PortaStyle Guide...American Style Goes Global!

The PORTASTYLE
GUIDE
“American Style Goes Global!”
A country this big is bound to embrace multiple looks. Here's your field guide to prep, blue collar, and beach boy styles!

dominating fashion these days. What started as a domestic revival has snowballed into a worldwide movement—well-dressed guys from Antwerp to Tokyo have suddenly traded in their skinny black suits for navy blazers, slim khakis, and, yes, polo shirts. It's a global shift to a subtle, timeless, red, white, and blue aesthetic. Here's why the USA really is No. 1.

- Prep -

The uniform once associated with the New England elite has gone global—and modern. With fashion designers both here and abroad riffing on boarding-school basics, it's never been cooler to channel Holden Caulfield.

The Playlist
The Kinks: "The Village Green Preservation Society"
Pulp: "Common People"
Kanye West: "School Spirit"
Vampire Weekend: "Campus"
Chester French: "She Loves Everybody"

The Reads
If you don't know your Weejuns from your Quoddys, check out these blogs, which obsess over the finer points of preppydom so you don't have to:
ivy-style.com
thetrad.blogspot.com
allplaidout.com
unabashedlyprep.com
heavytweed.blogspot.com

Paramount Television/Courtesy of Neal Peters Collection

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Prep
THE WARDROBE

[1] Shoes ($125) by Cole Haan. [2] Shoes ($200) by Thorocraft. [3] Shoes ($49.50) by Gap+Keds. [4] Blazer ($900) by Thom Browne New York. Shirt ($365) by Michael Bastian. Tie ($69) by Club Monaco. [5] Jacket ($395) by Gant. [6] Pants ($88) by Bonobos. [7] Glasses ($350) by Tom Ford. [8] Hat ($40) by Banana Republic. [9] Shoes ($99) by G.H. Bass & Co.[10] Polo ($29) by L.L. Bean. [11] Wallet ($180) by Prada. [12] Belts ($680 Each) by Tom Ford.

stills by nikolai, styling by claire tedaldi for halley resources

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THE COLLECTOR'S
ITEM

Any prepster worth his weight in brass buttons should own Take Ivy, the definitive document of classic Ivy League style. Shot in 1965 by Japanese photographer Teruyoshi Hayashida, the book has fetched up to $1,500 on eBay. Thankfully, when the first English-language edition is released in September, you can get yours for $24.95. (powerhousebooks.com)

courtesy of powerhouse books

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- Blue Collar -

Long before designers introduced menswear collections, clothing manufacturers were turning out functional gear for the kind of men who build, haul, or demolish things for a living. Even if you're tied to a cubicle, you can still project rugged masculinity with this season's stylized workwear.

The Playlist
Bruce Springsteen: "Badlands"
Modest Mouse: "Custom Concern"
Johnny Cash: "The Man Comes Around"
Kings of Leon: "King of the Rodeo"
The Gaslight Anthem: "The '59 Sound"

Photograph courtesy of Getty Images

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Blue Collar
THE WARDROBE

[1] Backpack ($175) by Fjallraven. [2] Matchbox ($60) by Jack Spade. [3] Subway Case ($90) by Jack Spade. [4] Pants ($22) by Dickies. [5] Jacket ($236) by Supreme. [6] Shirt ($50) by Gap. [7] Belt ($50) by Banana Republic. [8] Belt ($45) by J. Crew. [9] Shoes ($690) by Bottega Veneta. [10] Blazer ($395) by Unis. Denim Jacket ($80) by Levi's. T-Shirt (3 For $24) by Jockey. [11] Boots ($198) by Kenneth Cole. [12] Hat ($195) by Dunhill. [13] Shirt ($98) by J. Crew.

Photograph by Nikolai, styling by Jason Gledhill for Halley Resources

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Blue Collar
PAIRING

The first collection from Carhartt and A.P.C. is full of authentic details you don't need a heavy-machinery license to appreciate. Among the standouts are carpenter pants cut from A.P.C.'s signature denim and Carhartt's canvas shirt jacket recast with trim new proportions. ($325; apc.fr)

Photograph by Nikolai

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Blue Collar
EXTRA CARE

The protective coating on your field coat isn't going to last forever. Once a year pick up a tin of Filson's Original Oil Finish Wax and re-proof it yourself. ($9; filson.com

Courtesy of Filson.com

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- Beach Boy -

In the sixties, Southern California's surf culture inspired a generation of musicians and writers. Now that easygoing sun-and-sand lifestyle is exerting its influence on a new batch of fashion brands. You don't have to know how to ride a shortboard to hang with the laid-back look.

The Playlist
The Bel-Airs: "Mr. Moto"
The Rip Chords: "Hey Little Cobra"
Blue Cheer: "Summertime Blues"
Wavves: "Beach Demon"
Surfer Blood: "Floating Vibes"

courtesy of splash news

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Beach Boy

THE WARDROBE

[1] T-Shirt ($330) By Bottega Veneta. [2] Shorts ($125) By Converse By John Varvatos. [3] Shirt ($168) By Kzo. T-Shirt ($32) By A/X Armani Exchange. [4]Marc By Marc Jacobs. [5] Sneakers ($50) By Vans. [6] Jeans ($99) By Banana Republic. [7] Hat ($90) By Woolrich Woolen Mills. [8] Sunglasses ($195) By Prada Sport. [9]Scarf ($38) By Armani Exchange. [10] Watch ($420) By Nixon. LEFT OFF HERE [11] Hoodie ($195) By Hugo. [12] Shoes ($115) By Clarks. [13]Burkman Bros. [14] Shirt ($65) By DKNY. [15] Sunglasses ($695) By Mosley Tribes.

Photograph by nikolai, styling by jason gledhill for halley resources

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Beach Boy

THE LAUNCH

Started by three friends from Santa Barbara, Riviera Club is a new collection of surf clothes that feel decadent. From double-faced cotton hoodies to jersey-lined shorts and trim garment-dyed henleys, it's everything you need to add some jet-set chic to your beach wardrobe—without the risk of wiping out. (available at Bloomingdale's)

The Essential
Apolis Activism nails swim-trunk proportions with Kanvas by Katin, a collaboration with the legendary California board-shorts maker Katin. The Los Angeles men's label enlisted Katin's original 82-year-old tailor, Sato Hughes, to ensure an authentic silhouette, then added contemporary touches like softer nylon. ($99; apolisactivism.com)

shirt: courtesy of riviera club; shorts: courtesy of apolis activism

The current issue of Details devotes its style section to home-grown looks, saying that American style is a rapidly growing global trend. Writes the magazine:

Classic American style is dominating fashion these days. What started as a domestic revival has snowballed into a worldwide movement — well-dressed guys from Antwerp to Tokyo have suddenly traded in their skinny black suits for navy blazers, slim khakis, and, yes, polo shirts.

The magazine includes pages devoted to three classic style archetypes, only one of which is relevant to us here. The prep page mentions Ivy-Style as required digital reading, along with fellow blogs Heavy Tweed Jacket, The Trad, All Plaidout and Unabashedly Prep. If you’d have told me in 1985 that 25 years later I’d be mentioned in a magazine alongside Michael J. Fox as Alex P. Keaton, let’s just say I would’ve been a trifle suspect.

The page also mentions “Take Ivy,” and for clothes includes Bass Weejuns and the Gant varsity jacket we posted about previously. Related pages are devoted to khaki shorts and oxford-cloth button-down shirts.

Though the image in the lower left of the prep page is of Alex Keaton from the sitcom “Family Ties,” the copy references another fictional character. Writes Details:

The uniform once associated with the New England elite has gone global — and modern. With fashion designers both here and abroad riffing on boarding-school basics, it’s never been cooler to channel Holden Caulfield.

You know, I only got around to reading “Catcher in the Rye” last summer. Man, I wanted to smack that kid. He actually reminded me of some of the curmudgeonly trolls on the men’s fashion forums — just complain, complain, complain all the time. Nothing wrong with him, he’s not the phony, it’s everyone else who’s the phony.

I’m not surprised that high school students today think Holden Caulfield’s a whiny brat and can’t relate to him. — CHRISTIAN CHENSVOLD

Special Thanks to Post by Ivy Style

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"Classic American style Is!"

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