My Lifeblood

The essence of life. Coffee. Just like the characters in the science fiction novel Dune needed the spice to maintain their civilization. Without coffee, I cannot function. Last week my coffee maker finally gave out after three years of faithful service. I had to go one day without homemade coffee.

Why homemade? Everyday I make half a pot of coffee in the morning and have a cup with breakfast. I put the rest in a thermos and sip it throughout the day. I bought a Nissan stainless steel thermos which holds sixteen ounces. A great purchase as it really keeps my coffee hot into the afternoon.

Convenience and savings. These are the two critical elements of my homemade coffee. Last week I ended up paying $1.75 for a small cup of coffee. If I bought coffee at this price every day, I'd end up paying $500 a year. Throw in a few mochas or cappuccino at $3.50 or more and you can easily spend $1,000 a year just on your caffeine fix. Then you need to consider the time and aggravation factor of standing in line to get your drink. Have you seen the line at Starbucks in the morning? It's crazy.

Well, time to have another sip.

The Absence of Clothing

There are a hell of a lot of posts on this blog about clothing. My shoe posts alone outdistance other topics by a considerable degree in regard to the number of postings. Yes, LeDandy is obsessed with fashion. But since it is summer, I often consider the opposite of clothing: nudism. Naturism, buck naked, call it what you will. A long time ago in Arizona, LeDandy visited one such establishment.

I reference a post which I wrote for my old blog, The Pen Gaaghi. Please check out this article. You will find it quite titillating. I apologize in advance for any dangling participles. I concluded that nudist camps are a crock and an exercise in frustration for straight men. Regardless of what the "naturists" may say, there is a very strong undercurrent of sexuality at these places. It is the last place I'd want to take my kids.

The Winner is ...........

The Corbin shawl collar tuxedo in black. I've finally decided on my tuxedo purchase for the wedding. It wasn't exactly a tough decision as I knew exactly what I wanted to buy. There aren't that many shawl collar tuxedos on the market when compared to the very popular notch lapel. I shopped around on the internet and found the best deal at Buy4LessTuxedo.com for $400. Other online stores had this suit at $560+. I've worn Corbin trousers in the past and they were of excellent quality. I'm betting the suit is equally good.

I did try on a few tuxedos in the department stores in San Francisco. Two weeks ago I went into Macy's and tried on a Calvin Klein notch lapel which was on sale for $420. I was amazed at the cheap fabric and poor construction of the jacket. Horrible. The sleazy salesman said "Oh, it looks great on you. It is a one day sale." Some sale. Buy4Less has the exact tuxedo at a regular price of $350! Last week I went into Bloomindale's and tried on a Burberry notch lapel for $1,000. Nice tuxedo but not worth that amount. These outings confirmed my belief that the best deals are found online.

As long as an online store has a good return policy, I have no hesitation buying from them. Online shopping gives the advantage of not having to deal with salespeople. I consider this a big plus. I'll be ordering the Corbin tuxedo soon and hope to get a lot of use from it.

Wedding Wardrobe Accessories

Jon Dean recently purchased a nice set of button covers and a pair of cufflinks on eBay. He gifted the silver button covers to me and I plan on wearing them on the big day. I didn't know a thing about button covers until he bought them. They open up on the back and it slides over the button. Then you snap it in place. Each one is about the size of a penny.


Here are the boss's cufflinks. Nice little floral pattern on 10k gold.

My Introduction to the Tuxedo

LeDandy has been extremely busy these days. Wedding plans alone are demanding and can be emotionally draining at times. On TLC there is a show about brides buying their wedding dress. What a mess! I'd rather be in combat than dealing with "bridezilla." No such problems at LeDandy's household but there are a lot of arrangements to make. The church, reception hall and the catering are all set. Jon Dean met with the photographer yesterday.

I ordered my shoes a week ago so now the remaining big purchase is the tuxedo. LeDandy may know shoes and socks but was totally ignorant of the tuxuedo until a few weeks ago. Hence, a crash course on this formal garment. I found a wonderful website, Blacktieguide.com, which discusses the basics of formal attire. I highly recommend it. The author of this site has an excellent buying guide as well. You do not need to spend $1,000 for a good tuxedo.

There are three basic style of tuxedo, all based on the shape of the lapel. They are the peak lapel, shawl collar and notch lapel. In all cases, it is best to stick with the single breasted jacket to get the most versatility from it.


The most proper and traditional is the peak lapel. It is derived from a tailcoat and has a long history. But as Jon Dean says, "It makes you look like a vampire." This is due to the lapel extending outward, making a mountain like peak. Another tuxedo variant is the shawl collar which has a totally rounded lapel. Its roots are in the smoking jacket and it also has rather long history. Shawl collars are definitely in the minority of tuxedos sold today. The most prevalent, and modern tuxedo is the notch lapel. If you walk into any department store, I guarantee you most tuxedos will be notch lapel. The triangular notch in the lapel makes this tuxedo match the standard American business suit. Boring but acceptable.

For a good discussion on tuxedos, I suggest doing a word search on Men's Flair. They have some good articles. Stay away from the clothing forums as those guys will lead you to spend a small fortune and you will not look any better.

Guess which style appeals to LeDandy? The shawl collar, of course!

A Big Disappointment

This evening I was stuck in a little bit of traffic. A BMW was broken down in the center lane and the cars had to funnel away from it. The driver looked rather sad standing next to his car. BMW is advertised as the "ultimate driving machine." Not in this case!

I saw another disappointment this week on a more personal note. My work is one block from the Westfield Center and I walked over to check the merchandise at Bloomingdales. I was shocked to find Stubbs & Wootton slippers on display in the men's department. I've never seen these shoes in person. They had the black velvet slipper with the red devil embroidered on the vamp. Several months ago a pair in my size went for $160 on eBay. Retail is now $395.

My first impression was that these shoes are pieces of crap. I couldn't believe how cheap they looked. The construction was no better than my low vamped red shoes that I purchased on eBay for $10. I was not impressed at all with the Stubbs & Wootton slipper. I picked one up in my hand and it felt like a novelty shoe. Thank God I didn't bid on these shoes.

The slippers look great on the internet but fail to live up to the expections in person. Look elsewhere if you want the motif slipper.

Summer Dreams

Here I sit in my office on Union Square on a nice summer day. The sun is out and I have a decent view of the cable cars from the office window. I'd sure like to be out on the beach or by a pool checking out the eye candy instead of working.

Here is a great Coke commercial, circa 1980, showing the pleasures of summertime. LeDandy likes the big bottomed bikini girls in the beginning. Have a Coke and a tush!*

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*LeDandy is going to have a whack and a black eye if Jon Dean finds out!

Getting Married: My Shoes

Yes, the shoes. For LeDandy, the shoes are the focus of the wardrobe and every other article of clothing is meant to support the shoes. An unconventional approach to the wardrobe but after all I am LeDandy. Not many men are particular about their footwear and there are limited choices for traditional formal wear.

Patent dress lace-ups are a conventional choice for black tie. No one will notice them and you'll look fine. Tuxedo slippers are a more classic yet seldom seen style worn these days. I have a pair of Bragano tuxedo slippers which I like to wear with casual clothes. However, I want something with a little more flair for my wedding. An archaic and interesting selection would be the opera pump (below). This style is appreciated by the clothing connoisseur but is universally viewed as too effeminate by men. The opera pump appeals to LeDandy but it still lacks that certain pizzaz (for want of a better word).


This leads to my clear cut decision in the matter of footwear. I selected the velvet Albert slipper with a bee motif on the vamp. Yes, I've had this shoe in mind for some time. I ordered this shoe from Shipton & Heneage earlier in the week and it should take about two months to receive them. From what I've heard, they make an excellent slipper and their prices are very good. Unfortunately I don't have a picture from their website of the final product. The motif below will be embroidered on the black slipper.




The bee is a whimsical touch yet still proper. I can't wait to get them!

LeDandy is Getting Married!

Yes, this is the big news! Last month a state court decision allowed California the right to have same-sex marriages. LeDandy and Jon Dean plan on getting married this fall. We've been together eight years and we have been registered as domestic partners here in California. Now we will be honest men and no longer "shacking up" as sayeth Dr. Laura on the radio.

Wonderful news for me but what does that mean to you as a reader? This will be my adult entry into the world of formal wear. The last time I wore a tuxedo I was about four years old (and looked great!). Expect a lot of columns on formal wear in the coming months.

So how will I go about getting my first formal outfit? Pick the shoes and let everything else support it! Yes, I already ordered my shoes for the wedding. I'll put up a post tomorrow on it. Today's column is the wedding announcement.

Coke Was It

It has been a very busy week for LeDandy. Lots going on and I'll write more on the weekend as time does not permit me to do justice to the topic.

Last weekend I spent a fair amount of time on YouTube watching vintage Coke commercials from the 80's and World Cup soccer highlights. Definitely a great time and a return to some great memories from that decade. Coke had many memorable ads back then. The ad agency they used definitely earned their fees.

The ad below is from 1986 and is perhaps the finest commercial I've ever seen. It strikes the right chord in me and packs a lot of entertainment into thirty seconds. Enjoy.

LeDandy is on the Ball

No kidding. I bought this large exercise ball, also know as a Swiss ball, about two years ago. I hardly used it. My intent was to work on my abs with it. Unfortunately the basic exercises never worked out for me. The ball has been in the corner of our living room gathering dust.

A week ago I decided to get my abs in shape. This has been a much neglected part of LeDandy's body. I'm doing simple sit-ups on the ball every other day. As a youngster, I hated sit-ups. Painful and I never felt that it did anything for me. The big ball makes a difference since it gives back support. The nice thing is that I can do the sit-ups while watching tv.

This ball is a 65 cm Pezzi that I ordered online. Much better than the cheap balls you find at Wal-Mart and Target. I know because the cheap ones I bought prior to this one were uncomfortable and didn't last.

Shoes

There is a lot going on this summer and I've been incredibly busy. Not too busy to appreciate the nice color mix of today's footwear. This is perhaps my favorite pair of low vamp loafers. Vintage Cole Haan shoes with heavy tassels which I bought on eBay a year or so ago for $22.50. Over the weekend I gave them a conditioning and shine using Lexol conditioner and neutral shoe cream. They look great! The hot pink socks are Pantharellas which I bought from Sox-Populi.

Two weeks ago or so I received my Zelli peccary loafers. I love them. Very soft and the hide has a unique look. I hope to have these shoes many years.