The kids in America

Not only is each and every one immensely
wealthy, immeasurably privileged and well – go ahead guys, you too can admit it – inordinately
handsome, they also sport astounding
style. Suave and sophisticated’ couldn’t possibly suffice to describe the aesthetic of Gossip Girl trust-fund triumvirate: Dan (Penn Badgely), Nate (Chace Crawford) and Chuck (Ed Westwick). Initially acclaimed
for the sartorial styling of its female leads’ ‘It Girl’ Serena (Blake Lively), ‘Queen Bee’ Blair (Leighton Meester) and ‘Li’l J’ Jenny (Taylor Momsen) the exceptionally successful TV show Gossip Girl is now considered
an authority on menswear.

And rightfully so. This show – often referred
to as The OC’s sexier, wealthier sister
– has bagged the best stylists around and if you considered the guys from Mad Men sharp, then you’ve not seen anything yet. Chuck Bass, for example, well knows the difference between his Helmut Lang and Tom Ford. Devoting the vast majority of his waking hours to the sexual predation of the Upper East Side’s hottest girls, Bass is a busy man (when he’s not attempting to quell his insatiable desire he’s establishing Gentleman’s clubs) yet turns out immaculately,
always.

His truly idiosyncratic style is composed of the bare basics – well-cut trousers and blazers in neutral tones, the slightly ostentatious
– a scarlet red morning coat and an ivory tux with ink-black piping, as well as the downright individual – an abundance of crazily patterned silk cravats and bow ties. Camp, you say? Not in the least – well, a tad – but the sheer number of ladies he beds may disprove any theories you’ve already formulated.
Then there’s “lonely boy” Dan, the
token cynic who – in a vain attemp to
provoke laughter – blabbers profusely, and supposedly wittily, on matters such as writer’s
block and the advantages of the affluent
as well as relentlessly brooding over the equally infuriating Serena.
However, his whining is marginally easier
to ignore when he steps out – in true man-about-town style – in an array of razor-sharp suits in deep black and dapper waistcoat-shirt combos. Dan typifies NY casual cool, often donning lightweight jumpers, plaid shirts and military-style jackets in earthy hues. He may be a touch goofy and undeniably
head-wrecking at times but admiring his smart choice of grungy, laid-back clothing
makes the perpetual sarcasm and cynicismthat
bit more bearable.

And finally, Nate. You may have heard of this one before – girlfriends, sisters, mothers
even are often more than infatuated with this rich kid so reminiscent of the 90s boy band stereotype.
His usual dress, however, doesn’t exactly correlate: you’ll find no bombers or pudding-
bowl cuts here. The Archibald really belongs in a Ralph Lauren advertisement. In conservatively styled blazers, golf attire and flawless formalwear in – what could be deemed – ‘business-meeting’ blues he’s the epitome of Americana.
Yes, the characters can prove irksome but where else do you find the sufficient degree
of preppy pomp blended so seamlessly with understated masculine elegance? Eh, not One Tree Hill anyway.