Decades Of Glamour

Look, I don’t need much of a reason to dress up, but a day at the Met is definitely one of the better reasons to suit up. The Met is one of Cape Towns most prestigious horse racing events and with this year marking its 155th running, its also one of its oldest. For those of you who don’t yet know, this year the Met has taken on new sponsors and will be officially known as the Sun Met celebrated with Mumm.

The day is really only about 2 things, horses and fashion. Well, three things if you add champagne. I don’t know many people who know much about horses, so our day is usually focused around Fashion, Champagne and picking the horse with the best name. This years fashion theme is ‘Decades of Glamour’ with a retrospective look at the last 80 years that defined todays fashion. For those of you who may need a little help, I’ve put together 3 looks from 3 of my favorite decades to give you some inspiration and get you going. I’ve partnered up with Markham and Fabiani in order to give  you looks to suit different budgets as well as items that are available right now.

Now, keep in mind, I’m not an historian, especially not one that specializes in the history of fashion. What I do have is Google and a ton of research, but even so, this is meant to be inspirational and not cold hard facts.

1920’s

Men in the 1920’s were arguably the best dressed men of all time, in fact most of the ‘rules’ regarding menswear can be traced back to the 1920’s. When we think 20’s, we all think Gatsby and Leonardo Di Caprio smashing a creme suit with a brown waistcoat and yellow tie. Truth be told, that wasn’t very far off. The colors were all very neutral allowing the details to pop and in a decade where details were everything you made sure you never had a stitch out of place. Men would rarely leave the house without a hat and you would be hard pressed to find someone not sporting a pair of wingtips on their feet.

I decided I would go for something very neutral with bold patterns and accessories. The double breasted jacket with wide lapels is bang on 1920’s, paired with some simple light chinos and a popping pocket square. If you think the 1920’s is for you and like the look above, you can get it here:

Hat from Markham • Shirt from Fabiani • Bow tie from Markham • Pocket square from Fabiani• Blazer from Markham • Lapel flower from Markham • Trousers from Fabiani

 1940’s

The 1940’s were pretty much ruled by World War 2 and the great depression. This decade didn’t see much change in the mens fashion established in the 20’s and with all the war rationing going on suits became slimmer and military inspired. Pin striped suits really mark the decade as did suspenders (due to leather rations on belts) and your outfit was once again not complete without a hat, pair of two toned brogues and a sizable pants cuff. As the war came to an end everything became wider; pants, ties and especially choice!

I decided I would crossover war and post war with this military inspired double breasted suit and simple muted accessories. If you want to give the 1940’s a go you can get the following items here:

Hat by Markhams • Suit by Fabiani • Tie by Fabiani • Pocket Square by Fabiani

1960’s

When you think of the 60’s it’s generally filled with flower power, peace signs and bell bottoms right? Wrong! Well, not wrong actually, I mean bohemia was definitely a look back then but this was a decade where individual style really flourished.  Sub cultures started to adopt there own style and men started hanging up that ‘uniform’ they had been dragging around for 4 decades. Generally things got tighter and louder with patterns and colors everywhere. My personal favorite look from this decade was that of the “mods”, in fact most of what you find in stores today is mod inspired fashion. Clean lines, well tailored suits and a pair of Chelsea boots will get you a long way at achieving this look.

I’ve definitely taken more of a Mod Persuasion to this look with a simple tailored one button suit but added my 60’s fun in the bright colors and polka dot shirt. If you wanna go 60’s you can get this outfit right here:

Suit by Markham • Shirt by Fabiani • Tie by Markham • Lapel pin by Markham • Pocket square by Fabiani

That’s it folks! If you’re on your way to this years Sun Met then I really hope this post has helped you. Remember, there is a difference between dressing to a theme and dressing up – your outfit should be inspired by the decade but be modern and glamorous. Your outfit should not mimic the decade and be true to every detail as if you’re going to a dress up party.

If you don’t yet have tickets then I hope this post has inspired you to get some, I hope to see you there!

Okay. Stay Fancy.