G.J. Cleverley

G.J. Cleverley Offers Bags Made with Leather from a Sunken Ship

G.J. Cleverley, the famed London-based bespoke shoemaker whose famous customers have included Winston Churchill, Gary Cooper, Clark Gable and Humphrey Bogart, has come out with a limited edition line of bags made from rare Russian reindeer leather salvaged from a ship sunk over 200 years ago. The precious perfectly preserved hides were recovered by divers from the Danish brigantine Metta Catharina von Flensburg which sank during a storm in England's Plymouth Sound in 1786, according to Robb Report. Tanned using a painstaking 18th century willow bark and birch oil process, the skins have been turned into a limited collection of handmade men's accessories including belts, wallets, a wine carrier, shoe kit, and Gladstone bag (above), priced at about $7,200, a modern interpretation of a satchel once used by well-heeled British hunters. The pieces are available by special order only.

Tags: bag, G.J. Cleverley, G.j.Cleverley, hunting, leather, London, Robb Report, RobbReport, shipwreck, UK

The Classicist: Duncan Quinn's Cool Classics

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Shoes, Men's Style, The Classicist

Duncan Quinn , who makes some of the world's coolest suits, isn't exactly a tailor, though "designer" doesn't really capture it either. So how would he put it? "I simply have a strong view and an aesthetic to go with that view," he tells The Classicist, "which encompasses the cars, wine, sailboats, cocktails and croquet." Sounds good to us. The dashing London-born former lawyer makes Savile Row-style clothes "constructed to celebrate days of glory and nights of excess." He opened his first shop in New York in 2003, followed by another in Hollywood and recently a new outpost in Dallas. Along the way he's attracted quite a following of well-dressed fellows, "gentleman rogues" who ascribe to the Quinn aesthetic.

Quinn's suits for spring / summer 2009 are slim, fitted and "slightly rakish", many with a particularly fine blue herringbone pattern. Above (and in the gallery), in a shot modeled on a classic photo of Michael Caine, is a stunning midnight blue three piece herringbone super 130's wool and cashmere number. It's worn here with a white cotton french cuff shirt, a red silk tie bearing Quinn's signature fleur-de-lys motif, black and silver 12-star cufflinks, and a vintage Breitling Chronomat watch, a nod to the stylish traditions Quinn holds dear.

Gallery: Duncan Quinn Designs