The Saturday F.T. has long been the best place for quality writing about 'culture', though I have always resisted purchasing, finding that every molecule in my Guardianista soul repulses at the very idea of shelling out on this neo-liberal rag. The only pink newspapers present in my life have been the Liverpool Football Echo and La Gazzetta Dello Sport. But a kindly neighbour, aware of my clothing obsessions, posted through my letter box a piece from the paper this Saturday on our favourite cult clothing shop - John Simons of Chiltern St, W1. For those of us well versed in the lingo of Ivy there is of course much to mock and be irritated by (I could do without the Weller stuff), but the article overall is well informed, fairly accurate and celebratory. Of special note I thought was the emphasis on women increasingly buying JS's clothes. I had noticed women featuring more in the shop's promotional material, and it's a move I welcome - the coolest women always being interested in men's clothes and turning away from reactionary notions of stereotypically female modes of dress. On this Paul Simons is quoted "They are attracted to our timeless style. They like the silhouettes". Another interesting angle is the attempt to clearly define 'UK Ivy' - Paul mentioning items such as workwear, silk scarves and panelled flat caps as items specifically part of the look in the UK. There's a nice pic of John in cord Keydge in front of his domestic art collection. And a quick online search also brought up the following article from January this year in which another FT journalist name-checks JS and bravely attempts to tackle the long-running thorny subject of the difference between Ivy and Preppy. https://www.ft.com/content/4ca6e08f-dc2d-407c-a130-f9d5b4f9fb88