One of the more unique aspects of being a style blogger is the review process. Reviews make sense because all three parties benefit. The blogger gets an article of clothing that he can wear and a topic to write about, the company gets new (hopefully good) exposure to the blogger’s audience and typically a recommendation, and the audience gets exposure to a new product and the chance to see the pros and cons of a particular item before deciding whether or not to purchase it.

At first, it was incredibly difficult to get companies to send items for me to review. I had a fledgling blog and the risk they took sending me something free was much greater than if they sent it to someone with and audience two or three times larger than mine. However, like anything else, the momentum of well-received reviews picks up steam and more and more companies are willing to work with a given author. At the next level, the blogger starts receiving requests to review products, and eventually won’t have to make requests, because more companies are aware of the site and are lining up to be featured.

Going through the review process and remaining objective can get a bit tricky. As I’ve mentioned in prior posts, getting set up with review products requires establishing a relationship with PR people or owners of different companies. I have yet to work with a company whose representation annoyed or grated on me. Most of them are people I genuinely enjoy and we’ve been able to find common ground. However, there also has to be a balance with my relationship with my readers. My experience differs from a lot of bloggers in that I have worked personally with hundreds of my readers on individual consultations. I know their names and their interests. I know their style preferences and their aspirations.

To be positioned in the middle of these two groups is not only something I enjoy, it’s something I take seriously. I don’t want my readers to end up with junk just because I liked the PR girl from the company who sent it to me. Nor do I want to besmirch a brand’s reputation by objectively pointing out a few flaws during my review process that I believe would benefit my readers. I also don’t want to tarnish my own reputation by appearing afraid to speak truthfully about a product. Some bloggers are obvious shills for every offer that comes through their inbox and others take such pride in being above the fray of working directly with clients the rest of the world can easily see up their up-turned noses.

So why am I telling you all of this? Because I received a review product from a company that I don’t have a review for.  After learning what I have about them, I don’t believe I can write an objective and unbiased review anymore.

Buffalo Jackson reached out to me a couple of months ago and immediately identified me as a kindred spirit. Rather than copy a few, key excepts from their About page, I’m going to encourage you to go read the whole thing.

It’s no secret that I write what I do because I believe in a crisis of masculinity. There are hundreds of other worthwhile blogs that tackle this same issue, I simply choose to do so from the perspective of aesthetics and style. While many of the companies with whom I’ve worked in the past and with whom I will work in the future are geared towards men or even appreciate my approach to menswear, it’s always secondary. I’m a style blogger who peppers his posts with interesting aspects about masculinity, rather than being a men’s blogger who approaches masculinity from the context of  men’s clothing. It’s a subtle but key difference.

In our current society, it’s a risk to be too pro male. A company’s public image is its life blood and that image can quickly and easily be destroyed by a person who takes offense to the old-world man. To mitigate that risk, most businesses strive to remain as neutral as possible. The focus is always and only on the clothing. Let the customer determine if it’s going to be used to help him communicate his masculinity or not.

Again, I don’t take issue with this. Not every business needs to see things my way for me to feel they are worthy of my money or that of my readers. But when I find one whose philosophies align as closely with my own as do Buffalo Jackson’s, I have to admit I’m removing my objectivity from the equation.

It’s the same reason you’ll see me write about and promote Beckett & Robb, but you’ll never see me review a product of theirs. I’m so close to the product development I would be obviously biased. And, I’m so inclined towards the ethos and end-goals of Buffalo Jackson that I’m obviously biased there as well.

So I suggest checking them out. The vest they sent me has been great in the environments in which I’ve worn it, but I haven’t put it through its paces enough to see how durable it is. A lot of the stuff they make is a little too cowboy for me, and other items come across as a bit too gimmicky.

If all things were equal between a Buffalo Jackson bag and one from some other company, I’d take the BJ bag every time, simply because of Xan’s approach to his business and his willingness to be unapologetically masculine and promote that as part of his company.

When I was six years old my entire extended family on my mom’s side took a collective trip to Disney World. Looking back, the only real memory I have from the experience is being so tired and jet lagged that one of my brothers and I fell asleep face first in our personal-pan pizzas from Pizza hut. If only cell phones and their attendant cameras had been around then, right?

While I don’t have any permanent moments from the trip, other members of my extended family all have varying things. One family in particular had hand-drawn caricatures in their hallway for years. They were the kind seen fairly often at carnivals and amusement parks. The artist did a quick sketch that got the basic proportions of each person correct and then over exaggerated one or more of their key features. If the person’s face wasn’t unique enough, then the artist would typically insert a drawing of them performing their favorite activity.

Obviously in the correct context, these things can be a lot of fun. We may be self-conscious about our long necks, large noses, or odd face shape, but when we see it depicted so well and so cartoonishly, we can’t help but relax our self image a bit.

However, in the wrong setting, an over pronunciation of any attribute can serve as a distraction. I’ll give you an example from my own recent experience.

I’ve had a beard off and on (mostly on) since 2007. I look like I’m 15 without it and it helps to define a non-existing jaw line for me. I’m lucky enough to have a full beard that comes in evenly and well. Up until last October, I’ve always worn it short and well-trimmed. I worked in a more corporate environment and never really had the inclination to allow it to grow past the horrible itchy phase. But, for some reason this last fall I decided I wanted to grow it out.

At first no one really took notice. The change was subtle enough that it had to get pretty long to catch on. However, after a month’s worth of growth beyond my usual trimming, it started to get a lot of positive comments and reinforcement. I posted this picture on Facebook:

quite a few old friends came out of the woodwork to tell me they liked my beard. At that point I enjoyed the compliments almost as much as I enjoyed the underhanded comments I’d get from my mother (it doesn’t matter how old I get, I still love getting a reaction out of her). I was past the point where it itched, and it became something I was comfortable with. I enjoyed the contrast of a full beard against the sharp lines of my haircut. It was a good mix of Rugged into my normally Refined and Rakish aesthetic.

So I just let it keep going. It got long enough that I started to need to shampoo and condition it, use a beard oil (review coming soon), and even have my barber trim it and give it shape for me when he cut my hair.

It got so long and curly that I started to look like Cthulhu. At one point the responses from people changed. I became the beard guy and it completely overshadowed everything else about me. It started to affect my relationship with clients at work, friends and family, and even casual acquaintances. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like people started to talk down to me or criticize me. What they did do was start seeing me as just a beard. It became a topic of conversation every time I spoke with someone I hadn’t seen in more than a week. It was a distraction for other people and an overbearing character trait for me.

I had become a living, breathing version of the caricatures done at Disney World. The rest of who I was had started to turn into a simple back drop for my beard.

This isn’t to say there’s anything objectively wrong with a long, full beard. Nor is there anything wrong with pushing the envelope of a man’s own comfort zone and that of those around him. The breaking point for me was when it became the most dominant part of who I was to most people beyond my close family and friends. I was the “beard guy.”

In the past I’ve written about how to dress when a man wants to be the focus of attention and how to dress when he wants his clothing to be the main draw. My beard had taken me so far into the latter camp that it didn’t matter what else I did in the former. I could wear a solid suit, white shirt, dark tie, and dark shoes to a funeral, in a fit and cut that didn’t look extremely fashion-forward nor outdated, and I’d still just be the “beard guy” to everyone else who was there.

It’s not just beards that create this effect. It can be tattoos, jewelry, loud clothing, always wearing the same colored shirt, or any number of good concepts taken to excess.

As men start to dress better it’s easy to get caught up in the enthusiasm of doing so. It’s an area so vague and unfamiliar to many of us that the positive responses we get from people become addicting. As a result, it becomes easier and easier to seek that high by always trying to step up our game to the next level – and that’s what creates the world of high fashion and trendiness. The end goal shifts from being well-dressed to being unique enough to get attention – and, while there’s room for that at the right place and the right time, it shouldn’t be a constant display from any man.

If you’re looking for a brand that can represent the fact that you’re a man who shapes the world in his image, I suggest giving Alfred Dunhill a try. From bags, to tailored suits, from stationary, to simple support of men who act deliberately, their products and lifestyle help tell the world you’ve arrived.

No I didn’t watch them, although I do own a TV and even spend some time watching it each week. However, my Twitter and Tumblr feeds blew up with this stuff all night Sunday and into the day Monday.

Whether we like to admit it or not, these men are at the peak of society. Men want to be them and women want to be with them. They have fame, fortune, and influence – all of which are indicative of a level of power. Yet even these apex men and their reputation are impacted by their appearance. Obviously some of it is fueled by a bottom-up mentality, in which people not as high up the social ladder will grab onto any apparent flaw or weakness in an attempt to level the playing field. But it’s not just fueled by jealousy, those who worship these celebrities look at their clothing as well. It’s a way to confirm that they really are as cool, put-together, and flawless as hoped for.

So here are the top things I learned from seeing all of the photos of the men at this year’s award  ceremony.

Pay Attention to the Break

Whether it’s one of many things going wrong with a look, or the only problem to ruin perfection, pants that have too much break is a near omni-present issue at celebrity-attended black tie events. I get that not all of these guys are style gurus who care, but they are dressed by professionals who should know better. It’s getting to the point that I’m starting to think it’s a subtle way of indicating elite status in an occult group. That way people like me can write about how bad it looks but really they’re just signaling to each other that they’ve sold out their souls.

Standing Out Can Be Overrated

In the past I’ve written about the difference between dressing so people notice the man and dressing so people notice the clothes. When someone is at the social level these men are, the only reason a man should want people paying attention to his clothing, rather than paying attention to him, is when he’s trying to avoid recognition. Although there is the occasional trend setter, most guys who attempt to out-unique others just come across as lesser men trying to status-jockey within their own group.

If who the man is carries more social capital than his implied willingness to expose himself to risk by standing out, it’s better to emphasize the former over the latter.

As a counter point to this argument, all of the attention-seeking outfits shown thus far (excluding Pharrell) are within a normal enough range of tradition as to be considered classic. Therefore, by choosing to embrace a little risk these men communicate that they don’t take themselves too seriously and enjoy dressing up for its own sake. Although Leto’s hair looks ridiculous, everything else about his wardrobe was spot on, making the cream dinner jacket a good tweak instead of a cry for help.

Proportion is Key

The three men who were the best dressed all had their proportions down to a science. Pant length, lapel width, button stance, and more are all in complete agreement with the natural build of each man.

If DiCaprio and Levitt were to swap tuxes, they’d both look ridiculous, even if they were tailored to fit their bodies. What makes their individual appearances so strong is how well all of the minor details compliment their unique features.

What it really comes down to is, the higher a man climbs, the more he’s scrutinized for any apparent flaws. I could do this same post about a high-school band’s banquet with even worse offenses but no one would care. However, the mere fact that these are celebrities means they’re constantly under public scrutiny. If a man wants to maintain a hard-earned image of dignity, daring, respect, rebellion, or anything else, his style needs to be consistent as his reputation increases.

Of the many trends and fashion statements happening currently, these are the worst. Not all are equally offensive, nor are they equally popular. However, they’ve popped up often enough online, in shows, and on the street that they’re starting to become regular and should be avoided.

Pants Tucked Into Boots

This is probably the most tempting for a lot of men because it’s also the most common. However, rather than appearing more rugged and badass, it makes them look dainty and girlish. At its least offensive it looks like this:

And at its most, it looks like this:

Man Tights

Much less common but still seen often enough in high-fashion areas to be worth calling out. This shouldn’t even need to be explained.

Overly Large Lapel Pins

I’m a fan of a little ornamentation on the lapel. But it needs to be kept in check. This is most commonly seen on guys in wedding parties, but is starting to transition more and more into everyday clothing.

Drop-Crotch Pants

Mostly worn by musicians and other celebrities, ultimately they end up looking like this:

Extremely Deep V-Necks

I love a good V but this is taking things too far. It doesn’t matter if you’re well-built like the guy above or scrawny:

Or if you have a hairy chest instead of a clean one:

There is nothing masculine about deep cleavage.

These an other trends will wax and wane in popularity. The trick is paying attention to overall impression given and avoiding those that are either too far removed from tradition or evoke an image that’s too feminine.