Welcome to Perfectly Imperfect #123 👋

If you subscribed after any of our October guests…welcome! Perfectly Imperfect is a twice-weekly newsletter featuring curated recommendations from real people and once a month we like to drop some hot recs of our own. Check out the archive for more recs and as always, join the Perfectly Imperfect Discord to keep the conversation going.

Oh! Almost forgot. We have a big announcement today.

This Friday (November 5th) at 10 am EST we’re FINALLY dropping the long-rumored & teased Perfectly Imperfect hat in 3 colorways:

PI Blue, Black, and a two-tone Black + PI Blue.

Check out the pics below for a sneak peek.

Without further ado

Tyler Bainbridge (instagram, letterboxd, last.fm)

⬛ 🧥 Vintage 90s Jil Sander Jackets

Recently a friend was going to sell me a very sick Jil Sander Leather Blazer but bailed last minute 😢 I’m looking at you Anthony! So I ended up going on a wild goose chase digging through Vintage Jil Sander Leather Jackets on Ebay and found a very reasonably priced ($150) wool-lined one that was close enough. I either look like an “A24 vibes“ guy cosplaying as Howard Ratner or the early Bourdain look I’m sort of going for. Probably somewhere in between. But I love it!

📚 Sex Magazine

If thoughtful interviews of cool people such as John Wilson, Abel Ferrera, Dylan Brady & Laura Les of 100 Gecs, Anna Khachiyan, Paul Schrader, Eckhaus Latta, Petra Cortright, Eli Keszler, Honor Levy, and plenty of others, sound interesting to you— this is your mag. Seriously, if you like Perfectly Imperfect but wish the profiles were more in-depth (and the people were even cooler…) check out Sex Mag. My only regret is that I didn’t find them sooner.

🎵 Arthur Russell

Arthur is a cellist, composer, producer, and singer from Iowa whose work ranges from Disco, Avant-Folk, Experimental House, to Ambient. He tragically passed away in 1992, but his legacy has lived on & grown in recent years through word of mouth and some high profile samples such as Kanye West's TLOP cut, 30 Hours, which samples Answers Me. I love of all of Russel’s music, but especially Another Thought in it’s entirity and the folk cut I Couldn’t Say It To Your Face.

👖 Homme Plissé Issey Miyake Pleated Trousers

I feel like this is a memey-ish rec, right? I think everyone who has shopped on ssense knows about these but that being said…I knew about these for a while too but slept on them until a few weeks ago. Wow, these are crazy comfortable and look cool as hell. How can I go back to any other pants after this? You can just add them to (almost) any outfit and immediately make it more interesting. Hoodie? Yeah it’ll work. Tucked-in tee? Yuup. That Jil Sanders Leather Jacket above? You bet.

🎸 📽️ The Velvet Underground (2021)

This was really good. I’m so glad it wasn’t overly melodramatic or done in a “this happened, and then this happened, and then this happened” style, like a lot of music docs are. Todd Haynes made a smart choice with the diptych editing style since basically every frame had something cool going on. I walked away even more interested in one of the best bands to do it. I could listen to Jonathan Richman & co excitedly ramble about Velvet Underground all day. See it in a theater if you can.

🚆 TikTok Train Guy (Francis Bourgeois)

I don’t really use TikTok. I have nothing against it, I just can’t seem to get my feed dialied in! Anyways, I found Francis Bourgeois from someone sharing this video on Twitter. I love his seemingly geniune love of trains and I love the ridiculous head mounted go pro view of his own distorted face reacting to the trains. Every video of his is a joy to watch. Just wholesome & good fun.

🛄 Vintage Timbuk2 Crossbody Bags

I’m sick of tote bags falling off my shoulder and having no ~nuance~ to where my shit goes. All my things in the same huge pocket….just absolute madness. So big shouts to the homie Ryan who turned me on to vintage Timbuk2 a few months ago. I finally snagged one with a pretty sweet designstar* logo on it, which is apparently a show that ran on HGTV in the late 2000s. It’s ergonomic and well thought out, but not in an over engineered tech-nerd way, just in a “ah this just makes sense way”.

Alex Cushing (instagram, twitter, last.fm, goodreads)

🕴️🪡 Stoffa Peached Cotton Double Breasted Jacket & Trousers

This suit is amazing. The peached cotton really is peached. It’s got a fuzz to it that almost tricks you into thinking it’s some kind of velvet or corduroy, but it’s really just a perfect cotton, & a top-notch material for these cooler months. The unstructured double-breasted coat feels so classic in the chocolate brown colorway. The trousers have a pleat, side adjustment clasps, and a nice straight fit. On top of the quality and fit of these beautifully timeless pieces, the folks at Stoffa are amazing. They’re extremely friendly, helpful with questions, and willing to hop on a quick zoom to chat about any questions, or help figure out sizing.

🕯️ Diptyque figuier & tunneling tips

Of all the candle scents I’ve tried, the diptyque’s figuier is my favorite. It's a perfectly subtle scent of figs growing along the coastal towns of the Mediterranean. Somehow, the deep tones from the fig scent keep it relevant to burn all through the fall, even after its peak “Mediterranean summer” time has eclipsed. On the topic of candles - in our discord, someone was recently asking for tips on preventing tunneling, and I figured why not spread our wealth of knowledge? When you first burn your candle, it’s better to let it melt the entire first layer of wax, to the edge. This is because wax has a “memory” and will have difficulty burning past edges that weren’t initially melted. If you do find yourself facing those feared tunnels - you can try to correct it by wrapping your candle in some tin foil, worked for me on my Feu de Bois.

👖 De bonne facture Wide Wale Easy Cords

Looking for the perfect pair of cords to complete that viral oscar isaac’s scenes from a marriage look? I have good news for you. These “Easy Cords” sit perfectly between formal and loungewear, with a straight leg and smi-elastic waist. The corduroy is soft and nice, and the brown is deep and beautiful. 

🪖 Combat Threads Newsletter

I first saw this newsletter when referenced as a source for real tree camo making its official comeback, which we here at PI wholeheartedly back. After checking it out, I found myself reading every post Charles had to offer. He‘s a master’s student in costume design, researching military uniforms and non-elite fashion. He covers a range of topics from the evolution of the US soldier’s uniform in Afghanistan, to Bin Laden merch, and has some really unique insights. Don’t expect frequent posts, but when they come, you’ll know it’s worth a read.

📚 The Lincoln Highway

Amor Towles returns with a rowdy tale of the misadventures of 4 boys as they attempt to travel the transcontinental Lincoln Highway from Times Square to San Francisco in the 1950s. Towles is one of my all-time favorite authors, his character work literally never fails. I still remember the stars from his other books: Katey Kontent, from rules of civility, climbing the social ladder in NYC (please read my rec for this book, to me its aged like fine wine & is solidified as one of my all-timers), and Count Rostov, from A Gentleman in Moscow, appreciating the small things in life: every detail. That in mind - it’s high praise when I say that Emmett, Duchess, Woolly, and Bobby may be the most memorable characters I’ve experienced in a long time. It's a fun read, filled with great characters, and a whole lotta heart.

📚👾 Leviathan Wakes - The Expanse

So I just finished the first book in the Expanse series. It’s a more modern take on sci-fi than I usually read, (ie Dune, and previously rec’d Foundation) which means you get a little less of a science forward narrative. Don’t take that the wrong way though, this isn’t a simple little read, as the series’ name suggests, it’s expansive. Only one book in, I can tell the scale of this series is going to rival some of the greats. It’s complex and full of twists and turns. I’m excited to have a whole series to tear through. And beyond that, there’s a TV series...

📽️🌲 Barnwood builders 

This DIY Network show is about a team of builders who restore and/or repurpose old barns. It’s a great way to mix up your casual background house show. These guys are your classic wood enthusiasts. Show them a pile of logs, they’ll tell you the history, they’ll tell you about the one guy who worked on this barn that was an amateur, and then compare it to an expert’s work. They’ll go on to tell you about the history of advertising on the sides of barns, and the most prolific from that era. It’s one of those things that I can’t help but enjoy. They’re experts in a subject I know basically nothing about, so it’s always entertaining.

📣 Shoutouts

LIVE.LOVE.A$AP finally on streaming

Taylor*: phoebe.free

Serey Morm (instagram, twitter, vsco)

👖 Relax Fit Belted Pants

If I had to choose a single pair of pants to keep in my closet, it's these pants. They are water repellent, stretchy, and an all occasion pant ranging from rock climbing, hiking, or even the everyday office pants. More importantly, they are slightly tapered at 29", so they are the perfect length for me (I'm 5'8" so the default 32 length is never fun). I'm on my third pair now, and I would super sad if these were no longer made.

🍹 PRESS Seltzers

Willing to debate anyone who disagrees with this, but PRESS is the best spiked "premium" seltzers of ALL TIME. They're not too hard to come across and usually come in a variety pack, but the Blackberry Hibiscus is the best flavor. This is not up for debate because it's the only flavor that comes in a non-variety pack. For the record, I'm not a big fan of seltzer at all, I think it tastes like spicy water, but I actually really like Press.

🐑 Outdoor Voices Outdoors Collection

I've been a big fan of basically everything Outdoor Voices (OV) has dropped. I've actually recommended my favorite shorts from OV in our first ever post. Asides from the shorts, I'm always here for their cozy fall pieces from the Outdoors Collection. I appreciate the fun colors and drive for comfort, and I'm here for it. This year's drop did not disappoint. All of the fleeces they've dropped has been on point, and they're unisex. I recently got the Primo Fleece Vest and it's one of my fall favorites when layered with a long sleeve.

📦 Muji Organizers

I've been working on tidying up my place the past few weeks and organizing bins from Muji has been a life savior. It gets especially annoying organizing and cleaning small items like toiletries, and small knick knacks lying around. Being able to have those stuff in small containers and shifting them around has been super helpful.

🪝 Command Strips

Part of my tidying project was rough because I'm not allowed to put holes in my apartment. Command strips is usually the go-to answer, but I never knew that beyond the hooks and picture hanging velcro, there are other dope products that they make. Few weeks ago, I found myself scrolling through about every single product page that they had and it was the most satisfying shopping high that I've gotten in a while. The biggest game changer for me was the toothbrush holder, dryer holder, and hooks for my clothes. Freeing up space by sticking them on the wall has to be a top 3 best feeling for me.

🗞: Extra Extra!

📱 tweakseason — my favorite tiktok account, ever. just a dude vibin' in nyc

Follow Tyler, Alex, & Serey on Instagram

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