THE SARTORIALIST: DINNER FOR 25 EDITION IV!

   The 4th edition of Scott Schuman's already 'traditional' dinner.

PICTURES AFTER THE BREAK!

HOW TO TIE A BOW TIE!

We believe that a tux looks best with a bow tie. However, while most men believe a bow tie should be hand tied, rather than clip-on or pre-tied, the majority of bow ties sold are indeed pre-tied. Rise above the sartorial morass by taking a few moments to learn how to tie a bow, and do it when there's no pressure of time. Experience tells us that this is a very hard skill to master if there's someone standing over you saying, "Why did you start this now? We're going to be late." 

Two tips: if you're struggling, try doing the bow around your thigh, and then learn the movements before you go back to doing it blind around your neck. And while a mirror is necessary to finesse the knot it won't help while you're trying to nail the knot.

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BEHIND THE BRAND: BRIONI!

MR PORETER travelled to Brioni's workshop in Italy to film the making of the midnight blue Brioni tuxedo which is exclusive to MR PORTER this season.

This season MR PORTER has worked with legendary Italian tailoring brand Brioni to create a dinner jacket of what is, we believe, incomparable quality. Sir Henry Royce, co-founder of Rolls-Royce, once described his approach to building cars: "Strive for perfection in everything you do. Take the best that exists and make it better. When it does not exist, design it. Accept nothing nearly right or good enough." 

Brioni approached the creation of our exclusive dinner jacket with Sir Henry's attitude in mind. The result is the last word in contemporary elegance: a midnight-blue tux consisting of a one-button, peak-lapel jacket with jetted pockets and grosgrain trim on the lapels, and flat-front trousers featuring that same grosgrain trim running down the outside seams. To mark its arrival on the site, MR PORTER visited Brioni's headquarters in Penne, Abruzzo, to make a film about the brand's past, present and future. 

''One of the most telling moments of the shoot came when we were filming one of the women who cut and sew the jacket buttonholes. Earlier in the day I had been concerned about how much of the noise of passing cars and the hum of air conditioning would be picked up by the microphone. It says everything about Brioni's handcraft methods that the only audible sound was that of a sharp chisel being knocked through one buttonhole at a time; there was no machinery on the factory floor to interfere with our recording.''

Watch the film below to learn more about this unique company and its extraordinary clothes.

THE CLASSICS: VELVET JACKETS!

Dressed up, or dressed down with jeans and a tee, these are a MR PORTER & FASHIONSPAM favourite!

Velvet has long had regal associations - in 14th-century England, King Richard II asked that he be buried in the stuff - but its more interesting, bad boy reputation can be traced back to Lord Byron. Painter Mr Richard Westall famously depicted the 19th-century poet wearing burgundy-coloured velvet, and, with the party season upon us, MR PORTER takes an endorsement from one of history's most notorious lovers pretty seriously.

We're not alone in our admiration for soft, tufted cotton, as almost all the designer brands are offering velvet jackets this season. The fabric has long had a louche image, redolent of relaxing with a glass of brandy and a cigar after a formal dinner, or Bond-esque nights out in expensive clubs. It's an image that's been refreshed this season, in that the new velvet jackets come with slim cuts, shorter bodies and softer construction.

However, if the shapes have been refined the classic colours are un-improvable, which is why Acne and Dolce & Gabbana have jackets in a shade of burgundy of which Lord Byron himself would have approved, while bottle green, burnt orange and chocolate brown line up alongside more sober black and blue. Although black and navy blue are the easiest colours to wear there's a strong logic to going for bolder hues, in that as most men already own a navy blue suit, and a black dinner jacket, this is an opportunity to expand the sartorial repertoire.

Whatever colour you go for, a velvet jacket is extremely versatile. Dressed down with jeans and a T-shirt it's right for a weekend lunch, or a casual day in the office, while, at the other end of the spectrum, it can substitute for a tuxedo over a crisp white shirt, black bow tie and tux trousers. No wonder men in search of a good time have been wearing velvet jackets since the days when Lord Byron was scandalising Europe with his bad behaviour.

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