Martin Raymond, a British trend forecaster, credits the rise to what he calls “the new gents,” a hipster subspecies who have been adding monocles to their bespoke tweed and distressed-boot outfits. On a recent trip to Cape Town, Mr. Raymond said, he saw such a group carrying monocles along with tiny brass telescopes kept in satchels.Everyone seems to need to say really?
“All of this is part of a sense of irony and a way of discovering and displaying old artisanal and craft-based technology,” Mr. Raymond said. “You see the monocle appearing in Berlin, parts of South Dublin.”
WaPo responds with: "Mr. Peanut weighs in on the monocle trend story." The Wire says:
Oh, no no no... The trend-spotting paper made the argument on Thursday that monocles, otherwise known as intentionally broken spectacles, are making a comeback thanks to a "hipster subspecies" that fancies itself gentlemanly, or maybe because of "irony." This is an unfortunate reversal: Over a century ago, the New York Times made a valiant attempt to send the monocle "trend" far far away, where it wouldn't be able to hurt anyone ever again.Bustle says:
According to the paper's own archives, the monocle trend seems to rise, again and again, for pretty much the same reason: some people like to pretend they're English gentlemen, like Mr. Peanut. Here's a description of the abomination from 1888, correctly claiming that the disc "was invented by a fool to diminish the visual capacity of an idiot."....
Frankly, we think the monocle trend puts normcore to shame. What could possibly be cooler than looking to the 19th century for fashion inspiration? In true outdated NYT-style, the trend report sounds like something your highly educated grandfather might have penned.Stylite says:
From the trendy enclaves of Berlin cafes and Manhattan restaurants to gin ads and fashion magazines, the monocle is taking its turn alongside key 21st-century accouterments like sharply tucked plaid shirts and certificates in swine butchering.
The Times has a history of writing about “trends” that are either completely obvious (like people eating chopped salads for lunch or teens hugging) or non-existent. But this one is really quite brilliant.Yes, who cares if it actually is a trend or not. It's fun to think that it could be a trend. You know, I said it about normcore:
[F]or all I know it's a hoax... and, seriously, I do not know whether that... article in New York Magazine is a satire or not....NYT trend pieces are humor text — whether the assertions of fact connect to reality or not.
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28 comments:
And the people at the Times try to pretend that they're not Nazis deep down inside!
Wouldn't the monocle thing be a part of the Steampunk aesthetic? If so, then its been done to death already.
Monacle sales should be easy to track, no?
http://www.amazon.com/Elope-Steampunk-Monocle-Adult-One-Size/dp/B004TDAQ30/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1394243928&sr=8-4&keywords=monocle
The unicycle is back.
I hate it when Eve Online invades other aspects of my life...
Warby Parker has been carrying monocles for a few years. Great idea for those in need of a quick reading magnifier.
Meade could totally rock a monocle.
I was just watching an old Lord Peter Wimsey whodunit, and Wimsey used a monacle. I have never understood how you kept the damn thing on your eye, and what bloody use it was if you did.
Just watched Young Frankenstein with the wife and there's a scene where Kenneth Mars affects a monocle on the eye with a patch. That clip could possibly halt this trend in it's tracks...or add a new fetish to the mix.
He said "Redesigns military to menace..." With Capitals.
About Putin, natch.
What's really hip is to wear just one contact.
And... Ginger Rogers!
From 42nd Street...about 50secs in....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJtFBpWcyXg
I have a contact lens only for my left eye. I'd get a monocle but it reminds me of the Monopoly man.
The fools! Don't they know they can get the same aesthetic with pince-nez, and actually utilize their binocular vision? Behold!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Chekhov_1903_ArM.jpg
You'll still look a bit silly, but at least you'll be able to see!
Sounds like old fashioned reading glasses hanging from a chain. Same thing I use for a moment to read on fine print on packages. And hard to lose.
Sounds like a practical item for the over 60 crowd,
Actually, I think it's Mr. Peanut who sports a monocle, not The Monopoly Man. But they both don the top hat.
I'd like to see spats make a comeback. The ascot, too.
When my daughter was in college, she participated in a reading of Vagina Monologues. We went to dinner with family, and then went to the reading. My wife, assisted by alcohol, famously called it the Vagina Monocles.
Everyone agreed. It seemed like such an appropriate slip.
You see, when you don't kill Johnny, he do the walk of life.
If you kill Johnny, before the opportunity for violence and double talk, you killed Johnny.
Dire Straights.
Walk of Life.
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=dire+straits&FORM=HDRSC3#view=detail&mid=BB3980AED481825C7AFCBB3980AED481825C7AFC
mccullough said...
I'd like to see spats make a comeback.
Hmm, my wife will be surprised that spats are no longer a part of the social norm.
She will ask: "When did quarreling stop. That never happened in our house."
You say monocle, and I can't help but see Colonel Klink.
"the trend report sounds like something your highly educated grandfather might have penned"
No, it doesn't.
In wonder who has the monopoly on making monocles?!!
ALP said...
Wouldn't the monocle thing be a part of the Steampunk aesthetic? If so, then its been done to death already.
3/7/14, 7:50 PM
Yep, the "tiny brass telescopes kept in satchels" confirmed it. Steampunk is leaking into the real world.
Ernst Blofeld was way ahead of the curve.
Villains rejoice.
Better to write about monocles than to wear them: "...I pursued, And still pursue, the origin and course Of love, but until now I never knew That fluttering things have so distinct a shade."
Wallace Stevens, "Le Monocle de Mon Oncle"
Get back to us when the hipsters start getting dueling scars.
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