Wear What When

Field of American Dreams

Blackbird celebrates in-country style with a new Ballard pop-up shop

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Nov 02, 2009 at 07:00AM3 Comments

Slideshow: The new Field House in Ballard

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Slideshow: The new Field House in Ballard

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Think of it as an extension of Blackbird and Brigitta — and the Sunday farmers market

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Mens heritage brands, some local, are given new, super stylish life

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Not all brands are American; some, like Australia’s Karen Walker (check the camel-colored pea coats) in the womens collection, just feel homegrown.

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The selection of vintage plaid, woolen, and denim shirts can be seen as unisex

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For men, there are Red Wing boots (many a muck-shucking farm hand has no idea how fashionable he is right about now…) as well as Alden loafers and ankle boots, and I love that shoe care kits are offered, too. Along with an appreciation for these brands — and our hard earned dollars — comes an appreciation and respect for taking good care of what we have.

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I need to go back for this lavender chambray pocket square …

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Get inside this Navajo-inspired 80s revamp Ralph Lauren jacket

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Field House isn’t just about fashion, it’s about housewares, necessities, and niceties for homesteaders; no wonder older folks from the nearby retirement homes like the shop as much as the hipsters do

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I bought a couple of these soaps from Port Townsend – the “woods of Washington” bar will make it into someone’s holiday gift

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Has Stanley always made a flask? They do now. Kinda genius.

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Caramel sauce, old-time candies, gorgeous candles … You do sort of expect Nellie Olsen to pop up from behind the counter.

Almost a year to the day after the New York Times ran this piece about finding sartorial bliss while shopping heritage brands and the hardware store, the team behind Blackbird continues its Ballard domination by opening Field House, where the country store (nuts, bolts, provisions) meets Americana style (mens, womens, and home).

“This store has all the Americana, where Blackbird and Brigitta have the Euro-cana, and Japan-acana,” quipped the shopkeep on duty when I visited on Friday. Field House also has the Seattle-acana: Great thermoses and flasks by the locally based Stanley company (they make so much sense and are so perfectly positioned for a comeback — and holiday gift-giving); quietly chic and extremely sensible jackets, shirts, bags, and accessories by SoDo’s CC Filson Co.; and, along with local and organic produce, soaps, and food stuffs, Pendleton shirts and blankets.

(I only wish the Pendleton collection at Field House included pieces from the Opening Ceremony tie-in - alas, not yet.)

For now, the shop, which is directly behind Blackbird on Leary Way next to the chai joint, is a pop-up, meaning it’s temporary … but something tells me the homegrown specialties are here to stay. With American soul records played on a turntable, rough concrete floors, and rustic skylights, there’s an authenticity at Field House, and its team was smart enough to open at a time when there is an authentic need for the goods (rain boots, wool shirts) carried here.

‘Course, Field House doesn’t just carry Northwest Brands. Even back when great-great-grandfather the stylingest dude at the hitching post, goods were shipped and received from around the territories. I was psyched to see, for example, an old nearly rusty iron bedframe laid out with Ralph Lauren gear; I absolutely love the denim-and-dust-bowl look of the spring 2010 line and hope we’ll see more of it at Field House come February or so.

See also: Woolrich. That iconic black-and-red buffalo plaid has been hanging on the backs of the best dressed for some time now, and recently, the heirloom Pennsylvania brand hired Daiki Suzuki, founder of Engineered Garments, to recut their barn coats and really take the look from heritage to haute couture.

It’s great to see the zeitgeist return to quality, well-made American brands, and it’s great Blackbird, long an arbiter of men’s style in this town, leading the way.

Check the slideshow here, start positioning guys like Carhartt-clad Ruben Toledo as your new style go-to’s, bookmark the PacNW blog Archival Clothing for further inspiration, and then get to Field House to put it all into action.

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What else is new? River Song in Madison Valley.

Tags: Heritage Brands, Ballard, Blackbird