Winter Hattage.

You'd be hard pushed to find me out and about without some kind of lid on this time of the year, and as Britain currently lies under a thick sheet of sleet it makes perfect sense. Did you know exposure to extreme chilly weather can lead to serious illness? did you also know that most of our body heat is lost through the head? well there you have it, as good an excuse as any to spunk fifty odd quid on this years smartest hat.
Here's a look at a mixed bag of some of this years best winter hats, from the luxurious to the budget, the hand crafted to the hard to find :-

Heritage Research Watch cap in Oatmeal and Navy Marl with lots of lovely speckly bits from superb British brand Heritage Research - Hand loomed in Scotland from local wool, this makes me feel a bit like Captain Oates at Terra Nova. £50 Oi Polloi.

Saint James bonnet de quart - I'm not quite sure what that actually means but it sounds good anyway. Made from tightly woven 'windproof' wool, available in black and red stripes or plain red if you want to look a bit like Steve Zissou, Jacques Cousteau or Marvin Gaye. £25 available from Saint James.


Christys, two looks for the price of one here from original hat pioneers Christys' a bucket hat in reversible cotton and moleskin, coming in a dark olive on one side and a dapper country check on t'other. £19 available from Not Addicted.

Benetton I picked this up from the store near Oxford Circus, they had a selection of colours, navy, green, black, grey and red if I remember rightly, a nice ribbed wool hat for a very reasonable price. £12 from Benetton.

Penfield Agawan hat, classic trapper hat from Penfield, a superb tweed checked hat with fold down ear protection in corduroy, with adjustable chin strap - cord and tweed, like rice and peas, sea and sand, they are meant to be together. £39 available from Hanon Shop.

Blackbird's Bird boy hat, a tightly ribbed cap as they say over the water, a replica of the one worn by the real Bird Boy of Ballard who's not actually real, with a removable Bird Boy pin badge and poem ona satin ribbon, suave. $24 available from Blackbird.

The Casual Connoisseur's the Weir bobble hat takes it's name from Scottish broadcaster/bobble hat endorser Tom Weir, this years limited edition hat sold out within 24 hours this year, as did the next version, but there's several new colours out again post Christmas. £20 available from The Casual Connoisseur.


Barbour Tyne tweed bobble hat, made from Shetland wool, old reliable Barbour have done a sterling job with this well toasty heavyweight ribbed hat with a massive big bobble, £29 available from Shed Menswear.

Norse Projects 100% wool beanie with woven label from Copenhagen's finest cool viking folk, they've done loads of these in different plain colours, non branded ones and contrasting striped ones, mega £35 available from Norse Store.

Artesania in Alpaca wool and lined in fleece, hand made in Bolivia using the cottage industry and nothing but all natural fibres. I bought this from a woman in Peterborough who brought it back from a whole foods store in New York city. This probably the most unobtainable hat here, found on eBay, but they are nice.

For more on this buy issue ten of Proper Magazine.

Recent Pick-ups...

Some more shit I don't really need I picked up over the last couple of months. Starting with the classic winter wardrobe staple, old man chic, the Marks and Sparks lambswool crewneck in rust, taking full advantage of their one day spectacular, a tenner.
Also picked up a dark plum coloured Benetton crewneck from their store in Oxford Circus.

Continuing the old man chic streak, a classic Daks wool scarf, I've never seen one as fruity as this, lots of nice colour, kept me snug as a bug in a rug during a recent jaunt to a cold capital city.

And an Artesania handmade hat, which came with hand knitted gloves too.

Norse Projects classic blazer in Universal blue, a great all year rounder.

I picked up a great herringbone tweed vest/waistcoat from Uni Qlo and added my own crushed minstrel buttons, I only got this so I could spill more ale down it than my friends could actually drink and then mock them for it. Pph.


Wrangler Records shirt, a rather nice chambray shirt with extra cool - elbow patches, really nice shirt which was as fairly priced as they come.

Woolrich heavy chamois button down shirt with a fishing fly throughout, what? OK, I know, I can't tell if it's the coolest or gayest thing I've ever bought either.

An old school Boneville thick quarter zip, with a nice high collar, made in Italy, warm as fuck.

Dickies flannel lined work pants, I think these are great, even if might look a bit like a caretaker.

Edwin Ed-47 Rainbow Selvedge, couldn't say no at around 60% off.
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Yet more strides from Howies, a brand I first saw in Oi Polloi several years back when I bought a cool jacket with a million pockets on it , a real eco brand who don't muck about, a little pricey really, but luckily I spotted a sale store on my travels in East London and nabbed two pairs of army green kecks for twenty bob each, with a retail of a ton twenty!

I also grabbed their Doh Boy! vinyl figure, basically a bit of a swipe at how bread is produced these days or summat heavy like that, I've always just wanted the little fatty stood on a shelf, rude not too at forty quid off. Look at his big fat, flat freckly head.

Clarks Weaver in camel, I've had bare Wallabees over the years, always go back to them, and why not eh? cooler than Steve McQueen's pet pooch.

A printed newsletter from fellow blogsters Offhand, who even did an interview with a very good pal of mine, Charlie D!

I grabbed these cool cards from Oi Polloi by mega illustrator Ben Lamb, he did Stevie Mc, Jack Nicholson and Hunter S, I don't know what to do with the others yet.

Last but certainly not least, three massive old Peanuts button badges, already had the 'Hike It' one inspired by this, now I've got two, I feel I'm winning in my personal quest to make geeky buttons acceptable once more, it's not hard with these. These are over fifty years old. A meeting with Ian P of The Garbstore made me appreciate Snoopy, Charlie, Woodstock and co for their ever-lasting charm. Aceness.

The John Boultbee Criterion Mk. 1.

Spotted via Selectism, this looks a handsome jacket, Brooks have been making saddles for bikes for ten thousand years, master craftsmen in their field, now they're venturing into stuff you can put on your back as opposed to plonk your bottom on. Together with designer Timothy Everest they have created the label John Boultbee and this, the The Criterion Mk.1 Jacket is the first in a line of what will soon be regarded as the world’s finest jackets for cycling, expect a million technical details yet a really stylish, timeless garment. If I'm not mistaken the model is the chap behind the iconic tweed run. too.

Sock drawer.

Yep, you've guessed it, time to discuss socks, as it's almost Christmas day (already?) the only real acceptable time to talk about socks without looking like a bit of a dick. If you're like me, then the magic of Christmas has long since gone, that's probably got something to with getting older rather than my complete cynicism towards virgins giving birth, Home Alone 3, Cliff Richard, DFS' fucking sale, and fat old beardy men breaking in via the chimney to commit nothing but a good deed. Getting older means getting socks for Christmas, so if you're buying this year, buy me these.


L to R. Universal Works' rib sock £10 and diamond sock £12, thicker than the snow outside and perfect for big clunky hiking boots, they shout instant warmth to me, the most inviting thing you'll see on a cold winter's morning, apart from a cup of hot Vimto. Burlington's classic argyle socks, if you like socks you like Burlingtons, it's that simple, get 'em from afh they're in the sale at the moment.
Bottom, L to R. Happy Socks, a nice green and yellow thin striped combo and a nautical theme with the half stripe and red base mix £6 from Happy Socks. Solmate's cotton recycled socks in ‘Covered Bridges’ and ‘Daffodil’ the coolest socks you'll see all year, $19 from Hickorees Hard Goods all the way over in Brooklyn.

Proper # 10.

It's with great pleasure to say that as Proper Magazine hits issue ten it has turned pro - a brand new glossy, high quality mag, a proper magazine. I'm proud to have been a part of this magazine since the first issue, well written by like minded folk, Proper is noted for it's love of cool clothing, music and anything else of interest, above all not taking itself too seriously, which is always a good thing in this age of bloggers, hipsters and try too hards. Full colour, loads of smart articles, nearly a hundred pages, it's well worth getting hold of whilst you can.

Available shortly in some cool selected shops, or direct from Proper.

"If you want to be a different fish, you've got to jump out of the school."
— Captain Beefheart 1941-2010.

Heritage Research Fausto Coppi jacket.

Just taken delivery of this excellent 'Fausto Coppi' jacket from master craftsmen Heritage Research a modern replica of one of the training jackets used during the early 1950's. Made from British Millerain waxed cotton in the superb shade of Apple green, a long length, fairly light weight all year rounder. I love the mismatched front pockets. Coming with two chest pockets, large back pockets, side adjusters and a black Nickel RiRi main zipper and their trademark oversized buttons.

Italian Angelo 'Fausto' Coppi born in Castellania 1919, was the dominant international cyclist of the years each side of the second world war. He was an all-round racing cyclist: who specialised in both climbing and sprinting. His successes earned him the title Il Campionissimo, or champion of champions. Winning the Giro d'Italia five times, the Tour de France twice, and the World Championship in 1953.

First Look : HR S/S 2011.

You saw it here first, Heritage Research's Spring Summer look book, a forthcoming collection which pays homage to the returning American servicemen who fought in WW2, lost souls trying to re-assimilate back into society, the camaraderie and feeling of belonging of a military unit was lost, so for some, it was replaced by taking to the road with other like-minded types, on motorcycles, and a new cult of highway style was born, along with the new found favourite past time of Hot Rodding and a then unknown Hawaiian sport of surfing booming in popularity in the 1940's. The collection celebrates the style and attitude of these original subcultures combining authenticity with British fabrics to create a contemporary garment, handmade right here in England.
Shot by John Isaac, shaper of Squire Surfboards and co owner Revolver Surfshop, photographer and a hardcore hot rod enthusiast, with Jack Johns, British bodyboarding champion modelling the garments. The shoot took place at Chapel Porth in John and Jacks native Kernow.