Alan Flusser | Off the Cuff

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Alan Flusser Strolling Down to DC

On February 16, 2012, By OTC

Alan Flusser, the legendary clothier, celebrated menswear author, guru of classic style, and all around charming fellow, will be in Washington, DC, next week.

Alan and his crew will be in town Tuesday, February 21, through Thursday, February 23, to meet with new clients and check in with old friends. If you have ever wanted to learn more about the exceptional custom tailoring offered through Alan’s renowned Custom Shop, this is a wonderful opportunity to do so.

Ensconced in the luxurious Hotel Sofitel adjacent to historic Lafayette Square and down the street from the White House, you can see mannequined examples of classic Flusser style. You’ll also find samples of luxurious accessories, including crocodile belts, hand-rolled pocket squares, and bench made footwear.

Appointment times begin at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday and conclude 9:00 a.m. on Thursday. Hotel Sofitel is located at 806 15th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005.

To make an appointment, please contact Peter, at The Custom Shop. He can be reached at: peter (at) alanflusser (dot) net or 212-888-4500.

BeSpeak Makes List of Top 500 Apps

On January 23, 2012, By OTC

We are thrilled to announce that BeSpeak has been selected by a panel of experts from The Sunday Times as one of the top 500 smartphone apps in the world.

The Times’ App List is a definitive guide to must-have games, tools and distractions for your iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, Android, Windows Phone 7 or tablet. According to the paper, The Sunday Times’ app list was compiled by experts in the relevant fields along with input from regular Sunday Times app reviewers. The App List itself allows readers to search for specific aps, look through app categories and arrange results by platform.

Off the Cuff is proud to be part of the BeSpeak team and honored to work with such a distinguished and talented t group of sartorial and technical experts.

Conceived and developed by legendary clothier Alan Flusser, BeSpeak provides style guidance for business attire for men, including the best style of suit, dress shirt, tie, and pocket square to dress your personal best. The app recommends and coordinates the suit, dress shirt, tie and a pocket square customized for each individual based on a personal profile.

BeSpeak employs patent pending proprietary technology to create a personal profile based on hair color, skin tone, eye color, face shape, body shape and size. These algorithms were created based on intense analysis of classical style guides and designer preferences as seen in fashion advertising and runway shows.

It’s an amazing tool that can help you find the colors, patterns and styles that best suit (so to speak) your specific profile.

Use it in the morning to decide which outfit to wear, how to improve an individual outfit or when shopping to help select profile-perfect purchases. Select the most flattering clothes for a meeting, a date, or job interview. Most importantly, BeSpeak can help you better develop the dressing skills for how to look your most stylish every day.

How does BeSpeak work? First, create and store a personal profile for you (or others) based on hair color, skin tone, eye color, face shape, body shape and size. Then, you will receive a recommendation for coordinated outfits.

To see additional outfit recommendations, just tap the “reload” button on the lower menu bar.

You can also input your own individual articles of clothing or potential purchases and the app will make recommendations relative to your profile as well as evaluate and grade your choices. So, you can build your own virtual closet, get expert recommendations on what works best for you and even make sure that new shirt, suit or tie actually fits with your profile and your wardrobe.

You can download the free BeSpeak app from www.BeSpeak.com or from the iTunes store.

Alan Flusser (Finally) Profiled in The Rake

On May 26, 2011, By OTC

Issue 15 of The Rake, out now, has a wonderful profile of OTC friend and legendary clothier, Alan Flusser. Though not available in the United States, The Rake is having a significant impact on the modern meaning and execution of classic American style.

Perhaps the only serious examination of classic menswear and men’s style on the news stand today, The Rake is a rich and intellectual celebration of what its publisher refers to as the “renaissance of gentlemanly sophistication and style.”

With that said, the hefty U.S. subscription fee may very well be worth the outlay.

We are also excited to point out that the article was assembled by two other OTC friends. Christian Chensvold, founder of Ivy Style and a contributing editor at The Rake, penned the piece. Fred Castleberry, founder of Unabashedly Prep, took the outstanding photographs. Both of their sites are knowledge-filled resources for those seeking advice, inspiration and, certainly in Ivy Style’s case, the stories behind East Coast / Ivy League style.

Alan himself is a wonderful example of how classic style, or as he puts it “permanent fashion,” while timeless is not immutable. The Custom Shop, Alan’s famous home base in Manhattan, has received a significant face lift and his English drape inspired house silhouette has similarly been refreshed a tad.

Does this mean Flusser is selling out and going for the trendy skinny look? Not at all. While the new Flusser drape suit is a touch slimmer and proportionally closer to the body, its inherent comfort, balance, flow and stylistic longevity are very much intact. Anyone who knows Alan knows that he is far from a stuffed shirt. His style and personality are equally colorful and expansive.

No slouch on the technical end of things, his BeSpeak and SnapDress iPhone applications are building a growing and devoted audience. BeSpeak 2.0 is expected to launch later this year with even more functionality.

The Alan Flusser brand may evolving, but he is not changing its core values one bit.

To that end, the custom shop’s new streamlined and rakish look evokes Alan’s love of the Art Deco period and his proclivity for personal detail and refined understatement.