Recently myself and 5 other male bloggers were approached by New York based fragrance brand Aramis about an exciting new project. The brief was to create original content about how we each celebrate the act of being "Gentlemanly" and what it means to us. I was really excited to be involved right from the start, as the brand evokes fond childhood memories for me.
As I was growing up the only strong male role model in my life was my Grandad. His family were Israeli immigrants who set up a tailoring company in the East End of London and this is where my Grandad trained to be a tailor. Somewhere in between this and serving in the army he became a footballer, retired early and then became a factory manager, in my hometown of Blackpool. He was an extremely compassionate man who was charming, impeccably well mannered and a joy to spend time with. One of his chosen aftershaves was Aramis, every time I hugged him I got a whiff of the infamous "peppery & potent" scent. I remember trying to squeeze him as tight as I could because it made me feel safe and loved. For me, these values and personality traits embodied what it means to be a gent.
Each blogger was asked to come up with an original idea about what the word Gentleman means to them. For me, being a Gentleman isn't just about being courteous and well dressed, it's your attitude towards people and life in general. My concept was to create short mantras about how we subconsciously live our lives, accompanied with a photoshoot of my day-to-day life. Here's what I came up with...
I'm really excited to see what the other 5 bloggers come up with, as I'm in good company. The Dandy Project, Kate Loves Me, Impossible Cool, Guerreisms and Man of the Cloth are all coming up with their own original Gentlemanly concepts. Feel free to check them out.
The Aramis fragrance itself is extremely elegant whilst at the same time being masculine and powerful. If you asked me 10 years ago if I'd wear a fragrance like Aramis the answer would have probably been no, but as with many things in life I have matured and so have my tastes. They have become more refined and considered, which is reflected in my own personal style. So here's to the "peppery & potent" scent of Aramis and all things Gentlemanly!
My Grandad, Leslie Bennett circa 1955
this is really incredible
ReplyDeletelove everything about it too. The layout, the font, the message.
Congratulations!!
Such a charming post! Really like how you've sectioned your points, really eye-catching.
ReplyDeleteI discovered some old photographs of family members the other day, I had no idea who most of them were but it was really nice looking through them, wondering what their personalities were like!
Flaws has got to be in my top 3 of my favourite albums of this year, lovely and gentle on the ears!
How cool is this???!!! And how cool was your Grandad. What lovely memories. Both of you, gents, for sure.
ReplyDeletemat! this was so awesome! I loved your gent definitions, very cool..
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post :)
ReplyDeleteThis is such a sweet post. Just the kind of comment you want on a post about being a gentleman, right? haha. good luck in the contest!
ReplyDelete:D Absolutely adore this post. I love all the statements and they're also a lot of what gentlemanly means to me too, as a woman who's always appreciative of one! The graphic design in great. (The razor is a nice touch.) And I feel privileged to be introduced to your dashing grandfather. What an absolute legend - a true grafter. (Weirdly, even though I've read your blog for a year or so, this is actually the first time I'm really seeing your face, haha! You definitely have some of that exotic Israeli blood going through your veins.)
ReplyDeleteI still wish to continue our little urb-exing chat but *damn* I am desperately behind with my comments and I have this super anal thing about doing everything in strict date order, so, to be continued..
I just saw this on bloglovin and came over to say - well done you! Love the text here, it's really well thought out.
ReplyDeleteWOW Matt! I am loving seeing everyones take on potentially a very stuffy subject! The Illustrations are so light hearted and lovely! I kept thinking if the last post would be totally clean shaven.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely one of my favorite posts from you! Between you and Izzy I may be inspired to get back into regular posting again, we will have to wait and see...
amazing. i love your concept of being gentlemanly. razors are cool!
ReplyDeletebtw i like your tats. you should talk about them if you haven't already x
Congratulations on your collaboration! Good thoughts.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for dropping by my blog ;-)
http://thefoolishaesthete.blogspot.com
Hey I follow your blog since I've moved from Brazil to Dublin (Ireland). And this was one of the posts that I most enjoyed to read. All the picture and the messages are something that we are loosing nowadays and It is wonderful to see that someone still cares about those things/feelings.
ReplyDeleteI really like the artistry of your images/pictures. There's so much thought and wrk behind it.
ReplyDeleteAnyway. congrats on the collaboration with Aramis, sounds like an exciting opportunity.
Peace
Mike
i agree with you, not everyone finds their personal style immediately. sometimes it takes time. up to now i'm still experimenting with different things when it comes to style.
ReplyDeletenouveauskin.blogspot.com
This is awesome! love this post!
ReplyDeletexx love from London
I don't know how I missed this post before. It's brilliant, what a great concept and what perfect little messages. Really like the one about referencing the past. And that photo of you in the red hat is really nice, very handsome. And, finally, good choice with the BBC CD cover, one of my favourite bands (they're playing in London tonight and I'm missing them as was away when the tickets went on sale - gutted)
ReplyDeleteCan't tell you how much I loved this post: one of my favourite blog posts of the whole year, for sure. You're a gentleman, my friend!
ReplyDelete▲ WOLF WHISTLE ▲