Ask Raymond Chu: I Can't Wait For Fall So I Can Really Start Dressing
Insider tips from Filmmaker, Raymond Chu on how to make the most of getting dressed this fall.
Words, Marcus V Richardson
Photography, Daniel D’Ottavio
With the freedom to play with layers and textures, there comes a comfortability and confidence in what we wear to go about our daily lives.
“I can’t wait for Fall so I can really start dressing”; we’ve heard it from the mouths of fashion connoisseurs, to stay-at-home dads alike - so much so that we’ve decided to create a series out of it. In this, we will explore men’s style in more detail as we ask friends of BOND OFFICIAL for their authoritative enlightenment on the phrase.
For the second installment, we talked to filmmaker, Ray Chu. Read below for his insider tips on how to make the most of getting dressed this fall.
Raymond Chu,
30
On The Phrase “I Can’t Wait For Fall So I Can Really Start Dressing”:
“Well, I’m sure everyone has their own personal reasons, but on the most basic level, people like being able to layer and accessorize with sweaters, jackets, coats, and scarves again after months of trying to beat the heat. The crisp air can be refreshing after the unforgivingly humid New York summer.”
On What He Looks Forward To When It Comes To Dressing For The Season:
“I look forward to being cozy. Fall for me means heartier materials, richer textures, and deeper colors. I used to enjoy doing more pattern-mixing when I was younger in autumnal colors, but I have decision fatigue these days. Sometimes making hundreds of creative decisions in a day on set or in the editing room, and after sweating through everything daily for months, I most look forward to living in my uniform of shawl collar sweaters, olive tweeds, and IBM man grey flannel suits day in and day out.”
On Signature Personal Style Choices:
“I basically live in this bespoke cashmere polo coat that I had made 11 years ago in Shanghai, based off Noel Coward and Babe Ruth’s polo coats. Designed originally for polo players in India and co-opted by European tennis players and then college campuses, the polo coat design is somewhere between a casual robe for players between rounds and a more formal overcoat, and I recommend wearing it in that utilitarian way more than the typical dressy way it is usually styled in.
I treat mine like my favorite jeans, and like to wear mine until it’s filthy and well patina’d, full of cigarette burns and dirty cuffs, and then finally getting it dry cleaned at the end of the season. After more than a decade, this coat is still just breaking in. Fur felt fedoras and wool newsboy caps are another essential, depending on whether it’s windy or rainy. Once you start wearing a real hat, you feel naked leaving the house without one.”