How to Wear a Plaid Shirt like the Beach Boys

Alexa Brazilian finds good vibrations in the relaxed So-Cal cool of plaid shirts

RECORD HIGH | The five members of the Beach Boys, all wearing Pendleton shirts, during a 1962 shoot for their debut album ‘Surfin’ Safari.’ Photo: Getty Images

By Alexa Brazilian
May 1, 2015 12:39 p.m. ET
1 COMMENTS

WATCHING THE TRAILER for “Love & Mercy,” a biopic about the Beach Boys’ frontman Brian Wilson out next month, has reinvigorated my appreciation for the band’s quintessential California style.

The film—which stars Paul Dano and John Cusack, respectively, as the young and old Wilson—recreates some of the group’s most memorable moments, including the cover shoot for their first album “Surfin’ Safari,” released in 1962. Photographed in Malibu’s Paradise Cove, the five band members are barefoot on the beach, with a striped surfboard and a yellow pickup truck, radiating relative innocence in matching versions of the après-surf uniform of the day: khakis and a Pendleton Woolen Mills plaid shirt.

The flannel button-up became an off-the-beach fashion statement for wave-riders (and wannabes) in California in the early ’60s. The look, said Pendleton president Mort Bishop III, was a nod to long boarders who kept warm in the Pacific by using Vaseline to coat the inside of a Pendleton flannel, then worn with board shorts, before the advent of wetsuits. (The shirts were so emblematic of surfer style that the Beach Boys originally went by the punny name “the Pendletones.”)

The 106-year-old American brand makes the original shirt; it was reissued in 2002. The actors wore it in “Love & Mercy,” and you can too. Made of wool, it offers cozy companionship on brisk summer nights. For those looking for an equally laid-back plaid minus the heft, brands including A.P.C., Club Monaco and Saturdays NYC deliver lighter versions. “Fifties surf style has always been an inspiration—the clean look of chinos, canvas shoes, their coiffed hair,” said Josh Rosen, co-founder of Saturdays NYC. “I can’t remember a season [when we haven’t designed] at least a few plaids.” The label’s take this season is a cleaner riff—a graphic windowpane motif. Surf style has also infiltrated the high-end. Saint Laurent, the French label whose creative director Hedi Slimane has a design studio in Los Angeles, offers a well-rendered white-and-sky-blue version.

No matter which you choose, plaids are a low-risk way to make a casual statement. “Unbuttoned and over a T-shirt or untucked with a pair of chinos or Levi’s 501s, a summer plaid gives your outfit some personality,” said John Brodie, editor in chief of men’s e-commerce site Mr Porter. “If guys aren’t careful, their summer weekend looks can become pretty uniform.” If you want to get into the Beach Boys’ groove with your ears as well as your torso, catch members of the band on tour now until October 3.

Ivan
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The article did show a photo of a few shirts for sale today, but I couldn't link the photo for some reason. Here's at least the caption:

From left: Crosby Oxford Plaid Button Down Shirt, $118, saturdaysnyc.com; Saint Laurent Checked Cotton-Blend Shirt, $790, mrporter.com; Beach Shack Cotton Twill Shirt, $70, pendleton-usa.com;

Here's also the URL for the article, though I don't think you can access it unless you're a subscriber, but maybe I'm wrong:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/how-to-wear-a-plaid-shirt-like-the-beach-boys-1430498347

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
The Madeira on Facebook
The Blair-Pongracic Band on Facebook
The Space Cossacks on Facebook
The Madeira Channel on YouTube

Does it include a vaseline jar?
"...The look was a nod to long boarders who kept warm in the Pacific by using Vaseline to coat the inside of a Pendleton flannel..."
Was that truly a thing? If so, I can't imagine anything more uncomfortable and annoying... Maybe leather....

Last edited: May 03, 2015 11:35:24

I'm a huge fan of these and Pendleton in general. There are a number of over-priced men's clothing stores around Georgia (in golf communities and college towns) and if you shop the clearance wrack you can get some pretty good deals on some really nice clothes. I also inherited a lot of cool shirts and jackets from my dad. They always look good and are warm (as often as we need that in the southeast...)

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I think the surfer's adopted the shirt first in the 50's since it was originally marketed as warm clothing for rugged outdoor sports like fishing, hunting, etc. But being that SoCal culture has a strong Latino influence the lines are blurred. Also Khakis and Vans which was a SoCal surfer look in the early 60's is also a Lowrider/Pachuco thing, interestingly enough.

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Thanks Ivan. Several tie-ins come flooding back. Paradise Cove is a childhood memory where a girl & I used to prowl for sea creatures among the rocks. My single working Mom really scored when she finally popped one year and I found a Gen-You-Wine Pendleton under the Christmas tree - the real deal, not the 90-95% wannabe's. Quality wool, tightly woven, is a thing of wonder & they were worth every penny.

Neat stuff.

Wes
SoCal ex-pat with a snow shovel

DISCLAIMER: The above is opinion/suggestion only & should not be used for mission planning/navigation, tweaking of instruments, beverage selection, or wardrobe choices.

Last edited: May 03, 2015 20:31:53

My first exposure to Pendeltons was among the very natty pachucos, who were called 'cholos' up Norte (San Bruno, San Mateo County). they would wear them with only the top button closed and their white t-shirt or wifebeater showing beneath. They also pomaded their hair very smooth and wore hair nets to keep it in place, a neatly-folded bandana on the brow or wrap-around shades, both obscuring their eyes from view. Their cholitas were something else too. They were drove 'bajitas' or 'caruchos' with 'hydrolies' that bounced the whole front end of the car.
They looked pretty bad-ass and acted mean but I never saw any fights among them. I thought they were cool - totally subcultural and very style-conscious, neat as a tack.

I fell in love with Pendeltons myself and still have a few of them. They aren't really pricey compared to any other shirt worth keeping for a long time.

Squink Out!

You forgot Pumas. The blue suede ones, ca. 1979. Stuff like that costs bank now. I got some red Vans with huge soles at Nordstrom Rack ca. 2000 for $20. Those were awesome shoes.

Squink Out!

Our Cholos NorteCalifornios were more old-school pachuco, almost zoot in their quest for elegance, a far cry from punk. Probably that what I liked about them - their conservative nostalgia. I think they listened to 60s R&B, romantic doo-wop.
Suicidal Tendencies adopted the Angeleno working-class gangbanger look and lifestyle. Most of those dudes had German surnames. What's up with that?

Squink Out!

Last edited: May 04, 2015 08:50:03