Life Skills

What I’m looking forward to wearing this winter – Permanent Style

Sep 13, 2024
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By Jamie Ferguson.

Hey there Permanent Stylers. Longtime contributor, first time writer so go easy on me.

Now I may be in the minority here but I LOVE summer dressing. I enjoy the feeling of a cool breeze betwixt my nethers, brazenly unclasping that fifth button on my shirt as I sip a refreshing sixth, seventh, maybe eighth (who’s counting anyway?) Spritz. Dressing for heat yet dressing well is tricky and I relish the challenge.

However, the colder months ARE closing in. Well, they are where I live anyway. The rest of you are probably still basking in the heat, trying to avoid unsightly tan lines and eagerly awaiting a jellies delivery. But for those of us in Ireland it’s time to start contemplating hibernation. And by hibernation I mean LAYERS baby! Menswear’s most exciting time of the year is coming.

To that end, I’ve climbed up into my metaphysical attic, cracked open the thought trunk and unsealed my vacuum-packed brain bags to bring you: JKF Man’s 5 Things I’m looking Forward to Wearing in Autumn/Winter ’24. The title needs a little work but hey, at least there are no moths.

1 Inis Meain cashmere Aran jumper

Perhaps the most luxurious item on my list, I picked this up on a recent trip to Inis Meain just off the west coast of Ireland. I was visiting their workshop as part of an article for Robb Report and spotted it in the factory shop.

I’ve wanted a traditional Aran in the classic off-white/ecru for some time. Funnily, I have another Aran in cotton from Inis Meain but its colouring is much darker – almost like putty. So I was still after a lighter version. Besides, one can never have too many pieces of off-white knitwear: it goes with everything. They’re a pop of contrast in a darker outfit and a pleasingly tonal shade in a more earthy one.

I like that this version restricts the Aran pattern to just the chest piece: one of those small alternates that updates a classic sweater.

This is a big, beefy but surprisingly soft jumper that I plan on wearing fireside, with ripped denim and a pair of Stubbs & Wootton or Belgian slippers, or maybe draped over the shoulders of my PS x PWVC Donegal grey coat.

2 Campbell’s of Beauly Fair Isle Vest

Something that I get a real kick out of is taking a piece of clothing that’s seen a certain way, and attempting to flip that perception on its head. Visually it’s something I find interesting as a photographer, and that’s started to seep into the way I look at my wardrobe too.

This Fair Isle vest from Campbell’s is a perfect example. I think sometimes Fair Isle can be a little tricky to modernise. It can feel a little TOO classic, if you catch my drift. Paisley is another.

In these images, I’ve kept it relatively straightforward by going uber-Ivy: duffel coat, OCBD, loafers, white socks, the whole shebang. I think this works well and fits within my current wheelhouse of style.

BUT to flip the script, something I’ve been seeing more is wearing a Fair Isle casually over a plain, white tee with some super-washed, light blue or off-white denim.

One of my personal style Yodas (everyone has those right?) Nicholas Walter does that well in the image above (on the right – admittedly Nick is wearing a plainer vest but I think the same principles apply) as does Tyler the Creator here.

The plan is to have a minute bit of tee peeking out of the hem of the vest, and the length maybe needs to be shorter. I’m hoping that a careful hand wash might shrink it a little.

The fit of the vest is key to the overall look I want, and I think the easiest way to insure this is by being in better shape than I currently am! I say easy…

3 Rocky Mountain Featherbed Vest

This get up might be my favourite outfit ever. Top three for sure. It ticks so many weird little boxes for me. Some form of tailoring, yup; patchwork madras, yup; white socks, yup; Alden loafers, yup; a Rocky Mountain insouciantly thrown over the top, YUP; ANNNNNNNND a baseball cap??? Well, that’s a big ol’ YARP.

AW24 will be a continuation of trying to see what other items of my tailoring benefit from the no-sleeved hug of this down gilet.

Oddly though, what I don’t do enough is wear it casually and thus, this winter I’d like to do it more. In fact I’m begrudgingly, (like when your big brother has been telling you to watch The Wire for yonks and you’re like ‘No way dingus! I’m my own man…’) planning to take a page out of the Cromptonian playbook and slip it over a marl-grey crewneck sweater, light-washed denim and snuff-suede Alden Indy boots. Thank… you… Simon.

Utility. Gonna be big this winter, I’m telling ya.

4 JKF Man x The Anthology x Harris Tweed Hebrides Jacket

You knew I was gonna slip this in somewhere right? Had to be done and easy to do, as I’m still in love with this tweed AND jacket.

The older I get the more kick I get out of wearing things that have meaning for me beyond just material goods. The Omega WWW watch I bought when my son was born; the robe jacket that I had J Mueser make in Ferguson tartan; the pinky ring I commissioned through L’Arte Nascosta bearing my family crest: this jacket is one of those.

I had never thought about pairing it with a red chambray shirt (also from The Anthology), thinking it might be too matchy-matchy. I remember Buzz [Anthology co-founder] pushing it on me real hard (hmm…phrasing) during the shoot we did for this campaign and not really paying it much attention.

But at the time I hadn’t packed any lighter coloured trousers and I think this look really benefits from it. I’ve tried wearing it with darker denim in the past but felt the overall effect was too gloomy – I prefer these painter trousers or the Bryceland’s army chino.

There are also multiple things I want to try it with this season. I have a couple super-loose chore coats I want to try over the top; I want to try an off-white knit under or over it; and I’d like to try just a plain knit tee underneath.

I like pieces that are versatile and was worried, initially, that this was going to be one of those items I only wore a certain way. It has been fun trying to prove otherwise.

5 Morjas hiking boots

I remember seeing a shot of style-sensei Ben Phillips, either on the Drake’s IG or in the hallowed halls of dear PS. If anybody remembers, let me know. Anyway, he was wearing a grey, chalk-stripe suit with hiking boots. A little wink wink to the Agnelli stans out there. People flipped their lid. It was hilarious and I loved it. Both the unbelievable overreaction to a dude wearing clothes a certain way AND the way a dude was wearing clothes a certain way.

Ever since, this has been something I’ve tried to incorporate into my winter wardrobe, as it can get really cold in Ireland and while I want to wear tailoring, I do not want to get trench foot. Problem solved.

While I’ve never gone FA (Full Agnelli) I am looking forward to testing it out with the Fox navy chalk-stripe flannel DB suit that I’ve commissioned from The Anthology. There’s a look I saw on a Casatlantic campaign (who do some of the best men’s styling out there IMO) that I’m going to try and emulate (above).

I think the combination of navy and black is great, rather subtle and could work well with a denim chore coat for a bit of contrast. There are a few details I’d want to keep an eye on to make sure it comes off, e.g. the suit isn’t too dark and the other components all have enough texture.

I’m sure Simon has made this point before, but it can’t be overstated that when dressing with darker tones you need that fuzz or basketweave somewhere to differentiate between everything, otherwise you end up looking a little lost and flat.