DIY Style: Military Meets Casual

Army Casual

As most people already know, I'm all about the Do It Yourself lifestyle in most every sense of the word.  At the same time, I can definitely appreciate the quality and craftsmanship that goes into a well-designed often-times expensive garment.  I usually don't mind paying a little more money for exactly what I want. However, I much prefer an article of clothing that I can say that I customized and/or created.

One such garment project that I recently completed consists of what was originally a Topman denim jacket that I purchased a few years back in Chicago.  It's been through quite a bit and the light blue look has turned into an all out bleached/washed out  look.  One hot New York summer day, out of desperation and heat exhaustion coupled with the fact that I didn't want to find a new button and rivet for the cuff, this garment was transformed into a vest:

Topman Jean Jacket

The second piece to this project is a military standard issue uniform hood from the Field M-1943 uniform initially rolled out to U.S. Army troops in Italy in 1943:

Field M-1943

I came across a bin of these hoods in a Brooklyn thrift store.  My only regret is that I didn't buy the entire bin.  At the same time, due to age, and the war time conditions under which these garments were worn, it was hard to find a piece that didn't already have too much "character (ie. Holes, and questionable stains that I don't think anyone wants to know the true story behind).

apologies for the emo expression

I originally planned to attach buttons to the interior of the vest's collar to line up with original holes of the hood, but instead opted for a more permanent and less rain permeable option of sewing the hood into the lining.  This would serve me better on the days that I enjoy long walks in the summer rain (which is more often than one might imagine).

And now a brief interlude featuring the sewing process:

the process

artisan hands

trying to get the line straight

And voila...the finished piece:

front view

not pictured, I added a new button to close the hood for wind resistance

All in all, I think that the piece came out nicely and it's given new life to an older piece in my wardrobe that keeps reinventing itself for.  Maybe in two more  years, I'll re-attach sleeves to it.  On never knows.

As always, feel free to leave me praise or criticism in the comments section.  Thanks for reading

- Keilon

layered look for the streets of Montréal

Things Remembered: Brooklyn

Under the guise of "Things Remembered," I will be curating various perspectives of different places, ideas, and concepts through people whom have lived and experienced them firsthand; be that person myself or someone else.

This first segment is a concise and to the point exposé of Brooklyn via social advocate and artist, Michael Stewart; he also happens to be my cousin.  Michael was born and raised in Washington, D.C. but lived, worked, and studied post-graduately New York City.

I interviewed Mike on just some general interest situations on what his urban experience has been like moving between the American Northeast, South, and Mid-Atlantic.  Here's what he had to say:


Me: What do you think of Brooklyn holistically?

Mike: It's a cool place to visit.


Me: You were raised in Washington, DC.  You attended university in Greensboro, NC.  You attended graduate school and worked a few years in and around the Brooklyn and New York City area.  How was your experience living there different from the other cities that you have also resided in?

Mike: Living in DC is natural for me.  Greensboro was hard for me to adjust to because it wasn't much I could identify with coming from a more aggressive urban culture.  Greensboro had a slower pace which gave me some peace and comfort.  I never thought about living in New York until I experienced the fast pace of the city [when I came for school].

Me: Even coming from DC, NY was a definite lifestyle adjustment for you.


Me: What was your favorite part of the Brooklyn?  Why?

Mike: I like Bed-Stuy and Clinton Hills.  I like the block layouts, restaurants, culture and entertainment, etc.  For me, each neighborhood has its own culture.  I like how Bed-Stuy has/had a strong African-American presence.  It reminds/reminded me of DC.


Me: Last question; would you move back to Brooklyn?

Mike: Only for the right job and salary.

Lunch in '67 Burger

Fort Greene street scene

Neighborhood essentials

Check out this short video shot and edited by yours truly while Mike was in town for a quick weekend:

Things Remembered pt 1 Brooklyn from Keilon L. on Vimeo.

Raw Denim Art Project

 So...in my never-ending pursuit to turn my life from one big sociology case study (long story...see the last 5 years of my life living in Chicago) into an everlasting exploratory art project, I am incorporating fashion and more specifically personal taste and style into an art project.  The feature--raw denim from the A.P.C. brand.

A.P.C.'s Petit New Standard Jeans

There are plenty of brands that make very high quality denim incorporating the world renowned Japanese loom process (see High Snobiety's piece on Japanese Denim), but I chose A.P.C. because they give you the opportunity to give your denim story a second life. Through their "Butler" program, customers are able to purchase and wear-in pairs of raw denim fit jeans in order to create exciting new wash and wear styles that could never be created through the pre-consumer wash and wear processes that machines do create the worn looks that popularize today's fashion trends.  After thoroughly breaking in and personalizing your pair of A.P.C. jeans you are then invited I return your unique creation to a store where, if eligible, you can resell for 50% off your next pair.  That's a pretty sweet deal.

I may not be a complete denim aficionado but I can definitely appreciate a good art project.  Also, the idea that my legacy can live on through someone else's experience is a rewarding notion to me.

The jeans are practically new in these shots:

I look forward to creating a very uniquely styled garment once I begin my particular washing recipe after I give them at least 6-8 months of wear.  I only hope that I'll still be interested in parting with them once the time comes. There will be follow-up posts on the development of this project and I hope that you all with enjoy this project with me.

More about A.P.C.:

Atelier de Production et de Création, better known by it's acronym A.P.C., is a French clothing brand founded by Jean Touitou in the beautiful year of 1987 (pardon my bias for my birth year).  The clothing takes a very minimalist approach. You won't find numerous logos and overly intricate designs.  With their pieces. Lately the company has been doing numerous collaborations with other brands and celebrity designers that have garnered it much notoriety as of late.

I initially discovered the brand back in college when looking for French style influences and again while looking for some better denim options. At the time, I chose to go with Nudies because of their more intricate and now famous back pocket detailing.  I think I was more interested in the world noticing what I was wearing as opposed to satisfying myself.

My personal style is constantly evolving with my maturity.

- Esoteric

Unfiltered Sunshine

"Love is life and life is living" - Debra Laws

I personally believe that living doesn't constitute having every handed to you on a platter, nor does it even constitute having access to an abundance of material things or resources.  I believe that living is about taking in the environment of the moments that we experience each day. There's art and beauty in straying off of the normal beaten path.

With the advent and popularity of Google maps where you can walk down in any street in any major city and everybody having a blog focusing on every subject (this one included), there appears to be the idea that everything is right at your fingertips. This may be true but the experience takes a bit more work.

A break from the normal routine

Hurry up and wait.

After a long day at work, I decided to take the long way home and with that take in some views of the city that I never get to see.  Also, a bit of street art is always appreciated.  One beautiful thing about New York is that art is almost always a block away, or in this case, every step of the way.  This trek took Lizton and I across the Williamsburg Bridge.  This bridge connects the popular Lower East Side neighborhood of Manhattan to Brooklyn's Williamsburg neighborhood which is probably one of the most talked about neighborhoods in the city as of late.  These two hoods are known for the concentrations of creative young people, artists, and hipsters alike.  The bridge displays the character of the people which it connects.

The city is always watching

Thank you city of New York providing daily inspiration.  Live!

- Esoteric

Free Weekend Things To Do in NYC courtesy of Complex Magazine

Every week (I believe) Complex Magazine (do they still do the actual print magazine?? *shrugs*) online releases a guide to "The Coolest Free Things to Do in NYC This Weekend"

Albeit one day after payday and rent was due this past week as suggested by the preface of the Complex list, I paid rent two weeks early so funds for leisure are disposable at this time (pardon me while I pat myself on the back). I peeped this list Saturday morning around 10:30am so with Friday lost I challenged Amanda to help me fill up our weekend schedule and tackle remainder the list of things to do that were available for Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday @ 2pm: Union Square Walking Tour

First things first with any tour in a big city, it's important to stay together.  To facilitate that, we thought it'd be easy to stay together if we rocked matching t-shirts (don't judge us!)

The shirts were especially designed by Amanda herself.  I'm a fan of her work.

The tour itself was surprising. I thought with a scheduled 90 minute tour we'd be scouring the surrounding neighborhood, but it was literally a tour around the park grounds themselves, but it was very informative and entertaining thanks in part to our guide, Gregory.

Check out my list of most interesting facts learned:

- Although America won the American Revolutionary War, the battle of New York City was actually lost to the British in 1783 and the city was not freed until awhile later.

- Evacuation Day (look it up)

- The first ever statue of Lincoln was placed in Union Square Park

- "Ladie's Mile"[double entendre] (look it up) is an interesting study in gentrification, socioeconomics, and urban studies; if you're interested in that kind of thing. 

- Finally learned why the Frenchman, Lafayette's name is plastered all across America. (Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette)

- 

Selected images from the tour:

Approximately 4pm: The Museum at F.I.T.

After a short subway ride up Broadway and a stop in the only stateside Maison Kitsuné boutique (which I had no idea was on 28th street), which is my latest obsession in all many things French, we made our way to our next destination on the New York campus of the Fashion Institute to check out one of their museum's latest exhibits entitled "Beyond Rebellion: Fashioning the Biker Jacket?

Photography was not allowed in the exhibit, of course I didn't care and it rows it anyway but I couldn't cleverly hit the shutter button my phone before the security personnel noticed my not so stealthy mannerisms.

Sorry, best I could do...

Sunday @ 10:15ish am: A Brooklyn Area Subway Station

After a night of partying into the morning, it's always nice to wake up early and take a one hour train ride that I thought would be closer to 35 minutes uptown to 59th Street and Columbus Circle. Nevertheless we made the journey arriving fashionably late.

11:15ish am: Cooking with Spring Produce at Williams-Sonoma

Long story short, we got some valuable recipes and I actually have a new found slight admiration for green peas, but only when they're fresh and blanched (I learned how to Blanche vegetable...quite bourgeois). I also learned how to properly butcher a chicken...no more buying boneless breasts at the grocery store for me...whole birds only!

they even provided a nice dessert option

After this session of standing and then browsing for cookware that we honestly didn't need, but would be fun to have, we decided to break away from our Complex schedule and pick up a nice Belgium brunch at BXL East.

Bottomless mimosas on a Sunday, don't mind if I do....

Despite missing a few things on the list that we really did plan to do, star-gazing in Central Park (celestial stars, not people with their heads in the clouds due to celebrity) and the Pratt Institute's feature exhibition, "Black Dress..." Highlighting underrepresented African-American fashion designers.  

At the end of the day, it was a fun weekend and you really can't beat free. Complex's weekend guides will definitely keep me checking my emails on time.

Winter, Release Your Grip

Snow covers the sidewalk on a Brooklyn block

As snow once again covers my commute to work, I can do nothing more than reminisce of the pleasures of warmer days and long for the embrace of above 50 degree weather in Spring that I know will soon come *crosses fingers*.

Wishing the frozen clouds over SoHo would "Love Me"

I am reminded of 5 years ago, when I first moved to Chicago in the debt of winter (disclaimer: I do enjoy winter and the cold and moderate amounts of snow to liven or enshrine the landscape, depending upon your view; however...), I was given a harsh greeting and I longed for the warmer months when the city comes out to play and invite you out for drinks, parties, etc.  I'm ready for that phase here in New York.  I arrived mid-Summer and managed to wander a bit through the city but I'm ready to really experience this city full cycle.

I've slipped on this corner of Crosby Street twice this season

Cold Winter

With that being said, Winter, please release your sleeper hold on us.

- Keilon

Getting snow is like winning a lottery. With snow storms, you have a windfall of amazing little flakes that once fallen create a wonderful clean blanket of newness and magic. Full of possibilities. But then you wake up at five in the morning to realize that this beautiful snow will be a hazard to your life on your journey to work. No Bueno. 

So here's to hoping spring weather is just a hop, skip and a jump away. (That's close right?) Anyway bring on the warmer, not hot, weather. Spring and Autum are my thriving seasons. These seasons are full of nature shifts that keep everyone on their toes and I need a change of pace. 

- Amanda