Jackie Collins in the Seventies

 Best-selling novelist, Jackie Collins is someone whose features have remained spookily the same over the years.  Jackie likes to attribute her lack of ageing to her famous Collins genes as her face has hardly changed one whit over the passage of time. 

 Jackie’s clothes style also hasn’t changed over the decades as she continues to sport her signature look.  The bouffant shoulder-length hair, the dangling earrings and matching pendant, the v-necked top to show off that cleavage are all ever-present, topped off by a fitted jacket.

 In fact, it could still be 1975 according to La Collins because Jackie still remains completely fossilised in time, oblivious to any style changes.

Jackie Collins and Raquel Welch

However Jackie’s essential look is part of her glamorous persona (coupled with the problem of competing with her elder and more sophisticated sister, Joan).  If she attended a book signing session looking like a bag-lady then her numerous fans would be in for a hefty shock.

 Which causes an interesting conundrum for figures in the spotlight – how far do you have to dress to live up to public expectations?    If you do not, you disappoint your fans.  If you do, however you run the danger of fossilising your looks, pickled in aspic to remain always the same.  And that has happened to Jackie.

Which takes me to actor Peter Wyngarde.  In the 1970s, Peter Wyngarde struck TV gold, playing the part of Jason King in the television series Department S. 

Peter Wyngarde as Jason King

Jason King was famous for his wardrobe, a wardrobe that epitomised the best and the worst of Seventies taste (depending on your view-point) with eye-popping kipper ties and  3-piece suits that sported lapels so wide they could fly you to Madagascar and back.

Alas, playing the cool Mr King was the high-spot of Mr Wyngarde’s television career and he crashed rapidly out of the public view when the series ended.

However earlier this year, a national newspaper berated Mr Wyngarde for being spotted in the street, looking scruffy and unkempt so unlike his uber flamboyant screen character.

Mr Wyngarde replied in writing, pointing out he had played a wide range of parts in his theatrical career so why on earth was he expected to look and wear clothes like Jesus and Genghis Khan, merely because he had acted those roles?

Peter Wyngarde, pictured in the street.

He had a valid point – did the general public really expect him to appear in his 3-piece suits of yester-year.  Why would he look exactly the same as three decades ago? And since he is now relatively anonymous, he has the luxury of dressing exactly how he likes and not to please his public.

Nevertheless, if you are a rock star then it is perfectly acceptable to fossilise your looks.  Francis Rossi, lead singer with Status Quo has worn his rock star uniform of waistcoat, shirt and jeans for 35 years alongside his trade-mark ponytail.  The ponytail got the chop last year as Rossi decided to update his look.

Rossi admitted rather sheepishly it had to go as thinning hair no longer meant a viable ponytail.

“In the past year my hair has got so thin….a few weeks ago it dawned on me that I looked ridiculous so I decided to forget about clinging to my youth”.

Well done Mr Rossi.  It takes a great deal of courage to ditch a fossilised look that no longer rocks.  Far better to remain a national treasure than an ancient ruin.

By Lindsey Nicholls

Pocket squares, handkerchiefs, hanks, flourishes; call them what you will, their return is assured. When Burton and Next start selling them, you know that you can wear one in a dark London sidestreet pub without being laughed (or thrown) off the premises.

I have worn them for years, influenced by the artistry of grand old stars of the silver screen like Clark Gable and Fred Astaire who were rarely photographed without one. They are generally quite useless as few gentlemen would hand a prized silk square to a tearful lady obscured by mascara, although they can be used as a secondary lens wipe. Although not functional, they are aesthetically brilliant. When you begin to wear them, they look and feel odd. You will find yourself fiddling with them, straightening them, puffing them, overtly conscious of their presence in your top suit pocket; this period is awkward and slightly inelegant but it is simply one of the uncomfortable ‘initiations’ men are required to bear.

After becoming accustomed to this decoration, your pockets (and those of others), will look naked without it. You will graduate from the freshman plain white to sophomoric patterns like polka dots and unusual colours like burnt orange leading you to pursue, continually, the extraordinary; unusual checks and paisley are clear signs of a pocket square veteran.

Seasonal Combinations

The really pocket-conscious gentleman will not only cleverly match or tastefully contrast to the rest of his ensemble but will also dress his pocket according to the season. A dark plum silk worn with a birdseye navy suit is a classic autumn/winter combination, whereas a light pink silk worn with a khaki cotton suit is distinctly summertime.

Pastel colours are perfect for wearing with lighter suits as they do not ‘interrupt’ the suit too vividly. For the same reason, deeper tones are preferred with darker suits. If wearing a darker jacket in summertime, perhaps with an odd pair of linen trousers, it might be an idea to match a lighter square to the trousers or the shirt.

The material issue

Everyone thinks of silk when they think of pocket squares, despite the fact that most of the hanks stuffed in pockets of old were plain white cotton. Silk is certainly a beautiful fabric; perfect for stuffing and lustrous. However, considering the plethora of silk ties and ‘suits of a certain sheen’, adding another shiny bauble to an ensemble is often excessive. A lovely cotton or linen square, stuffed or folded into the top pocket, is the perfect foil; the importance of texture difference is one of the most underrated considerations of a gentleman’s attire.

By Winston Chesterfield

  Conjoined clothing – the art of dressing like your partner is everywhere this spring.  Nowhere has it been seen more clearly in the run up of the General Election with both the Camerons and the Browns going head to head (and hip to hip) in the aim to create a winning look.  (The Cleggs opted out – the fiercesome Mrs Clegg does not even do ironing let alone matching clothing.)

The message behind conjoined clothing is about putting on a united front and presenting yourselves as a team to the world – it’s the X and Y Factor.  It’s a tricky thing – get it wrong and you are more likely to look gruesome twosome rather than winning twinning so what’s the best way to go about it?

Remember Howard and Hilda from the TV series, Ever Decreasing Circles and those Noel Edmond’s Eighties jumpers?  It was a running gag that Howard and Hilda not only borrowed each other’s words but also each other’s wardrobe.

 In a similar vein, David and Victoria Beckham once sported his and hers biker suits that made them both look like a walking advert for Land of Leather.

 To get the look right, opt for a more formal and classic look.  Make sure the colours suit both of you.  Gordon and Sarah Brown nail it spot-on here.  Both opt to wear linen-look in a chocolate brown.  Sarah’s neat and elegant dress with its wide lapels echoes her husband’s jacket and the cardigan (although a tad mumsy) of lilac-grey softens the look and matches Gordon’s tie perfectly.  The necklace of quartz beads adds the right finishing touch and complements the blue of the ex-Prime Minister’s shirt.

 The Camerons, on the same trail, also hit the right note.  Samantha Cameron’s empire-line dress in dark wool works alongside David’s dark business suit and white shirt.  The message is of uniformity and brisk business is clearly on the agenda.  Only Sam’s pendant necklace and peep-toe shoes hint at a touch of individuality.

Now that the election is over we will probably see the end of this look.  Both sets of partners can return to their individual wardrobes with a collective sigh of relief.  Which is a bit of a shame since it certainly brings a new meaning to putting on your party dress…