Feel My Velvet

Here I am at the Casa while LFG is at Temple. Just called to say hello to my little monkey and her mom allowed that LFG stayed over last night with one of her top three best friends and they took her to Temple this morning. I love it. I love the fact that LFG’s circle includes Jews, Persians, African Americans, WASPs and of course, Redneck Druids like her daddy. I might have shared with you that back in the summer LFG out of the blue-most of the good stuff comes from out of the blue-said to me “Daddy, I want to be a Jew”. When I asked why-she shared with me her fun experiences at Hebrew School the previous day with same best friend who took her to Temple this morning.

Seems that LFG hit Hebrew school on a day characterized mostly by games and refreshments and not so much a deep dive into history-rote memorization or any of the rigor that accompanies the immersion into passing on lore-tradition and ritual. A friend of mine who survived the rigor of Hebrew School suggested that LFG endure perhaps a few more rigorous days of Hebrew School before deciding to convert. Jesus was a Jew. It’s all good. Shalom.

Now on to the issue of velvet. Tintin over at The Trad has done a stellar job this past week of showcasing incredible Holiday jackets and various rigs to consider for your Holiday parties. Velvet smoking jackets have obviously made the cut in several blog posts of late but you won’t see that here. The mainliest reason is that we don’t have one. I understand why smoking jackets became popular over the years. Gentlemen retired to the Library for cigars after dinner and donned said jackets as an alternative to smoking up their other clothes.

Some even wore a velvet smoking cap. I really like the cap but wouldn't be comfortable wearing one-even at home-alone. What if Jesus called me home and I was found-sitting in Casa Minimus with sweatpants-rubber flip flops and said cap on? Oy.

Seems to me that those Cymbal Banging monkeys always had on smoking caps. I could see myself wearing a cap and banging cymbals. I used to engage in similar antics just to piss off LFG's mom.

Come to think of it, one of my Vanity Fair watercolour caricatures has a monkey on a string avec smoking hat.

What we do have is a superb Flusser brown velvet jacket from a few years ago. When the boys at Flusser offered velvet fabric in dark blue-forest green-burgundy or brown, I immediately gravitated to one of the more dramatic colors…dark blue or burgundy. Damn-for once in my fuzzy diced life, better judgment prevailed. I settled on brown.

 Not only did I settle on brown-I decided to model it in a way that favored the more casual use of said jacket since the velvet smoking jacket scene ain’t where I frequent too much these days. Shut up. 

This is a slight variation from my “Flusser House Model” ….peak-open patch-three/two. I decided to remain faithful to the peak-three/two but tweaked the house model just a bit with patch pockets including a patch ticket. That’s where I keep my switchblade and Rolaids.

Contrived this rig with some other complementary touches including a pair of twenty year old Polo cords-Colony model-these bad boys are about to give up the ghost-not dissimilar to my Polo linens that you met over the summer. Linens that I still can’t stand to discard. Quiet please. Cordings cap-J. Crew Zipper Neck sweater-Flusser leg warmers and Shell Cordovan Tassels from the Brethren. Don’t touch me. I’ll pull the switchblade out and make you eat Rolaids.

The Brethren Shells began to lament the fact that I've worn the Ralph Shells exclusively over these last many weeks so I decided to spring them from the Shell Cordovan holding cell where they live amongst three other pairs of horse rump shoddings.

True Brethren devotees might know that Alden does a little treatment to the heel of said shell cordovans that identify them precisely as Brethren Exclusives. “Brethren Exclusives”…sounds like a Motown group that had something on the jukebox when I lived in the K.A. house.

I love the pocket square that I stole from Conor back in the summer but if the house was on fire-I'd be taking this one with me. Courtesy of Ralph.

So velvet works nicely for holiday-smoking-formal jackets but we think it passes muster over here just fine for casual contrivances.

I got a couple of emails asking me for better photos of the LFG Christmas tree. What do you think I’m running over here? Some kind of Architectural Digest layout service?

Seriously, taking pictures of a Christmas tree requires some kind of skill that I don’t posses but here you go.

If you don't have Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots on your tree then I just don't know what to think of your Yule efforts.

FunLand and the "Smallest House in Old Town" ornaments. Quiet please.

Tattered paper decoration courtesy of LFG's kindergarten days. Finally after thirty years they made a bicycle tag with my name on it. Traumatic as a child to not have one. I'm still not over it.

George Washington's Fan Chair from Mount Vernon.

Cashmere Cable Knit sweater ornament for J. Mclaughlin. The girl who gave me this a couple of Christmases ago won't talk to me anymore. Damn.

A visually neglected oil painting...it lives in a rarely viewed corner but it caught my lens when I was snapping these pictures.

This is an Adirondack chair not a whatever....Gibson Island chair like some of you silly girls have asserted.

We've got drums and clarinets over here-'cause that's what we play(ed)

Homemade ornaments are the best.

Hard to see this one but it's the Algonquin Roundtable gang. I spent Christmas Eve-Eve at the Algonquin two years ago. Took the train up to Gotham. Snagged requisite gifts for LFG from the American Girl Store on Fifth Avenue. Repaired to the Algonquin and had dinner at the bar that night. I can remember how superb it was to be in such a traditional old hotel albeit a bit worn these days-ice cold martinis and a rare rib eye while listening to the Algonquin bartender tell stories about the hotel. Home to DC on the Christmas Eve train-laden with American Girl gift boxes. Finally let me say that Patrick Star of Sponge Bob fame is placed next to the Algonquin ornament for a reason. I like to imagine Patrick as one of the Algonquin Roundtable. He would be a smash hit with that gang.

Ok folks-have a blessed Sunday. I’m off to Las Vegas tomorrow for my last billable gig this year. Las Vegas? The week before Christmas? Don’t ask.

Onward-In Velvet

ADG