Laguiole, ancient + modern

Two, three really, pocket knives stand out in my mind as iconic marques. The relatively obscure Nontron, the well known Opinel and Laguiole. All made in France in the same region for hundreds of years. While Opinel has made minor updates to its classic style and Nontron can come across as almost archaic. Laguiole on the other hand is operating in both contemporary and historic eras. It’s worth noting that Laguiole is neither brand nor logo but a historic style that is manufactured all over the world. Some companies like Forge de Laguiole actually do make their knives in southern France and have done so for a very long time. The one pictured above is from Baladeo. They’ve been around since 1995 and offer classic designs at very affordable prices.
The first pocket knives I remember owning were an Opinel No 5 and a basic Laguiole folder. I liked them from the start and still own a couple. Their relatively ancient design remains appealing but the lack of a pocket clip can be a hassle with modern carry habits and updated and exotic materials are fun.
This Baladeo Laguiole is a good example of exploring new territory while not leaving behind the style the knife is known for. It’s just a hair too big to call it unintimidating but it also doesn’t look tactical. I haven’t put it through it’s paces yet but the metal seems good and G10 scales are typically durable. At under $20 its worth using for every day carry considering it’s replaceable and the pocket clip makes it far more useable than more traditional models. Sometimes updating is good. Especially in terms of design thinking, where we don’t just evolve aesthetics, but solve problems. Mess with classics all you want just don’t forget their history.


Currently easy to find on both Amazon and eBay.

Modern gentleman?

Is that still a thing? I, and many others, think it is. Long gone are the days of being born a gentlemen and society at large has moved away from general ideals of gentlemanly behavior but for those who aspire to it and those raised to believe it's the way a man should conduct himself, the concept of the modern gentlemen is alive and well.

The next likely question is, what's at the core of being a gentleman? Is it being polite? Having good manners? An education, classical or didactic? Is it dressing a certain way? The answer, yes, sort of. I'll contend the most important gentlemanly quality is compassion, being concerned with the well being of those around you is the barest essence of gentlemanly behavior. That might be stepping up to help those in need or simply being sensitive to others social and political views and making an effort to not offend them. It's simple, be aware and give a damn about others. As early as the era of the Roman Empire we have known, manners make the man. 

In terms of manners it's an easy jump to consider that following a set of agreed upon rules of behavior could short cut figuring out how to look after and not offend one another. There are numerous books on this topic, and endless online articles and videos. While many people contend manners are no longer relevant, not many have anything bad to say about a mannerly person. One of my favorite sites on the topic is Sven Rafael Schneider's Gentlemans Gazette. A wealth of great videos and articles. The Art of Manliness has a good take on the whole thing too. This piece on talking about religion, politics and money is worth a read. Art of Manliness

It goes without saying, don't push your ideas on other people, but more importantly if you are striving to be a gentleman, you won't be pushing your political, social or other views on unwelcoming ears anyway.

While clothes certainly don't make the man, it's generally accepted that a gentleman tends to project a clean cut, put together image. Well dressed has a lot of meanings to a lot of people. Why it might be important is signaling behavior. Wearing clean clothes in good repair is a great start and adding things like shirts with collars, shoes that can be shined and learning to use and iron tell others that we care about our appearance and that they can expect a certain type of behavior from us. This makes our lives easier and helps immediately put those around us at ease. Your reputation may or may not precede you but your public image certainly will. Tell the world what they can expect from you and then back it up with gentlemanly behavior.

If the clothes don't make the man, money certainly doesn't either. You also can't buy class and whereas it's easier to project the image of a gentleman of class, it isn't the only way to do it. My grandfather managed to look the part in jeans, well cared for Oxford shoes and basic button downs paired with a decent watch. On work days it was a classic Timex that couldn't have cost more than $50. Anyone can pull that off even on a modest budget. If you aren't too proud to wear second hand you can up your game even more. It's possible to buy entire suits at thrift and vintage shops for the full retail cost of a new shirt.

We'll cover these and other topics in future articles along with things like reliable brands, investment worthy items and taking care of what you have.

Barefoot Gentry

In 2010 I coined the term "barefoot gentry" to describe something akin to Paul Fussel's "class x" but lacking the pretense that upper middle or upper class are necessarily something to aspire to, certainly something that due to money can only be achieved as fakery, pretense and social satire. If you aren't wealthy, you aren't and further why would you want to convince the world you are? That's just shallow. Further still, if you have money of any consequence, why would you want anyone to know? That's just asking for trouble to go with your weak ego seeking external validation.
Barefoot gentry is term for a cultural subset, not read as counter culture but more a quiet escape. Mainstream culture is useful, it can even be hacked. That just sounds fun right? Culture hacker should be a job title and it will at be some point. Barefoot conotates being too broke or too annoyed by the whole thing to wear shoes. What it means when paired with gentry is that a lack of shoes doesn't preclude a lack of class, sophistication or education.
I like a pair of hand made Italian shoes as much as the next guy but why I do or don't wear them is none of anyone's business but my own and if someone wants to judge my worth based on my shoes they can take a long walk on a short pier. This also comes back to the idea that there's more than one way to skin a cat or acquire a pair of shoes. The only thing worse than someone flaunting wealth is someone without it overtly pretending they do.
While working for a .com that shall remain nameless I had a boss that was arguably well heeled. One of the funniest things he did was insist the entire staff go barefoot any time corporate types, "suits", were in our space unless we were doing something too dangerous for bare feet. He wanted to send a message, "this isn't about the money."
The Barefoot Gentry concept is focused on making choices and living well on any budget by being clever and learning how to do while cultivating the enjoyment of things that can be had on any budget if you spend your money right or simply figure out how to work the system we call society.
Just because you don't have $100 to eat out doesn't mean you can't eat well. Which is better, a $50 garage sale bike that was top of the line 40 years ago or a $600 bike new from the bike shop and does it matter if they both work? Which is classier, a used Volvo 240 or a new Honda Civic? Who knows? It's up to you to decide. Maybe what you care about is luxury so you buy an older luxury car, a picnic basket and a bottle of decent wine. Maybe you just want reliability. Or maybe you don't care what you drive as long as you've got enough cash for museum memberships and symphony tickets.
It's about smart, value laden choices that get you what you want out of life when just spending money isn't your thing and maybe isn't an option.