Shortly after being sworn in as the 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama faced his first major crisis: being criticized for not wearing a suit coat in one of his first “working” Oval Office photos. Since the criticizer was Andrew Card, George W. Bush’s former chief of staff, I’ll take his indignation with…
Author: OTC
A Cut Above: OTC Recommends The Grooming Lounge
As Mark Twain famously noted, “Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.” Though we often strive to prove this axiom wrong, truer words have rarely been spoken. How you appear in public matters quite a bit. Equally influential are a shave and a good haircut. Truth be told, clothes…
Time To Go Suit Shopping – You May Need One
This past Thursday, The Wall Street Journal published a great article highlighting the growing trend of once again throwing on a coat and tie before heading off to the office. The article, penned by Style columnist Christina Binkley, profiles Bickel & Brewer, a high powered law firm with offices in New York and Dallas. Perhaps…
Valentine’s Day Deals From OTC Favorites
Still looking for that perfect St. Valentine’s Day gift? Two of Off The Cuff’s favorite brands are offering some nice discounts. Each of these companies also have great options for both the ladies and gentlemen in your life, so make sure to visit their websites and take a look! Tucker Blair’s American Flag Needlepoint Belt…
Presidential Prerogatives: The Definition of "Tux"
The other day, a reader sent along a link for my review. It was to an article from Slate Magazine analyzing President Obama’s sartorial choice for his evening of inaugural balls. As you may have noticed, the president chose to strike out in a new direction – somewhere in between black tie and white tie….
The Fine Art of Taking Off a Sweater
Recently, a reader posed to me the following question: My husband likes to remove his crew neck sweaters (and crew neck t-shirts) by grabbing it by the neckline and pulling the sweater up over his head by holding the neckline. It seems to me this procedure tends to stretch the neckline out of shape. Please…
New Blog of Note
Just a quick suggestion to check out a great new blog – Style Rover. It’s new enough to have only a few posts, but I like the the author’s goal of highlighting great products and ideas. He has already tackled spirits, boots and bags. I’m looking forward to seeing what he has in the pipeline.
Black Tie & Boots Inaugural Ball
Well, it took me a little longer than expected to get this post up. OTC attended the Texas State Society’s Black Tie and Boots Inaugural Ball and I have to say, it was a lot of fun. Though normally the purview of jubilant Republicans, BT&B was none the less filled with many, many fans of…
The City Is Buzzing
As quick followup to the Inauguration post, I wanted to add a couple of photos from today. I went down to the Capitol building and the Mall this overcast and slightly snowy morning and snapped some photos of the inaugural site. Union Station Decked Out Banner For The Union Station Ball Finding Your Place Tomorrow…
DC Preps for Inauguration
Washington, D.C., is in full Obama mode – we are about to be the center of the universe for a few days and you can feel it in the air. As this picture of Union Station shows, the Capitol City is ready to party. And party it will. With ten official Inaugural Balls and countless…