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Men of Edward Green — Jeremy Langmead

Men of Edward Green — Jeremy Langmead

Given his resume, which includes revitalising a flagging Esquire magazine and then heading up all things content related at Mr Porter, it’s fair to say that Jeremy Langmead is one of the leading figureheads in the industry. Today, he’s a freelance journalist and author, having just recently launched his first book Vain Glorious: A Shameless Guide For Men Who Want to Look Their Best, to critical acclaim.  
 
Jeremy now splits his time between his homes in the Lake District and London, and kindly welcomed us into his quintessentially English-styled bolthole in Primrose Hill, where he presented his views on the future of classic menswear, mused on the importance of building a home that you love and why suede shoes are like the sneakers of classic footwear. 
 
Words by Ben Browne | Photography by Harry Borden

So, Jeremy, now that men will be spending less time in the office – perhaps two or three days – what does their wardrobe now look like and what would you be reaching for in the morning? 
 
Well, I moved out of London to the Lake District, and sometimes when I'm back in London and look at my wardrobe of formalwear, I think 'well that was another life'. But, it's a life that I don't want to let go of and I think there are ways of working some of those tailored pieces into a new uniform, such as wearing a sweatshirt with a pair of tailored trousers, which are really comfy and easy.
    
What's your prediction for the suit’s future? 
 
Well it's going to become a trendy item, isn't it? Instead of being a work item, it's going to become a play item – the proportions will change, as will the colours.   
 

If there's going to be an uptake in suiting outside of the business sector, do you think those styles of suits are going to become somewhat redundant, or are there ways to still work with them in the City?
 
You just wear a suit with a polo shirt or with a crewneck sweater. A suit is the easiest way to make yourself look your best. That jacket hides lumps and bumps, gives shoulders and arms shape and no other piece of clothing does that. We will realise that it's still armor and useful. 
 
You also champion drawstring trousers, don't you? What would be your advice for the Edward Green customer who is perhaps not familiar with them? 
 
Well, they're that halfway house between sweatpants and formal wear for me. Everyone is doing them now – you can get them everywhere. They just give a slight casual edge to a pair of trousers. For a slightly older person, there is the advantage of you being able to have a great, big lunch and let out that trouser. Fashion hasn’t always been kind, but the drawstring trouser most certainly is.   
 
In terms of wearing drawstring trousers with shoes, you've styled your pair with your Edward Green Portland loafers, which is great to see. But are there any limitations with wearing them? 
 
Well, if you wear them slightly shorter it makes you look taller. They look great with a boot or if you wear them with some really light shoes such as these then you have that summery feel. I've had these for four years now and they're like slippers – I have two pairs – and they're just so comfortable. They're not too smart and not too casual, and they work just as nicely on holiday as they do somewhere like Primrose Hill. 

And what about footwear, what's your prediction on that front?
 
When I was at Mr. Porter shoes were always the biggest category and hard shoes obviously took a hit but they will come back. I remember reading some research and shoes are the first thing women notice on a date. Shoes are still a big tell-tale sign of who a man is and where he's going. For me, a suede shoe is a perfect shoe. It's almost like the sneaker of hard shoes – they just have that lovely soft edge but look really, really smart.    
Years ago, I was judging The Guardian Student Media Awards, and nearly every magazine was in print. So, I asked, how come you're launching magazines because it was 2010? Their response was that print magazines were edgy. As soon as something becomes commonplace it then becomes less commonplace, so if everyone is wearing sneakers it will become cool to wear a really smart pair of shoes.
 
What styles of smart shoes do you predict to become cool then?   
 
I think styles such as derbies and monkstraps will become cool. Monkstraps are actually quite alternative, they're a weird contraption – almost punk-like with the straps. I think a whole generation will begin to tire of those sneakers because that's all they wear. That's how trends happen; everyone gets bored of what everyone else is wearing and also the other thing that puts people off clothing is if their dads are wearing it.  
 
In 2010 you embarked on your career with Mr. Porter into that digital tech space for the first time. Now that we're in the Roaring Twenties, what are you most excited about within the intersection of tech, fashion, and AI and how do you think that might expand our horizons and with our buying choices? 
 
Well, men have become much more confident in their buying choices because of the web as now you can ask anonymous questions online, which has transformed menswear I believe and this is only going to get bigger. I do think men have been really slow to catch on with fit, so I think AI technology is going to help men figure out whether it's going to suit them. 
 
Before you move away from men's style and into your book, it would be great to know some of your fashion faux-pas...
 
Well, my least favourite item of footwear is flip flops for two reasons; I hate men's toes being squidged apart by something – I hate the sound of rubber hitting calloused heels. Also, when I was a student I used to do those drug trials for money (which I don't condone) when I was locked in a hospital. Most of the people doing them were either fashion victims like myself or Australian backpackers who wore flip-flops. So they just remind me of that period really.    
 
 
On a more positive note, what do you love about fashion today?    
 
I love that people are now just wearing what they want. Anything goes and menswear has become so democratic and you can't dictate it anymore – especially to a generation outside of the city.    
My only proviso is that everyone wants to be their truth and themselves, which is absolutely how it should be, but you also have to respect other people. I think half of dressing well is making the person you're meeting feel comfortable as well.  
 

 
So, tell us about your book : Vain Glorious: A Shameless Guide for Men who Want to Look Their Best, which you've written with Dr. David Jack, and how it can help empower men? 
 
I started writing it after I left Mr Porter and I did it with David Jack because I wanted to have medical expertise as well as my experiences. There are two points with the book. One is to tell blokes the tricks that blokes don't tell each other and the other point is that no one should be depressed with how they look, so it’s about making you feel better with how you look. It's not about looking younger, it's about looking like your best self.    
A lot of men will at the same time feel more than fine about themselves, but a little bit of TLC here and there wouldn't harm them at all.     There's advice for looking after your skin, such as by putting on SPF every day, but then also parts on botox. Most men won't talk about having botox but if you do the right amount, if you want to – again, it's about the choice – it can just help by taking that furrow out of your browline.  But, if you can't be bothered to do any of those procedures and treatments, the best thing to do is a navy blazer with a pale blue shirt!   
 
Why a pale blue shirt? 
 
A pale blue shirt puts colour on your face and makes it look crisper. If you have a wrinkly face, a crisp light blue shirt smooths it all out. Black is more aging to older skins, so you shouldn't wear black as you get older – which is what Richard James always used to say. 
 
 

Let's talk about building a home, which is a passion of yours. How would you define modern English taste and in regards to your own home?
   
Well, it sort of depends on where you live. Every house tells you how it should look on the whole. Where we live now is in a 17th-century farmhouse in the mountains in the Lake District. So that's old beams and white plastered walls, which we have to go with, so we've got lots of textures, patterns, colours, and beautiful curtains. My old house in Suffolk was all about the wallpapers, and this house in London is all about colours. 
 
What is it about building a home that you love so much? 
 
I love to sit in a room and look around and see someone's story and the journey they've taken. I like to have things that remind you of the stories you've had in your life and things that make you happy. When I got off the train last night and arrived here I just felt happy to see all these pretty patterns and colours. Your home needs to make you happy – it's our refuge more than ever.  
 
You moved out of London before the pandemic, so you were ahead of the curve in some ways, but how has that experience been for you, what advice would you have for those who feel stuck in London, and how do you find the balance if you need one at all.    
 
It is difficult because London is the most amazing city but I was so lucky not to have been here during the lockdown, but moving to Cumbria was quite a big move. I mean it's nearly in Scotland. It's mountains and lakes.    
 
Did you grow up there?
 
No, my husband did so that's why we moved up there as his family is still there. So, it was a really big and far move but the views we have from the house are incredible. I took up hiking, which was my sort of lockdown thing, and you climb a mountain, like Scafell Pike which takes seven hours, and get to the top and it's such a cliche but it just puts everything into perspective.    
 
So, you've found your balance, right? 
 
I try to do three or four nights a fortnight, which is lovely because all my friends and family are here, but when I get off the train in Oxenholme [in the Lake District] and just see mountains and lakes, it's beautiful. I am sad that I can't wear nice clothes, but they're totally impractical up there. I never thought I'd own a cagoule, but now I have many! I have a whole new wardrobe, which is actually quite fun.    Well, outdoor wear has had a very good year and a bit, hasn't it?
 
What brands do you recommend? 
 
 At Mr. Porter, outdoor wear was its best-selling category last year with brands like Arc'teryx. 66°North is nice and the other brand I like is Revolution Race. It's a Swedish brand with cheesy marketing, but the clothes are really good and well-priced. Uniqlo is also another one that has good outdoor wear now.    

 
So, we’ve been walking around Primrose Hill for a while now, how are you getting on with your Piccadilly loafers? What are your initial thoughts? 
 
They’re super comfortable and I'm not just saying that to be polite – that's always been the thing for me with Edward Green. But I also love the colour, it has that sort of hint of summer into autumn, doesn't it. What's so nice is that this colour doesn't look too formal even though it's a classic shoe.   
 
What do you see yourself wearing with them?    
 
Well, these would of course look lovely with a pair of jeans and chinos – but this colour goes with everything. They're also really nice without a sock on, too. They just have a really nice balance. Hardy Amies used to say 'no brown in town' but I love the fact that we wear brown shoes in town.  

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