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The reference completely eluded me so far...

^ Ten years before 'Trad'!   

This book is such a little gem - I've yet to see a review that 'gets' it!  All those who read it & think they're talking about some kind of grand cultural manifestation of 'lost in translation' - Ha, Ha, Ha.

The book is perfect because it talks about a 'Look'. That's all it does.

All the wannabe critics talk about it as if it was something else.   IT IS WHAT IT IS.  It's about a certain Look.


I'm gonna knock one out called 'The Ivy Smell' that'll really kill 'em dead...


'Sanforized' will be Chapter One.

This may be moderately controversial, I suppose.

As usual I am late to the party.

I got this stylish little book a week or so ago and have now had chance to go through it.  Like most of you I enjoyed the classic ads and many of the lovely little drawings.

I enjoyed the nostalgia trip and the evocation of a style and culture that was once almost forgotten here but now seems very much on the way back.

However I found myself wondering from time to time whether some of the pictures of American men in the 50s and 60s actually helped the cause.  I was reminded of the strategy employed by BMW who until quite recently never allowed any hint of a human being into their television ads.  Their reasoning it seems was that they felt to include people might unhelpfully shift the focus from the car and, if the people (had they used them) had not appealed to the viewer as having the ‘right image’ the reputation of the brand could suffer!

So it is with the little book – just take a look at the picture of Paul Newman on page 15.   What does that image possibly contribute?

Or the young Dustin Hoffman in his ill-fitting cord jacket on page 75….looking like the kind of kid that would, at my school, have risked a good kicking round the back of the bike sheds. 

And yet words such as ‘template’, ‘irresistible’ are used to describe them.

And then there is the ongoing fascination with JFK with his too-neat hair and squinty face (still thinking about those tits?).  Although the image of him on his yacht to some extent makes up for it.

And some of the ads to my eyes are rather suspect too – pages 110, 115 and 135 for example.

My comments are not intended to be harsh and no doubt reflect the fact that I came to Ivy from a mod perspective and only ever could see beauty in some select pieces.  And of course the look we strove for was a long way from some of the images shown here.  Sorry.  BTW none of these comments apply to the super cool pic on page 157 – but that’s not really Ivy….

Despite this I do like the book and agree that it is beautifully presented.   As Rip says 5***** for passion.

I am conscious that I have not responded to Rip’s invitation to reflect on Ralph Lauren in the 80s.  While I did admire his stuff then, he was often described I recall as a ‘stylist’ rather than a designer.  He certainly proposed a life-style that was aspirational and in many ways very beautiful.  My main focus then was, however, on Italian clothing.  Somehow that ‘Made in Italy’ label was very seductive to me and my wardrobe was then made up largely of Armani, Cerruti, Ferre and so on.

Brideshead wrote:

This may be moderately controversial, I suppose.

So it is with the little book – just take a look at the picture of Paul Newman on page 15.   What does that image possibly contribute?

Or the young Dustin Hoffman in his ill-fitting cord jacket on page 75….looking like the kind of kid that would, at my school, have risked a good kicking round the back of the bike sheds. 

And yet words such as ‘template’, ‘irresistible’ are used to describe them.................

And some of the ads to my eyes are rather suspect too – pages 110, 115 and 135 for example.

I never liked Hoffman. I would have preferred Robert Culp from 'I Spy' days and the clothes from 'My Three Sons'.

Ads are always difficult - line drawings as much as photos. 110, 115 trousers are longer than many wore at the time no hint of high water. 135 does not look particularly American, just a bloke in a polo shirt - no USP. Ordinary folks often capture the essence of the style better than the models in the ads.

I think - for the first time as far as I'm aware - the authors presented to a wider world and to an interested public the story of our style.  Ground-breaking perhaps and certainly of more use to me - and more fun - than Flusser and his ilk.

I don't mind 'Ivy for everyone' - though it's unlikely to pan out in that way.  Not 'everyone' (or 'everybody') can be ITK, though - otherwise you wind up with a 'Ready Steady Go' mentality - if you won't object to my saying so.  I think, more realistically, Ivy will remain pretty much a minority interest, at least in the UK.  It would be interesting to have some Japanese posters come on board to give their POV.

The 'mythic elite' idea may appeal to some in the US.  I hope we here in the UK keep our feet on the ground.  It would be interesting to know how such a book would have turned out had Americans put it together.

Rip Rig & Panic wrote:

The 'mythic elite' idea may appeal to some in the US.  I hope we here in the UK keep our feet on the ground.  It would be interesting to know how such a book would have turned out had Americans put it together.

If I'd worked on it I wouldn't have gone quite so hard for the Blue Note covers. By the mid-50s jazz was turning into chamber music. More kids wearing penny loafers were listening to Chuck Berry, who as far as I know never appeared in an Ivy incarnation.

If some NYC dolt had done the book it would have been a cross between the Preppy Handbook and a Ralph Lauren brochure, with some half-assed existentialist garnish masquerading as "irony" thrown in for the art-damaged crowd.

In short, crap.

The book's fine, really. Wouldn't change a thing.

^ Boy are you in trouble.

Big Tony wrote:

Patrick wrote:

Rip Rig & Panic wrote:

The 'mythic elite' idea may appeal to some in the US.  I hope we here in the UK keep our feet on the ground.  It would be interesting to know how such a book would have turned out had Americans put it together.

If I'd worked on it I wouldn't have gone quite so hard for the Blue Note covers. By the mid-50s jazz was turning into chamber music. More kids wearing penny loafers were listening to Chuck Berry, who as far as I know never appeared in an Ivy incarnation.

If some NYC dolt had done the book it would have been a cross between the Preppy Handbook and a Ralph Lauren brochure, with some half-assed existentialist garnish masquerading as "irony" thrown in for the art-damaged crowd.

In short, crap.

The book's fine, really. Wouldn't change a thing.

For what it's worth, I completely approve of this review.

EDIT: It would be interesting to assemble a US version, as a speculative exercise, and I think we have enough accumulated images and anecdotes to do it. Does anyone have lots of free time?

I hope someone has a go, if only to make comparisons.

The second paragraph - added to Patrick's words - make me feel all 'anti-intellectual'.

We await your remarks in our accustomed reverent silence.

For those that are interested, I've just heard on the radio that Graham Marsh will be on the Robert Elms show on BBC London Radio on monday, sometime between 12 and 3, talking about 'The Ivy Look'