Style and the Man: How and Where to Buy Fine Mens' Clothes [Hardcover]

Alan Flusser (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 3, 1996

Alan Flusser, one of America's foremost menswear designers, knows fine clothes and where to buy them. He shares all this in his insightful and elegantly written treatise for the man interested in savvy attire. Tuck this volume into a corner of your suitcase and you'll be armed with a connoisseur's knowledge of the dos and don'ts of buying and wearing quality clothes and how much they should cost, from dinnerwear to casual sportswear. Open Style and the Man and learn about:

• what to wear when you shop and why
• the difference between a $395 and a $1,000 suit (and how to make sure you're getting your money's worth)
• what two words to look for on a costly dress shirt's label
• why the folds in a cummerbund should always be worn facing upward
• how to recognize sports clothes capable of providing stylish longevity

Turn to the author's 200 favorite men's stores spanning seventeen cities in eight countries' both celebrated designer flagships and tiny shops known only to a privileged few and discover:

• the little-known New York store that sells shoes that offer instant "cachet"
• where the fashion set goes for the best T-shirt

In Style and the Man, Alan Flusser has created the perfect traveling companion for those men wishing to expand their sartorial knowledge as well as their wardrobe.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Alan Flusser is knowledgeable, cultivated, and a true gentleman in every sense of the word. The clothes he created for me in Wall Street elicited the most attention and applause of any costume design done for any of my films." -- Michael Douglas

"Alan Flusser writes about menswear with authority, intelligence, and a healthy dose of his unique personal style that has made him the wardrober of choice for a distinguished cadre of gentlemen worldwide. Style and the Man's historical references, engaging prose, and anecdotal asides make it a great read as well." -- Philip B. Miller, chairman and chief executive officer, Saks Fifth Avenue

"Alan is one of the most knowledgeable experts on men's fashion, and has created the ultimate reference for everything you need to know about good taste, great style, and where to find it throughout the world." -- Ralph Lauren

"No one knows as much about men's clothing as Alan Flusserhe has an encyclopedic knowledge of its history combined with a modern merchant's insight into design, tailoring, and selling. Read him and absorb." -- Bill Blass

"There is a difference between having nice clothes and wearing clothes that work specifically for you. Alan Flusser gives you the insight to make the best choices for yourself." -- Bob Costas, NBC Sports

About the Author

Alan Flusser is the author of a number of books about men's style, including Dressing the Man. He is the president of Alan Flusser Designs, a company he founded in 1979. He attracted national attention in 1987 for Michael Douglas's wardrobe in Wall Street, as well as later acclaim for his work on the HBO movie Barbarians at the Gate, the Al Pacino movie Scent of a Woman, and American Psycho starring Christian Bale. In 1988, he was placed as a permanent member on the International Best-Dressed List.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 399 pages
• Publisher: It Books; 1st edition (September 3, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 006270155X
• ISBN-13: 978-0062701558
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #287,786 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #11 in Books > Business & Investing > Business Life > Fashion & Image

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An ageing shopping guide for dandies, October 9, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Style and the Man: How and Where to Buy Fine Mens' Clothes (Hardcover)

If you're seeking information on how to tell fine menswear from bad, skip this book and go directly to Flusser's new one.

If you're a would-be dandy looking for information on where to buy men's furnishings around the world, buy the book (with a minor caution). Many of the stores in the U.S. have relocated and some have closed.

On the other hand, I've used it to find choices in London and Paris that I would never have known about otherwise. And once you've made the initial investment in the measurements, you can patronize many of these establishments by telephone.

A number of earlier reviews criticise Flusser for focusing on the finest quality and most expensive clothing in the world. It is, and he does. But for people who do or want to play that game, it's still the best source of information.

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dated yet still relevant, January 2, 2005

By 

Christopher Foley "haberdasher" (SF, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Style and the Man: How and Where to Buy Fine Mens' Clothes (Hardcover)

As noted by many reviewers, the clothing fact information is first rate.

The second part of the book on shopping and retail establishments is so out of date in 2005 that I really question whether a purchase is worthwhile if retailer information is primary purpose of proposed purchase. A good 60% of the information on establishments in the US and London is totally outdated or the stores have gone out of business.

Try the library or borrowing from a friend to see if any of the desired information is still relevant before purchasing. This book needs a serious update.

134 of 158 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars This book is over-rated and misleading, October 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Style and the Man: How and Where to Buy Fine Mens' Clothes (Hardcover)

Somehow Flusser has managed to win acclaim for a book that is one-half tourist guide for only the rich and famous (where to buy fine clothes in Milan, etc, which is useless to most of us)and one-half a pompous, overly opinionated instruction-manual on tailored clothing. The instruction in this part is useful, but it's not worth the price of the book. Take away the travel guide and then clip away Flusser's dreadfully affected, ornate writing manner, and the total amount of instruction here on men's clothing boils down to about 50 pages. As for those 50 pages: they are good for providing basic information about tailored clothing, but they are nearly ruined by overly rigid sartorial rules. Flusser, who seems to have an unwarrantedly high opinon of himself, judging from his pronoucements, does not tell the reader that many of his judgments are not shared by everyone. This is a crime against the reader who buys Flusser's book as an objective guide to men's clothing and doesn't realize it's one very opinionated man's view. And some of these views are questionable to say the least. This book should be read with caution, and in conjunction with other, less opinionated books for those who are interested in men's tailored clothing. Also, a lot of this book is historical, and Flusser has no list of reference books in the back to tell the reader where he gets his info. from.