In a little over a week this project turns one.
Now, I’m all for celebrating milestones. I make a mental note every October that another New York year has passed, I think it’s important to do something festive for anniversaries, and I’m a little suspicious of people who are vehemently anti-birthdays. But when it comes to marking my endeavors with anything that could be construed as self-congratulatory… ehhhhhhh. Self-reflection to the point of crucible-like introspection I can do, but tallying up the wins isn’t my style. As with many things in my life these days though, I’m trying to get better. Better about acknowledging accomplishments and giving credit where it’s due.
So as Mensweird hits its first birthday, I want to thank every person who has subscribed, followed, read, commented, restacked, reached out, DM’d, or shared a supportive word. As I talked about in the intro post, it took a while to get this project off the ground, not the least because I doubted whether there was an audience for it. Well, I’m happy to be wrong. I’ve been absolutely overwhelmed by the success of Mensweird and every sign-up means a lot to me (seriously, I get excited to see every new name that comes through). We’ve built something together that menswear clearly lacked, and I promise to continue pushing in 2025 to make this your favorite newsletter. So what can you expect?
More. I get that my current publishing schedule is, to put it generously, unpredictable. But I’m not here to peddle excuses, instead, let me just say that I genuinely love writing this and endeavor to do it with greater frequency this year.
Merch. Would you wear a Mensweird hat? I hope so, because I’m going to make them. Probably black with white lettering first but I’ll take any color suggestions/requests.
Different platforms. I just recorded my first podcast appearance with the guys behind Salt Lake City’s Acre and I’m in the process of lining up a few book events for “The Handbook Of Men’s Style” on both coasts. Interested in hosting an event or having me on your podcast? Reach out!
A new book. Ok that’s a bit of lie, as it won’t be out until 2026, but I am working on a new book. I can’t say much at this stage other than, if you’re a fan of vintage watches you’re going to really, really like this. (To be clear, this book is in no way affiliated with Mensweird other than being written by me. “Mensweird: The Book” will have to wait.)
Finally, there are a few people who have been instrumental in the life of Mensweird I want to shout out.
Oscar Saylor. I gave Oscar that mood board you see above and he gave me back the Mensweird wordmark. Notice I didn’t say “logo,” and the only reason I know the difference is because of Oscar. He’s a design savant who’s sharply funny and the owner of one of the biggest hearts around. He’s also worse at taking compliments than I am so he’s going to roast me for this, but he deserves it.
. You know Michael Williams; he might even be the guy who got you into menswear. I’ve known Michael for a long time—in fact, I recently came across an interview I did with him in 2009—but it’s not like we’re BFFs. Despite that fact, he was an early supporter of Mensweird and his recommendation is the reason why a lot of you are here now reading this. I deeply appreciate that.
Nicole Anderson. My wife gave me the necessary push (shove?) to launch this thing, endures my participation in numerous and concurrent menswear tinged conversations, and greets my latest purchases with bonhomie—if not bemusement. I’m eternally grateful to have her, and now it’s my turn to tell her, “Just launch the damn thing!”
Alright, time to get going on the next post, which will finally tackle one of the original ideas I had when conceiving this. I hope you enjoy it. If there’s ever anything you want to see Mensweird cover, drop a comment or hit me up at mensweird@substack.com
Thanks for reading.
— MBD
Looking forward to reading more in year 2! The ALD article brought me here and I’m all for it.