Playfulness of classic menswear literature - “Billets d'élégances” by Julien Scavini, Paris
Dear readers, have you ever wondering what makes you so obsessed with refined menswear and why? Of course some of you might say that because dressing well makes you feel good and confident, a genuine way of expressing who you are to the world; or some of you might developed a profound interest with precious and rare fabrics and materials, the construction of a piece of bespoke clothing, or even the attentiveness, discerning eyes and knowledge of your personal tailor, their craftsmanship and undescribable bond in between you, the tailoring clothing and the artisan himself, somehow enlightens you to see refined menswear in a different way rather than seeing that as just a piece of clothes; those are all the possibilities. But I know that there’s a Parisian tailor, who is not only passionate by asking the ‘why’ about what refined and classic menswear means to him, he is also eagerly and willingly to find the answers himself with his whole heart, and share that to the world of people who are like-minded, in an article of a prominent French newspaper for quite some years, also, he has a menswear blog to write about that too! During my recent Paris trip as I visited him at his tailoring atelier boutique, I even realized that his latest book, titled “Billets d'élégances” (English as “Ticket of Elegance”), which is about refined and classic menswear, is out now! And that is my Parisian celebrity tailor friend, Mr. Julien Scavini.
If I have to introduce this Parisian tailor friend, it’s relatively hard for me to describe him merely in a couple of words because he is literally a multi-talented Parisian gentleman that I’ve ever known; yes apparently, he’s a Parisian men’s tailor but he’s also a passionate classic menswear writer, not to mention his sensational appearance in one of the French national reality TV show, as a style judge of a fashion competition in the past, he is also a Parisian classic menswear style icon himself, dressing in his dapper and classic Parisian style, posing in the social media page of his own tailoring brand, Scavini Paris, he is also a menswear illustrator, and a menswear blogger who regularly contributed to his own style blog “Stiff collar” and his Youtube channel. When I revisited this talented friend at his Paris atelier boutique in the 7th arrondissement after almost 7 years since we last met, I was completely thrilled by his latest book (well, also seeing his impeccable tailoring pieces and ready-to-wear collection of course!), and thankfully, after our long conversation, having him to sign a copy for me during this visit of mine! Perhaps you may ask: “What does it do with me?”
“Billets d'élégances”, published by AlterPublishing back in late last year, is a compilation of Julien’s articles about menswear and style, which he has written for the prominent French newspaper, Le Figaro, throughout the past years, alongside with his signature and playful menswear illustrations in each page to match with the subject. Unlike some of the classic menswear guide books out there which separated by specific clothing category, fabric type and occasion etc., this book is like a series of short stories that covers different interesting, and sometimes even unconventional questions that one may randomly ask when it comes to classic menswear (well, at least the author asked these himself.), from ‘what is Harris Tweed?’, ‘what is a slack jacket?’, ‘what is a grey suit means?’, to something very detail and eccentric such as ‘how to wear suede in summer?’, ‘what is go-to-hell pants?’ and story about the French president’s clothing etc., these are something beyond the conventional classic menswear’s information that can be found, and combined with certain wittiness and history of refined Parisian (or French) classic menswear, adding Julien’s experience in men’s tailoring, his knowledge to extract the old history and interpret them with a much contemporary language, and last but not least, his tasteful eyes on details in refined menswear, altogether bring this book to life.
Although it’s only available in French, adding my very crappy French knowledge, with a bit of patience and tech-help from google translate, it’s actually quite an intriguing way and knowledge-adding experience to enjoy this book! Unlike the conventional way which one needs to follow through the context chapter after chapter, this book gives you a free-rein to go directly to a particular subject that interests you, and just read that page instead of finishing up the entire chapter, perhaps today you would like to discover the story about the way of dressing at the Royal Henley Regatta, or the next day you want to discover something about what is flannel, in such a way, it makes the experience of learning classic menswear in a much playful and liberated way, just like making yourself getting lost somewhere deep in Paris’ city, and wandering around each little streets to discover something that you didn’t know before, perhaps a small shoe-maker boutique, or a historic classic shirt-maker, then adding the playful illustrations by Julien, each short stories in this book is a refreshing discovery, and it’s a guarantee that you’ll have the answer behind those ‘why’ questions about classic menswear.
Perhaps with this book, you might start to change the perception about learning something from classic (Parisian) menswear, seeing it with fresh eyes and experience a much playful side of this valuable and intangible cultural assets, then apply these knowledge in your own life and sharpen your own sense of style.