Our new clothes to explore the new elegance (collection presentation - chapter 1)

The Scalpay coat in brown boiled wool (Presented by Benoît)

Time for our brand new coat where I had very clear requirements:

• absolute comfort,
• and a piece that holds up well, with structure.

When you put it on, I wanted you to feel like it's a piece you can count on, with real presence on your shoulders.

Silhouette-wise, my taste was more for a classic look, but we’ll get to that…

It all starts with an accident...

For this coat, after a lot of research, we select a material, we wait feverishly for the first piece, and... alas, the prototype arrives with the material mounted in the wrong direction, that is to say the reverse side of the coat fabric was mounted on the exterior side, and vice versa.

So, we now have a pinstriped coat, which was not planned. Except that on closer inspection, we find the result very cool.

And when people in the office walk past the prototype and spontaneously say to us “ah, this piece is cool, when will it come out?”, we know we’re on the right track!

We therefore decided to keep this coat as is, and it's true that the visible stripes give it quite a charm.

Boiled wool that doesn't look like it

To find this elegant material, we contacted MTT, our Italian supplier very renowned for its boiled wool. The boiled wool of our famous Milo overshirt is him!

It is indeed a boiled wool (which gives a light comfortable mechanical stretch) from the Italian supplier MTT, but it is worked to resemble a woolen sheet. It’s a very different visual result from our Milo overshirt, also in boiled wool.

As for the color, we put "brown" because it is its color on paper but depending on the associations, this coat appears rather gray or brown. Far be it from us to launch a national debate on social networks, but we ourselves are in disagreement within the team and no one is letting go of their position. So don’t hesitate to help us decide in the comments to this article!

The cut, the cut, and more cut…

On this coat, I wanted a more classic look because it must respond to an obsession that I have had for a while regarding our outerwear range: this coat must be comfortable with a thick sweater or blazer underneath.

(It sounds stupid said like that, but it contrasts with outings a few years ago where some of our coats were barely wider than our blazers)

And thanks to this boiled wool which holds up well, it gives a lot of structure to this coat, with a beautiful drape.

At the shoulder level, we chose the best of both worlds with a semi-raglan assembly. Seen from the front, you have a classic shoulder with a seam that starts from the armpit and goes up to the shoulder. And seen from the back, the shoulder is raglan, without any seam

It's truly a very timeless cut, which we wanted to be comfortable to wear today or in ten years.

Finishes

For this winter, I wanted to go up a notch in the finishes, and embrace my nods to military/outdoor clothing.

You will therefore find two large mesh pockets inside this coat: you can place gloves there for example, if your gloves are wet, they can dry quickly thanks to the very ventilated mesh which allows moisture to escape quickly. This is a finish I saw on a US Army fleece.

You also have a zipped pocket which allows you to secure your small personal effects, with grosgrain as a zip pull, a finish that I would like to generalize because I really like this material.

A final word on this coat

If you have been accustomed to our fitted coats from previous years, I particularly invite you to try this coat (even better if you have a blazer underneath) and I assure you that you will quickly appreciate the comfort and this very particular look of 'a slightly looser couple!

The Lovere cardigan in storm blue merino wool (presented by Michel)

When Julien, our collection manager, does his little market monitoring, he comes across a gimmick several times that he finds not bad at all: knitted pieces with different knitting stitches between the sleeves, the front and the back. 'back.

The idea floated around in his head for some time, until the design of this collection for which he decided to take action by developing a cardigan. Easier said than done, because it's not just about adding random knitting stitches. You have to push the work further for this cardigan to really make your outfits stand out.

Step 1: find the right knitting stitches to combine

Mixing knitting stitches blindly would have been like dressing with your eyes closed: good luck making it coherent in the end.

The team therefore begins by asking Visconti, our Italian knitter, to do several knitting tests on samples.

It doesn't matter what color at this point. The idea is to realize which knitting stitches work well together. We put them side by side and choose a winning trio. Here it is :

• A moss stitch on the torso and arms
• A small chevron knitting stitch for the collar and just above the ribbing
• A larger chevron knitting stitch on the back

Step 2: find a differentiating form

There, be careful, there is a divergence.

Julien wants a collar that goes all the way up, to make this cardigan different.

Benoît wants a shawl collar so as not to look too divisive.

Sometimes there is no wrong answer and you simply have to decide. They therefore resolve this in an amicable and professional exchange, more commonly called arm wrestling. And since Benoît lifts cast iron every other day, your cardigan will have a shawl collar. More classic, but easier to wear every day.

To make a difference and enhance your outfits, the team has focused instead on the cut: a slightly oversized volume with dropped shoulders.

This takes it far from the classic casual chic cardigan. And you can wear it with an Oxford shirt as well as in a looser, more streetwear outfit, with a t-shirt and running shoes.

It weighs 750g for a size M. A beautiful beast, but not too massive either.

Step 3: find an original color

Like the pattern of knitting stitches and the cut, we wanted it to stand out without being too obvious. Something that remains versatile. And when we think versatile, in the men's wardrobe, we think of blue. A trail that we follow along the catalogs of our spinners until we put our finger on this storm blue thread:

It's a change from navy blue without being difficult to wear, with a very bright shade, worked by our Italian spinner Tollegno.

All the ingredients are there to create a prototype and as you can see, everyone agreed on it. Even Benoît and Julien.

The Moena polo sweater in raw combed wool

Remember: you gave our Arezzo cotton cashmere sweater a warm welcome.

Like me, you appreciated this relaxation of the polo collar mixed with a luxurious material.

Well we continued on this path with the Moena, which is 100% wool from the prestigious Italian supplier Zegna Baruffa.

Compared to the Arezzo, we have shortened the gorge, this “V” just below the pass.

Wear with a blazer, an overshirt, next to the skin or with a t-shirt underneath! It's the perfect piece for a casual and elegant wardrobe.

Finishes

• 100% merino wool from the prestigious Italian supplier Zegna Baruffa
• raglan sleeves
• gauge 8 (vs gauge 7 for our Arezzo sweater), for a tighter knitting stitch, with finer yarn.
• 570 g for a size M, it is therefore a medium weight knit, which is not a fine sweater, but not a large knit either…
• It's our usual Milano knitting stitch which gives it this pretty texture!
• re-mesh assembly, for a high-end, clean and neat construction.

The Asiago henley in gray worsted wool

How do we adapt our henley for winter? By replacing cotton with wool!

I wanted to make this piece a solid alternative to our merino wool t-shirts, another base layer designed for fall and winter, to wear under just about all your other pieces! Overshirt, cardigan, workwear jacket, denim shirt, sweater: treat yourself!

With this 100% wool base layer, you also have the qualities of wool against your skin:

• drying faster than cotton,
• thermoregulatory properties specific to wool
• and finally, wool does not absorb odors!

Finishing side:

• 100% merino wool from the prestigious Italian supplier Zegna Baruffa
• weight for a size M: 250g, so it is a fine mesh
• gauge 14, which goes hand in hand with the weight of the sweater
• re-mesh assembly, for a high-end, clean and neat construction
• corozzo button, with an ascolite finish for very good hold

The Ravello jacket in rust cotton moleskin

After the jungle jacket that we released 2 years ago, I had wanted to reuse this shape for a long time, which is very functional, elegant, and timeless.

The goal was to have a perfectly cut jacket for the mid-season, with numerous layering possibilities.

It's really a very practical piece when traveling, because its numerous pockets allow you to organize and compartmentalize your personal belongings.

And its timeless design, with a collar that goes very well with shirts, also allows it to fit easily into an outfit for going to a nice restaurant, unlike a blazer which I'm always a little reluctant to take with me when traveling. .

It is therefore a real Swiss army knife piece, to be worn on multiple occasions and in multiple outfits.

And precisely, to have a piece to take everywhere, which develops a nice patina over time, we needed a fabric which has largely proven itself in workwear: moleskin.

A moleskin woven in Italy

The most attentive will have noticed that this is not the first time that we have used moleskin. This was the case for the Spencer jacket two years ago.

Why moleskin?

First of all, a few words on the etymology of moleskine. It's very simple: its downy appearance is reminiscent of the skin of a mole. “Mole skin” which becomes moleskine! No need to look any further sometimes?

Moleskin is a fabric used for a very long time in work clothing thanks to its undeniable qualities:

• its fluffy appearance provides a little extra thermal insulation compared to a classic cotton canvas... and a very pleasant touch,
• the density of its weave gives it good windproof power,
• it is a fabric that is easy to maintain, a very practical aspect for manual trades,
• unlike cotton canvases which can be very stiff, moleskin is a flexible and comfortable fabric,
• and above all, it was, at the time, a durable fabric, an obviously essential characteristic for work clothing!

This very versatile and resistant fabric has therefore been used for many purposes: from work clothing in France (and for a variety of very different professions), to a test for the military uniform in Germany, including the British hunting clothing.

How does this fabric behave in the rain?

I've already been asked this question before, so I'll answer it. It's not Ventile, it's not a fabric with a membrane or water-repellent treatment (so yes, it's a PFC free fabric :).

So it is not rainproof, but its tight and fluffy weave still adds a little more water repellency than a cotton canvas for example.

And if this fabric gets really wet, there is a very complex process to dry it: leave it in the open air (just kidding).

A development strewn with pitfalls...

But the development of this jacket was not easy, because the thickness of the fabric posed some problems for the appearance of the pockets. We therefore tried several closing systems, notably with buttons:

But the thicknesses of fabric were complicated to manage, the volume of the pockets didn't look good, and above all it wasn't very practical to use.

So we went back to snap buttons.

5 pockets to manage your personal belongings

This jacket has 5 pockets:

- 4 pockets on the front, with flaps and snap buttons. As on any self-respecting jungle jacket, the 2 top pockets are slightly inclined

- 1 pocket inside, on the right side to wear, to store a phone or card holder

Why this rust color?

The BonneGueule winter wardrobe is already very complete in beige, earth, olive and blue tones, I wanted to have a more original and warmer color, while remaining in autumnal tones.

We therefore started in line with the terracotta/terracotta shades used in summer, but adapting it for autumn, with a color which, I hope, will evoke the warm and shimmering tones of the autumn leaves slowly falling towards the ground, like delicate seasonal watercolors.

It is also a color that goes very easily with the main colors of a men's wardrobe: blue, beige, olive and gray.

In short, the best gift you can give me is to wear this jacket without asking too many questions!

The Narita shirt in raw carded cotton

Halfway between the polo shirt and the shirt, I wanted a piece that plays on several tables. We therefore chose a popover shape, which is put on over the head, and with a 4-button throat.

It is a very beautiful 100% cotton, specially developed for us by a Portuguese weaver. But there is no question of having a very simple fabric. I wanted to create a shirt in a winter color that I really like: greige.

It's a color that we have worked on a lot in outerwear, in knitwear, and in pants, and this shirt is part of this continuity.

And to add even more soul to this fabric, we chose a very subtle micro herringbone fabric.

The fabric is slightly fluffy, almost like a flannel, so it is very comfortable to wear.

Precisely, for the wearing possibilities, it obviously fits very well into casual outfits thanks to its polo shape and its patch pocket, but also give it a chance in more dressy outfits: with a blazer, a nice overshirt in wool, or even a thick cardigan.

In terms of finishes, we find our usual mother-of-pearl buttons as well as our famous hidden button-down collar, to have a beautiful outfit in all circumstances.

Paris pants in beige wool and cotton

Last year you absolutely loved our Bergamo pants, thanks to this cut halfway between fitted and straight cut.

For many of you, this fit was an opportunity to go deeper into your wardrobe and try out different volumes.

So I couldn't wait to try this fit in another fabric.

I wanted pants with staying power, a slightly vintage feel that held up well.

And as usual, it all starts with the fabric…

A beautiful Italian blend of wool and cotton

The fabric is composed of 62% wool, 38% cotton comes from Duemilagori, an Italian supplier who spins and weaves in Italy.

Its particularity is that it is above all an outerwear fabric for trench coats and overcoats.

But when we tried it on a pair of pants, we found that the final result was exactly what we needed, with a beautiful texture of this twill.

This wool and cotton blend is perfect for pants:

• wool brings that luxurious hand and beautiful drape
• while cotton provides comfort next to the skin and softness.

This allows you to have a fabric with a very nice flowing drape, which perfectly complements the cut of the Bergame pants. For me they are perfectly at the crossroads between dressy wool pants and more casual cotton chinos.

Finally, we do a little experiment: there is an internal tightening system to adjust the pants to your size if you have some weight variations. It's a system inspired by military pants, and which Matthias, our community manager, also tested on his firefighter pants.

A cut you already love

Let’s go into a little more detail!

The leg opening is 20.6 cm for a size 48 , which is a great compromise between a classic, timeless silhouette and easy-to-wear volume.

As for the fork, it is 43cm at the back and 32cm at the front (belt height included), still for a size 48, for those who like a higher waist.

I invite you to read Jordan's high waist guide for those who want to compare and explore the subject!

How to get our new collection?

You can find it now on our e-shop and in store.

We will also present it to you live the same day at 6 p.m. on our Instagram account. You will be able to ask us all your questions directly.

In the meantime, don't hesitate to share your opinions and questions with us in the comments below!