Jake Woolf

A shift is happening within me. As Labor Day Weekend approaches and autumn looms, I have begun feeling like my wardrobe is about to make its annual transition from light and breezy to dark and heavy. This means several things—button up shirts get replaced by sweaters, lightweight loafers give way to derbies, and pleated shorts—my summertime go to’s—take their place on the sidelines in favor of one particular pant style: black jeans. Black jeans to me are my comfort pants for the fall-winter season.

If I had to build a fall wardrobe from scratch, I’d have my work cut out for me. But to start the process, I’d first get a beautifully washed pair of relaxed straight fit jeans. (The thought of living without at least one pair of great jeans is genuinely frightening to me.) Then I’d cop up a navy sweater, a couple of plaid shirts, a solid hoodie in a versatile color like gray or black, some loose-fitting chinos, a sportcoat, and some sweatpants.

Throughout the aughts and 2010s, Banana Republic’s collections were defined by minimal, office-appropriate staples like crisp button-up shirts, flat front trousers, v-neck sweaters, and clean derbies. But before the mall brand stale made clothes for the weekend warrior, they were a label that was much more concerned with rugged outdoor adventure. In fact, the label kicked off in 1978 as a curator of far-flung military surplus gear before it started developing its own in-house collection.

Earlier this week, I attended a press preview of the first ever menswear collection from the Swedish label Toteme, which launched today in stores and online. In today’s post, I’ll be running you through all of the major questions you might have about the offering, starting with, well, “What is Toteme” to my honest thoughts on how the clothes are IRL. Let’s get right into it, and as always, enjoy!!! Why Is This 50 Year Old Japanese Brand Still Underrated?

What makes a great button down shirt? Fit is certainly a big part of it, as are details like the collar, not to mention how the whole thing is stitched together. But even if you’ve nailed those, one thing that’s undoubtedly at the core of all great shirts is quality fabric. After all, without it, there wouldn’t be a shirt at all.

Banana Republic is a clothing brand that was founded on the idea of adventure—of traveling to a far away land and wearing clothes to meet the occasion. But today, the journey we’re about to embark on is not one that requires a passport, but rather, a mere willingness to look back in time to the label’s past. If you don’t know the full story, I’ll make it quick cause we’ve got eBay links to smash.

Ask any extremely online menswear enthusiast to rattle off the most exciting brands in the business right now, and they’ll probably point you to a handful of familiar names. A.Presse would certainly be make the cut, ditto Auralee. Evan Kinori might follow, or Lemaire, or even a capital-D Designer label like Celine. You might even catch an oldie-but-goodie Supreme shout-out.

I’m writing a post about sweaters, jackets, and full length trousers after a day in which I sweated my buns off in 90 degree heat and close to 100% humidity. On the one hand, I wouldn’t blame you for telling me it’s entirely too early to start thinking about fall garments. After all, if you wore a sweater on a day like today, you might be committed. But on the other hand, the heat today had me yearning for days of layers, even if I may regret saying that come December.

Earlier this week I was hard at work on a post about what I believe is one of the most underrated brands in menswear. That isn’t this post, though rest assured that one is coming soon. It just is taking a little longer than expected as there’s a lot of ground to cover in terms of brand history and product info, etc.

When products in the world of menswear are hyped up—whether this force is derived by word of mouth, internet buzz, or a celebrity-endorsement—it’s incredibly easy lose sight of what actually makes something good. Take it from me—someone who has been burned by this kind of groupthink in the past, and invested in products that I was told would at the very least look great and potentially fix all of the problems I’ve ever had in life.