@Westward_Drift: I'm a lot of things, but I'm damn sure "Savior of the Universe" ain't one of 'em!
Matt: we still need to get that drink! I've made it into the City exactly 3 times in the last year, and 2 of those trips were for business. So believe me, I wasn't ignoring you! I can't wait for things to finally calm down so I can do some serious exploring!
tshold: congrats on the clothing business! I quickly checked out your page and your collection looks great!
I know I have some PMs from folks here and I'll get to those ASAP. And apparently there are a lot more IG accounts I have to follow now! Looking forward to checking those out!
I've made some updates, but the front page of IA is still a bit of a jumble of old and new content. Here are the updates I did yesterday and this morning:
For the post on the Commando sweater: I learned about the Outdoor Knitwear option from someone here, but for the life of me I can't remember who it was or find their post. If someone knows who suggested it first, can you please tell me so I can give them credit in the post? Thanks!!
As I mentioned before, I'll have many more updates coming this week. For new stuff, I'm working on:
DC Cold Weather Style
McQueen Cold Weather Style
Essential Bond Coats and Jackets for Winter
The RgT Waxed Trucker Jacket
Essential Cardigans (I know someone was asking about options for the CR PTS one and I'll have a couple for that)
I'm also working my way through some other key NTTD pieces, so expect more on those in the near future.
And for those of you who are interested, here's a quick rundown of what's been happening with me. I wouldn't blame you if you want to skip all this. I wish this forum had a Spoiler function so you didn't have to scroll through a wall of text! )
The last time I was able to do a serious update on IA was in November 2019. As most of you know, my wife accepted a job posting in New York. And since her position started in January 2020, we had very little time to get everything organized for the big move. But we made it, safe and sound.
February and the start of March was basically devoted to doing all those things you need to do when you move to a new country and the only personal belongings you've kept are your clothes. Enrolling my son in school, personal paperwork, buying a car, buying some basic furniture, figuring out the train schedule so my wife could get to and from work, learning where the grocery and hardware stores are located. All that boring stuff.
And then March 15th 2020 came along and everything shut down.
As we all know, dealing with a serious pandemic and its consequences isn't easy. And in so many ways my family and I were luckier than many other people out there. We all stayed healthy, my wife had a job and I was continuing some work contracts remotely, we had a roof over our heads and food on the table.
But emotionally it was pretty tough on my wife and son. They are extremely close with my wife's family back in Guate. They had left family and friends that they loved to move to country where we know next to no one. And now, with almost everyone locked in their homes, there were almost no opportunities to meet new people or travel to see the few people we did know.
March to June was basically me taking care of my family. I essentially became a full time father/husband while fitting in my regular work early in the morning and late at night. I'm certainly not complaining! Honestly, I loved having the time and opportunity to play more with my son and help us grow even closer as a family. But it was a very difficult time for my wife and son and it didn't leave me with any time to work on the website.
The summer was a lot better once the COVID restrictions relaxed a bit. My son met some kids his own age in the neighborhood, we managed to get out see some friends in Boston, hit the beaches a few times and explored the area where we now lived.
Around the end of August, I figured things had finally settled down enough that I could get back to IA and devote some serious time to it. So I sat down at the computer and got ready to get back at it.
And I couldn't think of a single thing to write. The only way I can describe it is it was like someone had stuck a needle in me and sucked out the very small amount of creativity I had. I just stared at the screen and nothing would come out of my brain.
I'm not big on self analysis, but I guess I'd spent so much of the last 10 months worried about the people I love that I hadn't really spent any time on my own reactions to all the changes we'd experienced. So I spent Sept and Oct giving myself a little "me time" to think things through and make some plans.
Then in early November, the site started having some serious technical problems (which some of you probably noticed). And that resulted in me spending Nov, Dec and the start of Jan using any spare time I had almost rebuilding everything from scratch. It was a huge pain in the ass, but in some ways it was exactly what I needed. It gave me an opportunity to revisit all the things I love about our community, make some changes I've wanted to make for a while, and think about what I wanted to do with IA in the future. In other words, it recharged my batteries and got me passionate again.
And now here we are! Sorry again for the long post, but so many of you have been supportive of the site and my efforts that I figured I owed you an explanation.
Thanks John, glad you and the family are well. Yes been hard going the last 10 months or so and we probably have a few more to go. Keep up the fantastic work and stay safe.
Welcome back, John. I trust all is well now in the new city and such. Though I came around here after you left, I quickly learned how important you have been to this community. Thank you for all your hard work with what you do here. Wishing you well on your journey back to being as deep into this as you'd like. Cheers mate! - Justin Tullock
"History isn't kind to men who play God." - DC "I gave him the limp." - PB "Better make that two." - TD
"Keeping British end up, sir." - RM "This never happened to the other fellow." - JL "I must be dreaming." SC
JTullock23 Great to meet you! As I've am sure you've learned, it's an awesome group of folks here and if you have any suggestions for the website, just let me know!
Okay, I'm slowly working my way through the knitwear posts. New alternatives for the cream Tom Ford and blue McQueen cardigans:
Quick question: I'm already working on updating the NTTD Henley, Jamaica look and Matera suit posts and I've checked the Commando sweater off the list. What do you guys think should be the next priority from the film? RgT jacket? Barbour jacket?
JTullock23 Great to meet you! As I've am sure you've learned, it's an awesome group of folks here and if you have any suggestions for the website, just let me know!
Okay, I'm slowly working my way through the knitwear posts. New alternatives for the cream Tom Ford and blue McQueen cardigans:
Quick question: I'm already working on updating the NTTD Henley, Jamaica look and Matera suit posts and I've checked the Commando sweater off the list. What do you guys think should be the next priority from the film? RgT jacket? Barbour jacket?
"History isn't kind to men who play God." - DC "I gave him the limp." - PB "Better make that two." - TD
"Keeping British end up, sir." - RM "This never happened to the other fellow." - JL "I must be dreaming." SC
Welcome back John, glad to have your voice back in the community. Can’t wait to read more I/A articles. More importantly, glad to hear that you and your family are healthy and well. Good luck to you as you all settle yourselves in to your New York community.
Just got through my first major snowstorm in about 20 years, so I was in the mood to research warm stuff! )
Also updating the Prada cardigan post since DC has been wearing that again. And the bigger post on DC winter style is almost done, so I should be publishing it later today or early tomorrow.
Happy Monday!
I just reworked the post on Craig's grey Prada sweater. I've always liked that one and it seems to be making a bit of comeback since he wore it to promote Knives Out.
I wanted you guys to see it first since there is a good affordable option from Mango (of course) but it's getting really low on sizes (of course). I'll be promoting the post tomorrow on IG, FB, etc.
Welcome back and great photo! I’m north of the city in Yonkers so dealing with some similar Spectre weather. As for alternatives, it would be great to see the Die Another Day combo that Pierce wears in Iceland. There are a bunch of layers to it consisting of a 1/4 button shirt, the ribbed turtleneck, a diving jacket and finally a parka (when he rolls up to the ice palace). All of the layers come off one by one. Matt has all of the info on his site, if it’s any help.
Welcome back and great photo! I’m north of the city in Yonkers so dealing with some similar Spectre weather. As for alternatives, it would be great to see the Die Another Day combo that Pierce wears in Iceland. There are a bunch of layers to it consisting of a 1/4 button shirt, the ribbed turtleneck, a diving jacket and finally a parka (when he rolls up to the ice palace). All of the layers come off one by one. Matt has all of the info on his site, if it’s any help.
Russ
Great idea, Russ! I'll try and get on it asap. I'm working on 2 bigger posts for the end of this week that I'm excited about -{
Thought I'd quickly share this alternative for the Skyfall Corduroy jeans, these from my long time favourite supplier Marks and Spencer, £12 in the sale! I can confirm they're a nice slim fit, true to size and not bad at all! I got them in grey.
Thought I'd quickly share this alternative for the Skyfall Corduroy jeans, these from my long time favourite supplier Marks and Spencer, £12 in the sale! I can confirm they're a nice slim fit, true to size and not bad at all! I got them in grey.
I can second this recommendation! I have these in nutmeg and navy. Just a pity they didn’t do this run in the black because they would have been an excellent alternative for the NTTD Norway ones.
Thought I'd quickly share this alternative for the Skyfall Corduroy jeans, these from my long time favourite supplier Marks and Spencer, £12 in the sale! I can confirm they're a nice slim fit, true to size and not bad at all! I got them in grey.
I can second this recommendation! I have these in nutmeg and navy. Just a pity they didn’t do this run in the black because they would have been an excellent alternative for the NTTD Norway ones.
The Maukos are more of a straight fit so if you’re looking for alternatives I’d keep that in mind — unless slim is what suits you, in which case disregard.
The post has a lot of different alternatives. But one I want to highlight is an option for the Connolly Matera jacket. It's not as good as the Mango option was, but it still comes pretty close.
Also, I gave credit to RonBerry for finding that Massimo Dutti Solden jacket alternative!
And I want to ask a favor: I want to do one of these posts every week to catch all the alternatives that slip through the cracks or highlight previous alternatives that are now on sale, etc. I'm up to over 200 posts on the site now. So having to go back and edit each dedicated posts every time we find one new thing is a little overwhelming.
I'm calling these posts "Best Budget Style Finds" but I'm not crazy about that name. Can anyone think of something better? I was playing around with stuff like "The Weekly Hit List" or something to do with "For Your Eyes Only" or "Confidential". But I can't seem to come up with anything that clicks, if you know what I mean. Any ideas?
Beautiful! A shame the Spectre style linen jacket isn't available in the UK.
Yeah, that was a tough one. But I'll be updating the BC linen jacket post in early March once the spring arrivals start showing up. So I hope we'll have some good alternatives this year.
In other news, I'm preparing a big post on another NTTD piece for this weekend. And I think I've found some solid options for it. So I'm excited to share that one! I'll give you guys here a sneak preview before I promote it anywhere else.
Beautiful! A shame the Spectre style linen jacket isn't available in the UK.
Yeah, that was a tough one. But I'll be updating the BC linen jacket post in early March once the spring arrivals start showing up. So I hope we'll have some good alternatives this year.
In other news, I'm preparing a big post on another NTTD piece for this weekend. And I think I've found some solid options for it. So I'm excited to share that one! I'll give you guys here a sneak preview before I promote it anywhere else.
We all appreciate the work you put in. What an honour!
canoe2, great to have you back and it's comforting to know you and the family are healthy and doing well!
I hope you know what you did with that Prada cardigan post. ) )
Though it isn't on his website, Daniel Love is working on a Morocco blazer, and now I just realized how badly I hope he one day does the Morocco trousers and this gray raglan cardigan as well!
So I went searching, and it's a little LIGHTER in color, but it appears Banana Republic Factory has some sizes in stock of a raglan gray cardigan @ $45 with 20% off.
There's also the green one, which is kind of a stretch, but maybe it could pass as a budget for the Rag & Bone green cardigan he wore on that TV commerical?
As promised, you fine folks get the first look at the new post: alternatives for the NTTD Cuba Jacket (or the Barbour Graham, since we're almost 100% sure that's what it is):
Armenianmovieman: Thank you! I did see that BR cardigan and thought the same thing about it being a possible match for the green R&B! I thought the light grey was a little too light for the Prada (there's a lot of cardigans out there, so I had to cut some) but I can definitely see how it could work.
Great article as always, thank you very much. Would love to see Iconic Alternatives try to tackle the Massimo Alba Rain Duster. Alternatives for that jacket have proven to be very challenging to come by!
Great article as always, thank you very much. Would love to see Iconic Alternatives try to tackle the Massimo Alba Rain Duster. Alternatives for that jacket have proven to be very challenging to come by!
Thanks! About that duster: I am looking for alternatives here and there, but I haven't really started to dig in. I'm hoping spring arrivals bring something decent. Then there's the fact that I really don't like that look. I kind of get the appeal, but it is just so not "Bond" to me. If I wanted to see Craig in a Western I'd force myself to sit through Cowboys and Aliens again But don't worry, I'll get to it sooner rather than later because I know some folks like it. Cheers!
Comments
@Westward_Drift: I'm a lot of things, but I'm damn sure "Savior of the Universe" ain't one of 'em!
Matt: we still need to get that drink! I've made it into the City exactly 3 times in the last year, and 2 of those trips were for business. So believe me, I wasn't ignoring you! I can't wait for things to finally calm down so I can do some serious exploring!
tshold: congrats on the clothing business! I quickly checked out your page and your collection looks great!
I know I have some PMs from folks here and I'll get to those ASAP. And apparently there are a lot more IG accounts I have to follow now! Looking forward to checking those out!
I've made some updates, but the front page of IA is still a bit of a jumble of old and new content. Here are the updates I did yesterday and this morning:
McQueen Aran Knit Sweater: https://iconicalternatives.com/2016/10/07/thomas-crown-affair-aran-sweater/
McQueen Waxed Moto Jacket: https://iconicalternatives.com/2017/04/24/steve-mcqueen-waxed-motorcycle-jacket/
QoS Cardigan: https://iconicalternatives.com/2015/11/30/quantum-of-solace-black-shawl-collar-cardigan/
For the post on the Commando sweater: I learned about the Outdoor Knitwear option from someone here, but for the life of me I can't remember who it was or find their post. If someone knows who suggested it first, can you please tell me so I can give them credit in the post? Thanks!!
As I mentioned before, I'll have many more updates coming this week. For new stuff, I'm working on:
DC Cold Weather Style
McQueen Cold Weather Style
Essential Bond Coats and Jackets for Winter
The RgT Waxed Trucker Jacket
Essential Cardigans (I know someone was asking about options for the CR PTS one and I'll have a couple for that)
I'm also working my way through some other key NTTD pieces, so expect more on those in the near future.
And for those of you who are interested, here's a quick rundown of what's been happening with me. I wouldn't blame you if you want to skip all this. I wish this forum had a Spoiler function so you didn't have to scroll through a wall of text!
The last time I was able to do a serious update on IA was in November 2019. As most of you know, my wife accepted a job posting in New York. And since her position started in January 2020, we had very little time to get everything organized for the big move. But we made it, safe and sound.
February and the start of March was basically devoted to doing all those things you need to do when you move to a new country and the only personal belongings you've kept are your clothes. Enrolling my son in school, personal paperwork, buying a car, buying some basic furniture, figuring out the train schedule so my wife could get to and from work, learning where the grocery and hardware stores are located. All that boring stuff.
And then March 15th 2020 came along and everything shut down.
As we all know, dealing with a serious pandemic and its consequences isn't easy. And in so many ways my family and I were luckier than many other people out there. We all stayed healthy, my wife had a job and I was continuing some work contracts remotely, we had a roof over our heads and food on the table.
But emotionally it was pretty tough on my wife and son. They are extremely close with my wife's family back in Guate. They had left family and friends that they loved to move to country where we know next to no one. And now, with almost everyone locked in their homes, there were almost no opportunities to meet new people or travel to see the few people we did know.
March to June was basically me taking care of my family. I essentially became a full time father/husband while fitting in my regular work early in the morning and late at night. I'm certainly not complaining! Honestly, I loved having the time and opportunity to play more with my son and help us grow even closer as a family. But it was a very difficult time for my wife and son and it didn't leave me with any time to work on the website.
The summer was a lot better once the COVID restrictions relaxed a bit. My son met some kids his own age in the neighborhood, we managed to get out see some friends in Boston, hit the beaches a few times and explored the area where we now lived.
Around the end of August, I figured things had finally settled down enough that I could get back to IA and devote some serious time to it. So I sat down at the computer and got ready to get back at it.
And I couldn't think of a single thing to write. The only way I can describe it is it was like someone had stuck a needle in me and sucked out the very small amount of creativity I had. I just stared at the screen and nothing would come out of my brain.
I'm not big on self analysis, but I guess I'd spent so much of the last 10 months worried about the people I love that I hadn't really spent any time on my own reactions to all the changes we'd experienced. So I spent Sept and Oct giving myself a little "me time" to think things through and make some plans.
Then in early November, the site started having some serious technical problems (which some of you probably noticed). And that resulted in me spending Nov, Dec and the start of Jan using any spare time I had almost rebuilding everything from scratch. It was a huge pain in the ass, but in some ways it was exactly what I needed. It gave me an opportunity to revisit all the things I love about our community, make some changes I've wanted to make for a while, and think about what I wanted to do with IA in the future. In other words, it recharged my batteries and got me passionate again.
And now here we are! Sorry again for the long post, but so many of you have been supportive of the site and my efforts that I figured I owed you an explanation.
Cheers!
John
Thanks John, glad you and the family are well. Yes been hard going the last 10 months or so and we probably have a few more to go. Keep up the fantastic work and stay safe.
"Keeping British end up, sir." - RM "This never happened to the other fellow." - JL "I must be dreaming." SC
"- That is something to be afraid of."
Okay, I'm slowly working my way through the knitwear posts. New alternatives for the cream Tom Ford and blue McQueen cardigans:
TF: https://iconicalternatives.com/2017/09/24/tom-ford-ivory-shawl-collar-cardigan/
McQueen: https://iconicalternatives.com/2016/09/15/steve-mcqueen-blue-shawl-collar-cardigan/
Quick question: I'm already working on updating the NTTD Henley, Jamaica look and Matera suit posts and I've checked the Commando sweater off the list. What do you guys think should be the next priority from the film? RgT jacket? Barbour jacket?
I think both the RGT and the Barbour are great choices. My vote is the RGT first since, as you know, here in the US we are about to hit spring time.
"Keeping British end up, sir." - RM "This never happened to the other fellow." - JL "I must be dreaming." SC
I'm actually heading out to shovel the driveway, but I thought I'd take advantage of the snowy backdrop ....
We missed you -{
https://iconicalternatives.com/2018/02/22/canada-goose-lodge-hoody-spirit-blue/
Just got through my first major snowstorm in about 20 years, so I was in the mood to research warm stuff!
Also updating the Prada cardigan post since DC has been wearing that again. And the bigger post on DC winter style is almost done, so I should be publishing it later today or early tomorrow.
Cheers!
John
Welcome back, awesome picture above, glad you are well and things are settling down for you in NY.
Looking forward to some awesome content.
KH
New post: Daniel Craig Cold Weather Style
https://iconicalternatives.com/2021/02/07/daniel-craig-cold-weather-style/
Try to include a little of everything, from caps to boots to sweaters. Let me know if there's anything I missed or you'd like to see!
John
I just reworked the post on Craig's grey Prada sweater. I've always liked that one and it seems to be making a bit of comeback since he wore it to promote Knives Out.
https://iconicalternatives.com/2021/02/08/daniel-craig-prada-shawl-collar-cardigan/
I wanted you guys to see it first since there is a good affordable option from Mango (of course) but it's getting really low on sizes (of course). I'll be promoting the post tomorrow on IG, FB, etc.
Cheers!
John
Welcome back and great photo! I’m north of the city in Yonkers so dealing with some similar Spectre weather. As for alternatives, it would be great to see the Die Another Day combo that Pierce wears in Iceland. There are a bunch of layers to it consisting of a 1/4 button shirt, the ribbed turtleneck, a diving jacket and finally a parka (when he rolls up to the ice palace). All of the layers come off one by one. Matt has all of the info on his site, if it’s any help.
Russ
Great idea, Russ! I'll try and get on it asap. I'm working on 2 bigger posts for the end of this week that I'm excited about -{
Thought I'd quickly share this alternative for the Skyfall Corduroy jeans, these from my long time favourite supplier Marks and Spencer, £12 in the sale! I can confirm they're a nice slim fit, true to size and not bad at all! I got them in grey.
https://www.marksandspencer.com/slim-fit-corduroy-5-pocket-trousers/p/clp60453275?extid=ps_ps-bpla_ggl_mw_ch__-_UK_-_-_grow&gclsrc=aw.ds&&gclid=Cj0KCQiApY6BBhCsARIsAOI_GjZgk4msu8djI_qLV6xP3ziu-fttPYTH3Y6dyw-MoNJw9Q37IUdaq44aAs0BEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
I can second this recommendation! I have these in nutmeg and navy. Just a pity they didn’t do this run in the black because they would have been an excellent alternative for the NTTD Norway ones.
The Maukos are more of a straight fit so if you’re looking for alternatives I’d keep that in mind — unless slim is what suits you, in which case disregard.
New post is up: Best Budget Style Finds
https://iconicalternatives.com/2021/02/11/best-budget-style-finds-february-11/
The post has a lot of different alternatives. But one I want to highlight is an option for the Connolly Matera jacket. It's not as good as the Mango option was, but it still comes pretty close.
Also, I gave credit to RonBerry for finding that Massimo Dutti Solden jacket alternative!
And I want to ask a favor: I want to do one of these posts every week to catch all the alternatives that slip through the cracks or highlight previous alternatives that are now on sale, etc. I'm up to over 200 posts on the site now. So having to go back and edit each dedicated posts every time we find one new thing is a little overwhelming.
I'm calling these posts "Best Budget Style Finds" but I'm not crazy about that name. Can anyone think of something better? I was playing around with stuff like "The Weekly Hit List" or something to do with "For Your Eyes Only" or "Confidential". But I can't seem to come up with anything that clicks, if you know what I mean. Any ideas?
Cheers!
John
Yeah, that was a tough one. But I'll be updating the BC linen jacket post in early March once the spring arrivals start showing up. So I hope we'll have some good alternatives this year.
In other news, I'm preparing a big post on another NTTD piece for this weekend. And I think I've found some solid options for it. So I'm excited to share that one! I'll give you guys here a sneak preview before I promote it anywhere else.
We all appreciate the work you put in. What an honour!
I hope you know what you did with that Prada cardigan post.
Though it isn't on his website, Daniel Love is working on a Morocco blazer, and now I just realized how badly I hope he one day does the Morocco trousers and this gray raglan cardigan as well!
So I went searching, and it's a little LIGHTER in color, but it appears Banana Republic Factory has some sizes in stock of a raglan gray cardigan @ $45 with 20% off.
https://bananarepublicfactory.gapfactory.com/browse/product.do?pid=653208011&pcid=999&vid=1&searchText=cardigan#pdp-page-content
There's also the green one, which is kind of a stretch, but maybe it could pass as a budget for the Rag & Bone green cardigan he wore on that TV commerical?
As promised, you fine folks get the first look at the new post: alternatives for the NTTD Cuba Jacket (or the Barbour Graham, since we're almost 100% sure that's what it is):
https://iconicalternatives.com/2021/02/14/james-bond-no-time-to-die-cuba-jacket/
Armenianmovieman: Thank you! I did see that BR cardigan and thought the same thing about it being a possible match for the green R&B! I thought the light grey was a little too light for the Prada (there's a lot of cardigans out there, so I had to cut some) but I can definitely see how it could work.
Cheers!
John
Thanks! About that duster: I am looking for alternatives here and there, but I haven't really started to dig in. I'm hoping spring arrivals bring something decent. Then there's the fact that I really don't like that look. I kind of get the appeal, but it is just so not "Bond" to me. If I wanted to see Craig in a Western I'd force myself to sit through Cowboys and Aliens again