Relief, Recovery, Reform. That was the platform for The New Deal orchestrated by FDR. Politics aside, it sounds pretty good, so we’ve coopted the phrase to offer Leviner Wood’s very own New New Deal:

New Fall Fabrics are in. What a relief. We can’t wait for the heat to end either.

New Subscribers to our blog/newsletter are sure to get special offers. Special offers? Yes. And when you recover from your shock, you’ll find:

New New Deals will be made ONLY to subscribers. (That’s a reform of our policy regarding discounts. You’ve got to read the emails to take advantage of these secret deals.)

Ready to take advantage? Have our newsletter delivered directly to your email inbox.

While he now calls Richmond his turf, Larry is returning home to Charlottesville (and Lynchburg) to visit clients.

If you’d like to make an appointment or find out more about which Corner Larry called his stomping grounds, give a call (804.928.7946) or email him here. In the meantime dream about mornings at Bodo’s, days on grounds and nights on the Downtown Mall.

Snuck up on you didn’t it? Has your significant other been hinting around trying to figure out what to get you? Need something to go under last year’s tie? How about a new pair of shorts for golf?

Leviner Wood gift certificates make the perfect last minute gift.

Here at Leviner Wood we are often asked by first time clients about our shirts. Most haven’t thought too much about shirts. You may know your neck size and sleeve length, your preferred collar and that you like blue or white cotton shirts. The fun of having your shirts made is discovering another collar or cuff style, playing with heavier or lighter fabrics or introducing patterns into your wardrobe.

In our increasingly casual world, there are many of you who may not have to wear a tie unless you’re meeting with your clients. And, if you were to ask us our preference for a “do it all” collar for a shirt, we’d advise you to have several hidden buttondowns at your disposal. The collar, an invention of the late 80′s, is one of those “best of both worlds” things. The hidden buttondown keeps the collar neat and your tie in place for business and off-the-clock, it provides enough structure to keep your collar standing tall under your sportcoat or sweater.

And yes, they look equally good in patterns as they do in blue or white.

Have you tuned into the World Cup yet? It was 1-1 in the Mexico/South Africa match as of this writing. Biggest sporting event in the world. Remember the World Cup in the late 90′s? Hoards of fans running around in fright wigs and body paint singing team fight songs were quite a site.

There are subtler ways of showing your colors. Consider having your team’s flag sewn into the lining of your next sportcoat. Wear it inside out to the bar. It’ll save the outer fabric from 7:30 am beer stains and who knows who you might meet?

(Image: Polosbastards)

That’s the beauty of sports … and custom clothing by Leviner Wood.

Larry will be visiting the metro D.C. area Thursday, 10 June, 2010 and next week for a day or two. If you would like to make an appointment for today or next week, please email Larry.

The shirt off your back should be different from the others stacked on the department store shelves. Especially when we have four real seasons to deal with. It feels like summer this morning, so let’s discuss your summer shirt choices.

As your custom shirtmakers, we here at Leviner Wood know your preferences for heavier twills and oxford cloth. They starch up nicely, look crisp and professional. They also wear warmer than some of the fabrics to which you have access. Besides, while blue and white solids and stripes are irreproachable business wear, hotter weather and stronger light call for a little color to be added into the strict blues and grays of your suit wardrobe.

First up: cotton poplin or broadcloth. Papeline was first woven in France, in the town of Avignon, once the papal seat. It is a plain, strong weave. Although it is very lightweight (heavier weights are used for khakis), it irons nicely and with a bit of  starch (if you like starch) keeps you cool and crisp all day. American cotton broadcloth is called poplin in Great Britain and here as there it is made up into everything from raincoats to boxer shorts. We recommend several shirts in various stripes which help to negate the slight transparency of a lighter fabric. Summer tattersalls, for example, are classics under a blue blazer

(A classic pink, aqua, royal and navy blue summer tattersall)

End-on-end is a term used to define the making of another kind of broadcloth in which two color stands of cotton are woven into a sort of cross-hatch. One of the colors is almost always white, although it doesn’t have to be. In a mid-blue or pink end-on-end makes up into a beautiful lightweight white collar and cuffs dress shirt. We like to see colored shirts made of this fabric: grays, blues, pinks, lavender, pale greens and yellows, although there are some beautiful patterns in this fabric, too.

(The familiar light blue end-on-end)

Pinpoint oxford. For those of you pining for the beefier oxford cloth of your buttondowns, pinpoint oxford is the answer. The only difference in this broadcloth fabric is that two strands are woven over two strands instead of the simpler basketweave of the oxford cloth. It results in a silkier hand (feel) that is faintly more lustrous to the eye. You can’t go wrong with a pink buttondown in pinpoint oxford and a white shirt will look beautiful for day or evening events.

(Pink pinpoint oxford in extreme closeup)

Finally, the ultimate in luxury summer shirtings — James Bond’s fabric of choice — sea island cotton first produced on Hilton Head Island in 1790. Of course, the original doesn’t exist anymore thanks to the Civil War, a  plague of boll weevils in the 1920′s and a host of other problems. We do have acceptable and luxurious alternatives: Supima® extra long-staple cotton and Egyptian long-staple cottons, and a Sea Island branded material that is every inch the extra-long-staple blend of Egyptian, Peruvian and American threads that you expect and appreciate. They are more vibrant when dyed, more lustrous, softer, silkier and very durable despite the fineness of the cloth into which it is woven. Every designer on earth uses the stuff. Only Leviner Wood makes it to fit you. We recommend an unfused, soft collar on all your most luxurious shirts. Consider a tuxedo shirt in extra-long staple cotton for the ultimate in comfort.

In addition to Sea Island cotton, Leviner Wood carries 2 ply 120′s twills by Loro Piana, luxuriously soft and lightweight broadcloths by Thomas Mason, Zegna and John Anderson and a new Royal 140′s, 2 ply twill and broadcloth that is tightly woven and lightweight without being see-through. If you’re looking for that special summer shirt that is the essence of understated luxury, give us a call today.

… And Dean, and best of all, Johnny Carson. Pros all.

Do you remember when Carson would come out and flash the lining of his sport coat? Maybe not. If you were wearing custom clothing then you would have noticed it. Especially when it got really wild. That lining said it all, didn’t it? Serious professional who was having wayyy too much fun. He didn’t always nail it, witness the “brace” above, as Deano called it.

They were all having wayyy too much fun. And the funny thing is, they were all dressed well while doing it.

Can the same thing be said about today’s late-night stars? We were just wondering here at Leviner Wood, since Conan O’Brien’s $33 MILLION dollar severance package went through today.

We hope he puts at least some of it back into his wardrobe.

And we hope that this year, you’ll put some of the fun back into dressing seriously. There are some wonderful paisley linings, vibrant twills, and a few shades that will really pop. Whenever you remove your jacket that is. Or flash the crowd.

That’s part of the fun of having your clothes made, late night host or not.