Nostalgic feeling. This stolen pic by Paolo di Paolo, a kind of ante-litteram Scott Schuman, is from 1960. The man you see in it, half-lying on the raling of the Fontana dei Fiumi in Piazza Navona, is composed in his uncomposure. He is Un-Composed. Probably the jacket is buttoned even if it’s single-breasted (that shouldn’t be buttoned), because otherwise it would dangle, adding more disorder. Probably, if this picture was set today, this man wouldn’t wear anything like this. Try to imagine: unlaced sneakers, baggy sweater, jeans or gym pants. Or shorts. And, of course, instead of the newspaper, he would hold an iPhone or iPad. Don’t you miss that ‘900 style?

Degrees of separation. Rod Stewart’s shoes in this picture of 1965 with Long John Baldry (singer and guitarist of The British Blues) correspond with the short white socks of Marlon Brando in a portrait that has made history, with him crouched on a chair at Actors Studio. Yes, because if the “error” (or “horror”) comes from a remote past, and besides made by a celebrity, is cool; if it’s made by you, you are a chav. But fashion designers try to surprise us in many ways, with eccentric ideas on the borderline of good taste, so why does a guy today deserve to be called a person of bad taste? White socks are in fashion, for example. We must ask ourselves which is (and if there is) a degree of separation from good and bad. There are different kinds of fashion: conventional doesn’t admit mistakes, while fashion created on purpose, following our personality without worries and obligations, does. The history of Miuccia Prada menswear collections teaches us that oversights and imperfections are (or can be) a sign of personality that makes the difference. My advice: follow your instinct and, if you’re sure you can dare, do it. And if you dare, do it completely.

The choice of the socks. In the last years socks have become a very important accessories in menswear, so much so that women often wear “men’s” crew socks. The reason could be that they’re the cheaper fashion accessories, or that designers have understood that the right choice of the socks is trendy, mainly if they have very peculiar colours, prints and textures. In Italy this is a very recent trend, while American, French and especially British care about the choice of the socks as they care about choosing shoes. It is not by chance that the British designer Paul Smith has been one of the first to propose and value coloured and printed socks, matching them in contrast with the trousers, or in the same shades. For example: plain coloured trousers with optical-checked socks, or beige glencheck trousers with darker glencheck socks. Picture taken from “A gentleman’s guide to Dress and Style” by Nick Clemens (Goodwood).

The Norfolk jacket. Contemporary menswear often brings back to fashion an archetype of the past. This doesn’t mean that we can’t find anything new in shops neither that today’s clothes are imitations (this is a totally different matter). What designers – since ever – have done is to draw inspiration from a certain era, keeping its charm untouched, but updating the reference model according to the new rules of menswear, starting from fabric and colours. In this week’s picture we can see a Norfolk jacket, a kind of blazer that was very popular in the upper bourgeoisie in the last 20 years of the 19th century. It was worn especially for hunting, with the knee-length knickerbockers and riding boots. Let’s see how to wear the Norfolk jacket’s reinterpretation: not an accurate quote, but with a bit of dandyism. The actor Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes in a movie of the 40s.