High Summer
Anytime Drake’s releases a new lookbook is a cause for celebration. They’ve been my favorite brand for the past three or four years not only because their garments are well-made and impeccable, but because their team knows a thing or two about styling. A Drake’s lookbook sets a scene and tells a story, and their latest, High Summer, continues this tradition on the sweltering streets of Lisbon, Portugal.
Drake’s summer shots, photographed by the talented James Harvey-Kelly, bring back Jason Jules as a model. I’ve long been a fan of Jules’ style, and he wears the brand’s garments with esprit, since many of the pieces in his own wardrobe have a similar sensibility. Jules began his illustrious career as a club promoter, focused on jazz and electronic music. He’s since become a style consultant and writer. Now he’s also a professional model, one of those men who truly looks better as they’ve gotten older. He has éminence gris in more ways than one, and an enviable resume.
As important as the man wearing the clothes are the clothes in question. They’re continental, one part Italian — as filtered through British propriety — and one part rugged Ivy. Not only is their pairing artful, but the reverence for details is impeccable. Take a closer look at any of the photos featuring the Easyday bengal stripe oxford. There are two in the shoot, in green and blue and, paired with suit and tie, both have their collar buttons undone. Such artful deliberation injects casual nonchalance into an otherwise dressed-up ensemble, and serves as a reminder that tailoring should be fun, not stuffy. It’s no wonder that Drake’s has made inroads with a younger audience skeptical of formality.
The suits are works of art, crafted using unexpected bolts that belie their classic colors. From afar, the Air Force blue suit that Jules sports while standing in front of a trolley might look ordinary. Up close, the cotton fabric and patch pockets force a double take. Drake’s creative director Michael Hill is a longtime proponent of cotton suits. “I love cotton suits for all the reasons why people hate them,” Hill said in an interview with Put This On. “They’re stiff, they crumple, the color fades...The way the sleeves curl, it looks like my arms are in them, and the sleeves will probably stay like that even after the jacket has been cleaned.” I’m not sure if I find the blue cotton suit or its tan counterpart more handsome. Either way, I want both.
This season’s blue blazer is as surprising. Made from a linen-silk blend (60/40) and characterized by its double breasted stature and prominent peak lapels, it nonetheless looks as rugged as it does refined. The linen lends the jacket a coarse texture while the silk gives it a seasonable sheen that, unlike most, isn’t tacky or unattractive. In the lookbook, it’s paired with a tobacco brown workshirt, and the odd couple looks fabulous together. The pairing is made all the better by the presence of natural-waisted white selvedge cords.
Drake’s also has a deft touch with garments that are tres casual. Bright, heathered collegiate sweatshirts with a “D” emblazoned on the chest may seem like a tacky idea, but when worn with the white cords, workshirt, and a corduroy club jacket, they’re ingenious and irreverent. Ditto the striped rugby shirt embroidered with a floral chestpiece, which a tiger pops out from. Yet underneath a glen check linen suit, it seems appropriate. In fact, I admire its cheekiness as a standalone piece because it reinforces why Drake’s has captured a younger market; the brand draws them in with refined streetwear staples in hopes that they graduate to a blazer or a suit.
Yet the best part of the High Summer lookbook might be the liberal inclusion of desert boots, worn with everything from faux tweed to a games jacket. While Drake’s has promoted the style for years, since Hill is an avowed wearer of the shoe, the current collection marks the first time the brand has offered two takes of their own. As someone who wears unlined Alden chukkas almost every day from spring through fall, with almost every outfit imaginable — even shorts, I admit — this pleases my sensibilities. Of the two styles, one is modeled after the classic Clark’s design, and the other is distinguished by a moc-toe. While the latter sounds more casual, it nonetheless dresses up nice with an olive seersucker suit. Its earthy tone creates a perfect union with the shoe’s ruggedness, the marriage between sprezzatura and Ivy consummated. The look is surely helped by the delightful tile art in the background, which Drake’s would be wise to copy as a design for a future scarf.
Beyond the clothes, the lookbook embodies Lisbon. The stone streets and stucco buildings are almost the same shade as the tan cotton suit. The artful tiles match the hues of the striped oxfords. Each bar, café, storefront, and sidewalk beckons, the city welcomes its subjects with bright rays of sun, the natural light which makes the shots so inviting. A want arises, a dream of experiencing Lisbon through the lens of Harvey-Kelly’s camera, in the colors of his film, in the clothes that Jules wears.