Great Gatsby!

Funny enough, on one of the coldest days of the year, an amazing pair of sunglasses by Polo Ralph Lauren inspires me to dream about how I'll dress this Spring. I'm already devising a plan. To keep my look fresh all year I make a list of must have purchases – items that will give me the most wear and the most dramatic looks. After all, although I'm on a budget, I want to look fabulous. I believe in dressing with a purpose.

While I will embrace my Wayfarers (and probably buy a tortoiseshell model to add to my collection), I'll be exploring other shapes as well. Lately, I've been wearing gold Ray-Ban aviators – which feel right again. I will also be sporting my Clubmasters with confidence, but I think rounder shades will be hot in years to come (think Carrie Donovan, not John Lennon). And I think I've found the perfect pair:


Polo by Ralph Lauren, Spring 2009

These are not for the weak at heart, but then again, how gutsy must people have been to wear J-Lo-style wrap around frames? Yet, everyone (except me, thankfully) did it! As a "frame" of reference, I will accompany these sunglasses with an urban sailor look (as I've said many times before, I'll forever be a sailor in search of a ship). Many fine labels such as A.P.C., Jean Paul Gaultier and Ralph Lauren produce amazing sailor stripe shirts, but this year I'm going to find an authentic Russian Navy sailor shirt in a winter (black) stripe:


Sometimes you have to stick to the basics and find the original, authentic example of the look you're after. For example, to me, nothing is more classic as the Ray-Ban Wayfarer at around $140; however, several other companies recreate the shape for twice as much. Doesn't make sense to me.

Every year I vow to purchase a pair of white pants. And every year I don't do it! I guess I haven't found a pair that looks perfect on me. I'm beginning to think the way to go is corduroy (so I'll be on the hunt for that). Meanwhile, I'll also be looking for a pair of wide-leg denim pants in a trouser cut like these ones from Ralph Lauren Spring 2007 (pleaaaaaase make them again, Ralph):



I like having a layering option such as a jacket or cardigan for most of my outfits, but it depends on my choice of pants. If I buy a wide-leg denim trouser, I'll find a short-waisted cardigan in navy, black or yellow; however, if I go for the slim-fit corduroy, I'll sport a navy blazer like the Trovata in my closet. But, really, how cute would this silk/cashmere number from Banana Republic be?


Or this double-breasted cardigan from American Apparel (a steal at $39)?


Then there is always the shoe dilemma. To really be current and to own something beautiful you have to invest. Here are two options that I'm exploring (and can't afford):


Balmoral Wingtip by Harris


New Gommini 122 Driver in Ecru by Tod's

There is a window of time in Toronto between about April 1st and July 1st when one can layer beautiful clothing, walk to work and enjoy the sunshine without overheating. This is fashion's best moment of the year. Colour is revived, the days are longer and the joy of warmer weather dances in people's minds. I plan on being ready for these fleeting months, looking better than ever (hopefully I'll start actually using the wii fit sitting in my living room, too).

When all is said and done, will I look like an eccentric millionaire lunching on the lawn of my New England estate? I hope so....why not?

Oh, the things I've learned....

Upon perusing the fall men's collections, I learned (and confirmed) a thing or two about fashion. And the experience has inspired me to reflect on my own sartorial lessons throughout my life.

Sitting in a seersucker suit, picnicking with my pony on my family's front lawn at age 12, I pondered what it meant to be a man of style. Should a man's feet ache while wearing dove-grey, leather-soled, slip-on shoes? Does washed, butter-yellow cotton go with navy-and-white pinstripes? Should I lighten my hair for the summer? Such a young man's mind should never have been bogged down with such questions. It's a wonder I made it through those years unscathed.

But what resources did I have back then? I instinctively knew what looked good at the time, but being a child of the 80s and early 90s, sometimes those sensibilities resulted in a lose, lose situation. Also, geographically I was at a slight disadvantage. At one point, my hairdresser simply refused to give me a Caesar cut, citing it was "too gay." Perhaps that was what I was going for. I saw her recently. Ironically, she has never changed her hairstyle, ever, and her Poison/Cherry Pie shag now makes her look somewhat lesbian.

Thank God for Ralph Lauren, though. He is my patron saint of fashion. Without him, my childhood could have been very neon...or ever more neon, rather. My brothers and I were obsessed with Ralph Lauren and, at one time, quite possibly boasted the largest Polo collection in Saskatchewan. I could have easily passed as a young scholar at any ivy-league college in America.

Also, during these years of discovery, I realized that smelling good was half the battle (winning this battle in my hometown was a mixed bag -- I was teased -- by kids with teased hair, go figure). And guess what the first fragrance of note in our home was? Yes. Polo. To this very day, every time I smell Polo I am brought back to my youth, where young boys wore very mature scents, and mature men wore Brut... The first fragrance I bought with my own money was Calvin Klein Obsession. This one, too, takes me back to grade seven, boat shoes and skinny jeans.

Of course, a few women inspired me to love life, fashion, good things as I was growing up... But my ultimate style guru was my Grandma Zayshley. The only way one could truly know her greatness would be to know her personally. But I can try to paint a bit of a picture. She always seemed very tall to me. Once, upon getting lost at Eatons in Winnipeg (a terrifying ordeal at age 7), I simply scanned the heads and spotted my Grandmother's coif bobbing joyfully in the women's department. Admittedly, her bright-red hair helped the process considerably. She was also the first woman I knew of who owned dozens of pairs of shoes. Sometimes my cousins and I would try to count them all, lined up in the guest bedroom. I can't remember what the final tally was, but I have yet to see a comparable collection.

My Grandma was also a master at dressing perfectly for the occasion at hand. When she had a portrait taken a few years ago, she arrived in a full-length teal-green silk gown, but later that year when my father hosted a bbq at his farm, she donned perfectly cuffed raw denim, white canvas shoes and a cotton jumper. At Christmas she wears glittery frocks and at home she sports white linen pants and ruched, flowy blouses.

The most important fashion lesson my grandmother taught me, though, was that you can be fabulous and edgy and everything you envision yourself to be, in spite of your economic background, geographic disadvantage, less than sympathetic peer set and seemingly finite resources. And I hope I'm following in her beautifully shod footsteps as I continue eking out every ounce of style and happiness from what quite easily could have been a very typical existence.