First airing of my new Brooks Brothers sports jacket for summer. Unlined. 38% Cotton; 33% Linen; 28% wool. Altered to fit by my tailor, Juan Cuello at alterations.com, in Midtown Manhattan. Juan has been doing all my alterations for several years and I appreciate his good eye and steady hand. Photo taken at Lincoln Center during intermission of this weekend's matinee for Coppelia, danced by the New York City Ballet. Lavendar shirt and wool pants from Brooks Brothers; shoes from Crockett & Jones. Coffee cup from the theater snack bar.

The town where I live, Stockport UK , was once the global epicentre of the felt hat industry. It produced millions of hats annually throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Today, my wife and I took a guided tour of the Hat Works museum, a once-functional factory full of the old machinery, steeped in historical millinery. We learnt a lot. For example, the links to the slave trade and Frederick Douglass, and Abraham Lincoln’s letter to the workers here. The industry-fuelled mass extinction of beavers in the UK, which saw them being shipped over from Canada (before a more sustainable solution saw 150,000 dead rabbits every week instead). The punishing poisonous process of hat-making itself, that led to countless deaths. And the money made, that was manipulated in an underhand fashion to prevent the GDP of Stockport eclipsing that of London and likely rewriting geographical history. Then there was the Gallery of Hats, with over 400 historical examples of hat styles from around the world, from the functional to the fashionable to the fantastical and everything in between. After lunch at the charity-ran cafe and art installation, we exited through the gift shop… where we both bought a hat! My wife went for a purple Winter Cloche Wool hat, which frames her face wonderfully and shows off her excellent hair. After much deliberation, I went for a black Pork Pie Wool hat, partly because I like the semi-formal nature of it but mostly because it gives off Heisenberg vibes. Both hats are Dentons, a company that is still local to me and very well regarded. If you’re in the neighbourhood and at a loose end, I can highly recommend the museum and the guided tour. And the hats? They’re pretty decent too.

I started rebuilding my wardrobe today. Picked up some new shorts and shirts. Part of that was linen blend shorts and shirts. Although they are a blend, they are incredibly light weight. They are going to be great this summer. I can't imagine how light 100% linen is.

Our family went on a week-long vacation to Los Angeles. The main goal was for our son to see what is there as far as the music scene goes. He is a musician in Dallas now. He met so many folks at the shows and got a good initial impression. I noted the outfits of the musicians and asked if I could take a couple pictures of him to process through ChatGPT. So that happened. He really liked the results. I think he just didn't realize what is possible. So at the same time as evaluating the LA music scene, maybe another eye was opened to looking sharp. Will see.