Winter Essentials - Stu Bradley wrote this all by himself

So after fluttering my eyelashes to Stu over Twitter I received this in my inbox. Stu's a straight male fashion blogger.
This may not bring wonder into your hearts as it does with me, but he's a male fashion blogger who writes about affordable fashion - by affordable fashion I don't mean Primark, I just don't mean Givenchy either. AND he's a down to earth little sweetheart. He's tangible unlike male fashion bloggers you may know of, and that's what makes him one of my favourites.  He's straight as well, so weird.

Winter Essentials

Woolly hat

Sure, kids at hardcore gigs (the same guys who wear Eastpak backpacks and have plugs in their ears the size of Oreos) may wear them all year round but the woolly hat comes into its own in the Winter. Pro tip: I use a pair of fake glasses to keep it at the perfect height and stop it slipping down over my eyes. The downside is that it makes me look like…a douchebag wearing fake glasses.

Grey hoodie

Yes, probably down to the fact that I spent most of my teenage years aspiring to be like One Tree Hill’s Lucas Scott, but I still think a washed out, supersoft grey hoodie takes some beating.

Beard

Because facial hair is for life, not just for Movember.

Shirt jacket

Jackets bore me. There, I said it. I’m so not down with dropping £100+ on a huge jacket that will take up a load of space in my already crowded wardrobe…though I will make an exception when I find the parka. I picked up this Ralph Lauren workshirt for £36 at TK Maxx. RRP £600. No, seriously. It’s warm, soft and it didn’t require a trip to Oxfam to clear closet space for it. Sorry, Oxfam.

Cable knit jumper

Aside from being a completely classic look, I can also be sure that it won’t start my grandparents off at Christmas dinner about how nobody dressed like that in their day. In retrospect, wearing a Black Dahlia Murder vest on Christmas Day was a poor decision. Anyway, I got mine at New Look. Ok, so it doesn’t have a little polo player on it, but it was only twenty quid. TWENTY QUID.

Doc Martens

Although they’re best known for big clompy boots, Dr Martens also make some beautiful (and hard wearing shoes) that can take anything from tramping the pavements to walking the dog in a snowstorm. Mine even came with a tin of wax to re-waterproof them. It’s only a matter of time before I have too much to drink and use said wax on my moustache.

This is Stu, and this is his blog http://www.notsolonelylondoners.com/. He's sort of internet famous and that.

William Richard Green

William Richard Green left Central Saint Martins in 2009 with a degree. He trained on Savile Row and at David David. These two utterly opposite experiences gave him knowledge on quality craftsmanship and cut but also on the fun nature of a graphics-based street wear label. 

'IDEAL CLIENT: “A really rich chav who likes to dress like a clown.”

TRADEMARK PIECE: “A variation on a boiler suit I guess.”' - British Fashion Council.

It works in Green's favour that we in the UK have a lot of support for young designers and has led British menswear being a lot more diverse than anywhere else in the world; I think bringing together the playfulness of graphics in street wear and the more lux feel of structure and cut is important for any man who wouldn't feel quite at home in a suit, bow tie and brief case all day, but similarly if they wouldn't feel themselves plastering OBEY all over themselves. Green is fun, he doesn't take himself too seriously but you know he's great at what he does, and that really reflects in his garments.

S/S 13

S/S 13

S/S 13

Matthew Miller

Matthew Miller studied at the Royal College of Art. Before he set up his own label, he worked on projects with designers, namely Umbro and Brioni, but there were more.

'TRADEMARK PIECE: “Engineered digital prints and structured tailoring."' - British Fashion Council.
 
For Miller, his designs are aimed at the young and talents individuals who want to make themselves known, individuals who know what they want and how they want to get it. And with digital prints combined with structured tailoring, I don't really think you can do wrong. 
Miller seems to love the juxtaposition of clean cuts accompanied with loose shirts and toulsed hair, and I think this fits so perfectly with his design audience - the successful youths, who are just that, successful, but still young.

A/W 13

A/W 13

A/W 13

maximum henry

I've always thought that every well dressed man should own at the very least one gorgeous leather item, so here are some of my favourites from Maximum Henry.

"This simple unmarked identity cuff is made of brass and tarnishes beautifully through the years. It is able to be bent to fit most wrists simply by pushing both sides together."

"The Bi-fold wallet is a standard. It is constructed with one piece of leather, cut from the hide, dyed, folded inside out and stitched, then molded and pressed flat. It was designed to be as simple as possible. The interior stitching will not wear over time like exterior stitching on other wallets. It is sized small to account for the stretching of the leather. As a new wallet it often won't close all the way on its own, but after wearing for a few weeks it will mold to your usual contents perfectly. The colors also shift over time. No two wallets are the same.

Available with or without brand."

"This belt is simple, stable and dependable. The Brass buckle shipped from Ohio. It works well with both jeans and workwear as well as more formal occasions."

If I were a boy

Some wise words from my lovely Irish pal Cillian Garvey, "You can't really go wrong with a normal pair of jeans. And these days it's fairly hard to find a decent pair of them. Gotta love a slight twist on a classic. 

Pretty much love everything the boys at Skull and Bones Boys Club do. Handmade really means handmade with these two boyos. I have quiet an up session with tshirts with small print these days and the wolf is pretty bad ass, simple as.

Who Doesn't love a good Parka jacket. This one by element is probably one of my favorites, its just plain and simple no fancy bits on it. 
The hat by Anti Life is just really warm, been keeping my head warm in this lovely Irish weather that we always have, since I got it myself a few weeks back. And seeing as winters a coming you need a good pair of socks, and why would you not like the plant life ranger by Huf. 

The Nike SB Janoski are pretty awesome shoes in my eyes, seeing as there camo, camo is awesome."