Jeremy Hackett - The Mr Classic Blog

Last Saturday I attended an Aston Martin Concours d’Elegance in the wonderful setting of Stoke Park, where a line up of fifty Astons dating from 1929 to the present day were waiting to be judged. Stoke Park proved to be a fitting location for such a day, having also been the setting for scenes from the James Bond film ‘Goldfinger’. I was invited to be a judge by the very personable Nick Mee, whose Aston Martin garage in Hammersmith is a veritable treasure trove of pre-owned Astons that Nick kindly has lent me from time to time for Hackett photo shoots.

Judging motor cars was not something I had ever done before, and to be honest I know very little about cars. Knowing that these sort of events are taken very seriously indeed, I thought I had better dress for the occasion: a khaki cotton suit, blue striped shirt and navy polka dot tie combination was donned on what proved to be a blisteringly hot day - yes, I was overdressed!

If you’re on the lookout for a snappy bow tie of your very own, you can find good selection here on the Hackett website.

During the summer months when the mercury rises, those of us who wear a shirt and tie for work or in our daily life have been known to suffer.

Dispatching the tie is, of course, the first step you can take to cool down. But what of undoing shirt buttons?

My own personal preference is to undo just the top button. I find this more than sufficient in the heat of a British summer. We are not, after all, going to experience too severe extremes of temperature.

Besides, I find that more than one button gives off a faintly ‘gigolo-esque’ impression, so unless that’s the look you are going for, I’d steer clear of showing too much.

There are many events in my social (and work) calender each year, but there are few I enjoy more than the Henley Royal Regatta. As a day out it’s simply fantastic, with so much to see and do.

However, it’s important to make sure you dress for the occasion if you are planning on attending.

My advice is to invest in purchasing the whole ensemble after all it won't go out of fashion: it is beyond fashion. So what you need is a black Morning Coat that fits neatly with the tails hanging to just above the back of the knee, a buff waistcoat, single or double-breasted making sure that there is no gap between waistcoat and waistband of the trousers.

Whenever I go on holiday I always like to keep my wardrobe simple - partly because I hate packing. With this in mind, I thought I’d share my tips on how to choose your wardrobe for the perfect British holiday.

One classic summer staple is the polo shirt: pack several plain colours such as white, navy, sky blue and also throw in a couple of nautical striped numbers for variation.

Take several pairs of cotton shorts in white, khaki and that ‘classic sailing’ colour Brixham red. A good piece of advice is to bring some long sleeve cotton casual shirts and roll the sleeves up - it looks quite ‘old-fashioned British’.