Major Blunder probably thinks it is a matter of course that he is declared a Chap. And in one sense he is right – there is nothing intrinsically wrong about his clothing and his facial hair. It’s just that he looks like the sort of fellow who, one day, might turn a sleepy village in… … Keep Reading
Sunday Swift: In some ways, silent film star Louise Brooks has much in common with Jackie Kennedy Onassis (the subject of my previous Dandizette profile): each were highly intelligent and strong-willed women who became trapped in a world they longed to escape. Louise once said, “There is no other occupation in the world that… … Keep Reading
A selection of recommended books currently in print which Chaps and Chapettes might find to their liking. HOW TO BE CHAP How To Be Chap (2016) is a large-format hardback tome chronicling the entire history of The Chap, from its humble beginnings as a discreet gentlemen’s pamphlet, through all its public protests and… … Keep Reading
You’ve seen him here, you’ve seen him there – that Chap who flows through life like a shark in the water. with barely a ripple. The embodiment of sartorial elegance and purposeful intelligence, an individual so elevated as to be almost beyond envy and beyond desire. To observe him is to sit in the silence… … Keep Reading
Like the idiot uncle or embarrassing aunt, one’s feet are not for public consumption. Uncovered, they dislodge any sense of dignity, and even on a good day can be mistaken for distended offal. Handsome fellows they are not. And yet, loitering at one’s southernmost extremity, these unsightly outgrowths are integral to a Chap’s upstanding and… … Keep Reading
Name: Derek Dubery Age: 50 Origin: Kent but now in Belfast. Sartorial motto: Cost is no measure of whether it suits you. Also… if you’re a slave to purely vintage clothing you can be just as much a fashion victim as the contemporary fashionista. Mix and match and wear only what suits you. Style icon:… … Keep Reading
The first of our homages goes to the Leather Satchel Company. There is a genus of Chap which clings to the disfigured belief that transporting one’s everyday flotsam & jetsam in a carrier bag is both practical and appropriate. It is not. Such malodourous thinking incited the rise of the male Tote Bag – or… … Keep Reading
Name: Zack MacLeod Pinsent Age: 21 Origin: Born and raised in Brighton Sartorial motto: ‘Life’s too short to be boring’ Style icon: Wide range, from Beau Brummell and Count D’Orsay to David Suchet as Hercule Poirot Hat: Regrettably, as with many antique items, the maker is unknown, but it is an exceptionally rare type of… … Keep Reading
In our ceaseless quest to dress the nation properly, The Chap has created a tweed jacket for gentlemen, in conjunction with renowned tweed merchants Walker Slater. The Chap Tweed Jacket comes in an all-round shade of bottle green with a classic hacking jacket construction, with a single rear vent, three buttons and a ticket pocket.… … Keep Reading
The most beautiful word in the English language is “Sebastian”. Sebastian Flyte, Sebastian Dangerfield, Sebastian Venable; the title is divine – all gleaming with crimson. A name should unbalance one. Indeed, some names haunt us and suggest ways of being and even aspects of behaviour. When I was crucified and was asked repeatedly why I… … Keep Reading
Steve Pittard: English actors were de riguer in American movies during the 1930s. The ‘Hollywood Raj’ formed their own cricket team, which boasted the likes of Leslie Howard, David Niven and Cary Grant. Starlets in the wings provided further glamour. Olivia De Haviland served cake and cucumber sandwiches while Elizabeth Taylor sold scorecards. Hollywood Cricket… … Keep Reading
Tom Cutler: I think it was Samuel Goldwyn who said that a bachelor’s life is no life for a single man. This might be true; I wouldn’t know, not being a bachelor any more, but surely it has its good points, even for the unattached gentleman. You can get home when you like, you can… … Keep Reading