On April 30th, Josh Smith of Montana Knife Company said you won't have to worry about tariffs if you buy American.

Last week, he realized his costs are going up bc he imports equipment and steel. And so do his suppliers.

IMO many people aren't aware of how much they import.
Genuinely not posting this to gloat, but hoping that people reevaluate how much of their life is connected to an international supply chain. Many small businesses, including artisans, will see their businesses shutter because of these tariffs, regardless of how they voted

I've had enough.

In this thread, I will tell you, definitively, whether Sydney Sweeney has great jeans.

This way, you will be more informed when shopping for your wardrobe . 🧵 I should state two things at the outset.

First, I never comment on womenswear because I don't know anything about it. This thread isn't actually about Sweeney's jeans (sorry, I lied). But in the last few days, I've seen grown men buying American Eagle jeans and I can't abide.

Sometimes I think about the closure of G. Lorenzi, a Milanese gentleman's shop that had been around for almost 100 years until their closure in 2014. The shop was special because it carried so many one-of-a-kind items from artisans — total handmade craft production, not factory.


At the time of their closure, they still carried over 20,000 items of 3,000 models, including speciality knives, picnic sets, and nutcrackers. They had over 100 styles of nail clippers and 300 different hairbrushes alone. Proprietor Aldo Lorenzi scoured the world for artisans.

I spent 15 yrs on a menswear forum. The longest argument I had was over a tiny detail that can be seen in this photo. For 6 months, I argued with the same five guys non-stop every day. The argument got so heated the forum owner banned one guy for life.

Here is the detail. 🧵

https://twitter.com/MysterySolvents/status/1950381743187362113

As I've mentioned before, there's a lot of coded language in menswear. Navy suits can be worn with black oxfords because this was the uniform of London businessmen. Brown tweeds go with brogues because these clothes were worn in the country. In this way, we get formal vs. casual.

How are Trump's economic policies impacting you?

Let me give you a hard example. 🧵 The year is 2024 and you're browsing for a new shirt online. You come across a store selling shirts from Portuguese Flannel. You do your research and find they make quality garments: clean single-needle stitching, flat felled seams, quality fabrics, MOP buttons, classic designs

You should never follow any of these color charts. They are all stupid.

I'll show you why. 🧵

https://twitter.com/tipsformenx/status/1948284542512484722

First, let's do an experiment. Here are two relatively similar outfits: a blue shirt with a pair of dark blue jeans.

Which do you like better? Reply to this tweet with your answer. This way, people can see how the majority of people "voted."

I both agree and disagree that it's subjective. Like with anything, my views on tailoring stems from a "first principle." That principle is that men wore tailored clothing better in the past (specifically the period from about the 1930s through 80s). 🧵

https://twitter.com/mooseinabath/status/1948133140771340626

If we agree on this, then there are certain ideas that naturally flow from this principle, partly because men's dress during this period was governed by time, place, and occasion. As stated before, one such idea was city vs country clothing.

Twitter has a character limit, so I assume (intelligent) people will read context and know I'm talking about interior design and fashion, which today are coded as "gay interests" for men. Not painting or architecture, which carry no such stigma.

I will elaborate 🧵

https://twitter.com/u_m_a_m_i/status/1946483913934749753

IMO, it's absolutely true that American Protestants were uniquely against certain forms of ornamentation, including fashion. For instance, the Quakers deliberately shunned adornment and extravagance in dress, stressing the importance of simplicity.

I believe this jacket is from Dobell, a company that produces their tailoring in Turkey. I'll show you some telltale signs of quality and where you can buy a tailored jacket made in Britain. 🧵

https://twitter.com/LeeAndersonMP_/status/1945884508261158949

I don't think there's anything wrong with buying clothes made abroad (I believe in free trade). However, I think it's strange when people rail against "globalism" and free trade, while benefitting from these things. Talk is cheap; one should put their money where their mouth is.

I disagree that this is an aesthetically pleasing photo. Tristan's outfit ruins it and I'll tell you why. 🧵 I'll assume Tristan is telling the truth when he says he used Photoshop and not AI. If so, this is a very impressive Photoshop job. By removing the scaffold tarp, you reveal more of the building. By removing the other cars, you also achieve more aesthetic coherence.

Some people are incredulous that you can wear certain shoes without socks, such as leather loafers. Much depends on your body and climate. But I'll tell you one reason why you find this difficult to believe: you buy low quality footwear. 🧵 It's absolutely possible to wear certain shoes without socks. As mentioned in an earlier thread, men have been doing this for over a hundred years. Going sockless makes sense if the outfit is semi-casual (not business clothes).

Tim is right and wrong here. I'll tell you where he's right and where he's wrong. 🧵 It's perfectly fine to wear slip-on shoes without socks. Those who suggest otherwise are simply ignorant and unaware about the history of men's dress.

You don't have to take my word for it. We can go back to Apparel Arts.

I get this sort of comment all the time, often about bespoke suits or mechanical watches. "These things are boring," "This is only for rich people," or "Who cares?"

Let me tell you a story. 🧵 Before the age of ready-to-wear, men had clothes made for them, either in the home or, if they could afford one, by a tailor. Ready-made clothing was limited to simple workwear, such as what was worn by sailors or miners.

Tailoring shop, 1780:

I will tell you why on earth. 🧵

https://twitter.com/peddiepascal/status/1943401511377342543

As I've stated many times, suit jackets and sport coats are made from many layers of material, including haircloth, canvas, and padding. These layers give the garment its structure so it doesn't fall on you like a t-shirt or dress shirt.

I found this reply interesting ("Can those foreign companies open shop in the US?")

I don't think Japanese or South Korean menswear can be made in the US. At least, not without losing something. Let's explore why. 🧵 I should state at the outset that no thread will do Japanese or South Korean fashion justice because these countries are fashion powerhouses. Japan alone covers everything from Yohji Yamamoto to And Wander to WTAPS.

It's Impossible to generalize, but we can discuss aspects.

This ended up raising $5,000 for @feederofcats, so here's a thread on whether President Zelenskyy wore a suit. 🧵

https://twitter.com/dieworkwear/status/1938326895692812532

Ahead of the NATO summit last month, President Zelenskyy arrived at the Paleis Huis ten Bosch wearing this outfit: a black jacket with matching black pants and a black shirt. Many debated whether this qualifies as a suit, as there's a $50M bet on it at Polymarket.

Any time I talk about a wealthy person's outfit, someone in the comments is quick to reply: "They're rich, you think they care?" No one has to care about my opinions or clothes, regardless of net worth.

But let's talk about the connection between wealth and aesthetics 🧵 About a year ago, Tucker Carlson told Chris Cuomo that "postmodern architecture" is intentionally designed to deaden the spirit. The clip was widely circulated online by people such as Benny Johnson, who seemingly agreed.

Trump released a $250 fragrance (one for women, one for men).

Sometimes a fragrance can be expensive because it contains certain ingredients or involve artisanal, small-batch production. But with no note breakdown or even a description of the scent, what justifies this price?

I'm reminded of this 2016 blog post by Luca Turin, one of the best writers on fragrances. Even for niche perfumery he warns: "Niche perfumery stands a good chance of disappearing up its own rear end if it merely becomes yet another golden opportunity to rip off the customer."

People think I'm biased against Jeff Bezos, but here's F. Caraceni Sartoria, widely considered one of the best bespoke tailoring houses in the world, commenting on Bezos's wedding suit.

"The most terrible, frightening, horrible tuxedo ever seen in my life. I'm really suffering"
Nothing to do with politics, only quality tailoring. F. Caraceni made suits for Silvio Berlusconi, who was hardly beloved by progressives. Many people don't know much about tailoring, which is fine, but this doesn't mean that rich or expensive = good.

Caraceni's work:

Since my tweet about Jeff Bezos, I've been getting a lot of replies such as these. "Where do these dress rules come from?" "When do they change?"

These are very good questions, so let me answer them. 🧵 Let's first run through some experiments. Please make up your mind at each step, so you are not influenced by what I'm about to say.

Here are two men wearing tailored jackets with jeans. Which do you think looks better?

Let me make the case for why the NHL should abolish its dress code, which currently requires players to wear a suit and tie while heading to and from games. 🧵

https://twitter.com/BR_OpenIce/status/1938244691817889992

The arguments I've seen for the dress code fall into one of two categories: players look better in a coat-and-tie (some use descriptions such as "classy"). Others say that requiring players to dress in this way shows respect for the game. I will address each argument in turn.