Most Wanted Affordable Style – April 2013

Consider these to be power rankings.  Whether you’re looking for gift ideas or a quick upgrade for yourself, expect these to come around about once a month.  The potential best of the best, which you may or may not have seen already.  Agreements, disagreements, and additions are more than welcome in the comments section below.  Click here for the top 5 most wanted lists from previous months. 

5. Florsheim Doon Suede Wingtip – $79.95 ($100)

A new arrival on Florsheim.com and… on sale at DSW.  Lots of potential for such a low price.  If you’re usually conservative with your shoes, spring & summer is the time to take a few risks.  Cheap suede always trumps cheap leather.  Deep sweep on that wingtip too, without going full longwing back to the ankle.  Meanwhile, anyone catch the half-brogue double monks from Aston Grey?  Aston Grey’s quality is usually a step above other $100 and under shoe brands.

 

4. Banana Republic Tailored Fit Cotton Linen Blazer – $198.00

A new arrival that you might have to wait awhile to use a code on (blazers/suit jackets, now almost always excluded). But if you CAN… it’s worth a look.  Arms are nice and trim, armholes are on the high side, and button stance is great. Sleeves seem to be a touch long, but the buttons are non-functioning.  Yes, there is that accent stitching around them, but there’s some good space between them and the end of the sleeve.  The fabric is an Italian made, almost 50/50 blend of cotton and linen.  Lining is an almost 50/50 blend of poly and viscose… which is good, since viscose actually breathes a little.  Not a ton, but a little.  But with that nice fabric comes a bit of weight.  So wearing this in dead-of-summer searing heat probably isn’t the best idea.  For that, you’d want something unlined and ultra light like Suitsupply’s mega expensive ($349) Copenhagen Cotton/Linen Brown Check Sportcoat.

 

3. Bespoke Post Weekender II – $45.00 + Gulf Wax – $7.69

Bravo to Chris R. for coming up with the idea to wax the Bespoke Post Weekender II bag from April.  It’s a terrific bag on it’s own, but it’s totally unstructured.  After applying all of the blocks in the box to his bag, it’s now waterproof and stands up on its own.  He says it’ll take a bit of banging around to loosen it up (or maybe a hot day or two outside) but this is something more than a few of us might try ourselves.

 

2. Bols Genever – $29.99

Closely related to gin, but swaps out the pine and much of the citrus (all?) for a bready characteristic.  Distilled from corn, wheat, and rye, then blended with a juniper berry distillate  and the final result is this 42% ABV intriguer.  Definite malt but… crisp at the same time?  A strange one, but a good one.  More on its history over here.  Refreshing in an Original John (not Tom) Collins.  More on that in the recipe section over here.

 

1. The Hamilton Ugly Duckling Duo: Mechanical Field – $265 | Pan Europ Chrono – $1200

One of these looks like a campfire smells, the other bleeds 1970s racing style.  Both will make a lot of guys furrow their brows and stick their lower lips out in “those are… fuhhhgly” disapproval.  Green dial on the field, and it’s a mechanical so you’ve got to wind it to keep it going.  38mm in diameter.  The Pan Europ is a bit of a beast at 45mm in diameter, but the lugs are just 20.  The difficult to find blue dial version is getting awfully close to a Monaco.  60 hour power reserve.  60 week checkbook wrecking price.