I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes. Just as the advent of the motor car began the demise of the umbrella and hat, and the wristwatches of WWI replaced the pocket watches of the Victorians, the cell phone may spell the demise of the wrist watch. And when it does we will be denied one of the most elegant accessories which a man may still wear.

I’ve noticed several people lately flip open phones to check the time. On a hunch I looked around at my fellow pedestrians and confirmed that the vast majority (they were mostly students and a few younger professionals) were chronographically nude. At least to the eye. Not a wristwatch amongst ‘em. But each had a pocket bulging with cell phone and keys or keys dangling from a belt loop (N.B. not a good look.) All carried backpacks or messenger bags and I wonder why they didn’t use those to hold the extra things they carried?

When I was a kid growing up in Europe, I remember seeing a lot of men carrying purses. Not “manbags” or bags in general, handbags. They had little wrist straps on them and a zippered opening. My father’s bag was black leather and had a zippered pocket on the outside as well.

Yes, he too fell in to the habit during off hours when we were traveling. But only after my mother convinced him to buy a New Man denim jacket and jeans “suit.”

It was the 70’s and I don’t know what was going on in the States, but European men were wearing tight jeans. Jeans that frankly couldn’t accommodate the large breast pocket wallets that everyone hauled around to carry the huge European banknotes that were much larger than the American dollar. So the handbag became de rigeur.

After reading another wonderful post by Mrs. Blandings, I decided to come clean. If the contents of a pocketbook can tell you a lot about the owner, just imagine what going through their pockets might reveal.

Men today carry all manner of things with them in all manner of bags. I have a shoulder bag big enough to carry my laptop and a portfolio that I used to carry before the laptop became my portable desk and filing cabinet. But I don’t carry them day-to-day.

No, most of the time I have to carry all the things you see above in my pockets — without bulging at the seams.

This is really when made-to-measure and bespoke clothing shines. You can have pockets built in to conceal all of your gear. A watch pocket carries my pocketknife. A coin pocket can hold my pocketknife or keys or phone (when not wearing a jacket.) The cigarette pack pocket on the left inside of my coat holds the phone, while the inside pockets hold my cigarette case (I keep my cards in it) and my pen. The breast pocket of the coat holds my glasses or sunglasses behind my pocketsquare. The car key and/or house keys can be stashed in the inner coin pocket of the pocket on my coat. The handkerchief and card case/wallet are in the back pockets of my trousers and my money clip resides in my left hand pocket.

If you are buying off the rack, the best brand in my opinion that caters to those of us who carry things on our persons, is Oxxford. The tailors there build their suit coats with pockets that work with the lining, expanding inward. I don’t know how they do it, but it works. There is hardly a ripple visible.

I still wear a wristwatch, though. And I have a landline. I suppose I am beginning to show my age.

(Image ukwatches.com)

Do you still wear a wristwatch? Or do you rely on your cellphone? I do both depending on the occasion.

I got my “everyday watch,” a stainless steel Rolex Oyster Perpetual Datejust like the one above, the hard way. I inherited it. My father bought it sometime in the late ’50’s or early ’60’s, probably from the PX. It was never the same after Vietnam — the humidity, rain and sweat did in the insides. Against my better judgement, I had it reconditioned. The patina is gone — much to my chagrin — but it works better than ever. And at USD$300 a throw for cleaning, etc. it seemed a wise investment. I hope my son appreciates it.

It’s a great watch, don’t get me wrong. Very comfortable to wear, the band especially, considering it is a steel link thing. I don’t wear it with a dinner jacket. And some of my better made shirt cuffs don’t accommodate its bulk very well. (I like very fitted cuffs.) Of course I could ape L’Avvocato and wear it over the cuff, but there really was only one Gianni Agnelli.

I’d like something that I could wear on more formal evenings. An elegant, slim, leather banded watch adds an element of style to the severe black and white of dinner clothes.

Before my father’s watch came into my possession, I ruined my favourite watch. It wasn’t very expensive, but it made me feel very elegant. It was a copy of a 1940’s Hamilton tank watch on a pigskin band, then an alligator band, then another as I sweated through each whilst working as a dance instructor. I eventually sweated through the insides of the watch, too, hopelessly rusting the mechanism.

(Image TimelyClassics)

The tank watch may be my favourite watch shape. I’d love a Jaeger-LeCoulter Reverso, the watch created for polo players, which flips over to protect the face behind an engravable back.

(Image Amazon.com)

But given my history with perspiring through watches… having the face against my wrist may not be the smartest way to go.

Another to consider, a very elegant model, is the Hermès Cape Cod 1928.

(Image Men.Style.Com)

A Cape Cod Gent in Rose Gold (or the Moonphase edition) is an attractive alternative.

(Image Europastar Magazine)

Really, the grandfather of them all, the “original” tank watch was inspired by the modern design of the Renault tank. Louis Cartier, who designed the iconic time piece in 1917, even gave the prototype to General Pershing. So groundbreaking was the design that it remains one of the most coveted timepieces in the world. A pre-War (II) tank watch would be a very grand watch to own indeed. There is even a book dedicated to tracing the evolution of Mr. Cartier’s watch.

(Available through Amazon.com)

Whether you opt for the original design (Louis Cartier Tank from Gemnation), or the Tank Americaine, or any of the tank line really, this is the watch to wear with your dinner jacket.

(Passport Holder from Amazon.com)

We just got our passports; what a gift. A great way to feel more sophisticated, ready to travel at the drop of a hat, and in our cases, more American. Travel does that to us. As wonderful as we find visiting other countries, we return that much more in awe of our system of government.

A case in point. Just after graduating from College, I took a trip to visit a friend who was with the Peace Corps in West Africa. Three weeks in the bush, while no picnic, was something that most tourists don’t get to do and which I will never forget.

A couple of moments do stand out, I “shook the hand of the mango man as he met me at the border…” for a true Jimmy Buffet moment. Then there was the incident at the Côte d’Ivoire airport (this was back in the late 1980’s) and the kindness of a Canadian gentleman who got me onto an Air France plane when more diplomatic means failed. Oh, and the time our bush taxi was stopped at a checkpoint in-country and the boy with a machine gun demanded my passport. I feigned to not understand French, took off my sunglasses, held my passport through the window and didn’t let go. We were eventually waved through when an older guard misidentified me as a diplomat.

You see, my passport was wrapped in a leather passport cover like the one above.

Highly recommended and very elegant if traveling this summer.