Some of these red flag photographs may be from people dressing up for period re-enactment functions so context is everything.  A little Whimsy, even Lord Peter, doesn't go astray here.   Tweed works well on campus during a bitter New England winter's day.  My three piece tweed suit I had made in Malaysia in 1982 is now worn by my sons and wins 1920s and 30s functions hands down with my fedora.  As for hats, a grey well beaten up Akubra works well with a suit if you are Australian and speak with a country drawl.  If you need to be remembered at a conference, the fellow with the Scrooge McDuck tie is my trademark.  It works to jog a memory.

I read:: "......but perhaps I'm denuding myself...."

But then it was in the context of clothing.


Carry on.

re ascots:
Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.
The ascot has a proper and totally sensible place in a large cold room amongst a social gathering of polite acquaintances. Keeps you warm and allows for a relaxed but very presentable tenue.
An open necked shirt would be sort of "too much skin", besides there is the cold room to contend with, unless you're hogging the fireplace. A buttoned up shirt without a tie looks like you're not relaxed, and a necktie is definitely a sign you misjudged the setting.
A more pedestrian and practical man (me) would be perfectly at ease in a wife beater t-shirt under my open necked shirt and casual sport coat, a choice that alas was not around when ascots became popular for the settings just mentioned.
I have found an occasion for use at work which provides a halfway reasonable excuse for wearing an ascot. My back office is drafty in winter, and being an office condo and all there is no fireplace. Occasionally on Fridays I see new patients in consultation for surgery. If I feel like being a little more relaxed (it being Friday afternoon and all) a wife beater will not do the trick as it is somewhat disrespectful ( and poor business strategy) vis a vis the woman who is about to decide if she is going to give me thousands of dollars so I can liposuction her thighs. In those specific circumstances no more than 3-4 times a year, I find the ascot does the job of keeping me warm nicely and the patient appreciates my gesture of taking the effort to look nice, yet casual.
Needless to say, only the top 2 buttons are loose and the ascot is tidy.

Last edited by Chévere (2012-04-10 21:56:16)