Countess Mara linen bow tie
Polo Ralph Lauren Stanton jean
Smart Turnout striped socks
Cole Haan Country bit loafers

I happened to pull this look together at the last moment before a party. After picking the yellow bow tie, I realized the vest and socks would complete the outfit nicely. Jeans keep the look casual while the bit loafers are an upgrade from standard pennies.

The Ivy Inspired Shop

I recently interviewed Tom, high school senior, trad/prep/ivy/WASP/whatever enthusiast and author of Ivy Inspired, who recently opened an online shop just the other day. The Ivy Inspired shop at Storenvy is currently offering gingham bow ties and pocket squares made by Tom, himself. Always one to support quality, handmade goods, I thought I'd find out more about Tom's venture.


Well, I started making bow ties about a year ago, just for fun since I had some ugly old ties laying around and I though I'd experiment. At the time I was doing everything by hand (a total pain in the ass). For months I dissected old bow ties to see their construction, and developed my own templates/design. The part that took the longest to develop was the adjustment system in which I uniquely use a button and button holes along the neckband. For Christmas my parents gave me a sewing machine because I enjoyed making the bows and I wanted to further improve my skills. At the time I had only been cranking out creations for my brother and I, but as popularity grew I decided to finally open a little online shop. 

In the shop I carry all of my handmade bow ties (mostly gingham as of the moment), hand-rolled pocket squares (also gingham), and later I hope to branch out to selling vintage ties and also small antiques. For this first run, I decided I would keep everything simple (fabrics, prices, etc.) just to see the response I get back. In the future I also hope to open a custom section in the shop where people can send me fabric/shirts/ties to make into a bow for them. Hopefully in this first run people will like my product and I will be able to keep up production with new collections for Fall and Winter.  

In the initial run everything will be gingham (red, navy, green, orange). For each color I have 4 bows (2 regular, 2 diamond point), and I'll have 3 or 4 pocket squares each for the colors. The bows will be $25 and the pocket squares will be $15, however for the grand opening I am offering a 20% off coupon code that will be posted along with the link to my store that day. I'm starting small, so I will have around 16 bows, and a couple pocket squares. The pocket squares are 13"x13". I can accommodate neck sizes 13 3/4" - 18", however the customer must give me their neck size at the time of their order. My custom adjustment system is different from anyone else's - I use a button and buttonhole. This adjustment not only insures a person's perfect fit, but allows for a 1/2" increase and decrease in size as needed.

Bow ties are fun - they're different. You see a guy walking down the street in a tie and it's whatever, but if he has a bow tie on, you'll notice him. An outfit is never complete without a pocket square. The pocket is there for a reason! It helps to connect everything your wearing. Even if it's just a simple white pocket square, it just adds a certain wholeness. 

 

 

Please support Tom's shop at http://ivyinspired.storenvy.com and visit his blog at http://ivyinspired.tumblr.com.