Marcus Wainwright is reminded of his grandfather’s favorite quote. “RTFM” stands for Read the Damn Manual. Passed down through the family tree, the phrase was often repeated by his father on Christmas morning; today, the command has proven useful in his life as a father. “Any fool would be uncomfortable” is a bit hard to parse, but Wainwright thinks it has an application at Rag & Bone, too, where tailoring is becoming a bigger part of its product, though certainly not your grandfather’s.
Like other menswear makers, Rag & Bone looks more formal than it did before the pandemic. Wainwright pointed to a shirt with a hawk swooping down on its torso as an example of a new sense of dressing. In the look book, it was paired with a pair of pleated trousers that fell loose at the thigh. The outfit reminds me of the Bryan Ferry days, and that’s not a bad thing. This season’s “suit” has a modern twist. Maybe the pants have a drawstring at the waist, or the jacket has a zipper instead of cumbersome buttons. Or maybe a matching jacket and shorts in a graphic jacquard that looked almost like a monogram, with a silk button-down shirt underneath. Looks more fancy than Rag & Bone these days, but still comfortable. Wainwright’s grandfather would have gotten it.
