New life-&-style guide - “The Modern Gentleman’s Handbook by Charles Tyrwhitt”, London
Dear readers, apart from reshuffling your wardrobe for the chilly winter, from defrosting your beloved tailored flannel suits, exquisitely polished patina leather shoes, to the extra soft and fluffy cashmere sweaters, one might probably need a new style guide (or consulting a personal stylist) to get the best look for the season with your existing clothing, or, getting some new ones if necessary. In the world of classic menswear, there are more than dozens of rules about dressing properly and ‘correctly’ that one can find online, such as how to knot a necktie to folding pocket square to your blazer’s pocket, to choosing the right cut of suit for your body shape etc., you name it, but what I just found something recently, it’s a book that is so intriguing that not only it offers guidelines on how to dress nicely, but something about cultivating oneself from within, such as social etiquette and manners etc., a more refined modern gentleman from within, that derives from my discovery of the new book titled ‘The Modern Gentleman’s Handbook by Charles Tyrwhitt’.
Published by Ebury Publishing and written by the British gentlemen clothier – Charles Tyrwhitt, founded by Mr. Nicholas Charles Tyrwhitt Wheeler (OBE), this handy yet informative book is more than just an usual style guide for gentleman, but a way of living a more cultured life. As a classic British mens’ clothier, Charles Tyrwhitt is renowned for its high quality shirting collection, and this book literally begins with their signature product – the shirt, to guide the readers from wearing a shirt nicely to taking good care of a well-made shirt, then goes down to suits and tailoring etc., using a contemporary language which is relatively easy to understand and concise; apart from the wardrobe, this book also covers the grooming part, from shaving to skincare and fragrance choosing, giving a modern gentlemen a 360-degree advice to make themselves looks polished and presentable.
Despite having an outer look is important, my favorite part is the chapters of ‘Polished’ and ‘Travelling’, those 2 chapters offer some key advice for one who is interacting with others and giving some good impression, from serving wine, travelling etiquette to foreign countries, to how to behave when attending the opera and even a more modern rules about selfie taking, this book is just an informative style guide with a hint of humor and art of living, which elevates our life in an efficient way if one strives to be a modern gentlemen.
If I have to pick a book to read by the fireplace over this festive season, I have no doubt that this handy copy will definitely be one of it, at least, it gives me a good reason for me to dress up myself before I start reading it!
Cover photo courtesy of Ebury Press, London
https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/112/1120383/the-modern-gentlemans-handbook/9781529108842.html
https://www.charlestyrwhitt.com/uk/the-modern-gentleman%E2%80%99s-handbook---by-charles-tyrwhitt/BKS0002NON.html