Random Observations #002

Check-in luggage, grey flannel pants, and Sperry Top-Siders.

There are so many things I wish I could write about one day. In this new series, I attempt to put together my random thoughts and observations on clothing and related subjects in a shorter, more approachable format. This is one way for me to capture thoughts before they sink into oblivion. If you find any of the subjects helpful, do not hesitate to share your feedback in the comments below the article — I’d be happy to expand.

In the second episode of Random Observations, I struggle with choosing a new check-in luggage, try some pants (again), condition a pair of Sperry Top-Sider, and share a few mystery links to the stuff I enjoyed.

Let’s go!

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Purchasing a Medium-Sized Luggage

Check-in luggage is a weird subject. For one thing, if you are a casual traveler, meaning you travel 3–4 times a year, it doesn’t really matter which luggage you choose — virtually, any would do the job for quite a number of years. For the very same reason though you might think of it as an investment piece. If you put a little more effort into choosing one you might end up with an item you use and appreciate for a significant period of your life. At least, that’s how I think about it.

My wife had been using her Victorinox Etherius for over 10 years. I have never thought much of it. I mean, it’s a generic luggage brand you can find everywhere. Only after I started researching what’s available on the market I learned to appreciate it. Its exterior design is plain and simple, especially in Silver. Surprisingly, it’s a rare thing, since most luggages feature gimmicky surface patterns. The model’s zippers have never separated no matter the abuse. Still, influenced by the abundance of online advertisements, I assumed there should be more elevated options out there.

I mean, there are all these new brands including Horizn Studios, Away, Floyd, Nortvi, Db Journey, Monos, Crash Baggage, Have A Rest, Paravel, Beis, July, Roam, Level8, Arlo Skye. They should have come up with something, right? A fair argument would be that I don’t even know what I expect that something should be. Certainly not a built-in power bank. Quite the opposite, I expect the most basic things: utilitarian, yet not boring design, sturdy two-way zippers, slightly stretchy internal compartments, four robust wheels, and a firm handle. It’s that simple.

Yet, it’s shockingly difficult to confirm these things online. Take “the silent Hinomoto wheels” for example. They seem to be an industry standard for luggage. But why should I care about how silent they are? I want my wheels to roll well on every surface, and be able to withstand abuse in the form of sudden drops or carrying down a staircase — all while being as light as possible. Or the telescopic handle with adjustable height settings. Do I even need to adjust the height of the handle? How should I know? What I do know is that I don’t want the handle to feel flimsy. I want to be able to carry my luggage on four wheels without any hassle.

But luggage companies hardly speak on these things. What’s even worse, the flaws, if any, will only reveal themselves halfway through the promised life cycle.

With that being said, I did buy a new check-in luggage. I went in-store to check out Delsey (not exactly a new company) and was impressed with their patented dual zip. Honestly, it’s the most rugged zipper I’ve ever seen. Also, I was intrigued to try the trunk luggage format I started to notice recently. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, the Turenne model I ended up with is decently light at 3.85 kg for an 87 l volume (e.g. Floyd Check-In weighs 5.8 kg for 61 l capacity, Nortvi Medium Check-In weighs 4 kg for 77 l capacity, Monos Check-In Medium weighs 4.4 kg for 70 l capacityx).

I am wrapping up my first long trip with the luggage and so far it has worked well for me. My favorite part is the aforementioned rugged dual zipper which felt a bit too stiff at first but pulls smoother and smoother with each opening. It will take time — hopefully, more than less — to judge whether I made the right choice but I’d love to review the trunk when I get back. Let me know in the comments what aspects of the luggage should I cover.

PS Oh, and one more thing. My wife’s Victorinox Etherius finally cracked on this trip (inherent vice of all the hard-shell luggages) so we are yet again in need of a new check-in luggage. One more Delsey Turenne is the obvious pick (and probably the wisest as well, considering how much time I have already spent researching the topic), but life is too short and I am too tempted to experience more of it as a consumer so I am open to recommendations.

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MAN 1924 Flannel Army Trousers

I’ve been on the lookout for a pair of grey trousers for many years. Grey flannels are blue jeans for sartorially inclined. So whenever I see a pair I am eager to try it on. While in Madrid, I accidentally stumbled upon the MAN 1924 store. The brand received a lot of attention online at the height of #menswear in the early 10s, but I haven’t heard much about it recently. The store featured a bunch of beautiful speckled wool jackets (none in grey herringbone though), but it’s the trousers on the display that caught my attention.

Cut in the perfect shade of grey, neither too dark, nor too light (they appear a couple shades darker online), they could potentially benefit many of my existing outfits, both casual and more dressed up (not that my occupation requires dressing up). I don’t have much experience with the sizing system of classic clothing, so I told the sales assistant that I wear my jeans in size 34. He only had the next size but surprisingly it was just a tad bit wide in the waist.

What I loved about the trousers is how perfectly they fit in the seat while still being full in the leg. I’m 190 cm (6’3) tall and most pants either are too wide in the waist or look slim on me. Unfortunately, the Army Trousers happened to be short by 5 cm. I could get away by wearing them lower on the waist (the seat somehow looked just as good), but I promised myself not to compromise on that.

Hence, no purchase. But I definitely recommend the model to those under 185 cm in height and looking for a way to tap into grey flannel trousers without committing too much to the classic look. The sales associate emphasized a lot with my struggle and even recommended two other stores in the city (Sportivo and Lander Urquijo) to try my luck. It doesn’t sound much but this level of service is oddly rare these days.

So yeah, I am still in search of a pair of grey flannel trousers, neither too casual nor too dressy; full throughout the leg. Any recommendations?

Conditioning Sperry Top-Sider

I used to have a pair of suede boat shoes I bought at Marks & Spencer for my school graduation almost 15 years ago. A few years later, I discovered this weird world of #menswear and felt sad that my boat shoes were not from Sperry, the originator of the style. Luckily, I learned to appreciate my Marks & Spencers later in life haha. It’s too bad I left them back home.

This past summer, I finally tapped my feet in the Sperrys! It’s a funny story about how I got them, but I’ll save it for the next time.

Sperry Top-Siders are not the kind of shoes you need to care about a lot. Still, after summer passed, they looked somewhat dirty, and I wanted to clean them. So I thought I might as well condition them just to make sure the leather won’t dry out after cleaning.

I didn’t want to go all in like I would do with proper leather shoes though. I only had this Saphir Huile de Pied de Boeuf at hand that I purchased for a separate purpose. Basically, it’s a special treatment to bring very dry leather back to life.

1 — after cleaning; 2 — right after conditioning; 3 — 24 hours after conditioning

This was not the case with my pair of Sperry, of course. In fact, they are made of soft, almost rubbery, nubuck-like kind of leather. But I figured the Huile de Pied de Boeuf shouldn’t hurt anyway. You can see the result in the picture above.

I like that the leather became darker (the initial color was too nude for my taste). I also like that it’s not sticky after conditioning. At first, I thought I’d put a couple layers, but I’m pretty happy after the first one. With that being said, I wouldn’t recommend conditioning your leather footwear with Saphir Huile de Pied de Boeuf simply because there are other more appropriate products to do this. But in case you don’t have a proper product at hand, there is nothing wrong with experimenting on casual leather shoes.

Mystery Links

1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

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That’s all for the second issue of Random Observations! Let me know how you feel about the format and what you would like me to cover next time.