What To Buy This Week: Vol 21

Thom Sweeney’s ready-to-wear tailoring seems to get perpetually more indulgent season on season. For autumn/winter ’16, the house has experimented with Loro Piana’s sumptuous worsted cashmere jacketing to cut a sharp trio of two-by-three double-breasted jackets in charcoal, navy and this distinctive shade of biscuit. Made in Italy with an impressively soft construction, the jacket is fully-lined, cut with a lightly canvassed chest that drapes beautifully with a natural shoulder, complemented by slim sleeves and a narrow wrap – all of which contributes to an easy-wearing, modern jacket that pairs easily with other browns, greys and shades of blue. The butter-soft handle of the cashmere twill injects a contemporary touch of texture. Available in store, www.thomsweeney.co.uk.

Berluti has to be one of the undisputed kings of modern deconstructed tailoring. Cutting-edge design has long been a staple of the house and these polished, yet thoroughly louche tailored jogging trousers are a case in point. Ideal to pair with softly constructed blazers or overcoats; the trousers are cut in a high-performing superfine virgin wool blended with a little elastane, so hold a clean line through the leg for a smart look. This is tempered by the perfectly placed utility pockets on the side of each thigh, which add practicality and a touch of utilitarian-chic. Split seams running through the front of each leg, quarter-top pockets and clean waistband lend extra design interest for trousers that look as cool as they are comfortable to wear. £600.00, www.berluti.com.

Printed with rich shades of copper, rust, cream and cool navy blue this quintessential Rubinacci silk pocket-handkerchief design is the ideal thing to flatter the breast-pocket of your biscuit-blazer and navy jogging trouser combination. The design was chosen by The Rake simply because it represents Rubinacci’s signature Neapolitan aesthetic at its most elegant and most confident. Nelson’s flagship, a symbol of British martial prowess and national identity, is rendered in an exquisite print with no small amount of Neapolitan flair to it – referencing Rubinacci’s origins as an Italian tailor with a particular connection to British sartorialism care of its ‘London House’ label and store on Mount Street in the West End. This particular design is also available on our online atelier printed with a forest green border, should you care to take a look… £85.00, www.shop.TheRake.com.

Continuing with this week’s softly structured theme, this double-breasted overcoat from E. Tautz is just what one wants from a robust, elegantly tailored overcoat. Made to designer Patrick Grant’s exacting standards, which combine an uncompromising understanding of technical tailoring and a seasoned eye for contemporary menswear aesthetics, the shoulders are natural with a delicate crown to each sleevehead, whilst the lapels are generous and reflect Grant’s penchant for double-breasted peaks cut with a low gorge and lots of belly. The six-button double-breasted closure likewise feels rather soignée. In an intriguing tonal navy and grey gun-club check cloth with plenty of heft to it, the coat is easily dressed up or down, paired with monochromatic tailored formalwear for a sharp professional look, or with denim, a utility shirt and knitwear on the weekends. £1490.00, www.etautz.com.

For something suitably innovatory to sit alongside your tailored pieces, the post-modern designs of Alice Made This are ideal. The joint-vision of Alice and Ed Walsh, Alice Made This exists to ‘refine British industry’ in order to create fine jewellery with a dynamic, precise and refined aesthetic. Unashamedly forward-thinking in scope these exquisite solid silver Denys cufflinks were made and hallmarked in Birmingham’s fine jewellery quarter, and reflect the couple’s passion for Brutalist architecture, fine geometry and precision engineering. Indeed, Alice Made This’s chosen silversmith tools, files, cleans, barrels and grinds each piece by hand, yielding a set of links that are both artisanal and yet unerringly exacting. The match made in heaven then for the double-cuffs of a soft white tab-collar shirt and navy grenadine tie. Wear beneath your new E. Tautz gun-club check coat for maximum impact. £230.00, www.alicemadethis.com.

If precision engineering is your thing, then Blancpain’s latest addition to the iconic Fifty Fathoms collection is destined to float your boat. A rather special 250-piece limited edition, the Bathyscaphe Chronographe Flyback Ocean Commitment is the latest Blancpain timepiece created as a part of the Manufacture’s efforts to raise funds to support ocean exploration and environmental preservation. After all, Blancpain has one of the longest standing relationships with marine diving in the world – let’s not forget that the original Fifty Fathoms was the world’s first modern diving watch. In its new form, the Bathyscaphe Chronographe Flyback features a dramatic sunburst grey dial which contrasts beautifully against the blue ceramic insert on the bezel and the satin-brushed blue 43.60mm ceramic case. Furthermore, it is fitted with Blancpain’s self-winding F385 calibre, for unparalleled precision and exactitude. And when all’s said and done, there’s a compelling moral imperative behind this highly exclusive watch, which The Rake feels makes it more than a worthy investment. www.blancpain.com.