Seersucker Thursday's, like most traditions, started out of necessity here in The District. As the spring changed to summer and the humid, sticky weather set in, Southern senators would retire their black wool frock coats for seersucker, linen and cottons."Seersucker" from the Persian words milk and sugar, was created by a New Orleans clothier of blue and white striped cotton and become wildly popular because of its ease of washing after frequent wears.
However, with the addition of air-conditioning in the 1950's the regular rotation of seersucker became less prominent until the late 1990s when Mississippi Senator Trent Lott decided to revive the tradition by selecting a "nice and warm" day in the beginning of June he named "Seersucker Thursday."
Between Sonia Sotomayor's vetting process, the withdrawal of troops from Iraq, a tight time-line for health care legislation, it seems that there has been no official start of Seersucker Thursdays' this year, so I've gone ahead with it on my own by wearing my seersuckers in the office today.
Trent Lott said the reason for the day was to show “the Senate isn’t just a bunch of dour folks wearing dark suits and—in the case of men—red or blue ties.” With the growth of business casual attire, we may not be wearing as much dark suits, but you can show your colleagues a bit of charm and personality by "the wearing of the seersuckers" in your own office.
Start with a suit from one of these fine establishments:
Or if a seersucker suit is too much for you, how about just a piece to add a bit of the tradition to your wardrobe like this:
So whether you are Above Or Below the Line, I'd love to hear from y'all on this tradition - do you participate? If so how? What about white linen down in New Orleans? Or Nantucket Reds up in New England?Image Credit: senate.gov
I love a man in seersucker!
ReplyDeleteI'm all for embroidered critters, but those lobsters are entirely too much.
ReplyDeleteA very smart person once said "Look your best, but more importantly, hang your arm on someone who looks his best too..." If that man is in seersucker, there is no going wrong!
ReplyDeleteAnd for the record, those shorts are amazing! Love me some crawfish!
I vote yes to Seersuckers. Love it and think it should come back in a big(ger) way. Even in Atlanta, I don't see enough of it.
ReplyDeleteAnon(11:13)They are actually silk screened!
ReplyDeleteSA: Start by getting your husband/brother/son into a pair - they may fight on the front end, but will love you after first wear.
...seersucker is great - just need to keep the rest of the ensemble simple. This is a interesting NYTimes piece from a few yrs ago on the fabric/look:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/20/fashion/thursdaystyles/20CODES.html?_r=2
I'm clerking for a Federal Judge this summer in a distinctly southern capital. She declared "bow-tie Wednesdays" for male attorneys appearing in her court and the male judges and clerks are uniformly in seersucker suits every Thursday. There really isn't anything that compares to great southern tradition.
ReplyDeleteAEV: Great article, thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteAnon(4:47): Funny you mentioned "Bow Tie Wednesdays" as a I almost mentioned in the original post how a buddy of mine created "Bow Tie Tuesdays" at the State Department during the fall months...
I know that I overuse the word "sublime" but to me-seersucker is a sublime element.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
sexual seersucker is what I always say:)
ReplyDeleteamazing as always smoke!
ReplyDeletenice!
ReplyDeleteget any comments from co-workers on ur seersuckers? I'm in annapolis - haven't pulled it off yet.
ReplyDeleteAnon(2:18): Not this year. I started wearing seersucker last summer and got a few then, but held course and wore them each Thursday.
ReplyDeleteGive it a run and let me know how it goes.
I love Seersucker suits.
ReplyDeleteMy seersucker suit is my favorite sartorial possession. I matched a lot of attorneys last summer in a small Tennessee town, but I mostly just get funny looks this summer in northern Indiana.
ReplyDeleteMissing out on two majors-- Haspel and Hickey Freeman both make great seersucker suits. Although in cities like Boston, now days, wearing a full suit is a little much. I prefer the look of just the pants paired with a crisp white linen shirt and a navy blazer
ReplyDeleteLove it! I stepped in the elevator in Russell one sweltering Thursday only to be followed by Joe Lieberman. He smiled at me and then said, "You know what they say about those things, don't you? A Seer sews 'em and a Sucker wears 'em." Then he died out laughing - and not even fake-politician-laugh. I laughed too because something told me not to argue with him. Also, that was back when Trent had that big ole office near the Chamber. Remember that?
ReplyDeleteI'm a little biased, but Michael has some badass seersucker pieces often mixed with embroidered pieces and knit ties or with his updated versions of Murray's Reds - it's a melting prep-pot! SS08 and SS09 hit the spot: http://www.gq.com/fashion-shows/designer-directory/MBMEN/
That is a great story about Joe Lieberman. Expected response from a, dare I say it w/o sounding cliche, Yankee.
ReplyDeleteNow, the fact that you refer to Michael Bastian by first name is awesome. I noticed from a photo or two you are acquaintances which must be pretty cool. I remember hearing all about his first collection prior to him being the darling/idol that he is on the blogosphere. I think it was inspired by Jaws and the cut off khaki's with false boxers peaking out felt very authentic in his inspiration of 80's prep.