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Welcome back to Fit Diaries, where GQ asks our favorite style lords to document a week through their outfits. Up next: Atlanta-based suit-maker, and long-time GQ style entourage staple, Sid Mashburn.
When quarantine hit, most of the pants-wearing world shifted to sweatpants. Not Sid Mashburn. Sid, who runs the nationwide network of dressed-up stores that bear his name, is pretty sure he owns a pair or two of elastic-waist cotton trousers. He thinks. In any case, they’re just not really his vibe. More his speed, in times both pandemic and not: a shirt, a tie, and a sportcoat.
This, he tells me in late May, is just personal preference. If he’s not wearing a tie, he says, “I feel like I'm not really dressed. It's the weirdest thing. It's not that I'm standing on ceremony—it just feels right.” But Sid's unusually formal quarantine fits also reflect the fact that his Atlanta shop, being a mail-order business, was declared essential at the top of the lockdown, meaning he’s spent the past few months going to work. Meaning, in turn, he’s been getting dressed. He knows no other way. “That's why a lot of these clothes I'm wearing look like I'm at work,” he says. “I have been.” Sid being Sid, his off-duty gear—worn at home, where he's been shacked up with his wife Ann, four of his five daughters, two cats, and two dogs; "It's a menagerie, Sam"—holds up pretty well, too. —Sam Schube
Sunday, May 17
I got fried yesterday by the pool, which contrasts super nicely with tennis whites. I play on the public courts in my neighborhood, which are fantastic. The one wrinkle right now is that they’ve taken the nets down—I guess that means we’re not really supposed to be there—so if anyone is reading this from Bitsy Grant Tennis Center, I’m sorry. Anyway, we’ve made it work. A friend of mine actually bought a net, so now it’s BYOB and BYON.
You can tell I grew up in the Bjorn Borg era of short shorts. These aren’t that extreme, but definitely shorter than what they sell at the pro shop. We made this pair out of a heavyweight cotton with a little stretch in it, so you can stuff tennis balls in the sides (although it doesn’t have the dedicated pockets.) Helpful for me...I usually need both serves. On top I did one of our white pique polos. Easy. I like a pocket. And then—everyone makes fun of me for this—but I really do play in a pair of Tretorn Nylites. We’ve sold these in the shop since day zero, and I like that you can throw 'em in the washing machine, especially because we play on clay courts. And Adidas socks. I’m a quarter-height guy. I get a six-pack of these for Christmas every year, all white. Then they disappear, and the cycle repeats.
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Monday, May 18
I wear a jacket and tie every day to work. It’s a little like suiting up before a game or something; it just makes me feel more ready to play. Actually, all the guys who work here wear ties…so I guess it’s like our team uniform. We’ve got a bullpen of spare ones here at the office for the ones who don’t start with a huge collection. Our own lending library. This one’s old—I bought it at the Ferragamo store on Fifth Avenue in 1997. It’s got this fantastic pastoral scene with some hunting action going on. Dogs, deer, foliage…it’s pretty. Underneath, no surprise, a blue shirt. To me, a blue shirt goes with everything because it’s the color of the sky. The pants are a natural-colored bull denim…like a more gentle version of bright white. When I was growing up, we used to call them “wheat” jeans; I don’t know if anyone says that anymore.
The green leno-weave jacket averages about one appearance a week. It’s made from this fantastic cotton/wool garza that we have woven and dyed just for us. It’s kinda like a house cloth. Also in heavy rotation are the chocolate calfskin tassel loafers. I accessorized with the puppy…she’s a great color, too.
I’m new to the ‘fit pic’ thing so I had my wife take this before we left in the morning. I gotta say…it feels a little like one of those My First Day of School photos. I should have gone out on the front step…added a backpack or something.
Tuesday, May 19
Our flagship store and headquarters are in Atlanta, and make no mistake about it, this summer has been H-O-T. So a seersucker jacket feels right...as far as tailored clothing goes, there's nothing better in the heat. This seersucker jacket is only from like three years ago, but it looks old because I wear the heck out of it. It’s our Virgil model, which is undarted, with a center vent and a 3-roll-2 front. Kind of like a more modern version of a sack jacket. The most dressed-up thing about it is the ticket pocket. A lot of guys can’t get into it but I love a ticket pocket. My car keys and AirPods fight each other for the ticket pocket. Underneath: white poplin shirt and cuffed dress trousers in a charcoal high-twist wool. Another one of our “house fabrics” that we try to keep in stock all the time because you can wear it 366 days a year.
I own four of this exact tie in this exact stripe. It’s Irish poplin…unbelievable, and they only make it in Ireland. It’s a 50/50 blend, and the wool tamps down the shine of the silk so you get a little rasp, a little dryness. I love it. I probably could use a fifth.
I did tassel loafers again, but this time in this crazy dark brown sharkskin. I love these…weirdly enough, our dogs go crazy for them, too. I don’t know if it’s some chemical they use in the tanning process, or some kind of animal instinct, but it’s wild. They’re a little too prehistoric-looking for Ann. I think they’re more of a guy thing.
Wednesday, May 20
Trying out the mirror selfie for the first time today. Otherwise, it’s just a normal Wednesday in the time of Corona. The office is pretty empty—great; no one to see me photographing myself—but it still feels good to wear a suit. This one’s several years old, in this chocolate brown tropical wool that we actually re-ran this year. Brown suits may not be for everybody but they should be. Chic-a-delic. I’m voting for brown suits in 2020. The shirt is a blue stripe end-on-end. I love blue and brown. The shoes are the star of the show, and kinda serious. They’re Edward Green Dovers with a split toe. They’re my only pair of EGs and I really felt like I made it when I got them. They’re an investment, for sure, and you may have to resole ‘em a few times, but they’ll last forever. Great ROI.
The tie is a little kaleidoscopic. Orange, turquoise, deep blue. It’s a wacky color combo but I wear this one a lot.
Thursday, May 21
I forgot to return to the mirror for the selfie, so my daughter, who works with us, snapped a picture. Unfortunately I was thirty seconds late for a Zoom call, so it’s an action shot. It’s weird; we often run behind in non-Corona times, but the pressure of the Zooming has really gotten us on schedule. I’m into it.
These are garment-dyed jeans from this spring and I’ve been wearing them a ton. The “Butter” came out a little more lemony than intended. Let’s say Hollandaise. The shirt is a sky blue university stripe oxford with a ballpoint pen in the pocket. I claimed the tie pretty recently from the bullpen. It’s probably forty-plus years old, from Davison’s. Cotton madras like this used to be standard-issue for every men’s store ever–hand-loomed, from India–and now you don’t see it very much anymore. This thing is smokin'.
The shoes are the same chocolate tassels I had on Monday–these things get a lot of wear.
Friday, May 22
The Friday before a holiday weekend always feels kinda fun. We’re celebrating one of my daughter’s birthdays tonight, so I came home with these crazy wildflowers that are a little off-market and super cool. They were a hit. Four of my daughters live here at the house, and every weekend during quarantine, the fifth daughter and her husband have been coming over for dinner. It’s a little like a Gentile version of Shabbat dinner. Now I get it. I think we’re gonna try to keep it up.
I’m wearing these awesome duck canvas pants from 2013. They didn’t fly off the shelves—I know you’re shocked—but they’re one of my favorite pairs. Back then, we made all of our sport trousers with Julie Hertling over in Greenpoint. He passed away a couple of years ago so now they’re even more special to me. He was fantastic.
Blue end-on-end sport shirt to tone down the pants a little, and chocolate suede tassel loafers. The belt strap is chocolate bridle, and the buckle is this old brass one handcast in Massachusetts from 2013. It’s shaped like a piece of coral. You can see straight through it. Same watch as always —Rolex Explorer.
Saturday, May 23
Hands down the best thing about our house is the pool in the backyard. No shoes, not enough sunscreen…perfect day.
This is a pair of Sundek swim trunks that I’ve had forever. I fell off a catamaran with my brother-in-law off the coast of North Carolina about 20 years ago. When the rescue boat came, I took them off and waved them in the air to make sure they saw me. I had been floating out there for five hours and there was no way I was missing my ride. They were still pretty new back then, and at their peak neon brightness. Not quite a flare, but it was all I had. And I’m still here!
Leaning into the bright thing with this sport shirt from last summer. It’s an awning stripe…day-glo pink and sky blue. The best. I love day-glo. Not even ‘cause it saved my life (kind of), I just love it.
The one-week fit diary of a GQ legend who feels good when he dresses out loud.
In the first installment of GQ's Fit Diaries, the one-of-a-kind photographer and stylist logs a week of quarantine dressing.
