The Best in Affordable Style from the Season that Was

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 season that was…

Best Sale(s): Bonobos Extra 30% off… and then Extra 40% off Sale Items (expired)

Was it the sale to EXPRESS that lit a fire underneath the Bonobos promotions department? After a mainly quiet start to the year, Bonobos started seriously blowing stuff out in July with an additional 30% off sale items… and then later picked back up clearing things out in August with an additional 40% off. Italian wool suit separates in a multitude of fits for $430. 2.0 Stretch washed chinos for under $30. Wheelhouse, jetsetter stretch wool blazers for $167.30… and those blazers at the time weren’t even final sale! It was a summertime of two sales from a brand that’s been quiet in recent years on the discounting front, and the markdowns were deep enough that their normally high (and sticky) MSRPs fell to a level that many of us find palatable. It even sparked a One Sale Five Outfits post.

Best Steal Alert (casual): 20% off Nike Killshot OG (exp.)

The original navy swoosh Killshot was actually getting some sort of discount. Not totally unheard of, but very unusual. Normally $90, they dropped to $72. “One swallow doesn’t make a summer,” but let’s hope this is a sign (perhaps) of more sales to come on the Killshot this fall.

Best Steal Alert (dressed UP): $50 0ff Spier Red Label Suits – $248 ($298) exp.

Full review here. Some context in terms of the relative competition:

Suitsupply’s entry level “Perennial” line now starts at $499.
BR’s suit jacket and trouser separates are $600 unless there’s a rare sale.
The fused J. Crew FACTORY Thompson goes for around $400.

So already Spier’s Red Label line is significantly more affordable than the others (although there are pros and cons to each.) But to chop fifty bucks off for a few days there this summer? That was… something.

Most Useful Post: What to pack when traveling light and in style

Eat your heart out Mary Poppins. No umbrella required for this magic. Just a carry-on, a briefcase, and a willingness to go jump around on top of a parking garage like a total weirdo until you get the right shot. (There was an apartment building overlooking that parking garage. Sorta wonder if anyone was having their morning coffee and looking out their window at that time. Anyway…)

This post lays it all out, and then puts it all together. There’s a suggested list of what to pack, visual evidence that it all fits in the carry on, and then the magnum opus comes to a (merciful) close with multiple outfit suggestions so you can get an idea as to what you’ll be wearing over multiple days on the road. Perhaps it’s a post worth bookmarking if you like to travel. And it’s absolutely worth a bookmark if you hate to travel, and want something to help make the process a little easier.

Best Dethronement: L.L. Bean’s Made in the USA Essential Leather Belt dethrones The GAP basic belt

It took one, shining review. Just like that, the affordable belt king of Dappered was dethroned, and a new ruler was crowned. Maybe it’s not that dramatic. But this $45, USA Made belt from L.L. Bean aced ARSE with flying colors. Adam T. reviewed it for us, and the guy knows his stuff. He’s a bit of a shoe hound (understatement?) and he knows good leather and quality work when he sees it. For him to be so highly impressed by the likes of this humble, and very affordable leather belt, it speaks volumes.

Best Style Scenario Series: Heat Wave (this is my island in the sun)

Finding the chutzpah to dress well when it’s hotter than Hades outside can be a challenge. But it’s a challenge that Dappered does not shy away from. (Nor does Dappered shy away from placing eggs in the middle of the street.) And since dressing WELL for the heat can be hard we put together three looks to help beat the heat and avoid looking like a surfside brah the entire summer. Fried, Scrambled, or straight-up Boiling hot. We had suggestions that very much took into account the stifling heat.

Best Series Reboot: “Double Time” is back

Double Time is for guys who like watches, but don’t necessarily want a big collection. What we’re going for with the series are two watches, at different affordable budgets, which as a team can fill just about any style need in every-day life. A casual watch and a dress watch. Those are basically the parameters.

Yet inflation more or less took a sledgehammer to our original “Double Time” series, as those two-watch combos with total prices under $100, under $200, under $300, etc… are now mostly no longer valid. So another round seems called for. We’ll be rolling out out two watch combos under $150, under $250, under $350, etc… in the coming months. Check out the ongoing and original series here.

Best Sans-Blue Style Scenario: Shorts Sneakers T-Shirt – No Blues!

Blue is one of the easiest colors to lean on/become addicted to in style. From denim to blazers, you see a lot of it on this site. But it is not the only color out there, and sometimes shaking out of the blue rut can be a good thing. This Style Scenario offered a cool and casual way to get that done.

Best Affordable New Arrival: NEW Crown & Buckle Supreme NATOs – $28 – $34

There’s no easier, more affordable way to feel like you bought a new watch (without actually buying a new watch) than swapping out the strap for a cool new NATO. Featured over here in the latest 10 Best Bets for $75 or Less, the C&B Supreme has been the go to NATO watch strap for a while now. They’re anything but some cheap junk you’ve bought off Amazon, and they’re worth every penny. Great hardware, terrific feel to the fabric and weave (either traditional seatbelt style with sheen, or a more matte textured look and feel), and they just released some new colors and patterns. Multiple widths available.

Best Excuse for a trip to the Beach: Reviewing the Timex Harborside Coast Automatic

What do you get when you cross the need for some in-person shots of a watch with the word “coast” in its model name, and a side-hustle work trip to a coastal city for one of the Dappered team? You get a good excuse to get to the beach for an afternoon. And it was the perfect backdrop for the new Timex Harborside Coast Dive Watch. Recent automatic dive watch releases from Timex have usually come priced north of $250, so a new release at the more palatable price point of $189 was worth a review. Turns out there are probably better options at that sub 200 range (Orient, Invicta…) “but if you want some red and blue and to spend under two (hundred), the new automatic Timex Harborside Coast, could just be for you.”

Best Use of Pink: Style Scenario – Seeing the Barbara Blockbuster

There was a particular movie about a particular lady that took over popular culture this summer. And one of our contributors decided to tackle a style scenario incorporating the signature color of this particular lady, while still keeping things timeless. If you have plans to go see this movie and want to get in on the “pink” action, here’s one way to do it.

2nd Best Usage of Pink: The Dappered Space

Since things were getting pink on Dappered, Dappered Space contributor Sarah figured why not translate it over into a room that still leans masculine, but isn’t afraid to embrace some of Barbra’s favorite shade? This particular Dappered Space incorporate muted pink tones, which pair surprisingly well with many colors considered masculine. Even if pink isn’t your thing, hopefully this shows it is possible to incorporate some in a tasteful way.

Most Comfortable Shoes, NON sneaker category: J. Crew Camp Shoes – $188

“In a world adrift with minimalist white or grey sneakers, some of us are seeking something different to pair with our casual warm weather outfits. Enter the classic and humble camp moc.” Soft and supple, these camp mocs earned high praise. And they are still an appropriate shoe for warm, lazy fall afternoons. With their high traction rubber soles, they’ll even be good on wet pavement after some rain. And for those that hate slippers or wearing socks around the house in cold weather, these can also act as a pair of house shoes during the cold, wet months.

Most Comfortable Shoes, Sneaker category: Rothy’s RS02

Also, best use of plastic bottles? There’s about 22 in the knit construction of these sneakers. But the finest point impressed by Adam’s review of these sneakers was just how comfortable they are, thanks to the stretchy knit upper and the thick insole. And since these sneaks lean more off-white, they’ll pair well with the colors of fall.

Best Post for Categorizing Comfortable Summer shoes, sneakers and non sneakers alike: 7 Types of Casual Summer Shoes Worth Owning

For summer not being boot season (how dare you,) there sure are a lot of different styles of footwear.

Coolest Bunch of Flowers: The Daisies from the Feels like Summer Style Scenarios

Just because it’s summer doesn’t mean that there won’t be a need for dressing up. Whether it be dressy casual or a full on suit, summer can still require longer sleeves and leather shoes. So once again the Dappered Daisies (yes, that is their name) made an appearance to help our fine readers out with some suggestions for looking tailored while (hopefully) not baking.

Best Suit that could really use a Sale: B.R. Signature Italian Nailhead Wool Suit Separates

C’mon Banana Republic. Throw us a flippin’ bone here. Nothing for the full-priced stuff over Labor Day? NOTHING? At full price, these quite nice Italian Wool Suit Separates from Banana Republic run six hundred dollars. Ouch. A 30% off code or site-wide sale would land them at $420. The rare 40% off deal would drop them to $360. That’s steal alert worthy if/when we can get there, because as separates, you’re not stuck with a “nested” pair like most other suits. You pick the size of the jacket, you pick the size of the trousers. Makes everything a lot easier. Full review by Ryan can be found over here.

Best Room Building Convenience: The Dappered Space: One Room, One Store – The Home Depot

If you don’t enjoy the process, redecorating can be hard. And trying to get it done from multiple stores can create frustration. But the Dappered Space One Room, One Store series sticks to just one store when creating a look for a room. And a pretty convenient store to do this through is the Home Depot. Despite what you see on display walking into any brick and mortar Home Depot, they have quite the extensive collection of furniture, home-goods, and decor online. They ain’t just toilets and caulk.

Best Pants: Target’s All in Motion Performance 5-Pocket “Golf” pants – $40

Good gracious these are great. They’re a third of the price of Lululemon’s ABC, and 90% as good. That’s why they saw quite a bit of coverage here on this website over the last few months, and will continue to be used in the future. They can be worn for just about anything. They’re way, way, way more than just “golf” pants. They’re comfortable, they don’t look “tech-y,” and they’re affordable.

Best use of those Target Best Pants: Style Scenario – Lying in grass staring at things

Sign that man to a talent agency! The male models. When they’re not standing unnecessarily on top of automobiles, they often lie in the grass. They stare at things. And on this website, some of us will give it a shot too. It certainly looks like this trend of male models lying in the grass isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. So our good friend DeJuan set about creating a summer look with the flexibility to get down on the ground and enjoy the comfort of turf for a while. Just don’t get grass stains on those pants!

Most Fun: The Style-Centric Grown-up “Back to School” (Work) Style Shopping List

One of the biggest transitions that happens during the year for us big-brained apes is back to school time. Even if you don’t have kids, you’re subjected to the back to school marketing machine, coworkers schedules changing, and the season that back to school is heralding: fall. But when it comes to getting geared up for fall, why let the kids have all the fun? So while this is a shameless rationalization for shopping (and there are a ton of reasons not to spend your hard earned cash) it still seems like a bit of fun worth having.

And with that, Summer’s in the books. Here’s to the season ahead. Thanks for your readership. It honestly means a lot that you continue to allow us to borrow some of your attention every so often, as we roll through with a few treats now and then.

Be safe out there in the coming months. And if you feel like it, do go ahead and be this guy.