Essentials for Southern Men

This post falls into a category created long ago on this blog called “Southern Women How To’s.”  In this case, the post is about how a southern woman can recognize a southern gentleman.  Or better yet, it is to provide a glimpse into the life and style of a southern gentleman.  Of course, for all true southern women and men the items in this post are nothing new.  Southerness is not something that can simply be acquired by physical location, the way one dresses, the way one acts, the way one drinks or eats, or even one’s level of enthusiasm for sporting events.  It is, however, a compilation of all of these things and then some.

I was inspired to write this post after reviewing with colleagues (Hi Teresa and Jaime!) a Southern Living online article featuring lists of southern essentials for both men and women.  Click these links for the SL list for men and the SL list for women.  I agreed with most of the items on this list.   Although, I immediately began recalling things that I thought were excluded.  The SL list was a “top 10” list so there was a limit to what could be included.  My list will be much more extensive and will fall in no particular order.  I may even add to it in the future.  You can access the original source for each photograph by clicking on it.  I have linked the photos through my Southern Men Pinterest Board.  Feel free to follow me on Pinterest if you like.

(Note: In no way did I intend to declare that all southern men should have these items to be complete.  :)  This list is simply my own thoughts about one of my favorite things: southern men.  Many of the items I have included were chosen because they remind me of my true southern gent. of a husband.)

I’ll do a follow-up post in the future for southern women essentials.

Ok, here’s my list of essentials for the southern man.

1. Good Manners and Chivalry (ok, maybe that one was listed in a particular order…FIRST)

2. Well-Stocked Bar/Barware

3. A Collegiate House Flag  (of your alma mater or favorite team)

4. Affordable Jeans

5. Short Sleeved Golf Shirts  (I particularly like these from Southern Point)

6. A Baseball Cap  (If it doesn't have a college team's logo then it had better have something southern on it (i.e. favorite hunting dog, state flag, cotton blossom, etc.)

7. Gun  (I’m not sure I know a southern man without one.  Whether it is theirs or their granddaddy’s heirloom, most southern men have a gun for those “just in case” moments of needing to protect or provide for their families.)

8. Preppy Colored Khaki Pants

9. A Pair of Loafers/Driving Mocs

10. Big Dog  (This is a picture of our dog, Cole, taken by my SIL Brenna.)

11. A Classic Sweater

12. Classic Suit (This is essential for so many occasions: church, weddings, funerals, work, etc.)

13. Cufflinks  (I included these for when today’s man is attending a party/wedding/event in a tuxedo.  I think it is nice for a man to have on something with a personal touch when wearing a tux whether it is rented or owned.  Cufflinks are a way to do just that.)

14. Pocket Knife (preferably with a cork screw and bottle opener)

15. Classic Pea Coat

16. Silver Flask

17. Football Game Day Attire in School Colors (In addition, every southern guy needs a tie in his favorite team’s colors. I love this burnt orange/cotton blossom one from Southern Proper.)

 

18. White Cotton Undershirt  (This is a staple.  It is hot down here, y’all.  An undershirt completes a southern man’s outfit).

19. Seersucker Suit

 

20. Leather Boots  (These boots are essential because they can be worn with casual clothes to a football game or they can be used for work.  My husband calls his leather boot s*!t kickers.  Ha.  I think he means it in the literal sense.  His parents own a cattle farm.)

21. White Oxford Button-down Shirt (I like this one from Southern Tide)

22. Navy Blazer

23. Handkerchiefs (Every southern man should carry a handkerchief, especially when he is dressed up.)

24. Boat Shoes

25. Linen Blazer

26. Gingham Button-down Shirt

27. Manly Stationery

 

Do you have any suggestions that could be added to the list?  Or, do you have any comments about what I’ve included?

Still here

Hi bloggy friends,

Don't give up on me. I'm still around and wanting to post. I am having trouble with publishing from Windows Live Writer. I get a message saying that a remote server can't be found.

I am so frustrated. Does anyone have any suggestions?

I am having to publish this from the Blogger iPhone app.

The Brenna Wedding Invitation

We seem to be on a TLP wedding invitation blog post trend right now.  Maybe that is because the wedding invitations we’ve done are some of our very favorites.  This post is especially meaningful to us because the invitation we designed for this wedding is the one that gave us the idea to start The Langham Project DIY Printable Invitations and Stationary and because it is the wedding of Judd’s brother, Colby, and his precious wife, Brenna.  As you might have already figured out we named this invitation and its corresponding components after the beautiful bride.  The Brenna Wedding Invitation features a custom combined monogram (that includes the bride and groom’s full names as an overlay) with a nice surround detail in a sage green font.  The other wording on the invitation is brown.  Brenna was so kind to share some photos from her special day with us to include on this post.  We would be remiss to share these without giving credit to their amazing wedding photographer, Julie Cottrell.  We’ve put our watermark on the photos that we took. Any photos without our watermark were taken by Julie.

We offer several options for our wedding invitations.  Each design can be purchased separately or as a package.  The individual wedding invitation is available for $45.00.  The Brenna will be customized entirely for any bride and groom who order it.  The monogram and colors can be changed to fit the look and feel of the client’s wedding.  This design was created to fit a square 6 1/4” x 6 1/4” piece of cardstock.   The invitation fits inside of an envelope that is 6 1/2” x 6 1/2” in size.  We, The Langham Project DIY Printable Invitations/Stationary, send the customer a digital file of his or her order. The customer is then able to purchase any paper of his or her choosing and is able to print as many or as few invitations as needed on a home printer.  Another option for the customer is to ask a local print shop to print the order.  Brenna ordered her paper from an online source and then printed the components you will see in the following pictures on her home printer.

For Brenna and Colby we designed a matching set that included a wedding invitation, reception response card, wedding ceremony program, and thank-you note.  The Brenna Wedding Program design is available for individual purchase for $45.00.  It features the combined monogram in sage green and brown font throughout.  The wedding program is designed to be double-sided.  It is 5 1/4” x 8 1/4”.

The Brenna Response Card design is available for individual purchase for $15.00.  It ties in with the wedding invitation with a more simplified custom monogram (with only the bride and groom’s first and last names).  It is 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” and fits a 4 3/8” x 5 3/4” envelope.

The Brenna Thank-You Note design was customized to be larger than many wedding thank-you notes by request of the bride.  She knew that she writes large and wanted to have enough space to properly thank her guests.  The size of this note, as the rest of our products, is customizable.  The Brenna Thank-You Note featured below is 5” x 7” and fits inside of a 5 1/4” x 7 1/4” envelope.  The Thank-You note design can be purchased as a separate component for $12.00

As previously mentioned, the Brenna wedding invitation and its corresponding component designs can be purchased separately or together as a wedding package.  The individual prices for each design are as follows:

Brenna Invitation: $45.00

Brenna Response Card: $15.00

Brenna Wedding Program: $45.00

Brenna Thank-You Note: $12.00.

Or, you can save by purchasing these items together with one of our packages.  The package that includes a wedding invitation (including featured custom combined monogram), response card, wedding program, and thank-you note is $107.00.

These designs, and this couple, are particularly special to us.  We hope you like them too.  If you are interested in ordering the Brenna Wedding Invitation design or the other pieces featured please leave us a comment on this post or send us an email at langhat@gmail.com.  Click here to find The Langham Project DIY Printable Invitations/Stationary on Facebook or see our sidebar above.

Happy Easter

Happy Easter, y'all.

Not So "Real" Estate

Look what I found this evening at the lot for sale next door to us.

The home on the lot burned to the ground just before we moved in our house.  All that is left is the front entry.

Several sweet little neighborhood girls use this facade as their imaginary everything space. We've witnessed it become a make believe house, school, and even a magazine/newspaper headquarters.  In fact, Judd and I bought two "subscriptions" for a quarter a piece a few weekends ago.

Yesterday a for sale sign was placed on the lot.  Apparently the children were very upset about this.  Look at the sign that they put up this afternoon.

I thought it was too cute not to share with you all.

I have such sympathy for our pint size neighbors.  My childhood neighbors and I were so much like them (Hi Carolyn and Rachel).  I think their little hearts are broken. I hope whoever buys the property will let them play in the yard from time to time.

 

Distracted By A Grandmother Visit

I've been a little distracted this week from my dissertation prospectus because my sweet, most-wonderful-in-the-whole-wide-world, precious grandmother is in town. She even brought her little doggy, Miss Toddy.

I'm ok with this distraction. I am SO glad to get some special time with her this week.

Also, watching Judd snuggle and brush Miss Toddy put a pretty big smile on my face.

I hope you are all having a good week so far.