David Dresses Shanghai, One Dot at a Time

What happened to large polka dots? Beyond their brief tryst with men's clothing in the 60's, they now only exist in cutesy girls' dresses and vintage novelty ties.

It's unclear whether Brian Hyland's “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" (1960) or Walt Disney's choice to dress Mickey Mouse in a red polka dot dress (1961) ignitied the '60's comeback. What isn't unclear is that the sexyness of polka dots, displayed by the innovator to the left, is tragically overlooked. I'm determined to bring large polka dots back into men's fashion, even if I have to put them back there myself, dot-by-dot.

Some claim its been done before. Beau Brummell, named by Esquire Magazine as one of the Top 75 Best Dressed Men of All Time, is said to have donned polka dots in his re-invention of men's fashion. But, as the timeless mantra goes, "Pics or it didn't happen". I could not find a single picture of Mr. Brummell (pictured here) in said attire, so the fashion remains unclaimed.

If anywhere, Shanghai is the place where this under-rated fashion will resurface. If this 60-something pioneer of all clothing great, found at the marriage market, has anything to say about the matter, the time is ripe.

Shanghai is famous for its low-priced tayloring at its marriage markets, and I've been planning for months to have a Bespoke suit done in the style of Ralph Lauren.  But for the sake of establishing the polka dot as the new face of hot fashion, I'm hoping to strongarm the taylors at the Shanghai fashion market into making me a polka dot dress shirt, with a pattern inverse to the dress the girl above is wearing. That, pizzazz, and a black tie will take any man to great places not seen since 18th century Britain.