Home > Gwinnett > Rick Badie / My Opinion > Archives > 2008 > April > 19
Saturday, April 19, 2008
To him, style has function
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
He’s dressed to the nines.
Brown pinstriped suit and vest. Lace-up spectators. A dress shirt with cuff links and his initials embroidered on the sleeve.
Think Cotton Club, Bogart. Nifty and natty.
Brian Keith Howard recently ditched his day job to pursue his passion. He’s started a tailoring and consulting firm that specializes in 1930s-style fashion. “Bogey by Brielle,” it’s called. (Brielle is one of his daughter’s middle names.)
Howard developed a fashion sense at an early age. He fancied the styles of the 1930s, thanks in part to his grandfather.
“I raided my grandfather’s closet for braces, pleated pants and vests,” the Ohio native said.
He’d been a corporate sales trainer for 15 years, and he began dabbling in fashion a decade ago. A local haberdasher gave him his start by granting him access to his shop and fabric books.
Now, Howard, 48, works out of his home in Snellville. He meets clients wherever, armed with a tape measure and a suitcase full of fabrics. His suits start at $700. Eventually, he wants to roll out leisure/weekend attire.
Pearl Binder, the late artist/socialite, said, “Dress is the outward expression of a man’s state of mind, and it is his attire that tells the world what he thinks of himself.”
The quote serves as a segue into why I chose to write about Howard. His purpose stretches beyond wanting to build a high-end business. That’s a given. See, Brown also wants to educate our young people about the clothes they wear and the statements they make.
You’ve seen young men in the ridiculously saggy and baggy pants. Atlanta Councilman C.T. Martin has proposed a ban on clothes that expose undergarments. A citizens task force said a ban wasn’t the answer, though.
Discourse and discussion is.
Brown hopes to be a part of the discussion, maybe help lead it. He knows young people can’t afford his suits, but they can develop a reasonably priced, tasteful fashion sense.
He’s made a proposal to 100 Black Men of Atlanta Inc. to possibly incorporate such a theme into that organization’s mentoring program. And he plans to contact Atlanta City Hall to see whether there’s interest in tackling the issue in a way that uplifts, not denigrates and criminalizes.
“Regulating dress is not the way to go,” he said. “We need to lead by example and show them options. We need to ask them what does dressing like that mean to them? “If we never show people what good dress looks like, then we can’t complain about people wearing baggy and saggy pants. Educate them to a better way.”
For more information about Bogey by Brielle, call 678-362-4287. Brian Keith Howard’s designs will be featured in a celebrity fashion show and sports auction at 8 p.m. April 25 at the residence of Charles A. Mathis Jr. Proceeds benefit AIM, a mentoring program for underprivileged kids. Details: www.aimforyouth.com.
Rick Badie’s column appears on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Contact him at 770-263-3875 or e-mail: rbadie@ajc.com.
