You’ve got to be kidding. Dressing like Cary Grant in his tweedy professor mode? Mimicking George Bernard Shaw or Robert Frost in times past?
Here’s my Tweed Saga recounted at greater length in my 200+ page opus Threading The Needle.
Back in 1969 I set up a window at our 44th St. heyday emporium that stopped passersby highlighting a portrait of the great Irish playwright provided for us by Magee, our premier Irish Donegal Tweed resource, headlined “George Bernard Shaw Loves His Irish Tweed.” So did Frank Sinatra on his many visits to J. Squeeze. Several years later fitter Felix Samelson joined me on our visits to Cary Grant’s suite at the Warwick Hotel on West 54th Street to fit him for a tweed or two.
A brief encounter with Robert Frost occurred 1955 during my freshman year at Dartmouth. After his annual class lecture, I gracelessly introduced myself complimenting his black/brown J. Press herringbone tweed suit. Mr. Frost frostily replied, “I own many more from your grandfather’s shop, but I need to ask if you are here to question me about my poetry or my clothing?”
Darwinian change makes J. Press Tweed a “fitting” choice for coming out of hibernation after months of Co-vid sensitivity in sweatpants and tee shirts. Here’s the deal—3 for 1. Order a tweed suit from Donegal fabric that translates to either a suit, sport coat or odd trouser.
Pour through our vast collection of tweed swatches featuring volumes of Irish Donegals. Choose a mid-weight tweed honed down for climate ready comfort without losing its Downton Abby character that displays both history and class for an otherwise vulgar age.
J. Press Tailored To Individual Order offers a perfect fit together with choice of style, our classic center-hook or side vents, two or three button, and choice of lap stitching sensibly priced a touch beyond off the rack.
Dressing needn’t be senselessly boring. Celtic weaving has an inherent feeling for color, amazingly dexterous and an inbuilt sense of rhythm.
Dance the jig made to order.
RICHARD PRESS
9 comments
Splendid. I’m wearing a Magee “Donegal Mist” tweed jacket today. An older Southwick-for-J. Press
Wonderful article! However, WHERE can one find your page for the Tweed Collection ??? It doesn’t exist !!!
It was a pleasure to read your book. Stimulated alot of undergraduate memories,
and more recently, purchases from your New Haven and DC stores. It is nice
to have documented significance to the clothes I/we wear.
Best regards, George, (Brown ’57)
Ah, tweed. . . Great piece! I have four such jackets in the rotation (one of which is a J. Press model), plus a very heavy tweed suit, currently at the tailor’s for some minor alterations. Can’t wait to get it back, wear, and enjoy it.
Kind Regards,
Heinz-Ulrich