The Versatile Walking Stick

Well. here I am once again on a cool fall day and I've got some wonderful treats for you. I've began my business making and creating walking sticks and my Etsy store already has three different sticks to offer and many more to come. If you've had you're eye out for a walking stick but want something unique and handmade my store is the place to look. Also, I take custom orders. If I have the ability to make it and you have an idea, contact me and we can talk. Thank you and happy shopping.

P.S. The store address is www.etsy.com/shop/jerryswindlejr

Mode Rage: Suits at the Races

Mode Rage: Suits at the Races

I'm Alive I Swear

Sorry guys it's been so long since I've posted but school has had most of my attention. I have also been involved in the early days of starting a new business. I'm planning to start selling my own line of walking sticks. I'm still in the early stages and only have three sticks designed. When I have decided on the final designs I'll post them here. You never know I may post a few previews in the next post.

Way Too Cool To Shave?

I know my subject is far from news to most people who don't live under a rock , but yesterday it came to a head. While watching the news coverage of Prince William and his new bride's honeymoon tour , I saw a brief clip of him shaking hands with English superstar David Beckham. I noticed right away that Beckham was unshaven and I don't mean five o'clock shadow, he was rockin' the three plus days at least. Since when does a man destined for a knighthood neglect shaving when he knows he's about to meet the future king of England? You can argue the future knighthood angle if you like, but you have to agree that David Beckham is a well known English citizen and I'm sure your garden variety London chemist would bust his ass to look as good as possible when he was scheduled to meet a member of the royal family. Does Beckham think he's so cool and close to the prince that he does'nt need to show him the respect he deserves? Why did he bother to wear a suit? My humble opinion is that this sloppy looking "too cool to comb my hair or shave my face" attitude that is so prevalent these days has reached it's zenith. Believe it or not, I put it above the 'tennis shoes with a tuxedo' thing and I despise that.

Yes, if you see me around the house, I probably will be unshaven, but if I leave my neighborhood, I shave. If I were told that I was going to meet Barack Obama, I would wear the best suit of clothes I own and I would certainly brush my hair and shave my face. And I hate the man. However, I do have respect for the position and I have the desire that every man should have, to be respected by others. That generally won't happen if I look like a homeless guy. Some will say that I'm stuck in the past and have no right to critisize a celebrity, that I'm an unhip loser. That may be true but the men I respect and have looked up to my entire life would have taken the effort to put their best selves forward and that's good enough for me.

Sexuality and Style

Sexuality and Style

Laying Low

I haven't been writing lately because I'm been doing my best to pay off my debts and save the rest. The only substantial thing I've bought lately is an Olney Boater. If you're on the market for a new boater I recommend the Olney. It has a lower crown much like the pre-WWI style. The only setback is that you have to order it from England but, depending where you order it from it will be cheaper than the italian made hats for sale here in the U. S. I ordered my hat from www.tailsandtheunexpected.co.uk and in addition to hats they have many vintage style products not often seen here.
Other than the hat I have been laying low in the a/c . It's already hit 100 here so I don't go out very often. I did find a beautiful hand made wood and brass card holder for business cards and the such and have been educating myself about fountain pens and other high quality pens.
My only pen purchases in that area has been a black lacquer and chrome trim Parker Sonnet rollerball pen. It's a good starter and almost writes as smoothly as my G2 Limited rollerball made by Pilot. The G2 only ran me $10 versus the Parker's $30. I'm switching the Parker's point to a fine in hopes it won't smear.
Well, that's it for now. I will write again soon or whenever my life becomes somewhat interesting.

New Shoes

Bass Brockton

Stacy Adams Kingsman

In addition to clothes and hats, I also got a couple of pairs of shoes. Among them I finally was able to get a pair of Stacy Adams Kingsmans. In order to get the denim/white color pair I had to wait until some became available and the great folks at the Florsheim outlet store mail them to me. Although, I've only been able to only wear them a few times I'm very happy with them. I have recieved several compliments. One from a costume designer that was interested in buying a pair.

Another pair of shoes I've recently purchased was the Bass Brocktons in white. The Brocktons are nubuck suede and as far as I'm concerned are a requirement for spring and summer clothing.I had no dead set brand in mind for 'bucks, but the Bass were a good price. The Dainite-style soles on the shoes make for a very comfortable wear and walking hours in these shoes are like minutes and will probably buy a pair in taupe or navy soon.

In the Good Ol' Summertime(Almost)

Hats-Plus

Old Mill Merchantile

In between hitting the books the last few weeks I've also been busy buying straw hats for the coming warm weather. Even though they're not really cool anymore (but is a gentleman either),the Boater or Skimmer depending where you're from is the classic summer hat. They were worn pretty much from the early 1880's until the 2nd World War. I was'nt sure how it would look on me so at first I got a cheaper panama straw version. Fortunately, it looked and fit well so I made the jump to a higher quality hat.

I bought a Scala from Old Mill Merchantile on Ebay. It was only $48, but it was heavier. The downside however it's flexibility caused the brim to be angle down a bit when worn. The flexibility does make the hat stretch to fit if you got a size a bit too small. I did keep the hat because it is snug enough to wear on a windy day.

The hat was not what I wanted so I decided to spend the big money and ordered an Italian hat from Hats Plus. It is much stiffer than any other of the hats I got before, but I do love it. It's thickness makes the hat a bit heavy so it may take a bit getting used to. Almost all the modern boaters come with a blue and red tri-stripe band,so if you don't like it you can change it to whatever you like. I made mine a black 2 inch grosgrain and is easy to do.

I have just ordered a cheaper quality boater that has just become available from Village Hat Shop. It's only $30 and I plan to wear it when it is 90 degrees or more mainly due to it's marked lightness versus the standard boater.

Catching Up

I've been hitting the books and battling my ailing car, but in between I've been buying many things. Among some things I tried to buy up all the tweed sportcoats on EBay in my size. More on that later. I finally got my pair Kingsmans' and hopefully I'll be getting my white 'bucks next week. I also have been building up my summer wardrobe including a 3-piece Perry Ellis cotton/linen suit. There will be more in depth info coming soon.
P.S. I'm getting a Boater on Monday!!!!

Perry Ellis Fashion Show

If you're like me you spend a good amount of money at Perry Ellis. Between their khakis and linen suits. I am a loyal customer. Well today is a happy occasion. Their 2011 Fall Collection Show is on today at 11 AM Eastern on their website, http://www.perryellis.com/

I hope it's entertaining and you all enjoy it.

Stacy Adams Rydell

Recently, on a trip to the local Florsheim outlet store. The friendly salesman steered me to a pair of shoes that he knew I would like. Now, I did'nt tell him I was there looking for saddle shoes, but he knows my taste. The shoes were the Stacy Adams Rydells and they are saddle shoes. They have the aged blue/black color that I believe is called denim by the company on the side panels while the remaining is a bone color. Stacy Adams also makes a brown/light brown version, but they can't hold a candle to the blue/bone style that I purchased. I did intend to buy the Florsheim Kennet and I may at a future date and I also plan on getting the Stacy Adams Kingsmans, but I am very pleased with the Rydells for now.

Also, I recently finally found a place that carried full length wool overcoats. Our local Belk store was having an awesome clearance sale and I happened upon the overcoats on sale for $100. So if you have a Belk close by, check it out. If you have weather where you live like we do here, you're gonna need it.

Yellowstone Deerskin Gloves

If your like me (you're better off if you're not), you're hands are cold all the time in the winter. Even here, in North Texas it gets fairly damn cold. During this time of year I'm wearing gloves almost around the clock. As a result, I have a bit of a fetish for gloves. Since most things these days don't last more than one season, I have to go around to multiple mens' stores looking for the right gloves that don't make my hands look like clubs. Recently, I was reading Mens' Flair and came across a column about Yellowstone Deerskin Gloves. If you look at any mens' magazines fron the 30's and 40's, you'll probably see an ad showing a gentleman wearing light colored gloves. Odss are he's wearing deerskins. Well, I have been on the search for a pair of quality deerskin gloves and when I read the column about Yellowstone, I was eager to try them out.

Yesterday, I received my Yellowstones and I was very pleased. They literally fit like a second skin and are smoother than glass. It is obvious that these gloves will last many seasons, so I recommend getting a couple of pairs.

P. S. They are made in the U.S.A.

Rules to make you a real gentleman

Since I lack the time to write a the post I had planned, I thought I'd make a list of rules that should always apply to a gentleman and set you apart from the modern male.



1. Take off your hat indoors. Regardless of the style, take it off. Especially in church.



2. When a lady leaves the table, stand up. When she returns, stand up again.



3. Don't talk about your sexual conquests with another lady. They sometimes will say they want to know,but that's a trick. Keep them to yourself.



4. When you pick up a lady for a date,go to the door. Don't honk at her from your car.



There's thousands of more tips out there,but like I said I'm short on time. I promise my next post will be a better one.