The Best in Affordable Style from the Month that Was – August 2021

A wise man once asked: “What the hell just happened?” And for good reason. There is value in looking back. It gives us all a good gauge as to what is good, and more importantly, what is not good, going forward. Sure, the “clip show” is mostly a cheap (affordable?) device to create new content out of already published stuff. But it’s also a good way to catch up in case you missed something. So cue the flashback music. Here’s the very best from the month that was…

 

Best Sale: J. Crew: 40% off + Additional 50% off Sale Items (expired)

After being pretty quiet for most of the summer, J. Crew came out throwing haymakers in August. And they brought a real punch with their Labor Day offer. A ton of their new fall arrivals were up for this code. It was touch and go there with J. Crew for quite a while. Feels like they’re firmly “back.” For now. Whatever that means in the extraordinarily fast-changing world we live in (both in business and much more important aspects).

 

Best Steal Alert: 20% off Aldens at J. Crew (expired)

Again, it was a big month for J. Crew. Indy boots. Longwings. Suede stunners like those Michigan boots shown above. And it was no surprise that they blew through stock extremely fast.

 

Post way more fun than buying colored pencils: The Style-Centric Grown up Back to School (or work) Shopping List for Men

Colored pencils always felt like they rarely got used. They were always on the “Required” list for back to school shopping as a kid, but more often than not they reached the end of the school year barely touched. That and the compass. That got used, poorly, maybe once? Good gravy why not just have all 5th graders buy a sextant? Oh good! Now we all know that Amazon sells sextants too!

 

Most Wheelhouse Post: 20 Reasons for a guy to dress well when he doesn’t have to (or want to)

An attempt to answer the questions “why?” and “what’s the point?” when it comes to putting some effort into how you present yourself to the world. From the inane to the hugely practical.

 

Best Way to Refresh the look of a watch: Crown & Buckle’s Supreme NATO Straps – $34

They just got restocked, and they look just as good on a Casio as they do on a Rolex. Switching out the strap is one of the easiest and relatively cheapest ways to refresh the look of a favorite wristwatch. And NATO straps make doing so even easier, thanks to not having to remove any spring-bars in the process. Crown & Buckle’s supreme NATO straps are a noticeable, big step above the competition. They’re soft but still substantial. The hardware is nothing short of excellent. And the edges don’t cut into your skin or feel rough/unfinished. Multiple widths. New options shown above, but yes they have the classics too like gray and black stripesolive/red/black, etc

 

Best Post for the “it’s too damn hot where I live for fall stuff” crew: How to Dress Really Well when it’s Really Hot

Death, taxes, and someone saying around this time of year: “WTF man it’s too hot in Florida/Texas/Arizona/on the planet Venus for fall stuff, why are you posting up sweaters and tweed blazers?” Happens every year when the retail calendar turns from summer to fall. So yeah. Here.

 

Best Use of Florals: Style Scenario: The Late Summer Road Trip

Ivy. Technically.

 

Best Use of Gray: The Seiko 5 Sports SRPE Automatic

Speaking of gray… Honestly thought it was gonna be super “blah” (not usually a fan of sports watches without a dive bezel or chrono function). But it really is pretty darn perfect. Full review here.

 

Most anticipated bit of pop culture: The Final No Time to Die trailer

“Target enough people… then the people become the weapon.” No Time to Die wrapped in October of 2019. Its release has obviously been delayed multiple times because of this horrific pandemic. If this movie has a plot which revolves around a bio-weapon spread by human contact… then that’ll be… weird.

 

2nd Best Spanish Export: Cobbler Union Longwings

The grain. The quilted heel pads. The shape.

 

Best Spanish Export: Pepe the King Prawn

Also from Spain. The best minor character muppet. Long live Pepe (not a shrimp) the King Prawn.

 

Best Original Lyrics about a floral print button down: J.C.F. Hibiscus Print Shirt$20 ($39.99)

It’s still hot enough out to be wearing Hibiscus
Yet my style moves stay crisp enough to tear your meniscus
Spending bread at Factory like it’s just after Christmas
‘Cuz sixteen bucks is straight up ridiculous

And people wonder why I’m reluctant to tell others what I do for a living. This is what I get to be proud of.

 

Best Outfit for Late Summer –> Early Fall: Chinos Chukkas Polo

It works. It works just about all the time. Especially now as the season starts to turn.

 

Best Colors to break out of the Blue/Gray Rut: Browns and Reds

I think a LOT of us (my hand is raised) lean pretty hard on the blue and gray combo. And it can become a rut. Big thanks to our man DeJuan for showing us we can break out of the blue/gray rut with some burgundy, pink, etc…

 

Best Lunge Worthy Pants: The PROOF Meridian Pant from Huckberry

Not cheap, but a true competitor to Lululemon’s usually out of stock ABC and Commission warpstreme pants. Weirdly enough, the Lululemons just came back in stock. Maybe we scared them (we did not scare Lululemon).

 

Most Useful Series: The Versatile Gray Suit 3 Ways

A lot of us have well tailored suits… and just don’t wear them that often. Here’s three ways to wear a medium gray suit (not charcoal, not pale gray), so you can get some more use out of it.

 

Most Useful Series for At Home: Basics you should have in your Kitchen

Because a lifetime of frozen burritos heated up in the microwave is no way to go.

 

Most Honest Review: “Those are Grandpa’s Shoes!” – Adam’s Toddler

Thanks, kid. Out of the mouths of babes and all that.

Feeling Nostalgic? Here’s the archive containing previous editions of Best of the Month that Was.

Joe

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