Wiseguy Attitude

Edition: #05
Name: Nils & Jörg
Date: September 30


Instagram: ende_denim
Nils is wearing the Charger Army Green Wide Suspenders No. F3010

Instagram: joerg_blue_denim
Jörg is wearing the Crazy Horse Flex Schorem Barber Pole Wide Suspenders No. F2123

Tell us a little about yourselves please? What do you do in normal life?
Our pleasure. We do totally different things as you will find out:

Jörg: Professional hair stylist, barber and prior to that an education as an engraver.
Nils:
Math major and actuary, works as partner at a worldwide consulting company.

What made you start dressing as you do? How would you describe your style and how has your way of dressing evolved over the years?
Jörg:
I always liked denim and wore Levi’s 501 for example or Diesel or G-Star. Brands everyone knows. Over the years my taste changed to selvedge denim in higher quality. Heavier fabrics, traditionally woven, more costly but more sustainable and above all, more durable. Also, I turned away from industrial washings. I wanted to make the jeans my own personal ones.

Nils: I had a few trigger experiences that got me hooked to high quality selvedge denim. When I was about six years old, my parents gave me denim pants and a matching waistcoat from Levi’s France. It was my „French Jeans“, so pretty much „de Nîmes“. I adored it but eventually grew out. With nothing similar to find in stores, I did not wear any denim until I was an exchange student in Texas at the age of 16, when my host family gave me an all time classic for my birthday, a Levi’s 501 shrink to fit. So I went into the tub to get a snug fit and again, I really liked the fabric and denim not knowing what I was wearing. Back home in Germany once again I was on the hunt for that unfaded raw denim and the perfect fade the fabric gets from wearing it over time. It took a while until I came across brands like Edwin, N&F and Nudiejeans finally understanding what selvedge meant.

Both: Our style is rugged heritage we would say. Mainly denim and leather with chambray and cotton fabrics. Jörg: and caps. Nils (smiles): or hats. Both: style is also in the details. Our pieces are plain but there is always that little extra something which adds some spice.

Are there things you wore in the past which you’d never touch again? And which products do you consider to be your evergreens?
Jörg:
After starting out on selvedge denim I would never wear basic jeans nor would I ever use jeans with elastane or stretch.

Nils: After starting out on selvedge denim I would never wear basic jeans nor would I ever use jeans with elastane or stretch. Also, I completely turned away from industrial washes even when they are presumably well made. It never reaches the original if you ask me. 

Evergreens for Jörg: Leather jackets, corduroy pants in a more heritage kind of look from the 1930 to 1950s and the classic white grandfather or button down shirt with a nice tie.

Evergreens for Nils: That’s not easy to answer: I think evergreens are a nice pair of boots, a slim pair of jeans, classic unicolor shirt, waistcoat and bandana. A leather jacket or a type3 will go well together. Since I wear suits a lot, I also like heritage style suits with a bow tie or the classic pocket square reloaded. Sometimes I use bandanas as pocket squares to pimp a classic rough suit.

Do you have any style idols?
Jörg:
Yeah, Nils is (smiles), Johnny Depp and some other #denimals on Instagram.

Nils: Hmm, James Dean and Steve McQueen, Sean Connery or Daniel Craig as James Bond. Of course I also get inspirations from #denimals on Insta like @joerg_blue_denim, @crap_shooting_sinner and many more.

Are there products you consider wearing but have not made it to your wardrobe yet?
Jörg:
Yes, some men's suits I’d like to try from the heritage rack.

Nils: I would not say that there are pieces missing, on the other hand there are always brands I would like to check out to get to know what they do differently from the ones I know or regularly wear.

Wiseguy Original suspenders really change your look and add a very individual note to your style.

We spoke about how difficult I find it to dress ‘smart’, any suggestions how to go about this when starting from scratch? Can you suggest and show us some super basics which you definitely need in a wardrobe collection?
Jörg and Nils:
We think we both fully agree on this one.

Pants: One pair of beige Chinos, slightly tapered if you’re slim, wider in the leg if you are bigger and - what a surprise! - a pair of high quality selvedge blue jeans (Jörg prefers Iron Heart, Nils has a wide range of brands and prefers a slim or tapered leg).

Boots: A good pair of workbooks which can also be combined with the chinos or a suit. Can be Red Wing, Sandmanncraft, Chippewa. The model depends a bit on your feet, we always advise to get one which makes the relations feet to legs look best.

Shirt: Definitely a white plain one, a chambray blue and a denim shirt for colder days.

Waistcoat: We both believe a waistcoat is both casual and smart. We look for Captain Santors, Fit & Craft, Braves & Company, Indigofera, and Blue Blanket. Pike Brothers also have some nice styles.

Cool jacket: Jörg likes Denham, we both like Rogue territory waxed supply jackets, a good type3 jacket. If you want to add color, you can go for an olive green or beige. Of course, leather jackets (horsehide are the most amazing), from brands like Thedi Leathers, Schott, Fine Creek are all good.

Cap or Pork Pie hat: Stetson or Mayser Hats or Brixton or Diefenthal, large variety to choose from.

Suspenders: Wiseguy Original suspenders really change your look and add a very individual note to your style. Alternatively, a good and heavy leather belt. Here we would pick vegetable tanned, since the light color gets darker and changes to a worn brown no tanning could ever achieve.

You are very active on social media; what makes you tick and how do you create interesting content on such a regular basis?
Jörg:
The exchange with other people interested in fashion. I like to show like minded people how I combine stuff.

Nils: I would have never started if it wasn’t for a good friend at @cultizm who talked me into blogging since he and others in my friends circle told me my style was unique and worth showing to a wider audience. I was hesitant in the beginning but when my follower community grew bigger and bigger, I was convinced I could actually help people in creating their own style. I got inspiration from others and in addition I really like photography and aesthetics. So I like looking at pictures which inspire me. Also for my own ones which have significantly changed over time. I then discovered that social media can go social and introduced the #denimhangs in Germany after the concept had started out in the United States and in Indonesia and SouthEast Asia.

When did you start wearing suspenders? How do you make the combinations work?
Jörg:
I have been wearing suspenders for a long time, starting out with wider pants like chinos giving them a more 1930 - 1950s look.

Nils: I intentionally liked the suspenders to hang down from the side of your pants and I thought that was cool. Also, leather suspenders like bartenders wear them at times I thought (can really) be an eyecatcher to your wardrobe. So I got inflicted with the suspenders urge when I first met Mike in NYC and he introduced me to the Wiseguy collection. It had everything I thought made suspenders cool since I also do not like clips personally.

Nils, you and Mike met in NYC pre-pandemic during a denim show where Wiseguy were exhibiting. Mike loved your look and you made me us proud to purchase a pair of our Crazy Horse Suspenders in the early days of Wiseguy - it meant so much to us! What made you buy a pair when you normally get your products for free?
Nils:
Well, first off I feel honored when people actually recognize me and like what I am doing with my instagram account. I also became aware over the years how difficult it is to start your own brand and how much devotion goes in if you do it right! I met many small enterprises with amazing stories behind them. It is exactly those ideas and concepts which start out very small and local, with a profound devotion behind which make people do the extraordinary. If I can help them establish a footprint in everyday people's wardrobe and make them last, I am always happy to support them. This is why I bought a pair of suspenders from Mike. They are well made, look cool, and use good materials. And the design is mostly plain with a certain interesting twitch. Your lobster hooks were what caught my attention next to the slim leather braces to be honest because I thought that was clever as you can use your belt loops to get the suspenders working. Besides, I don’t get all products for free to be honest.

Can you both tell and show us which products/brands make a favorite look/set for you?
Jörg and Nils:
Whoa, that is a tough question. Lots of different brands come up with fantastic designs and styles, so we cannot easily say: get this and that and combine it with this and you will be all set. For Jörg e.g., the Iron Heart 777 cut in a heavier denim is the perfect pants for his body shape. 

Jörg: I wear them all the time in the IH777S21 model. Nils has a larger variety. 

Nils: True, I really like my bespoke @tulpdenim 18oz made to measure, but also some Tellason, 3sixteen, also the IH777S21 and the IH555S21 are fine denims. So are @benzakdenimdevelopers, ONI, Pure Blue Japan. And many more.

@blaumann_jeanshosen also fascinates us with pants, waistcoats and shirts, but also small brands as @companiondenim, @fitandcraft or @captainsaintors deserve attention. 

Jörg: It really is a question of what you like best and when you feel most comfortable. What we both can say is that less can be more. We try not to combine too many patterns, have colors picked up again with accessories and hardly use more than three colors.

Nils: We believe you can learn style. For some men it is all about reducing choices and colors. You can book us as a style guide and we spend a day shopping a basic wardrobe with you if you want.

Lobster hooks, clips or loops on your suspenders? Leather or elastic? Wide or slim or skinny? Any thoughts and suggestions on that?
That really depends on the outfit we’d both say. Nils does not like the clips, Jörg uses clips, too. Leather can look rougher and manly. Elastic can look finer, same with the width, a smaller width is more elegant than a wider version. Of course, a wider version with loops and buttons on the pants to put them on will catch the most attention as it is not often seen. Lobster hooks are certainly cool, though.

Anything else you’d like to share with us?
Jörg and Nils:
We both say you need to feel comfortable with what you wear and your clothes should neither be a uniform nor a costume. Clothes can bring out your inner self and if they do, people will always say you look good. As our friend Andreas @duewelsblog puts it: you always dress for others, never for yourself. Style is also respect for others who look at you. By dressing nicely, you show respect for others and they will always give that respect back to you.

Never let you down.