The Class Room is a men's shop located in Houston, TX. For a complete listing of the brands we carry, store hours, and other inquiries, visit our website at www.theclassroomshop.com.
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Last Friday we hosted RAW at the shop. While we could have just had a denim sale, we thought it would be more fun if we made a party of it. Our friends Charlie and Tan are a couple of the sushi chefs that work at Uchi, probably the most hyped and popular Japanese restaurant in Houston (and deservedly so). They were kind enough to come by on their day off and prepare some amazing rolls for us, which were served off Tequila Rose, our model for the night. It wouldn’t be a TCR event without a few libations, and thanks to Gekkeikan we had 3 different types of sake to sample from.
Truth be told, I was pleasantly (and almost overwhelmingly) surprised at how big the turnout was. We got to meet a lot of new faces, and we can’t thank everyone enough for coming out. We’re looking forward to seeing everyone again soon!
Tomorrow at the shop from 7:30 - 9:30 pm we’re hosting RAW, a unique raw denim sale and naked sushi event. Save 15% off when you buy one pair of raw denim, 20% off when you buy two pairs, and 35% off when you buy 3 or more pairs. We’ll also have complimentary sushi prepared on site by some of the best sushi chefs in the city, served on a [mostly] naked model. Complimentary sake will be available tomorrow as well.
#RAW is an exclusive denim sale and naked sushi event we’ll be hosting next Friday May 17 from 7:30-9:30. Save 15% when you buy any pair of raw denim, 20% when you buy 2 pairs, and 35% when you buy 3 more pairs. Enjoy complimentary sushi and cocktails during the event. Looking forward to seeing everyone there! #TCR #LifeStyleClass
Localeur is a unique company / travel site whose goal is to help people experience a city like a local (rather than a tourist). Think about when you travel to a different city. The best trips are almost always those where you have a friend that lives there and can show you around to all the coolest spots. Well, that’s the premise behind Localeur. Contributors/writers for the site are a carefully curated community of local insiders “with the type of experience, familiarity, insight, and knowledge of local places to make sound suggestions to travelers on places to go.” Basically what that means is that you’re getting recommendations from people who are really up on things, rather than reviews from other sites that at times can seem quite arbitrary.
This past weekend, the Filipino Students Association at UT Austin celebrated their 25th anniversary. To commemorate the occasion, they held a series of events all weekend, culminating in the Student/Alumni Networking Brunch at Top Golf Austin. I was invited to be the keynote speaker at the event, something I was both surprised and honored to do. For full disclosure, I was actually #2 on their list, but since Paul Qui of Bravo’s Top Chef and Uchiko fame had scheduling conflicts, I gladly accepted the invitation.
The theme of Sunday’s networking event was “You Are Not Your Major”, a topic very near and dear to my heart. In college I studied Management Information Systems (i.e. business IT), and upon graduating from UT in 2007 I got a job in Houston doing IT consulting and audit work. My corporate job wasn’t all that bad. I got paid relatively well for doing relatively easy work, had a pretty good benefits package, and I had time on the weekends to do almost anything I wanted. Still, by 2011 I realized the corporate world, aka “The Matrix” as I like to call it, wasn’t enough for me. In February 2011 I called a meeting with Alan, Paolo, Justin, and Asif, and 6 months later The Class Room was open for business.
The point I wanted to make to the students in attendance on Sunday was to encourage them to really find out what they’re passionate about. That’s one of the hardest things to discover, and few people in their late teens and early twenties have enough life experience to make that decision. Still, I urged them to continually think about it, and never stop asking the question until they discover the answer. Once you figure out what you’re passionate about, you have to go after it. Regardless of what your major was in college, or relevant experience you have in a particular field, if you have the drive, ambition, and desire you can make your passion your profession.
This was the 2 cents I wanted to leave with the students in Austin, and it’s the hope I have for almost everyone I come across. In America we spend more time at work than anywhere else, so we might as well enjoy what we’re doing.
A conversation I’ve had with many different circles is the lack of local, “underground” culture in Houston as it relates to music and art. There are a lot of talented cats out there not getting the “buzz” they deserve. In my opinion, a big reason for this is that the masses in Houston don’t recognize actual talent when they see it, and therefore audiences don’t physically come out to attend enough small events and performances to build up a culture that encourages local growth. Everybody says it, but I might be the first to put it out on the internet: the majority of Houston just buys into hype, and they don’t come out to things unless someone/something is already “on”.
Right now Macy’s is sponsoring the iHeartRadio Rising Star talent search. Houstonian singer/songwriter Ira Perez is one of the nominees, and if you take a second to listen to her track “U Say” embedded above (produced by the Problem Solvers), it’s easy to see she’s actually talented. Very talented.
If you like what you hear, you can check out more of her songs on her Rising Star profile page. More importantly, you can vote for her to win a chance to perform during the iHeartRadio Music Festival at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Each voter can vote up to 25 times a day, and trust I’ll be among those voting for her 25 times each day.
The thing about style is that you have to care enough to try, but you should appear as if you’re not trying at all. The purest form of style has more to do with behavior than dress. ”Style is the difference, a way of doing, a way of being done, ” - Charles Bukowski (h/t Y_H_B_T_I).
The most stylish cats just are who they are. The Sinatras, the Davises, the McQueens and the Newmans. Their inherent style permeated every aspect of their lives, and that in turn reflected in the way they dressed. Those with the sickest style are born with it, but that doesn’t mean personal style can’t be learned and developed.
We say it time and time again here at TCR, that style, as it relates to dress, should be a reflection (or a projection) of who you are as an individual (or how you want to be perceived). When you are true to yourself, then being “stylish” takes less effort because you’re just being who are are, and not trying to be anything you’re not. At the same time, you have to care enough to try. You have to care enough about how things fit your body and to get things tailored when necessary. You have to care about your grooming and get a haircut and shave when necessary. And you have to care about your character, your demeanor, and how you carry yourself.
Developing your personal style is a process. A process in which you’ll have to try new things from time to time, and in that process you will undoubtedly try too hard. But that’s ok, because that’s how we all learn. Eventually you learn to strip away what doesn’t work for you, and you’re left with your true, personal style.
One final note. Being “stylish” and finding your “true personal style” doesn’t necessarily mean stuntin’ on cats while wearing mad layers and accessories, or killing the game wearing leather kilts and what not. I mean if that works for you, do what you do young playa’. But often times the devil lies in the details, and subtlety can often have the most profound effect.
Let me just say that I have a lot more respect for people who model for a living because being comfortable in front of a camera isn’t easy by any means. Having said that allow me to introduce you to a first installment of series of photos entitled TCR’s Picks where we highlight some of the products we are excited about from season to season and that you may have seen in person, but aren’t exactly sure how to put together.
Season after season, Our Legacy continues to come correct. One of my favorite pieces from the Spring/Summer 2013 Collection is the First Shirt Amazonas. Made in Portugal from an Indian-cotton linen blend, this shirt may arguably be your go to shirt for the summer since it’s lightweight and breathable but more importantly one of the better print shirts I’ve seen in a while. With prints still in heavy rotation this season The Amazon Print will help you make a bold statement.
If you’re going to go with a bold top, I highly suggest that the rest of your outfit is subtle so you don’t take away from the print. I elected to go with Rogue Territory Black Stantons. Before you start harping on me for wearing black in the hotter seasons hear me out. At this time you’re probably still trying to break in your raw denim so you can get the honeycombs you want by Fall…am I right? Well to add some variety to your wardrobe why not opt for some Black Stantons. Made in Los Angeles from Japanese Denim from Kaihara Mills, the Black Stantons are slightly lighter than your typical raw denim at 13oz. and are sanforized which if you don’t already know, you can google it here. The pants are mid-rise which I really like because I typically don’t wear pants below my waist (different strokes for different folks) but in my opinion, mid-rise is a happy median. Since summer is literally around the corner for us I also opted for a subtle shoe in the Nike Free Woven NRG. I’ve been wearing these shoes for a while now and love them. The 3.0 sole is definitely comfortable and the woven upper is very breathable especially since I typically don’t wear socks in the summer. An added bonus to the shoes is it brings some sort of texture to the outfit whereas it doesn’t look like you are wearing a black onesie from the waist down and gives the outfit and eyes some contrast in texture from the pants to the shoes.
Be on the lookout for more of our picks for the season and if you have an questions feel free to email us info@theclassroomshop.com or stop on by at our physical location located across the street from La Madeleine at 2534 Amherst St. Houston, TX 77005.
A gang of new product is now available at #TheClassRoom. Shop the latest from @ourlegacy, @norseprojects, @gantrugger, @markmcnasty #MarkMcNairy, @bridgeandburn, and more. #mensfashion #Houston #style
![Tomorrow at the shop from 7:30 - 9:30 pm we’re hosting RAW, a unique raw denim sale and naked sushi event. Save 15% off when you buy one pair of raw denim, 20% off when you buy two pairs, and 35% off when you buy 3 or more pairs. We’ll also have complimentary sushi prepared on site by some of the best sushi chefs in the city, served on a [mostly] naked model. Complimentary sake will be available tomorrow as well.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/5045536034873000c1c0d405e736aa71/tumblr_mmwremcg8C1r3ccrro1_1280.jpg)
