It’s also where I tend to see some of the most stylishly dressed people in Los Angeles. Fans of vintage design are often fans of vintage clothing as well and frequently have a cool (or at least interesting) sense of style. Walking around this Spring’s fair, I was as usual, feeling second-hand embarrassment for the fellow members of my sex. I saw so many creatively well-dressed women confidently strolling about - and yet your average male, even in this elevated pool, looked like they just woke up and threw on whatever mismatched athleisure or ill-fitting sweatshop t-shirt was nearest on the floor. That being said, there were a few rays of light.

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Here are the best chairs, homewares and outfits I saw at Modernism:

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“Ok, but did you buy anything?”

I didn’t find the breakfast nook mirror I was looking for, but I did come home with a gorgeous umber-toned 1950s Gainey planter and an original Richard Neutra booklet that I’m gonna give to a friend for a birthday gift. I’ll post a pic of the planter when I have a cool plant in it.

P.S. - my jam of the week is “Sweet Talk” by nomi. I bumped this one on the way to the fair and back. I love the Nigerian afrobeat influence and the vocal performance and harmonies.

Peace and love,

Fun fact: the V-stitch on the neck of a sweatshirt comes from the 1920s when sweatshirts were only for football players who needed to pull them on over their helmet. The ribbed knit V-insert allowed the neck to stretch without losing it’s shape and also helped absorb sweat. Most modern garments just mimic the stitch for looks. Ok, back to my black crewneck…

Perhaps this post should be titled “how to wear fun, patterned pants”. I try to live by the Anna Wintour law of “Never wear ALL-black”, and this sweatshirt makes it super easy for me to wear all my beloved patterned trousers. If the sweatshirt has a graphic or a pattern on it, it’s too much with the loud pants. Obviously you can opt for more conventional pants (even basic blue denim looks great), but try something with some contrast.

It’s also fun to pop a colorful collar underneath. It’s extremely comfortable and easy but still looks chic. Loose-fitting but not sloppy. Legendary louche lad Harold Styles likes to pair it with some neon short shorts.

Here are some other good options I found from Buck Mason, John Elliott, Uniqlo and a technically “charcoal” but really beautiful version from Merz B. Schwanen.

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That’s all for now - stay tuned for a scintillating scene report from Downtown Modernism vintage design fair…

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A little update - I’ve decided to use affiliate shopping links going forward and I will be donating 100% of the proceeds to Best Buddies - an organization that provides support for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Peace and love,

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If there is one facet of life where I truly excel, it’s lounging in style. I know lounging. Hell, I even have my own line of silk robes (that reminds me, need to make more). Being comfortable at home while not looking and feeling like a complete schlub is a delicate dance, but I’ve learned a few moves.

Why should you give a shit how you look in the privacy of your own home? Because it’s an easy win - an uncomplicated way to feel good about yourself. And in the immortal words of the late Karl Lagerfeld: “Sweatpants are a sign of defeat. You lost control of your life so you bought some sweatpants.” I’m not talking about dystopian looksmaxxing here, and I don’t wanna get self-helpy either, but the simple action of making an effort (a minimal one!) to put a good foot forward every day can have a dramatic effect on your spirit and sense of self-worth. I promise you - you can still be extremely comfortable without sweatpants and a hoodie, and once you get your staple pieces in order, it’s just as easy.

A quick scroll through my numerous saved outfit inspiration photos revealed shockingly few casual options (like none). I think this is partly due to daily driver chill-wear being less exciting, but mostly it’s because us men really don’t know what to wear. It's worth noting that womenswear has a whole sub-industry dedicated to "self-care" at home, where the options for lounging and looking good are actually good. The options marketed to men mostly include uninspired iterations of hoodies and joggers with little to no emphasis on style. Women are expected to put in a Herculean amount of effort (and money) into this realm, while men are generally applauded for not walking around in dirty boxers.

This is a subject I hope to explore more within this arena, but for now let’s start with some basic building blocks. I’m very much still figuring this shit out myself. It’s surprisingly difficult, and part of wanting to write about it is to help me organize my own thoughts on the matter. I think the easiest way to go about it is to show you by example, so here’s how I like to dress when I’m just hanging at the house, or running to Trader Joe’s, or dropping my toddler off at day care.

First up is a pair of trousers with an elastic waist (drawstring optional). Leandra calls them apartment pants. Again, so many options for women, much fewer for men. I’m still on the hunt for the perfect pair - the ideal combo is lightweight wool/cotton, a looser fit, crease/pintuck down the front, zip side pockets, bottom cuff (looks nicer with sneakers). Any brands that wanna design some with me holler :). Here are a few solid options I found from Hawes & Curtis, Reiss, NN07 and a less expensive dupe from H&M that is actually pretty fire. Layer with a nice t-shirt (not the freebie swag one from the weed dispensary) or solid plain tank and a long sleeve button up, shacket or denim shirt like this one from Husbands or this classic one from Lee. Extra credit for something fun like this or this. Keep the outer layer cropped - if the length is too long it tends to look sloppy.

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Slippers are a must. I’ve been loving these velvet ones from Vibivenezia. I have them in chocolate brown as well. When my wife and I were in Italy for our honeymoon, every chic local Italian man was wearing them. Full disclosure, I almost bought these Uggs last week and after looking again I still think they’re cool. If you’re a professional athlete or still in high school, by all means, rock the rubber Adidas/Nike slides… if not, it’s time to step it up.

The robe is an advanced move, but one I strongly support. My grandma Shirley wore one every day of her life. I got this tiger print one from a vendor at Rose Bowl flea market who makes them new. This vintage one from Christian Dior Monsieur is amazing. So is this one and this one. I love to rock a silk robe when I’m doing my Wine & Vinyl Hour livestream or just having a glass after my toddler goes to bed. I will admit they are not ultra practical if you are trying to get work done, but you feel like a boss. If you’re not ready for a 1950s Hollywood leading man style silk number, the terry robe is a more accessible option.

You can do it. I believe in you. Be the well dressed version of yourself, even when you’re chillin’ at home alone, and I promise you, your quality of life will improve. Upgrade a few simple pieces and this will all become second nature. Please let me know how absurd you think all of this is in the comments. I also want to know who your loungewear style icons are and who I should check out on Substack or elsewhere.

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Peace and love,

A quick aside on luggage: on one of my first live tours, Peanut Butter Wolf tried to justify to me the expense of a Rimowa luxury suitcase for someone who travels a lot. I laughed at him but when I got home from that 15 city tour dragging my mangled Ricardo bag held together with duct tape, I went and bought that fucking Rimowa and I have never looked back. I firmly believe it’s worth the investment if you fly more than a few times a year. Since LVMH acquired the brand in 2016, the quality has declined, but they are still better than most other luggage I’ve seen. You can sometimes find pre-2016 editions on ebay or from dealers in Japan. Even though the classic silver aluminum is incredibly sexy, I recommend the poly-carbonate for durability.

For hanging items like suits, dress shirts and nice pants I keep them on hangers with those thin clear plastic dry-cleaning bags around them. This absolute magic trick keeps them from getting wrinkled in the suitcase. (Seriously, it works.) And then I put them all in a garment bag and roll the garment bag up kind of like a flat burrito.

Shout out the Hotel Chelsea. I love Sean MacPherson’s hotels and I like to stay at Chelsea or The Bowery whenever the budget allows. His blend of history, vintage furniture and modern but cozy interior design is some of the best in the world.

This was probably my favorite fit of the week. I’m in love with this vintage yellow JPG sweatshirt. I’ve been taking a classic white short-sleeve polo shirt everywhere to layer under crew neck sweaters and sweatshirts. I just love how it makes anything feel kind of ivy and is more comfortable than wearing a white dress shirt. This one is vintage Ralph Lauren but I’m on the hunt for a softer one with a slightly bigger collar.

This outfit looked cool but was a super big fail because the sweater fuzz got stuck all over the corduroy pants. I should have worn jeans or some less matte fabric pants. This vintage wool sweater is also vintage JPG that I got from The RealReal and it is so fucking soft and nice.

Here’s the white polo layered again. People went crazy for this Cameron Conley sweater that my wife found at a consignment shop in Highland Park. So many comments. It’s so silly, I love it. Jeans are Levis 517s that I got from The Vintage Twin in NYC which was a very cool shopping experience. You basically tell them what you’re looking for, and your assigned concierge disappears into the denim dungeon and returns with multiple vintage options for you to try.

I had some excellent sushi at Nakazawa. I tried Wild Cherry (a very trendy new restaurant in New York from the team at Le Veau d’Or) and thought it was fun but not amazing (martini was killer). And I finally went to Quarters (a gorgeous concept store / showroom from the founders of In Common With lighting) where I found these super sick leather coaster sets in a brass or aluminum holder by Australian Studio Henry Wilson. A quote that always sticks with me is from Ellen DeGeneres (who has very good taste in furniture / art) when asked for design advice, she replied: “Use coasters.” Good coasters are weirdly very hard to find.

That’s all for now. I’m still getting the hang of this and trying to figure out what Love Notes will be so please tell me what you like or don’t like about this. Thanks for reading.

Peace and love,

I’m only here because New York Magazine said I could make $275,300?

Oh yayer, I’m Mayer Hawthorne. Musician, producer, DJ, vinyl collector, wine enthusiast, interior design dork, etc. I definitely will write about these things, but what I’m really hoping this will be is a place for me to muse about mens clothing and how I like to wear it.

I get most of my design taste and personal style from my grandmothers, Ricki and Shirley. Ricki knew how to express herself through clothing and stand out in a crowd. Shirley was the epitome of class and had an ease and glamour that comes with self-confidence. Those qualities together inform my own unique sense of style.

It isn’t something I was particularly good at until later in life, and in my 40s I think I’m just finally figuring this shit out. It’s obviously very personal and constantly evolving/shifting - but I think a lot of men (and some women too) have trouble choosing what clothing to buy/wear and how to wear it. I’d like to help (if only to make the world less horrible to look at) but I’m not here to be the style arbiter. I’m not a professional stylist and these are just “my opinions, man” and sometimes they will be wrong and/or bad.

Love Notes is gonna be super loosey-goosey and I will only post when I feel inspired. I’ll share some personal outfits and philosophies on dressing. I might talk about tailoring, trends I like, interview some of my stylish friends, or occasionally it might just be:

“Hey rn I’m really digging vintage stoneware planters by David Cressey and Robert Maxwell!”

So yeah, here we goooo. Feel free to comment and let me know what you’d like to see here and if you don’t like this you can blame my wife: !

Peace and love,
Mayer

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