A handful of years ago, I’d tried out one of these “we’ll send you a box of clothes, and buy what you want out of the box & send the rest back.” It was more $ than I’d wanted to spend on clothes, but I found two things in the handful of boxes I’d gotten that I really appreciated. First was the best pair of pants I’d ever worn. They were a pair of black Adriano Goldschmied jeans that fit great, and were more comfortable than any other pair of pants I’d ever worn. These pants showed me how pants are *supposed* to fit.
The second was a blazer. I’m not normally a blazer person, but this jacket fit *perfectly* and was just more stylish and well made than any piece of clothing I’d ever owned. It was also more expensive than any piece of clothing I’d ever bought, and so I tried it on, thought a lot about it, then sent it back.
About a year later, my company got acquired, and as a present to myself, I wanted to buy that jacket. But I didn’t know anything about it. I hadn’t thought to look at the manufacturer. So I got in touch with the folks at the company that sent it to me (Trunk Club), and they both found the manufacturer (Sand Copenhagen) and sent out the “current style” of the jacket. This was different – it was a beige houndstooth, it had elbow patches, and instead of a bananas vibrant insanely colored lining in an otherwise very straightforward jacket, it had a gold paisley lining.
It became my favorite jacket. It’s not flashy when you look at it – looks pretty bland & professorial. But it’s got interesting details. Subtly different buttons on the cuffs. An orange metallic paisely lining under the collar. That gold interior lining with bright pink detailing. I loved that about it.
But over the last 5 years, I’ve gotten fatter, and it hasn’t fit in a long time. Still fits great in the shoulders, but the chest/waist just don’t fit anymore. I brought it to the tailor (the first time I’ve been to a tailor in … ever? Other than when I’ve bought a suit & had it tailored before delivery) to see if they could let it out, and the problem is the way it’s cut, there’s no extra fabric. Figures.
*sigh*
So the jacket’s moving on, to someone who will hopefully give it more use.
But it’s strange. I’m not a clothing guy. At ALL. But this, for some reason, is sort of an aspirational thing. I can find other jackets, I’m sure, but I want to hit some sort of milestone, and I want to get another jacket by this company. I know I can’t get the same style, but that combination of outwardly staid but inwardly outrageous – I *love* that about this jacket, and the quality of it is so far beyond anything I’ve seen in other clothes.
Someday I’ll find its successor. Until then, I suppose it’s a goal. 