[Vecchio Vespa]

I am old enough that it is very hard to override time honored traditions, like breaking out the seersucker at Memorial Day and stowing it after Labor Day. However, living in the south where summer can easily run into November and spring can arrive in January, those dates just don’t work as well as they used to. People say “Go ahead and wear the (seersucker/Madras/Nantucket reds/etc.) if the weather makes it sensible.” The problem presented for this Trad is that if I show up for Thanksgiving wearing seersucker because it’s 86, I’m going to be out of sync with the crowd. Should I wear tweed the, even if it’s 86? Or should I find fabrics that look tweedy and sub fuse but are actually cool? Should I abandon tweed and look to cotton sweaters as the answer?

So the question becomes, should we agree on some new date by which we shall all shift out of summer attire, and, if so, when should it be? Is it the first day of autumn? Is it Columbus Day? Is it tied to weather, perhaps when there’s been a daytime high below 80? I kind of like the first day of autumn idea. A Trad needs a calendar. Even if October is hot, I can probably survive until it cools a bit without resorting to summer wear. I am ok with making Nantucket reds acceptable all year long. What do you think about this weighty and pressing matter? Should there be different dates for coastal southern states? How about north of the Mason Dixon line? Should they stick to using Labor Day?

 

[GregorSamsa]

I'd say dress for the weather more than anything. I've never lived in the south but cannot imagine ever wearing tweed in the upper 80s!

 

[Vecchio Vespa]

I'd say dress for the weather more than anything. I've never lived in the south but cannot imagine ever wearing tweed in the upper 80s!

I agree, but it does pose a problem when you try to spiff yourself up a bit for something like a dressy fall brunch at a club or hotel and it's going to be in the mid-80s. There may not be a good answer.

 

[richard warren]

In New Orleans, in 1874, Mardi Gras was on February 17. The high was 75 and the low 64.

In New Orleans, in 2018, Madrid Gras was on February 13. The high was 74 and the low 50.

 

[richard warren]

In New Orleans, in 1874, Mardi Gras was on February 17. The high was 75 and the low 64.

In New Orleans, in 2018, Mardi Gras was on February 13. The high was 74 and the low 50.

 

[Dhaller]

I patently refuse to be uncomfortable; life is too short.

It's all subjective, but while occasion provides the context, I dress for the weather.

If I want to dress for Thanksgiving (rare, as I celebrate with extended family and we keep it casual and a bit boozy), and it's warm, I'll dress as I might going to someplace nice during the summer (tropical weight wool or fresco, etc). I wouldn't worry about Autumnal hues (since it's hardly Autumnal).

I guess to me an important aspect of Trad - since we like to pretend it's not fashion - is a nod towards practicality... so I don't really think of it as particularly "calendared".

DH

 

[Vecchio Vespa]

I patently refuse to be uncomfortable; life is too short.

It's all subjective, but while occasion provides the context, I dress for the weather.

If I want to dress for Thanksgiving (rare, as I celebrate with extended family and we keep it casual and a bit boozy), and it's warm, I'll dress as I might going to someplace nice during the summer (tropical weight wool or fresco, etc). I wouldn't worry about Autumnal hues (since it's hardly Autumnal).

I guess to me an important aspect of Trad - since we like to pretend it's not fashion - is a nod towards practicality... so I don't really think of it as particularly "calendared".

DH

You've cracked the code. It's not fashion!

 

[TallLefty21]

Dress according to the thermometer, not the calendar.

 

[eagle2250]

I'd say dress for the weather more than anything. I've never lived in the south but cannot imagine ever wearing tweed in the upper 80s!

Excellent advice...dress for the existing weather conditions and be happy!

 

[Beefeater]

I live in Dallas. I dress for the weather but pack up the seersucker, linen, and madras at the end of September and take whatever October throws at me. I am soon relocating to Florida so I may have to rethink this.

 

[FLMike]

There’s a perfect, and I’d say obvious, solution to your supposed Trad quandary. Wear a navy blazer. It’s rarely ever wrong, and definitely not in the situations you described. It doesn’t have to be a binary decision between seersucker and tweed. I’m guessing you know this, and your post was partly toungue-in-cheek, but I’ll play along anyway.

Oh yeah, just make sure it’s a 3-roll-2.

 

[Vecchio Vespa]

There's a perfect, and I'd say obvious, solution to your supposed Trad quandary. Wear a navy blazer. It's rarely ever wrong, and definitely not in the situations you described. It doesn't have to be a binary decision between seersucker and tweed. I'm guessing you know this, and your post was partly toungue-in-cheek, but I'll play along anyway.

Oh yeah, just make sure it's a 3-roll-2.

Of course it was tongue in cheek. I do find it amusing that a bunch of men who self-identify as Trad do not observe traditions! If it's another Turkey Day in the 80s I'll be in the kitchen in my usual cooking togs, garish Bermuda shorts and a cool T-shirt!

 

[poppies]

This is the time of year when I ponder this particular question quite a bit. Here in Southern California, heat is a factor, but local style also comes into play. Even on rather cold days, it's incredibly rare to see someone in tweed.

 

[richard warren]

Seems safe to wear now what you wore in 2005:

https://www.realclearenergy.org/art...larmists_foiled_no_us_warming_since_2005.html

 

[The Irishman]

I thought this was going to be a thread on climate change and the textiles / clothing reportedly larg carbon footprint at first...! Getting some traction over here at the moment.

 

[Vecchio Vespa]

I thought this was going to be a thread on climate change and the textiles / clothing reportedly larg carbon footprint at first...! Getting some traction over here at the moment.

Sorry. However, I'd be interested in any good articles on the subject. Perhaps there is a positive angle for the Trad. We tend to wear what we have for a very long time rather than constantly changing with fashion!

 

[The Irishman]

Sorry. However, I'd be interested in any good articles on the subject. Perhaps there is a positive angle for the Trad. We tend to wear what we have for a very long time rather than constantly changing with fashion!

It's this 'Second hand September' I was referring to, seems reasonably popular this year.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/49549179

From my point of view, even taking whether or not the climate related figures pertaining to the fashion and textiles industry's level of pollution / carbon footprint are accurate, I think most of us would agree that there is something wrong with the race-to-the-bottom pricing of disposable fast fashion. I think there's a healthier approach to making investment purchases, buying second hand where appropriate and perhaps minimising or at least approaching intelligently any purchase.

Although my wife always makes the point that it's easier to be against fast fashion as a man compared to a woman, as our wardrobes often stand the test of time better.

Anyway, I don't intend to hijack the thread any further...

 

[Vecchio Vespa]

It's this 'Second hand September' I was referring to, seems reasonably popular this year.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/49549179

From my point of view, even taking whether or not the climate related figures pertaining to the fashion and textiles industry's level of pollution / carbon footprint are accurate, I think most of us would agree that there is something wrong with the race-to-the-bottom pricing of disposable fast fashion. I think there's a healthier approach to making investment purchases, buying second hand where appropriate and perhaps minimising or at least approaching intelligently any purchase.

Although my wife always makes the point that it's easier to be against fast fashion as a man compared to a woman, as our wardrobes often stand the test of time better.

Anyway, I don't intend to hijack the thread any further...

I don't consider it hijacking. I believe that by and large we are all well settled in the ways we dress. I see the real power of this forum as an opportunity to gain insights, share observations, and enjoy tidbits other than rancorous political memes. Thanks!

An edited afterthought. It has been said that the roots of Trad are in the penurious traits of New England. I do not know if that's the case, but it fits me, even though I'm now in Texas. I don't have a large wardrobe, but those items in it are carefully chosen and then worn and worn, cared for until they are on the verge of disintegrating. I'm astounded that the challenge is to go merely a month. That speaks ill of our culture. The proposition extends beyond clothing. I believe (talk about digressing from the original topic!) that the rampant use of microchips is insidious and leads us to ditch many things far sooner than we would have, had they been purely mechanical and repairable.

 

[TimF]

Back to the topic a bit, I deal with it in 2 ways.

1. I don't consider linen shirts to be summer specific at all. My justification being that only in recent decades is cotton considered the exclusive fabric for dress shirts. Before that discerning gentlemen would have theirs made in fine linen, silk, and cotton.

2. Mission creep: Due to today's cultural amnesia about sartorial rules, I don't feel guilty carrying seersucker, madras, and linen suits a few weeks past Labor Day. But not past October.

 

[eagle2250]

^^
....and way down here I wear my cotton poplin suits well into December, as long as the daily temps are ceeping consistently into the mid 80 degree range.