Tuesday 6 January 2009

Effortless Cool defined by an image


If I were to make a dictionary of over used phrases of the English language I would surely include 'effortless style' and accompanying my text would be this image. In practice, for most of us at least, pulling of this style is anything but effortless. Successfully achieving this look is very much like achieving the 'bed head' hairstyle...copious amounts of product and mirror preening are required! This chap as captured by the Sartorialist is effortless cool.

Ordinarily, I might have just linked to this Sartorialist capture over on our twitter account but I felt that it deserved more than just a tinyurl link. Points will surely be knocked off for posing with the cigarette but everything else about it is perfect. Giancinephile recently posted on the Cult of the Effortless Cool where he discussed Paul Helbers words in Man About Town where he described how a 'dirty' casual French look makes a man attractive and intriguing and I do buy into that. Of course, I very much enjoy making the effort but on my off days, I wouldn't mind looking like the chap above...

With regards to the photographer, well, over the course of the last two days we have all been reminded (if there was any doubt) that the Sartorialist is certainly very much still sitting pretty at the top of all Street Style blogs.

No no no no NO! His hair is DREADFUL. It looks like mine when I've just towel dried it crossed with a mad professor's. The outfit is ok but tame. As for the Sartorialist... sorry, but Garance Dore is my favourite nowadays.

Ha, you are being very judgemental this evening! His hair is being blown in the wind so I think the mad professor claim is harsh to say the least! I agree that Garance Dore takes better pictures but sadly she rarely points her camera at men...which is why until she focuses on more men she will not replace the Sartorialist as my personal favourite!

10 comments:

Izzy said...

The velvet blazer says opulence, the v-neck evokes the sensuality of undergarments. Then there's the unkempt hair and five o clock shadow and cigarette which would normally scream sloth and unhealthiness but in this case it just says cool. The slim jeans keep it european. All in all, a carefully calculated incarnation of cool. And can I say I still really love the use of overly luxe items (e.g. velvet blazer) for every day.

TheSundayBest said...

I've spent most of my life trying to have a haircut that looks good when I just wake up.

No dice.

Ian Brown said...

The slightly curly hair helps. The velvet blazer paired with the everyday v-neck and skinny jeans is helps too, but attitude and personality are THE definition of being cool without trying. You either carry a look or you don't.

Matthew Spade said...

i saw this and thought the same, i wish i had good hair but sadly its pretty crap but i have to live with it. i like both blogs, not sure which i prefer but i do like sats detail photos which are mostly on the male photos, like cuffs/turn ups/watches/creases ect.

Anonymous said...

Whilst I approve of the hair, and the outfit as a whole, there's something about it that grates with me. Perhaps it's just his expression, but there's something that says to me that he isn't impressed with what he's wearing. To me, that's shocking.

You should always be impressed and proud of what you put on your back!

EJ said...

If his hair is being blown in the wind, the sart should have taken another shot- this and the bike in the foreground mess up the shot for me (oh, and the cig of course)

Style Salvage Steve said...

izzydore - Your commentary is far better than mine, well said!
The Sunday Best - To get the hair I want each day, I have to wash and blow dry. Anything else and it just doesn't look right.
ian brown - Attitude and ppersonality do indeed play an important role! If these aren't right then the look fails.
mat ahoy - Sorry to hear about your hair...There is no reason to choose between the two blogs, both are excellent. They are both miles ahead of the rest.
Simon W - I'm the same which is why I might just not have the atrtitude required to pull of this look.

RetroVintageModStyle said...

Very bohemian chic!

Anonymous said...

I get the feeling he got the look he was trying for. Don't know about effortless but definitely cool.

Anonymous said...

effortless seems synonymous with just woke up and rolled out of bed.

but the ability to place a bright green awning behind him with the words soprano so delicately labeled, now that is priceless.

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