Smathers and Branson - Waving Palms

Item:  Smathers and Branson needlepoint belt, Waving Palms

Purchased:  company website

Pros:  Amazing quality and feel, very sharp looking

Cons: Could feed an orphanage for a month with the cost

Okay so I'm a hypocrite. $165? Cable bill, electricity, hell that could cover a lot of monthly expenses.  Lucky for me, my birthday day just came around.  Even luckier for me, I have a caring girlfriend who splurged and ordered me my first of hopefully many needlepoint belts from Smathers and Branson.  I had seen their belts around quite often on friends and in stores, but never could pull the trigger due to the $165 price tag.  Now I am officially on the SB bandwagon.  The feel of the belt just makes it seem spectacular.

While there are some pretty outlandish designs available, I chose the Waving Palms (of course she let me choose the style with so much at stake).  I'm rather picky about my belts so I'm glad I was able to pick something that was versatile.  I remember they only began with a few styles, so it is good to see that they added to their product line.

One interesting feature of SB belts is that they are extremely recognizable.  You can literally pick out their belts from across the room.  While many enjoy and embrace this feature, some traditionalists might be turned off by the showiness that their belts have.

Overall, Smathers and Branson has cornered the market of needlepoint belts.  They have begun expanding their line to key fobs, cummerbunds, and even dog collars.  Not to mention each belt comes packaged in a handmade wooden gift box.  Now that's luxury....

Southern Trad rating:  5 out of 5 stars

Click here to read the reviews for Smathers and Branson on the ClothierConnection Forums.

Southern Proper Polo

Item:  Southern Proper polo, Carolina Blue, medium

Purchased:  The Oxford Shop, Nashville, TN

Pros:  Great logo design, comfortable material

Cons:  Sizing and fit is a little off

Needless to say I'm a big fan of Southern Proper, or "SoPro" as some call it.  I was hooked the day I saw the cotton bale bowtie on their website.  Inevitably, the company made the move from ties to Belle Bands, and then to polo shirts.  

I had wanted to pick up one of the polos for a while, but as they don't sale them over their website, I had to wait until I was in an actual store.  Hard to believe right, shopping in a brick and mortar store in this day and age.

Overall, the polo itself is very sharp.  The blue, as can be viewed on the company's website, is a great color and goes extremely well with khaki.  The logo, a black lab with a red bowtie, is well designed and is sure to make a conversation starter at the next bbq or outdoor event.  As most popular polo shirts, the material is pique cotton, and survived 2 washes without any fraying or fading.

Only con I have is the sizing.  I picked up a medium which is what I usually order in polos.  The thing draped over me like a jacket.  It was extremely baggy and just didn't have the same fit as some of my other favorite polos.  After a couple of washes (one of which I tried to shrink it) it fit a little better but I am skeptical of trying to "shrink shirts down to size".  For starters the heat ruins the collar and makes the shirt look 10 years older than it is.  I have yet to try a smaller size, this might be another option as well.

All in all, Southern Proper makes a good looking polo that I'd recommend trying out.  Surely to be coming soon to a Southern clothier near you...

Southern Trad rating:  4 out of 5 stars

Click here to read the reviews for Southern Proper polos on the ClothierConnection forums.

Hello and welcome to the Southern Trad's blog.  The purpose of this blog is to review, criticize, and discuss Southern traditional clothing.  My goal is to review one article of clothing from a popular or upcoming clothier company each couple of weeks.  This blog is being sponsored by the folks over at the ClothierConnection.com.   If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please don't hesitate to contact me.  Thanks and I look forward to sharing my thoughts with you.