Posts Tagged ‘ l.l. bean ’
i went to the beach this past weekend with my old man. i’ve got to hand it to him, he was the best dressed guy at the airport. i snapped this photo right after we went through security. he was rocking polo khakis, bean bluchers, a fjallraven greenland jacket, and carrying a filson briefcase. bonus points for the scotty cameron scotty dog hat which he informed me was really hard to get. excellent work, dad.
a few years ago, my buddy jay at red clay soul started a campaign for l.l. bean to bring back the lounger boot. they listened and are now offering two versions: 1) the shearling lounger with no buckle (not pictured) and 2) the l.l. bean signature maine hunting lounger that you see above. the shearling lounger is a 7 inch pull on boot that retails for $169. the maine hunting lounger (again above) is a 9 inch pull on boot with no shearling lining and an added buckle. it retails for $199. i love the look of the maine hunting lounger, but i do not understand the price point. $199 seems a bit excessive for a bean boot. am i wrong about this? what am i missing? would you pay $199 for this boot? i love you l.l. bean, but i think i’ll stick with my 8 inch bean boots and rubber mocs that together cost $20 less than this boot.
last year around this time, i bought a schott classic 32 oz melton wool pea coat. i never left the house in it. when i put it on, i looked like juggernaut from x-men. i could barely put my arms down. i let it hang in my closet until two weeks ago when i put it on ebay. i”m now looking for a new pea coat that was made for the streets rather than a battleship. here are a few options i found. i’ll let you know about fit as soon as i figure out which one i’m going to choose. if you have a pea coat that you really like that’s not super bulky, please leave a comment. i’m open to suggestions.
the l.l. bean mountain classic anorak is back. i had one from about 1990 to 1999 when it was retired before i left for college. until then, it was a staple on outdoor trips and vacations when the weather was questionable. it’s windproof, water resistant, and packable. when i was a kid, my favorite part about the jacket was that you could store it in its front pocket for easy packing. i can’t wait to get my hands on one of these again.
i went to order a new pair of rubber mocs yesterday and noticed the shout out to valet on l.l. bean’s website. it reads “as seen in valet magazine, october 2011.” that small mention made me very happy for their team. i’ve been reading valet since 2008 (i think) and wouldn’t have a blog or be interested in half the stuff i’m interested in without them. they do such an incredible job of helping dudes like me find cool things on the internet. i would guess that most of my readership has come from valet’s generous mentions of to take the train via their morning report. if you’re not checking out valet everyday then you need to be. keep up the good work and thanks for all you do.
shame on me for not mentioning the knottery before now. jay and jack make great looking ties, pocket squares, and belts that won’t hurt you wallet, but look like they did. for this holiday season, they created a tie that looks an awful lot like a certain norwegian sweater you’ve been telling people you’ve had since the 80’s. the best part about it – besides how incredible it looks – is the price. you can get your own longshoreman necktie for $25. you better place an order before it’s too late.
summer is almost here and as we begin to prepare for our vacations, it’s important to point out one thing every man needs: a good dopp kit. in my opinion, the best ones are made of nylon or canvas and have some sort of waterproof liner that will prevent spills from touching the rest of your suitcase. remember that no matter how careful you are, something will inevitably spill in your dopp kit. here are five of my favorites to get you through this summer and next:
consider me late to the party. i’ve always wanted a pair of these, but just haven’t pulled the trigger for whatever reason. a couple of weeks ago i had breakfast with a good friend and he told me i needed some essential kicks before i started blowing money on more expensive ventures like whites boots. the l.l. bean blucher mocs were the first shoes he mentioned. advice taken. i know some blucher moc traditionalists are upset that bean squared off the toe recently, but i still think they look great. i’m looking forward to breaking these in.
l.l. bean’s signature’s stuff is good quality for the price. there are several shirts i like on their site, but these are a few of my favorites. if you don’t have a casual white oxford shirt for the weekend, the one below will run you $49. that ain’t too bad. i’m also a big fan of the linen/cotton canvas blend shirt with the one flap button pocket. the one below is listed as navy but looks more charcoal to me.
i had a pair of bean boots in high school but they were a size too big. at that time i didn’t care. i let them hang off my feet. when i went to college, they disappeared in the transition. i hadn’t thought much about bean boots until the signature line released their first bean boots last year around this time. i pre-ordered and was pleased when they arrived. i sold them on ebay several weeks later cause i needed some extra cash. i figured i could just order another pair. not so fast. when i got around to ordering the things, l.l. bean said i would have to wait 3 months to get my pair. i couldn’t figure it out. i decided not to place an order.
what i didn’t realize is that in the past 2 years bean boots had become a hot item. they couldn’t make them as fast as they were being ordered. supply and demand, my friend. the blogosphere had crowned bean boots as the go-to winter snow and rain boot. rightfully so because they’re amazing boots.
as fall of 2010 approached, i placed another order for boots. this time, like an idiot, i ordered them too big. i didn’t realize you truly needed to follow their sizing info on the website which basically says size down. i returned those only to find out that they were sold out again and i’d have to wait three months. so i waited and they came in january. i took them to new york with me, wore them for a day, and determined these were also too big. i started to panic because i didn’t want to be out another $90. i called l.l. bean and told them the situation. that’s when they explained their return policy: if you’re not happy with them return them for a full refund or exchange. but i’ve already worn them. not a problem. incredible. can you imagine if all companies worked this way?
my new boots came yesterday. they told me there would be a 2 month wait to get these and there wasn’t. it was a great surprise. thanks l.l. bean.
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to take the train 