Archive for October, 2011

Tied and Seek

October 20, 2011

Unlike yesterday’s foray into an advice column, today I will get straight to the Tie du Jour. Well, at least I will after I admit that I failed to mention my final bit of tie-storing advice to my cousin Beaux (former GWT). As I have captured in a photo on this very blog, I use suit hangers to keep my ties separate once I’ve worn them. There’s no reason this can’t also be a method of keeping not only your ties off the closet floor, but also of keeping your momma happy that you have such a clean room. And believe me, keeping a room clean is not a genetic trait amongst the males in my family.

My TdJ is an example of the foray into the funky colors that could be captured through the use of synthetic materials. Of course, these wunderfabriks had also been used to make the dull blue/brown/black ties that went along with the white/blue/mustard work shirts of the BusinessMan of the 60s (or Dwight Shrute). There just seemed to be a funky creepin’ in, sometime around the late 60s. I gotta scan some pix from my youth…not only am I wearing some retina-searing color combos, my folks’ garb was definitely Brady-esque. Thank goodness they never matched each other, or me and my brother.

Anyway, the TdJ is from Beau Brummel, and it’s polyester. Dacron, orlon, klingon…does it really matter at this point? Yes, I hid it under a sweater, not because it was bordering on ugly, but because I found a stain (old Campbell’s soup…mmm, good) that I hadn’t caught — or tasted — at Unique Thrift Store. The knot gives you plenty of perspective on its, um, colorfulnessosity.

Okay, the mention in my last post that I would spill the beans on TieXchange was apparently a tease. But, I will give the basics here: TieXchange will be a membership-based wardrobe enhancer. For a modest annual or monthly fee, one can select from a growing selection of new and pre-worn ties. One (or two, depending on the membership plan) of those selected strips will arrive in the mail, ready for wear. After wearing them as many times as the aforementioned ‘one’ so pleases, the tie is returned, after which another tie from the queue will shortly arrive. We hope to have it ready in the next couple of weeks, but feel free to click on the link and submit your email address to us.

I guess it wasn’t a tease. More TieXchange info to follow…

Thanks for reading…Brooke

Advertisement

Tags:, , , , ,
Posted in Tie du Jour | 2 Comments »

Forget me knot

October 19, 2011

Good brain, bad brain. It seems that the latter seems to be making itself known a lot more, at least in my world. I don’t even have the commercially-fueled image of “This is your brain on drugs” to blame my mental ineptitude on. Just duh-lightful.

My cousin (and GWT alum) Beaux Jones sent a query via Facebook the other week, asking if I had suggestions on proper tie storage. I think his question was based on his assumption that there were better places than a closet floor.

Yes, Beaux, there are many places that are better than the floor, even for storing ties. I employ a few methods. I have a wire rack that hangs like a coat hanger, and can store about 10-20 ties. I also have an extending rack (that’s what he said) with individual pegs (on which I hanged up to 3 ties). It attaches to the closet rod (watch it), and holds 30-90 ties. Thanks to another GWT alum, Dr. Vince Roberts, I have a Fast Track tie rack. Vince either wasn’t using it, or he found it at a resale shop. It revolves pretty slowly, but is a pretty good way to hang 50 ties or so.

So, young Beaux, count your ties and buy something that will hold double that number. A collection will grow, right? Then, as you approach the max number for your tie rack, you can either purge some rarely-worn strips, or you can just get another rack.

Caption Ron

Off the old-man tie-wisdom, and on to the Tie du Jour. It’s from Studio Ron Chereskin, and it’s a big orange paisley beauty. Great material, and it tied really well. I picked this up at the Salvation Army in Skokie. Speaking of SA, I must say that I really miss the one that was on Kedzie here in SE Evanston. Not only was it nice to drop stuff off there, but in case of a need, it was convenient to go in and take a quick look-see.

My next installment will include details on my new tie venture, the TieXchange. Can’t wait to share it with y’all.

Thanks for reading…Brooke

Tags:, ,
Posted in Tie du Jour | Leave a Comment »

The Tied of the Yankees

October 11, 2011

Darnit. I’ve had this blog subject saved for months, ready to use it in the inevitable event that the New York Yankees have a modicum of success. Not that I’m a fan; in fact, I’m probably the opposite. Because my immediate forebear (my Dad) passed on his extreme dislike (his extreme like of the Pittsburgh Pirates peaked 51 years ago when they took the World Series over the Bronx Bombers), it’s mildly disappointing that I failed to submit a timely account of their playoff demise. Well, in case you’ve instead been following football, lamenting the final episodes of Breaking Bad, or just enjoying the Indian summer, they were knocked out by the Detroit Tigers (either word, of course, can’t be spelled without T-I-E).

So, after several tie-less days, I finally sported another for a Few local sales calls for Few Spirits. Longtime destination Tommy Nevin’s Pub (T-I-E again) was first on my list, and so we’ll have our stuff there very soon. I also furthered our cause at Bar Louie and the Celtic Knot. We’ll be everywhere, man!

My Tie du Jour for the occasion is a lovely, patterned strip from one of my faves, Paul Fredrick. I picked this one up at Classy Closet resale shop, along with several other PF TdJ’s-to-be. The dark navy field is a perfect plot for the differently-colored medallions that regaled my light orange striped shirt.

Although I had not worn a tie in several days, we did have a new Guy With Tie pay us a visit. Scott Wright is a commercial loan officer from Charter One Bank. Our local branch manager, Raquel Hernandez, set up a meeting for us, and she and Scott niced up our distillery for a Few minutes.

Thanks for reading…Brooke

Tags:, , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Guys With Ties, Paul Fredrick Week, Tie du Jour | Leave a Comment »

Random act of tieolence

October 3, 2011

This evening I choose to focus on the ‘random’ portion of my subject, rather than the tieolence/violence sector. I have 5 or 6 ties to write about, and I’m going to select one of them at random to write about. Okay, kids! It’s a parlor game! Yippeee!

Welcome to my parlor, then, as we check out the available strips for our playing enjoyment. Round and round she goes, where she stops, nobody knows. Will it be on the green, the orange, the blue/brown stripey one?

We have a winner [insert phony exclamation point]. The panel of judges have selected one of my rare green strips for Tie du Jour superblogdom. It’s another 100D100T selection from Liberty of London, or so I suspect (the label seems not right). I guess that game wasn’t quite as exciting as I expected. Oh, well, it’s still a Liberty tie, specked with blue ovals.

Given the evidence I have, from my crapiPhone pictures from around that time, I wasn’t able to capture a pic of a new GWT on this particular day. But, my daughter Julia apparently drew me one. One could say she was trying to draw Butthead, but she’s not old enough to watch that show? Heh-heh…I said “but.”

And, again…BUT, now that Mike Judge is bringing B&B back, I guess she WILL be old enough to watch. Or not.

Thanks for reading…Brooke

 

Tags:
Posted in Tie du Jour | Leave a Comment »

Can’t spell “Tree killer” without T-I-E…

October 1, 2011

You also can’t spell “Restoration Hardware” without T-R-E-E-S A-R-E S-H-I-T. OK, there’s an extra ‘S’ thrown in there, but you get the picture, and you hopefully get what Restoration Hardware feels about our forests.

I have never been one to preach a green lifestyle: I try to recycle and I usually accomplish it. I have canvas shopping bags in my trunk, and I actually bring them into the store about half the time. But, when I saw the monstrosity that Restoration Hardware sent out, it pissed me off.

Have you seen this thing? It’s 615 pages of their overpriced merchandise (don’t they have to overprice? they need to pay for their catalog…) crammed into a 3-to-5 pound shop-alog. What world does their marketing department live in? Are they not onto the fact that, when someone needs a linen storage box, some Italian bedding, or a large leather couch (financing available), they will likely browse online? Yes, when I was a kid, I enjoyed the arrival of the Sears Giftbook just as much as anyone else. But, there was no way for me to peruse aisle after virtual aisle of toys and other Xmas wishes. These days, does anyone really take the time to leaf through 600+ pages of shoppable crap? For shame, RH…you are S-H-I-T.

Ok, off the soap box and back to ties…

After our Delilah’s adventure, it was time for the Indy Spirits Expo at the Bottom Lounge. Few Spirits, along with over 60 distillers, showed off our products to several hundred whiskey/spirits fans. I had some sales calls earlier, so I threw my Few shirt on over my shirt/tie ensemble. Not bad…

My Tie du Jour is a vintage thin from Prince Igor, which is probably, safe to say, no longer in business. It was sold by the Maurice L. Rothschild & Co. outfit at one of their department stores.

One of the exhibitors (good thing I didn’t say “exhibitionist”) at Indy was a very cool guy named Graham Wasilition, purveyor of Tenneyson Absinthe Royale (which was delicious, by the way…I’m a BIG fan of the black jelly bean). He had some tie-bar/cufflink sets, and he gave me a new tie bar, adorned with the Tenneyson design. Very cool, so I wore it the rest of the night. Thanks, G.

Thanks for reading…Brooke

Tags:, , , , , , ,
Posted in Tie du Jour | Leave a Comment »