Six outfit photographs. The first two move from a navy blazer with khaki trousers to an olive chore jacket with denim. The next two are navy and khaki matching sets worn with sneakers. The final two pair sports jackets with jeans, using a white button-down without a tie and madras with a plain knit tie.
These are modern clothes inspired by Ivy and trad style, rather than original vintage garments. I put six combinations into three pairs: navy and khaki matching sets, a blazer beside a chore jacket, and two sports jackets worn with denim. Button-downs and ties carry the reference, while sneakers, caps and jeans keep the combinations relaxed.
I keep returning to Fair Isle over an oxford as the weather cools. In the first pair, one vest sits under a grey sack jacket with straight jeans; a different vest becomes the outer layer with chinos.
The next pair changes the jacket: glen check tweed and an ivory cricket sweater on one side, a plain navy gold-button blazer and green cap on the other. The last pair compares navy and khaki washed cotton setups, with an oxford and rep tie versus madras and a knit tie.
For the Fair Isle pair, would you keep the jacket or let the vest stand on its own?
Navy double-breasted with a madras button-down, a navy knit tie and chinos. Sneakers and a tote.
The same double-breasted, dressed up: white oxford, black knit tie, grey wool trousers, black derbies.
Washed navy jacket and pleated trousers worn as a soft suit. Madras shirt, no tie, suede loafers.
Old Woolrich rain jacket with a flannel lining, roomy enough that a tie sits under it. Blue oxford, striped tie, washed chinos.
Herringbone tweed jacket open over a grey sweatshirt, with the oxford collar showing.
Knit tie or no tie with madras?
I make Ivy and trad clothing here in Korea, and this is how three jackets (a grey sack blazer, a navy double-breasted blazer and a navy gold-button blazer) rotated through September — most formal first, easiest last.
The last two are where I stop trying. A cap and sneakers do more for a blazer than another tie does.
How far down do you take a blazer before it stops working?
Three outfits inspired by vintage Ivy style, pairing shirts and ties with sneakers.
Photo 1: a light blue button-down shirt, patterned tie, khaki chinos and green sneakers.
Photo 2: a navy blazer, striped tie, olive trousers and white sneakers.
Photo 3: a checked shirt and dark matching set with white sneakers.
These were worn on different days. I added baseball caps and sneakers to the shirts, ties and relaxed trouser shapes. The set keeps the colour running through both halves, while the other two outfits use different colours above and below.
Two combinations to use as a reference if you're figuring out which sneakers to wear with a tie. These were worn on different days; I've included front and side views of each.
The first pairs a light blue shirt and khaki chinos with green sneakers. The plain shirt and trousers leave room for both the patterned tie and the coloured shoes.
The second pairs a dark matching set with low white sneakers. Looking at the visible socks as well as the shoes helps show how much of the lower half is light.
If you're trying something similar, let me know which part you're unsure about. Happy to talk through the combinations shown here.
Three outfits pairing a tie with sneakers. The first two photos show the same matching set from the front and side.
With the dark set, light socks and white sneakers sit below the trouser hems. With the blazer, I wore the same white sneakers under olive trousers. On the shirt-only day, it was khaki chinos and green sneakers.
The photos let you compare trouser width, hems and how much of the shoes is visible. All are from earlier outfit records.
I picked three tie-and-sneaker combinations from my outfit archive.
Photos 1–2: a light blue button-down, patterned tie, khaki chinos and green sneakers.
Photos 3–4: a dark matching set, checked shirt and tie with low white sneakers.
Photo 5: a winter outfit with a grey coat, trousers and grey sneakers.
The shirt and tie stay, while the cap and shoes make the outfits feel more relaxed. These were worn in different seasons.
Summer is finally breaking here, so before it all goes back in the closet: everything I wore through the Seoul summer.
A lot of it is vintage or period-correct repro - M-43 HBT fatigues, striped cotton tees, pique polos, cotton madras shirts, canvas boat totes and leather boat shoes. No technical fabric anywhere. Seoul summer is mid-30s C with humidity that never lets anything dry, and loose vintage cottons still handle it better than anything modern I own.
Happy to talk about any of the pieces.
Everything I wore through the Seoul summer, June to August.
Mid-30s C with humidity that never lets anything dry, so the whole season came down to fabric: cotton madras, linen, pique, and HBT fatigues. Loose weaves over pleated bottoms, and a shirt one size up so it isn't touching skin.
End of summer here, so before it all goes away: everything I wore through the Seoul summer, June to August.
Mostly madras and linen shirts, crested pique polos, pleated cotton shorts and chinos - worn with canvas boat totes, boat shoes and penny loafers. Seoul summer is mid-30s C with humidity that never lets anything dry, so it all had to be loose and cotton.
The heat is finally breaking here, so before all of this goes back in the closet: every fit I wore through the Seoul summer. Twenty of them.
Summer here is mid-30s °C and nothing ever dries, so none of it was clever. Loose weaves and cotton were the only things that worked — madras, linen, piqué polos over chinos, wide indigo and HBT fatigues. Every technical fabric I own was a wet plastic bag by noon.
Ask about anything you see.
Keeping it classic today with some heavy-duty layers.
• Top: Navy Rugby Sweatshirt layered over a Light Blue Oxford Button-Down. • Bottom: Relaxed-fit Khaki Chinos. • Accessories: Cotton Ball Cap. • Shoes: ALD x New Balance 993.
Really liking how the wide silhouette of the chinos stacks over the 993s. Simple navy and khaki palette never fails.
Keeping it classic today with some heavy-duty layers.
• Top: Navy Rugby Sweatshirt layered over a Light Blue Oxford Button-Down. • Bottom: Relaxed-fit Khaki Chinos. • Accessories: Cotton Ball Cap. • Shoes: ALD x New Balance 993.
Really liking how the wide silhouette of the chinos stacks over the 993s. Simple navy and khaki palette never fails.
Keeping it classic today with some heavy-duty layers.
• Top: Navy Rugby Sweatshirt layered over a Light Blue Oxford Button-Down. • Bottom: Relaxed-fit Khaki Chinos. • Accessories: Cotton Ball Cap. • Shoes: ALD x New Balance 993.
Really liking how the wide silhouette of the chinos stacks over the 993s. Simple navy and khaki palette never fails.
Keeping it classic today with some heavy-duty layers.
• Top: Navy Rugby Sweatshirt layered over a Light Blue Oxford Button-Down. • Bottom: Relaxed-fit Khaki Chinos. • Accessories: Cotton Ball Cap. • Shoes: ALD x New Balance 993.
Really liking how the wide silhouette of the chinos stacks over the 993s. Simple navy and khaki palette never fails.
Keeping it classic today with some heavy-duty layers.
• Top: Navy Rugby Sweatshirt layered over a Light Blue Oxford Button-Down. • Bottom: Relaxed-fit Khaki Chinos. • Accessories: Cotton Ball Cap. • Shoes: ALD x New Balance 993.
Really liking how the wide silhouette of the chinos stacks over the 993s. Simple navy and khaki palette never fails.