Two New Western Accouterments & “Over The Garden Wall”

Hello, my friends! Welcome to a new blog post. Yes, as you can see, I’m still writing. Old habits die hard, but all kidding a side salad, I enjoy the challenge of attempting to write less (and shut the fuck up and be less of an online blowhard) with, well, a desire to share a life in menswear. After all, I still want to do my part in showing that one can indeed make “menswear content” that isn’t just reccos, PR, or some form of “founder marketing”. After all, I just tend to have a lot of thoughts about the things I do and like, which can be both directly and indirectly related to menswear! Expression and inspo are always around us, which I think is worth exploring. And in this entry, a lot of what I’ve been into has been decidedly Western, particularly in the form of two new-ish items that I’ve been obsessed with. There’s also a fun little show that has surprisingly given me a few ideas.

The pod goes into a bit more, like another MJ trip (featuring a cool Boy Scout shirt) and Spencer playing video RDR2— if you feel so inclined to listen, of course.

*Warning: new iconic movie menswear look incoming!*

Untitled — *That plastic boot cost us $40. Hey, we needed to commemorate this movie somehow!*

I watched Iñárritu’s Digger recently and enjoyed its intentionally heavy-handed satire, picturesque cinematography, and, surprisingly, its costuming. Costume designer Jacqueline West dresses Tom Cruise’s bombastic oil magnate, Digger Rockwell, in a handful of bold looks: a red western suit (complete with brown leather accents and a giant gold belt buckle) and black satin PJs. He pairs them with exotic leather cowboy boots, which get parodied IRL as an exclusive popcorn bucket (which I did buy lol). The funny thing is that Digger isn’t in audacious westernwear for the entire film; he’s also seen in a Coogi sweater and an 80s-style knit polo, fitting for The Sopranos cast. What a contrast!

Anyway, after a bit of a hiatus, I returned to my old tradition of “dressing in theme of the movie I’m watching” and wore something Western to watch Digger with my pals. I didn’t dress like Digger himself (I don’t own a Western suit), but I leaned more vintage with my cowboy chinos and Silverbelly Stratoliner. I gave it a dandy attitude by adding a navy blazer (how American!) and, drumroll please, my Western bow tie.

I got that damn thing a while ago from Joyride and have really wanted to give it more airtime, but just hadn’t had the right impetus…until now. After all, the “Sartorial Western” look isn’t something that I normally do. I don’t have many Western neckties (those Native American woolen ties can be too hot to wear in LA), and I don’t often wear bandanas with tailoring. The Western bow tie seems to be the piece I needed, decidedly dandy (and less overtly masculine) while still firmly Western (and a bit “frontier-y”).

You can definitely expect more fits with it in the future…and further down this blog post!

*I may not be an oil baron, but I’m starting to really feel this big cowboy hat.*

My Western proclivities were then amplified when I received my big brown cowboy hat, fresh from Garahan Hats (Joyride Vintage), with a new grosgrain ribbon. This, a vintage Stetson, is a new-to-me hat and not the other big ass brown one you may have seen me wear; that one was given to Spencer after I got this one from Ivan through a trade. At first, I was a bit intimidated by the dramatically curled brim (I’ve always preferred a flat one), but I soon embraced its charm. It helped that I removed the “cattleman crease” and replaced it with a fedora-esque center pinch, which made it more “Ethan-friendly.”

I’ve worn it quite a bit lately, as one often does with new acquisitions. It was perfect for a hot, sunny day at the PCC flea, being paired with an open aloha shirt and my trusty 3Sixteen jeans. Ivan remarked that I looked like a 50s California youth, which was exactly what I was going for. Of course, the hat’s big outing was at the Buck Mason x La Vintage Rendezvous party, held at their eponymous studio (basically a product showroom for buyers) across the street from BM HQ. In true Vintage Market Fashion, most attendees wore olive fatigues, Type 1/2 denim jackets, rarified tees, and pennys, but I couldn’t help being a bit dandy in a rayon shirt and a harmonized bandana. I ended up looking a bit like Hobie Doyle from Hail Caesar!, which is actually the topic of our next bonus! I see it, I do it.

[No, I didn’t go to Rendezvous or the Rose Bowl Flea, because I’m not really in the market to buy anything.]

*It’s got some great animated menswear! Just check out the **individualized** looks on these froggies.*

*My own take on Wirt, trading the cape for a navy DB blazer.*

The Western bowtie came back for what may be one of my favorite low-key (but themed) hangs my friends have thrown: an Over the Garden Wall watch party.

If you haven’t seen the miniseries, you really should. Created by Patrick McHale, OTGW is a
“modern-set” dark fantasy about two brothers (Wirt and Greg) trying to find their way home out of the Unknown, a whimsical world full of magic, ghosts, talking animals, and, to Spencer and my delight, a helping of late 19th/early 20th-century clothing, all of which is rendered quite well in 2D animation. As the video by Johnny 2 Cellos shows (which is recapped by Spencer in the pod), the creators took a lot of inspiration from turn-of-the-century aesthetics, especially Halloween-themed ones. As you’ll see later, OTGW is lifted directly from old Halloween postcards, all of which feature funny animals in dapper clothing and friendly ghost-pumpkin-skeletons, contributing to a more whimsical and fantastical take on the season. It’s as if Alice in Wonderland and Dante’s Inferno were put through a Wind in the Willows filter, all creating a wholesome yet foreboding parable about brotherly responsibility and pessimism that is an utter delight to watch, especially if you’re drinking spiced rum with pals on a comfy couch!

In fact, the costuming makes this series quite noteworthy. Fin de siècle fashion has that effect: familiar but still antiquarian and just out of reach; mid-century clothing is still too close to us (especially since current trends cannibalize its elements). It’s also just a fun way to do fantasy, as the genre tends to lean more into medieval couture. Instead, Over the Garden Wall has an axe-wielding woodsman in riding boots and a tall stovepipe hat; unhelpful bar patrons in cravats and stockings; and frogs and skeletons in the Unknown wearing straw boaters and tall, stiff collars! Our two protagonists have iconic looks as well: Greg has green overalls, a western/string bow tie, and an upside-down kettle as a hat (to be an elephant, it seems); Greg has a makeshift gnome look with a pointy red hat (a Christmas one without the fluffy edge), a blue cape (an old Union Army one), and suspenders over a white shirt and highwater grey pants.It’s all whimsical and a bit twee/vintage, which is why we all decided to dress on theme for the watch party! Certainly a different expresion from our typical fantasy attire, which leans more Renn Faire coded.

I don’t own any coveralls, so I opted to dress after Wirt, just in my own way. [It was far too hot to dress like the Woodsman, even though I do own riding boots.] Instead of a navy cape and braced trousers, I wore my navy blazer and grey military-style shorts; the latter, paired with tall white socks and chunky black derbies, gave the whole thing a prep-school lean, which only reinforced the twee attitude. And even though Wirt didn’t wear any neckwear in the series, an open neck felt too empty, which is where the Western bow tie came in. I loved the effect, again adding that antiquarian sentiment that is more amplified than my usual expression. Just like the big cowboy hat, I find this piece intriguing, as if a new facet of my POV/Foundational look has been unlocked. I’ll definitely wear this bow tie with full suits this fall, but it also makes me think about wearing it with shorts. The ensemble looked quite cute, especially in this iteration, when I capped it all off with the red cone hat to firmly feel like I’ve gone Over the Garden Wall.

[On that note, compared to classic gnome attire (if the old illustrations are anything to go by), I feel like my outfit (and OGTW in general) leans more “sartorial” and ultimately more contemporary, even if is turn-of-the-century coded. And in my opinion, I do think this Wirt fit (and OTGW in general) has a bit more whimsy and jaunt compared to the gnomecore trend/menswear genre (which just feels like Dark Academy or English countryside) that comes in and out of the zeitgeist.]

I ended up staying in this gnome-tastic fit for the entire day, which included a visit to an SFC shindig at Le Papillion (where I was decidedly out of place), a quick dinner at a nerd bar (which gave me a free drink for being in the OTGW theme), and the dreaded Silverlake watering hole 4100, which we ironically and unironically find ourselves at semi-often (though we took a break for a while, just because it gets too crowded). Serhan and I (well, more so Serhan, in a true Wirt cosplay complete with a homemade cape) were approached quite a bit by patrons inquiring about our attire. I guess the 4100 crowd isn’t all that aware of OTGW, but they did know a lot about Gnomeo & Juliet (which I’ve actually never seen). Obviously, as guys who wear ties and jackets for no reason, we’re used to this, and thankfully, everyone who walked up to us was truly curious and rather friendly!

It just goes to show that there’s nothing wrong with wearing a fun, bold look and Stand Out when you Go Out.

That’s all for this week, now enjoy photos!

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