Cozy Boy Perfection

Hello Readers,

Thank you for checking out my blog this week!

This week SQUAD CLOTH is making progress because pre-ordering is now officially finished for the East Knox Basketball shirts and we are beginning printing soon.  I am very excited to see these shirts when they are finished because it will be great to have my brand and high school on the same shirt.  While I have only made a few products, the feeling that you get when you see something you designed in your hands for the first time is amazing.  That feeling is minimal compared to seeing someone wearing a design that you made.  This week I have also been working on my sketches through the online classes at www.skillshare.com, focusing specifically on more gestural approaches to sketching garments.  Creating fashion sketches is an art in itself because the goal is to properly portray the garment in only a few minutes and move on to the next.  While I might still be slow, I am improving and honestly enjoying sketching something that I am so passionate about.

Since this is the last post before we celebrate Thanksgiving, I thought that I would give you guys some tips on wearing sweats.  That way you can add four inches onto your waist from food and still be comfortable and fashionable, instead of suffering in pants with the button undone.  Now I realize a lot of people associate wearing sweats with the gym or just plain laziness, but like most things they can be dressed up if it is done correctly.  Since there are so many form fitting sweats that are high quality, it is quite easy actually.  Zanerobe, Premium Co, and Entree have excellent jogger sweats for that slim fit that makes this look.  So lets start from the bottom:  I would start out with a pair of sneakers that are more plain in color, then a good pair of fitted sweats, a layering t-shirt, a button up long sleeve shirt, then to really dress up the whole look throw on a trench coat and you are golden.

The trench coat is really the finishing piece that makes this outfit look a lot better than someone who is just dressed comfortably.  Honestly pairing the sweats with any dress shirt will make it look a lot more dressed up, so I would challenge you to give it a try.  WARNING! Do not try to do this with sweat pants that are ill-fitting or that have any applied graphics or embroidery on them because it will just end badly.

As always thank you for reading and check back in next week for the latest from SQUAD CLOTH.  HOME OF THE FULLGROWN.

Outerwear Weather

Hello All,
Thanks for taking time to take a look at the latest Squad Cloth post!

This week has been quite stagnant for Squad because of the distance between California and Ohio, but I have been keeping myself busy.  I have discovered an amazing website called http://www.skillshare.com which has thousands of different unique subjects that you can learn online for free.  Not only are the classes interesting, they are also taught by professionals in their given industries, so they are providing students with information from their own experiences.  Jeff Staple, founder of Staple Design and ReedSpace, is teaching classes on starting your own fashion brand, as well as how to manufacture and market your product.  Other classes I am currently enrolled in are flat garment construction using Adobe Illustrator, and fashion sketching with a designer from the New York brand Bellavance.  It is exciting to learn more and more about the things you're passionate about because you become so absorbed in the subject it almost becomes ingrained in your way of life.

This week for fashion tips I want to talk about outerwear since winter is creeping upon us.  Now for the past few years North Face fleece jackets have been the normal winter outerwear for "bros" across the country, regardless of what the dress code says.  This jacket is fine with sweats or blue jeans, but that is pretty much it honestly.

If you are going to wear a jacket with dress pants do not match it with a fucking cheesy North Face.  Instead, I would suggest a trench coat that matches your color palette and stick with darker base colors as well (black, gray, camel, and navy depending on your pallet). The one below is from Kenneth Cole on sale at Macy's for $160 http://www1.macys.com/shop/product/kenneth-cole


The most versatile jacket to work with though would be a leather bomber because it would look great dressed down or dressed up with blue jeans and dress pants respectively.  The jacket to the left is also from Kenneth Cole at Macy's on sale for $280 http://www1.macys.com/shop/product/kenneth-cole-full-zip- .  On the right, this bomber jacket is from Schott NYC at Karmaloop for $340 http://www.karmaloop.com/product/The-26-Wool-Blend .


Going back to my recommendation of darker colors of whatever outerwear you decide to wear, the purpose of this being to stretch your money because outwear will last longer. So you should accessorize with accent colors and keep the foundation darker ( There are stipulations to every rule, but generally this is a safe bet.  White can also be considered a foundation color at times depending on your color palette. ).  Lastly, I know there is a stigma in the Midwest about men wearing scarves and I can assure wearing one will not make you gay, but instead take your outfit to the next level by adding color and patten to a dark, solid colored outfit.

Thank you for checking out the blog and check in next week for more posts! SQUAD CLOTH. HOME OF THE FULLGROWN.

Playing With Patterns

Hello Readers,
I have decided to change my blog posts to Blogger because it is a much easier format to use.

This week with Squad there has been no real progress unfortunately because we are waiting on our screen printer to begin work on the tie dye button downs and the East Knox Basketball shirt.  We are also talking to patent lawyers to get things figured out legally and make sure Squad Cloth is a feasible trademark in the future.  I have personally been sketching a lot and improving upon my ideas focused in the genre of structural design (the way the clothing looks based off of the way it is sewn and the weight of the fabric) instead of the graphics I normally work on.

I have recently learned about some rules when it comes to using patterns in your wardrobe.  First off you are never supposed to match more than 3 different patterns together in one outfit and make sure all of the colors that are common in each garment come from the same color family.  You should also try to match different sized patterns because it will make the patterns look more subtle.  Lastly, make sure you include neutral pieces into your outfit to balance out the patterned garments.  While these rules are great to abide by at times, fashion is all about taking risks and breaking these socially implied rules.  So, don't forget to take risks and say fuck the rules every now and then, I promise you'll have more fun.

Here is three pieces that all have a basic true red color in them with different patterns.  All can be found at Nordstrom.com as well.  I would suggest wearing these pieces with a dark navy blue blazer and matching pants, which allows the reds in the undershirt, tie, and pocket square to really pop off of the navy.


These patterns would be something that I would actually wear.  A black and white striped Fear of God LA tunic, a black and white star pattern Bape sta military jacket, and a Rail red check scarf with black squares.  Black unifies all of these patterns, so I would suggest pairing these pieces with a pair black jeans and coke white Air Force One's.

Thanks for reading and check back in next week for another post! #SQUAD #HOMEOFTHEFULLGROWN