September's Here Again

The Conformist

Empty gin bottles (containing peculiar messages) bob silently upon the waves of the Adriatic; the only traces of those hazy days of sun-soaked indolence. The summer has passed — back to England, back to the rain and dark skies, to the contenance angloise. It's time to put the bowler hat on the head and become reacquainted with the cultural norms of these sodden Isles.

As we learned from Bertolucci's flawlessly beautiful masterpiece The Conformist (costumes by Tirelli) — a still of the famous 'leaf scene' is shown above — adverse cultural norms can develop within a society as easily as the beneficial.

How far we are willing to go to 'fit in' and sublimate our own thoughts and impulses to the group? Give up on ties and pocket squares? Never.

Let's see if we can suggest some heretical accessories that express the Autumnal mood of the Bertolucci leaves. 

Autumn Leaves from Marwood

The All Fall In x Marwood Mesh Lace Tie tie from Marwood has a bold enough design to express your counter-cultural principles. The tie is made in England following a collaboration with graphic artist Sam Kerr who specialises in the process of creating mathematically true tessellations. I'm not quite sure what that means, but it sounds damn tricky and creative. The tie has two layers: a Viennese Leaf tessellation hand-printed in ecru and black onto English lace sits on top, with black silk on the bottom layer. The layers create a very interesting texture for the tie.

Mulberry Leaf Print Pocket Square

Mulberry has scaled back its men's operation to accessories and bags in recent years — handbags getting all the attention — but the limited men's collections that they bring out are always worthy of consideration. Below is a nice silk pocket square that continues the Autumn leaves theme in a less windswept fashion.

The pocket square is made in Italy and features a regimented mulberry leaf print similar to the classic polka dot design we know and love to see on pocket squares, ties and scarves.

The Sound of Autumn Leaves from the Bill Evans Trio