READ THIS: Ivy Style Edited by Patricia Mears; contributions by Christopher Breward, G. Bruce Boyer, Christian Chensvold, Peter McNeil and Masafumi Monden Our Coverage Sponsored by Paul Mayer Attitudes
Paul Mayer's luxuriously, comfortable designs keep women coming back for multiple -- even dozens -- of pairs. Classic, yet contemporary and always comfortable, his shoes are an addiction that we highly recommend. A staple of the Paul Mayer collection is the simple ballet-flat, with true ballerina construction for a perfect fit that comes in a variety of colors and materials. A cult favorite is the cozy, a flat with lavender-scent infused soles adding style and fragrance to collector's closets as Paul's designs emerge in sophisticated design incarnations season after season in the most incredible hues, textures and modern innovations in luxury footwear because we know firsthand how incredibly brilliant he is. Mayer founded the brand in 2004 with partner, Jeff Levy. All shoes in the line are manufactured in Spain’s Valencia region, along the Mediterranean coast by a skilled staff of 12 artisans. They craft each pair of shoes with an old-world attention to detail that includes in-house embroidery, quilting and stitching as well as custom tanned leather. This allows the brand to cater to each retailer’s specific demands in with timely and consistent alacrity, with orders completed in an unheard-of 3 to 5 weeks. In 2011, Paul Mayer stepped out into Manhattan's Upper East Side with a new attitude, opening his flagship store at 1388 Third Avenue. The store which cleverly resembles a pink and black shoebox offers up to 150 shoe styles, including his popular ballerinas, exclusive designs and more. As an added bonus, shoppers have the chance of running into the designer, himself. Paul's sage shopping advice and style eye has made him the New York shoe lover's best kept secret. When not in New York, Paul can be found traveling to his myriad of stores across the country meeting his loyal clientele or vacationing in his favorite spot, the Royal Hawaiian on Waikiki Beach.
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Ivy Style is not new-in our humble opinion it falls under the overall fashion umbrella-which is the ONLY fashion umbrella-called Prep, made famous in a literary way by Mover and Shaker Carol Wallace in the bible: The Official Preppy Handbook which should have been featured far sooner than page 147. Logically, Prep must come first before you can even think of Ivy Style, as first you prep for college, then you go to college. Preppy comes from the word Prep School as in Miss Porter's and the like, and many go on to Ivy League schools afterwards-Sarah Porter's brother was President of Yale, after all. So, hats off to Yale University Press as they've got another winner of a book, and it's appropriate as they've got a banner year now with their hockey team taking it all. If the team had been that good when Peachy was at MPS perhaps she'd have applied to Yale...
What is Ivy Style? Clearly, it is smart. It is intrinsic to the history of the Ivy League colleges. We reject the thought put in print early on in these pages that most internet chroniclers of this style are men...and would like to point out that the Ivy League itself opened up to women eons ago, and many of them are better dressers than many of the men. It should not have taken up to page 183 to get to the Ivy Girl, whom we feel is at least equally important. The whole Ivy Look is basically unisex and many of us have been dressing this way our whole lives...
Beyond prep school, a lot of the roots of this style come from our friend Beau Brummel and Jermyn Street in London...we are speaking English in America for a reason. Edward the Duke of Windsor did quite a bit for fashion and we enjoyed reading the parts about him and his knot (p. 54) and we really like the Tyrolean suit which reminds us of Geiger, a brand we love. The English settled New England, and except for a couple in New York, one in Pennsylvania and one in New Jersey, the Ivies are in NEW ENGLAND. Those other 3 states are among the 13 original colonies though we do believe...the idea here is CLASSIC.
We like the font that they chose to employ in this book. It says classy and effortless, like sporty Ivy Style is. We are feeling a stronger presence from those in New Haven and Princeton over the other schools, but then again we are always singing the praises of Connecticut and F. Scott.
We were happy to see our friends at Chipp on page 101. Page 152 features J. McLaughlin...And the Polo Coat that we see on page 110 we know was worn by all at Miss Porter's in the 1940's/50's as Peachy was a member of the Archives Club.
Silly author, b
rands that are missing that we know for a fact are worn in the Ivies:
(but with a stronger presence at Boston College bien sur)
We'd suggest a chapter updating the Ivy styles of today at the actual Ivies and the feeder Prep Schools of those showing that this is a tradition that is alive and continuing today. We are not sure that Gossip Girl or Ivy Style in Japan is the best source.
By the way, did you know that Tweed is really a Twill....
Whom You Know Recommends Ivy Style! Bravo to all our bulldog friends.
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A 20th century history of Ivy style in American menswear
Captures a wide angle, not just the 1980s: The book traces the appropriation of British design staples after the end of WWI, the evolution of the Ivy look and its infiltration of mainstream men’s fashion between 1945 and 1960, and the rise of Ivy revival during the 1980s and present day.
Focus on a century’s worth of menswear: Pairs the history of pioneering American firms Brooks Brothers and J. Press with the work of designers like Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, Michael Bastian, J. McLaughlin and Thom Browne.
Ivy and Hollywood/Ivy and jazz: Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, Miles Davis and the Ivy look.
120 color photographs introduce readers to the intimate details of this one-of-a-kind collection.
About the editor / Patricia Mears is the deputy director of The Museum of the Fashion Institute of Technology
Founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and his wife Wilhelmina, Yale University Press is one of the oldest and largest American university presses.
MissionBy publishing serious works that contribute to a global understanding of human affairs, Yale University Press aids in the discovery and dissemination of light and truth, lux et veritas, which is a central purpose of Yale University. The publications of the Press are books and other materials that further scholarly investigation, advance interdisciplinary inquiry, stimulate public debate, educate both within and outside the classroom, and enhance cultural life. In its commitment to increasing the range and vigor of intellectual pursuits within the university and elsewhere, Yale University Press continually extends its horizons to embody university publishing at its best.
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