With summer in full force, you may be looking for lightweight suits. Aside from the Wolfen white suit, your choices are mostly going to depend on your knowledge of the fabrics involved.

In that vein, allow us to repeat a bit of wisdom from A Suitable Wardrobe. Instead of putting stock in the weight of a fabric, you might do better paying attention to the weave. Woven properly, even heavy cloth can be allowed to breathe. Summer fabrics are likely to have “fresco” in the name, or something similarly breezy-sounding, and they can be made heavy enough to avoid too much flapping.

Not to mention the dreaded crumple.

The lightweight shirt can be tough to pull off, especially since they tend to wrinkle up so fast as to be almost unusable after the first season, but if you happen to find yourself on the beach at some point in the next few months, you’ll know a well-placed bit of linen is priceless.

Or, in this case, scrim. This shirt from San Francisco’s Nice Collective (via acquire) should fit the bill pretty well, provided you do the right thing and let the shirttails hang loose. It’s so casual, they don’t even bother to hem the bottom, so you’ll have a line of loosely cut fabric hanging over your belt…or maybe your bathing suit.

The tie is a pretty monolithic item as menswear choices go, so it’s nice to have a few more oddball choices on-hand, in case you feel an unconventional streak coming on.

Drake’s is generally a pretty staid British brand, but summer comes to London too, so they’ve got a few repp stripes handy just in case. And, if you find yourself near Portland, you won’t even have to cross an ocean to get one.

Gingham is already a summer staple, but there are always a few new ways to do it. This Black Dollars Double Check is one of the best. The outer check is the kind of madras-flavored pattern that makes summer clothes worthwhile, but the gingham lining is the real treasure here. Look close and you’ll see it through the larger check, creating the kind of double-patterning Tom Ford is so into these days.

See detail shots after the jump»

The signed cast is one of our more iconic memories of childhood, so it’s surprising no one tapped into it before.

This helmet extends Les Ateliers Ruby’s hitting streak, thanks to a little well-timed design help from Maison Martin Margiela. Splitting the difference between street art and sixth-grade summer camp, we’re guessing it’s got something for just about everyone on a motorscooter.

For some reason, A.P.C. seems to be on vacation.

Their latest summer collection is practically a handbook for the young and tweedy Ibiza crowd. It’s quite a thing to nail down a particular age and moment—Ralph Lauren started out in much the same way—but it’s interesting that this is where the francophone label has found themselves.

The fall lines always seemed more reserved than their stateside counterparts. These were clothes for schoolkids, but mostly the ones in the library, which makes this beachbound hedonistic turn more than a little surprising.

Then again, that’s what summer vacation is for.

See the rest of the line»

Summer lumberjacking can be a tough move, but if you feel like hanging on to the woodsy vibe a little bit longer, this might come in handy.

The main advance from this new Penfield item is the stealth pockets in front, but the play between the two panels is enough to give this staying power in our book. It comes in blue and white in case the purple is a bit too much for you…but fortune favors the brave.

We’re of the opinion that tweed can never be in too many places. So it’s nice to see it expanding into the summer shorts.

These slim shorts from London’s Blaak Homme might be a bit warmer than the usual seersucker, but it’s worth it to introduce a bit more texture into your weekend suitcase. We wouldn’t take them on the beach, but it’s hard to do better for the rest of your summer outings.

As for the cargo pockets…tweed heals all wounds.

There are a lot of different opinions as to the perfect summer shirt—a bleach-white t-shirt is perennially strong candidate, for instance—but for our money, it’s hard to do better than gingham.

This gauzy Tim Hamilton version is just about perfect. The large-check pattern keeps things from getting too businesslike, and enhances the general picnic mood. We’d check to make sure you won’t clash with your picnic blanket…but otherwise we’d say you’re pretty much set for the next four months.

We could stand a short-sleeved version too, but you can always roll them up in an emergency.

Whether it’s a wedding or a beach trip, odds are you’ll be hitting the road at some point in the next few weeks, with a well-chosen two-day supply of clothing securely in tow. And while your bag options are vast and many-splendored, we’d like to throw this waxed cotton duffel from Jack Spade into the ring.

It’s smaller than the “duffel” tag might lead you to believe—just over two feet from end to end—and the outside is an unbroken swath of the waxed cotton that you may have seen on a jacket or two. There are pockets on the inside for your razor and toothbrush, but the outside is as simple as a beach weekend would suggest.

Adding a touch of formality in warmer weather can be a tough thing, but we suggest the following uniform for your next buttoned-up barbecue: shirtsleeves and an invaluable item called the summer tie.

This particular item just landed on 3sixteen’s online shop (via HypeBeast), but you can find similar items at any number of preppy-minded shops. A bit of citrus-tinged gingham against a white shirt can work wonders—especially if there’s a bit of sunshine in the mix. Just try to keep it away from the barbecue sauce.

Summer’s days may be numbered, but we finally came across the perfect getaway bag.

This Porter carry-all blends linen, rayon and cotton for a material that’s not that far from your favorite August button-up, then stitches it all up into the kind of weekender bag that’s just begging to be thrown into the back seat of a beach-bound car. It’s not quite as indestructible as their canvas offerings…but you’ll only need it to last through Labor Day.

It would appear the neckerchief is once again at the throats of the stylish populace. Don’t say you weren’t warned…

The Cut just shined a spotlight on a new line of western cravats out of Brooklyn, and took the opportunity to call “trend.” Of course, Mr. Ford was on this particular tip long before Williamsburg caught on, and Robert Downey Jr.’s Zodiac look included a well-placed foulard before just about anyone. But we’re crying foul on this particular retro kick for one simple reason: the weather.

The Brooklyn-based gentlemen of leisure are using the neckerchief to protect their neck and collar from summertime sweat. It’s rooted in function and comfort, making it a much better idea than most trendspotters realize. The problem is, it’s August, and while it’s still gross out there, nobody’s going to be gearing up for a neckerchief purchase until next spring. There’ll be a lot of options waiting for them after the thaw, but it’s a little early to start making predictions.

Via NotCot

Some days you just want to load up the station wagon with watermelons and head for the coast…

They grow up so fast…

We got a peek at the latest Shipley & Halmos gear this week, and it sees the two-year-old line growing into a playfully poppy style. (The pics here don’t really do some of the fabrics, and the easy feel of the collection justice.) There’s still the same understated cosmopolitan vibe, but now the cardigans are a little longer, the colors are a little more daring, and the whole collection is a whole lot more wearable and assured. It might be the best stuff we’ve seen from them since their debut collection. Look for it to hit stores in January…you might even see us in line.

See more pics after the jump»

Call it a case of bad timing.

This Our Legacy shirt is one our favorite items to come out of the recent plaid revival…but we’d wait at least a couple months before you put it on.

It’s not quite in espadrille territory—i.e. you won’t catch pneumonia—but as long as the sun’s touching down before 5pm, anything this colorful is apt to be downright depressing. Of course, if your summer wardrobe needs a refresh, we still heartily endorse picking one up, but you’ll have to delay gratification for quite a while.

On the other hand, we bet it looks great in sunlight.

This pic (see it larger here) comes from Burkman Brothers’ latest line of lightweight gear, and while the shirt’s nothing new from last year, we must admit we’re intrigued by the choice of accessories.

We’re not sure how well the beads would play outside of Mardi Gras, but the hat might be the most summery item we’ve seen all winter. Now if we just knew where to find one…

Today saw a lot of Engineered Garments gear arriving in stores, but our favorite so far is this linen boater. The madras strap gives it some sartorial heft, but mostly the draw is light, summery fabric and a design that went out of style with the telegram. Happy boating.

As part of our ongoing coverage of the neckerchief beat, we were happy to see this pic pop up in a lookbook for the Morocco-inspired Milok label.

We’re not wild about the ensemble in general—for starters, we’d prefer some more discreet trousers—but it nails the gentleman-in-the-desert look we’re hoping to maintain throughout the summer. By the time July comes around, this may be the only kind of neckwear that isn’t stifling, and wearing pulled down the middle like this is a pretty good way to pull it off. We’re not sure where we’ll pick one up—Milok isn’t in stores just yet—but we’ve got some time to figure it out.

In not too long, it’s going to be time to mothball our winter stompers and break out something a little lighter. If you couldn’t tell, we’re literally counting the days—and naturally, we’re not the only ones.

In anticipation, Converse has let slip a few hundred pairs of their latest Chuck Taylor update, made with the grand discovery of 2009, chambray. As a trend item, it’s a little late, but it makes up for it by being a genuinely good idea.

Chambray breathes a lot better than the treated canvas you’ll find on the standard Chuck Taylor, so this should be a more summery version of a classic summer shoe. (We’d even recommend going sockless, but each to his own.) Odds are it’ll also wear out faster than the average Chuck—if that’s even possible—but if you’re careful with it, it should see you through at least a couple summers.

The summer tie is one of our favorite items in the seasonal style continuum, and Gitman Vintage is looking more and more like the best place to get one. These just arrived at Blackbird for $68 a pop, and while they’re a little skinnier than our normal preference, but when it’s large-check cotton, we’ll make an exception.

As part of our slow, creeping transition to the sunny part of the year, it’s nice to have a pair of sunglasses handy—especially if they paint the world in more summery colors. These Wolfgang shades from Danish framery Han caught our eye for the graded shading, but also the pleasant yellow haze they put over just about everything. If you ever wanted to live in an Eagles song, this is a pretty good first step.