Club Chair Bulletin #15

Quarter-zips and golf derbies, sounds like we're off to the country club

Sep 26, 2024

What’s he been up to?

Thanks for picking up this week’s bulletin, last week's meeting which discussed some light hearted thoughts on Autumn layering can be attended here. This week, discussion of a year on Substack, and new shoes for myself, and for your radar.

Small Favour: If you wouldn’t mind, please share this post, or the club as a whole, with a friend who you think might be interested, it would mean a whole lot. Please also subscribe if you haven’t yet, again, it makes a big difference.

Reflecting on a year on Substack

Next week’s meeting will mark my first year of regular publications on Substack, so I’m taking a look back at my experience on this platform. I’ll be articulating those thoughts next week but I’ll just spare a moment here to extend a word of gratitude, I have a considerably larger platform than I’d expected to garner, I just wanted to say thank you for sticking around.

I’m particularly excited to share thoughts on my fashion developments, there's been a momentous shift in the way I’ve dressed since starting the club, in part as a result of it, I’m curious to explore this further, to position it against the backdrop of my general anti-consumerist attitudes, to critique it a little.

Tracking Down Quarter Zips

As per last week’s meeting, I have quarter-zip styling on the brain. I’ve found tracking decent examples down to be rather difficult. The difficulty here is that of having an exact vision of the ideal expression of a piece, in relation to one’s own taste, yet finding it very difficult to locate an actual example of that piece, especially when considering budget restraints.

For me, the ideal quarter-zip is in a wide knit 100% wool, with outdoorsy panels in 60/40 and a heavy-duty zip which actually extends into being a half-zip. It looks like if the quarters we know today were produced forty years ago.

Paneled Half-Zip Pullover — This example from ALD is the closest I’ve found, just wish the panels weren’t polyester

So eyes stay pealed, and search terms remain general, when I find the perfect one, rest assured you will be informed promptly.

Recent Acquisitions

Paraboot Chambord

Might I say, finally! I’ve coveted a pair of shoes in this style, and sung their praises, for quite a long time. The golf derby simply makes for the perfect year-round shoe.

The Chambords have always been the first choice too, even after compiling a list of alternatives, they're only really contested by the even more prohibitive JM Weston Golf model.

I’ve had saved searches on secondhand platforms set for some time, and yet I happened across these simply on a late-night Vinted scroll. Right price, great condition, hard to argue with.

They’ve slotted into my shoe wardrobe perfectly, somewhat dethroning my Solovair Gibsons as the go-to all-weather shoe. The trouble is Paraboots seem to follow the same magic as tattoos and glasses of wine, the first functions primarily to satisfy the desire, and secondarily to inspire a desire for a second. That is to say, I’ve turned an eye towards a pair of Michaels to act as sibling to these. All in due time though, and in that due time I will certainly be enjoying what is quite possibly the perfect all-weather shoe.

I have a number of other acquisitions to share soon, I’ll be looking to move towards a “wardrobe spotlight” section to replace the acquisitions for a little while.

On the Radar

Umbro Speciali Skateboard

The internet nostalgia cycle has finally made its way to my childhood, and coupled with the capital that London streetwear has in the current Zeitgeist, I’ve got eyes on the growing interest in Umbro.

The viral image is a Speciali football boot (cleat), with a Vibram lug sole retrofitted. Fusing the Y2K skinny sneaker and lug-sole chunky loafers that we can’t seem to get away from in a DIY fashion.

It’s hard to see those sticking around, a little too weird and inaccessible to break containment and a little too off piste to get any timeless appeal. On the other hand, there is am elusive skateboarding variation of the Speciali. This option takes the same Y2K aesthetic but throws it into the skinny retro sneaker ring along with the likes of Mexico 66s and Sambas.

Unfortunately I haven’t been able to track these down actually on sale in the West, the only hope is that someone at Umbro clocks the appeal these could have and sets about re-launching them with greater accessibility.

Those That Know Magazine Section

Fashion nerds always face a decision between picking up ridiculously niche Japanese clothing and ridiculously niche Japanese magazines about clothing. If you choose to spend you September paycheque on the latter, Those That Know have a nice little selection available.