Seventy Five dollars. That’s a lot of money. It’ll get you a couple pairs of Levi’s, a nice dinner out, or a couple months at your local gym. Seventy Five dollars. It is a lot of money, especially if you spend it right. Ten picks follow, all for $75 or under, and some of them are much, much less.
1. Uptown 50/50 Scarf from TheTieBar – $25.00
TheTieBar is selling scarves? Yep. And from their initial offerings, these 50% wool / 50% acrylic “Uptown Knit” scarves look to be real winners for twenty five bucks. You don’t often see wool + acrylic blends. Usually it’s one or the other, but if each material carries its best characteristics, this’ll be a warm & substantial but still soft scarf that’ll do a good job keeping the winter wind out. Also available in green. Nice patterns that are a little different than the usual plaid.
2. Slim Horse Hide Leather Key Case – $26.00
Handcrafted here in the US by Threads Member MattFace. Head on over to Threads to check out the story behind these things, plus get more pics of the manufacturing process on flickr. A case like this keeps your keys in order while also protecting your, uh, pocket-areas from getting stabbed. Each case comes with a ball chain to accommodate a keyless entry fob. Holds 4-6 keys. Beeswax finish. Sold through Matt’s etsy shop, Sharp mAntiques.
3. Levi’s 505 in Tumbled Rigid – $26.40 & free shipping w/ SHOPEARLY ($58)
And free shipping no minimum? Sure. The code SHOPEARLY gets you 40% off sitewide through today (11/11). You could also get the 514 (used to be called slim) straight in Tubmled Rigid, or the real slim 511 in “Rigid Dragon” for the same price of $26.40
4. Ralph Lauren Suede Belt – $49.99 ($75)
Was just on sale during their fall preview and… the sale price stuck. Still $49.99. Shipping is a pill though. Eight bucks. Ouch. But that buckle is downright perfect looking up against the texture of the suede. Also available in a lighter shade.
5. Brooks Brothers Chest Stripe Rugby Pique Polo – $27.80 ($69.50)
It’s not polo season for most of the country, but the colors, stripes, and hopefully slimmer fit (since it’s from their younger Red Fleece collection) could make this a prep-style winner from April – September. Ships free from Brooks Brothers through today.
6. John W. Nordstrom Tweed Gloves – $69.50
“Mixed Media” just doesn’t seem to work on… sweaters. But it often does on gloves. Especially when it’s a wintry fabric like tweed on the top side, with leather palms underneath. Ships + returns free. From one of Nordstrom’s house brands (obviously) so it’s fair to expect these to be of decent quality.
7. Bespoke Post’s “Refresh” Box – $45.00
For almost the same price as the Ernest Alexander for GAP dopp kit, you can once again get the Made in the USA Dopp from Blue Claw stuffed with all kinds of goodness via Bespoke Post. One of the best boxes Bespoke Post ever put together. Full review here. Thanks to Andy D. for sending in the style tip.
8. One of these: Mercanti Fiorentin Double Monk – $149.95
Another month of best bets, another “cheating” pick with one shoe from a pair produced by a DSW house brand. But these are noteworthy. Gone is the standard chisel toe the vast majority of MF’s carry. The wider, rectangular buckles look great. Seems to be improvements all around. Currently available in just this light tan. Would love to see a deeper brown or maybe even a burgundy. Sit tight for one of their tiered codes (they just ran one over the weekend) and you should be able to save $25 off the pair. Made in Italy. Bonded, but Mercanti Fiorentinis are well constructed. (Pssst. For you big spenders, the drool worthy Allen Edmonds Mora 2.0 in Bourbon just went on sale for $50 off. Still $295, but, they’re something.)
9. Stafford Blackwatch Wool Sportcoat – $71.99 w/ PINECONE
If… and it’s a big if… these fit as well as the camel hair sportcoats, then this is about as good as a holiday-blazer will get for the price. There’s absolutely no way it fits as trim as it does on that model. Not a shot. They don’t even sell 38R online, and that has to be a 38L (which they don’t make), with the waist of, what, a 36? a 34? Where’d they find this model? At the linguistics institute for the words Ni, Peng and Neee-Wom?
10. Lagunitas “Brown Shugga” Ale – $10ish per six pack
Feeding brown cane sugar to brewery yeast produces some spectacular results. Dessert in a glass. Surprisingly crisp on the front end for something that has such a caramelized taste at the finish. Nose has maple, spice, but still a familiar hop smell. Lacing is pretty darn incredible. 9.99% ABV makes it plenty warm for a winter warmer. That year (years?) it wasn’t available? Those were dark times.
For other best bets under $75 from previous months, click here.