Even though it’s sweltering, disgustingly hot outside, shops have begun turning over their summer merchandise for fall and even winter apparel. That certainly doesn’t mean, however, that you need to start stocking up on sweaters and raw denim when it’s 40 degrees outside. If you’re especially savvy, a number of your summer purchases can still translate perfectly come autumn.
Floral prints were everywhere this spring and summer, from the botanical illustration–influenced prints featured by Engineered Garments to the near obnoxiously ubiquitous resurgence of the Liberty print via extensive collaborations. While the busy, all-over pattern is admittedly somewhat charming in the right climate, once the ground is littered with dead leaves it’s just going to seem silly. But that doesn’t mean there’s no place for a floral print in the fall. Instead, look for darker tones, higher contrast and a more spartan pattern and then use it sparingly (in the form of a pocket square, for example), to add a little bit of levity to a dreary charcoal suit. The Hill-side, branching out from their strictly chambray roots, are offering just such a pocket square, substantial enough in construction to hold up against a heavy flannel jacket, but not so dark as to be inappropriate in the breast pocket of a seersucker jacket at a summer wedding. They’re selling out everywhere though, so you must act quickly. Lost & Found (1255 Dundas St. W., #DNW) should be getting more of the S13-035 model indigo pocket square with white red and blue flowers ($40) in stock soon, so you should probably call them and see if they can notify you when they come in. Rooney has one single, solitary S13-035 model in red left, so order soon if you want it.
One thing that has been disturbingly prevalent this summer is guys pairing the same chunky leather belts they wear with their jeans with a pair of shorts. The two just don’t make sense together and it makes for an awkward, stifled appearance, like jeans at the gym (yes, that actually happens). Don’t be that guy. Instead, lighten things up with a braided belt. Club Monaco’s braided rope belt in canvas and leather ($59) has a certain airiness more suited for the yachting life when purchased in white, but in navy or dark green it takes on some of the grizzled character of a sailor’s knot, which will extend its utility for months. So really, there’s no excuse for continuing this belt-based sartorial crime. (And if you think no one notices, trust me, they do.)
Chinos are the default summer pant for guys and rightly so —even for the most avid jean-wearer, at one point or another, it just gets too hot under all that denim. As of late, a number of labels started to get hip to the idea that the market for chinos wasn’t just limited office workers pairing them with golf shirts and have incorporated chinos with a modern, slim fit into their spring and summer lines. However, it wasn’t until recently that companies like Wings + Horns and Unis started making them in sturdier fabrics and darker colours, with the potential for three-season wearability. Fortunately, this mindset seems to have filtered down to the chain stores, so now you can find slim fitting, “denim wash” chinos in darker tones at The Gap for $59.95 (and they go on sale often—one of the advantages of this strategic approach to seasonal shopping).
End note: obviously, it’s possible to go too far with this summer-to-fall extension program—when Labour Day comes around, it’s still time to pack up your white bucks for the season.
