10 Essentials

2. A Pocket Knife.



My Grandfather used to say, "A Gentleman carries a handkerchief and a pocket knife." I carry a small spyderco on my keychain. It's there for boxes, mail, fruit, meat, bread, thread...anything. And as the saying goes, it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

10 Essentials

I like GQs 10 Essentials. What are yours?

http://www.gq.com/about/ten-essentials

I will do mine one at a time:

1. A handkerchief.

I get mine in sets of five or ten at various department stores. Brooks Brothers and other places make them WAY TOO BIG. They seem to think they're making bandannas (I would know, I'm from Texas). Go with the less expensive type at Marshalls or some place like it, 100% Cotton.

Plain white- Get them monogrammed with initials or a funny saying, individualizing them...get playful with the thread color too...Make them YOURS.

The Brown Buffalo

check out this site:

www.thebrownbuffalo.com

Douglas Davidson runs it- guy's been collecting luggage and bags for 15 years.

Dynamic, dedicated stuff.

We need all of these kind of things that we can get.

Join his blog too, I did:

http://hypebeast.com/blog/douglasdavidson/

Firewood Carrier

Get your father or father-in-law a log carrier. It's masculine, he doesn't have one, and it'll look great next to the fire...Jack Spade makes a good waxwear piece.

Winter Poets

Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

By Robert Frost

Robert Frost is a wonderful poet for the Winter. Pull up a seat by the fire with his Collected Works and take in the season.

Holiday Designs

A quick and elegant manner of adding some holiday spirit to your place...Save your pickle jars from the grocery, soak them- removing the labels and glue. Fill them to various capacities with silver bells from the hardware store. It's only a few dollars, and will add some masculine holiday cheer.

Glass

I'm getting more and more interested in working with glass. I like wired safety glass- 70's science lab style, but it all works.