About the Author: Ryan N. is a professional web developer for (and alum from) the University of Delaware, who keeps a close shave as to not be confused with his strongly-bearded twin brother. He plays guitar and drums, loves going to concerts with his wife, and loves being a dad.
Goodfellow is getting stronger every year. What started out as an uncertain foray of compiling all of their menswear labels, like Mossimo and Merona, into one ginormous megabrand, the results so far have shown that it really was the right move, as the brand identity has morphed into detail-conscious, style-forward (instead of fashion-forward), and timeless, while still having some fun with it. And did we mention affordable? There’s some great stuff on offer this fall from Goodfellow & Co, so let’s dive right in.
SIZING NOTE: I’m 5’9″ / 155, all tops shown are a size small. Cords are 32×30 (dark brown) and 30×30 (light brown/gingerbread), while the joggers are a Small.
I mean, it wouldn’t be a Goodfellow review without a cheap henley offering, right? Nothing much new to see here. Target is just a henley-producing machine. Every year, quality henley. Raglan sleeves, a placket that’s not too high, but not too low, and a plethora (ten!) of colors. Love the versatile “Copper” shade here for fall.
I’m mixed on these. They are great at what they do, sporting quality pigskin leather with a warm sherpa lining. It’s a classic combo. But for me? They’re a bit.. bulky. I like a slimmer glove, and these wouldn’t fit inside the front pockets of the sherpa trucker jacket. Which means you end up holding them when you’re not wearing them. Still too warm outside in these parts to really test the heat retention, but they seemed mighty warm when I had them on.
Another one that caught my eye in-store and had to give a spin, this is everything you want in a fall jacket. Perfectly neutral, texture-y, well-fitting, layerable, and slightly stretchy. Adjustment buttons on the back of the waistline as well. No inner pockets, which is a bit curious, but perhaps it’s because this is designed to be a slim layering piece? Sharp gunmetal accents on the hardware here. And for $40, you can do a lot to dress this up and down all the way into the coldest months.
Five colors to choose from, but I love this “pomegranate” dark red. It screams fall to me. From cranberry sauce at thanksgiving, to college football powerhouse uniforms, to deep-hued leaves a-changin’.. there’s just something so fall about a dark red. And a puffer vest is the perfect way to introduce a color like this to your wardrobe, because it’s not overpowering. With two chest pockets and two buttoned slash pockets, there’s lots of storage options, all while maintaining a fairly slim profile. The back sports the same three-column design as last year’s puffer vest, and the gray contrast liner is sharp as nails. Zipper is a tad flimsy, though, and it would be nice if there was another zipper to let the waistline breathe a bit.
Corduroy pants are hard to get right. I’ve tried a number of pairs over the years, and there’s just always something that falls short. Be it the fit, the wale of the corduroy, the color, there’s always something. Now, Goodfellow takes their great 5-pocket fit and applies some fall texture goodness to get some truly great pants. We have two extremely versatile shades of brown on review: the darker, “Nature’s Brown”, and a lighter, “Gingerbread” shade. For pure versatility, I’d have to give the nod to the darker brown, but there’s something about that Gingerbread that keeps turning my head. It’s such a unique color, but requires some more forethought for pairing. Nice brassy hardware. These fit me great, yet, Goodfellow continues to have some sizing inconsistencies. The dark brown pictured is a 32×30, and the Gingerbread is a 30×30. They fit more or less identically, perhaps due to the 2% Spandex for stretch. So, once again, gotta recommend trying a few sizes to make sure you get that perfect fit. C’mon, Goodfellow.
Now, if I didn’t already have a black denim jacket with stretch that I love, I might have found a new favorite. The entire body is lined in sherpa fleece, including the collar, which stands up nicely. The sleeves are then lined in polyester, allowing your arms to slide in and out easily without getting caught up in the sheepy stuff. There’s some kind of padding/insulation in the arms, too, so your entire upper body is kept nice and warm. 99% cotton and 1% Spandex, but that gives it just enough flex to keep a close fit to the body for maximum warmth. Extremely comfortable. Button adjustments on the waistline for fine-tuning the fit.
Tweed, you say? Erm.. I think we differ on what tweed is. Because if you’re expecting a thicker, weighty, wooly sportcoat for colder weather, then this is sure to disappoint. In reality, it’s a lightweight, breathable, 100% cotton blazer, and a sharp one. But to call it tweed is a stretch. I just don’t get the misleading terminology. It’s just not a fall jacket. I can’t see this as being warm. For construction, the back is only 1/4 lined with cotton, and there’s some neat piping accents on the seams, too. The “standard fit” rears its boxy head again here, and the butt is slightly chopped. It’s a shame, because besides all of that.. I do like this jacket. It might even be worth it for some to have taken in at the waist. And speaking of tailoring.. are those.. NON-FUNCTIONAL CUFF BUTTONS?! Be still my heart!
Goodfellow and Co. are still bringing it with these patterned shirts. The stitched patternwork is just fantastic. The fabric is nice here, not too bulky, but not too thin, either. This can serve just fine as a casual shirt under a blazer or sweater, perhaps, but it seems to really shine untucked and the sleeves rolled up, as shown above. The subtle Prince-of-Wales plaid wears very neutral and can ground an otherwise colorful outfit with a great base. Arms are nice and slim on this one, and while there’s some extra fabric around the waist, it’s not noticeable in normal wear.
Joggers are something else, for sure. When done wrong, they can be basically pajamas that you’ll never wear outside the house. That’s what I found with Goodfellow’s OTHER jogger offering this year. These, though? It’s a whole different ballgame. While the aforementioned pajama-joggers are uniform in color, on the baggy side, and uninspired, this pair is textured in a sweater knit, slim, and has enough marled color variation to really open up the possibilities. You can go sharp but casual with just a sweater and puffer, or elevate your outfit with a cord jacket for some nice monochrome action. A drawstring waist and useful pockets, too. Definitely one of my favorites here.
If there’s one piece that can pair with almost every single piece in this review, it’s this one. Dress it up with a blazer, throw it over a button up, punch up some joggers a few notches, or give a solid base for a puffer or cord jacket. I mean, what can’t a sweater like this do? The microstripe pattern is subtle enough to get lost at distance, but strong enough to create some real texture up close. It wears lightweight enough to stand in as a long-sleeve shirt, and will never bog down a layered outfit. Can’t say enough good things about this one, especially for less than $25. Now on sale for less than $20? That’s awfully kind.
Oh mama. What a beauty. Unexpectedly found on an in-store run to check out the new line, I had to include this even if it doesn’t appear to be online for non-big-and-tall sizes just yet. Dappered is already pro-cardigan (and you should be, too!), but this is taking it to another level. Shawl collar. Colorblock. Faux horn buttons. Even nifty contrast buttonhole detail. Whoa. This has everything a sharp sweater should. And at $29.99, perfectly affordable.
Got a tip on something from Target’s Goodfellow & Co. line that didn’t make this round up? Send those suggestions into joe@dappered.com.
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