Boots make the Armitage
So, like everyone, I’m puzzling over the Ben Rayner pictures of Richard Armitage that appeared today. But not the sweater. Though Michelle really likes the sweater.
For me, it’s the boots.
Richard Armitage from the waist down as photographed by Ben Rayner, 2012. Source.
At first I thought I didn’t like them. The pose looks so fishermanny — like he’s just come in from sturgeon spearing or something. (Sorry, that’s a Wisconsin reference.) But I think this reaction is occurring because the trouser break is driving me crazy. The jeans are just a little too long, probably to accommodate his thighs, and they’re not boot cut. So, the way the jeans catch on the shoes make Armitage’s legs look not anywhere near as long as I know they are. Bagging around the knee results. Too much shoelace noise around the ankles doesn’t help.
But I think that if someone wrangled the shoelaces, the boots by themselves would be fine and up to the usual standard. They have that contrasting sole feature that’s supposed to be so fashion forward just now.
Admittedly, I have a thing for Richard Armitage’s boots — I’ve liked almost every shoe I’ve ever seen him wearing. But I hope he got to keep these.
(And I hope he’s long forgotten the sweater by the fireside in some ski lodge somewhere. Sorry, Michelle.)
[ETA: I am writing syllabuses for class tomorrow — but will update as soon as I can after that with the charity appeal results. Thanks for your patience.]
Me + Richard Armitage 
I’m just puzzled by the whole ensemble really, beyond words.
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yeah, not the best choices when taken together.
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Why do you think they’re boots and not shoes? I like them. I think the jeans are too long, as you noted, so there’s no place for the bottom of them to go but up. I hope he got to keep the shoes/boots also. I can see him really digging them.
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going for the rugged, outdoor look?
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Don’t apologise dear~ we all have different opinions and tastes.
I actually don’t quite like the shoes he’s wearing. Maybe if they didn’t have that lighter brown thing above the sole I would like them.
I’ll keep the sweater, it looks warm and comfy 🙂
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that’s what makes them stylish, i.e., that’s probably why they were in this shoot.
but it occurred to me that that’s why I think he looks like a fisherman here. The boots my dad and brother wear for ice fishing have that bright contrasting stripe around the sole.
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It could be~ like you mention those are ‘in’ this season.
Really? I didn’t know that~ 🙂 what does your father and brother catch in their fishing?
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they’re usually going after sturgeon. Which isn’t my favorite fish, but it’s not about the fish for them, it’s about the sociability / sport. Most times they don’t even get one. The fish we eat, they catch in the summer, lol 🙂
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I don’t think I’ve eaten that fish~
I’ve heard that fishing is very relaxing. Men are always so competitive about sports~ 🙂
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The entire outfit is rather questionable.
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I think we need to equip him with a “no” button.
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LOL! A “no” button? I like that. I can’t imagine him saying it on his own, really. He is so accommodating. Horrible clothes. What WERE they thinking? Boots are nice.
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In all honesty if we equipped him with a no button we’d have to send someone we trust to push it for him and then it would end up being something like….
Lumberjack sweater….NO
Batman………..NO
Misc person met at the club….NO T ON YOUR LIFE YOUNG MAN
Call mom……..(safe)
See what my ladies are saying about me online……H*ll NO
Skip breakfast today……NO
Leave up the wallpaper in new apt, not here that often anyway……(safe from me but I’m sure would receive a NO from a few of you)
I’m sure it’s clean enough to wear again…….NO?ish
I’m sure he’d appreciate it but none of us REALLY have the time to save him from himself. Guess we’ll just have to continue to find those little things to appreciate. Like shoes.
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yeah, I just wanted to give him the button. I have enough things to worry about in my own life that I don’t need to supervise him getting dressed.
Although ….
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Giggle…stop!
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Okay, I’ll just be the first to say it….if you’re looking at that first picture…you’re not looking at the boots. Mischief Managed.
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Someone on tumblr beat you to making that implication 🙂
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Now, I’ll go read whatever she was talking about…..
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http://jazzbaby1.tumblr.com/
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Ya. I never notice his shoes. Unless it’s that picture from the baftas where his back is to the camera…http://www.richardarmitagenet.com/images/gallery/Specials/album/BAFTA2010/album/index.html ….I noticed the shoes here and like them. (the shoes ladies) Oh and the converse, I noticed that one. I’m more a barefoot girl. Dang that tumblr….grrr stealing my thunder.
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sadly he doesn’t often appear barefoot in public. 😦
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jeez- Me+just showed up on a google alert. Damn that’s good/
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It’s been happening with disturbing frequency lately.
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What does that mean? DANGER DANGER unrest in armitage fan central DANGER DANGER
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Google Alerts is a news service operated by google that sends you links (instantaneously if you like) to news that appears on topics of interest to you. So you can sign up for “Richard Armitage” as a Google Alert.
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Ah. I see. The amount of Armitage already on my computer is embarrassing enough….I don’t think I’ll invite google into this.
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you get it all eventually anyway if you follow the fansites, because *they* follow it and sift through it for you (so you don’t have to read the headlines about the other Armitage, for instance, or the one who’s a lobbyist for the NRA in Delaware, or the one who committed a murder in Kansas City). But following Google Alerts means you get it *fast*. That’s important to some folks.
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I follow you…so I get him eventually….after you….good enough for me. Servy leftovers….
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🙂
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I give him credit for managing to look so deliciously vampiric in such an idiotic sweater. I’m not sure anybody else could manage that feat.
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This is true … hmmm …. (cogitates) …. I suspect that people have been urging Guylty to *ooof* these pics this week, so …
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Ha! Great minds think alike. When I first saw these photos go past me on my FB newsfeed, I wondered if we could get Guylty to *oof* one of these photos.
As far as the actual outfit is concerned, the shoes/boots are the only decent thing going on. The rest of it should just be burned. The jeans manage to make his lusciously long legs look like stumps which is a major sin in my book.
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yeah. the inadvertent full break is an eternal no no in jeans styling. But if he had shoes on instead of boots, it might not be so bad.
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And that is the thing about jeans. I’ve seen him wearing old worn jeans and I mean ones that do fit better than this and they are good. These are not good. They’re like off the rack without checking to see if they actually fit right. Sure you can wear them but he deserves better doesn’t he?
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I’ve seen him in jeans I like less than these, frankly. Like I said, these would look fine if he had less builtup footwear — like the Converse sneakers, for instance. They’d slouch right over the tops of those shoes and basta. Or he could have worn a boot-cut jean. But whatever, it’s not really that much of an issue for me.
I’ve written about this question before extensively (so I apologize if I’m being repetitive to you or anyone else) but he doesn’t really have the ideal build for most jeans. His posterior and thighs are really well developed and it looks like he tends to get jeans that are a little too long to accommodate thighs / rear, which means the appearance of the break is always going to be an issue for him unless he has cuffs them or has the hem of the jeans altered.
Those Replay jeans he wore for so long were actually designed to be worn with a cuff — he always unrolled the cuff and let them fall over the top of his boot, which was kind of a good look, I thought, and solved the break problem for him nicely.
But it’s really hard to do that particular alteration (break on jeans) convincingly both because of the weight of the material and the fact that most people doing alterations don’t have the equipment to reproduce that “industrial” stitched look. There’s also the whole question of the vibe of jeans. The point of jeans is that they’re “everyman’s clothing.” (That’s where they come from historically — let me know if you want to know more about this theme.) The whole point of jeans is that they’re supposed to be stylistically democratic (even if some designer jeans styles play with that problem).
It also doesn’t help in this photograph that the lower hem of the sweater covers the rise of the jeans, redefining our perception of his waist.
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Excellent points. You remind me that jeans quite honestly though democratic aren’t really for everyone. We may all wear them, or most of us do, but some of us too shouldn’t. I agree you can change the look with the shoes or the way the jeans fall over the shoes. The sweater definitely affects the top part as well. It takes a lot of effort for many to get it right when buying jeans or having them altered and many of us simply won’t go that far and even then it might not work out right depending on build as you noted. I like his look in jeans I’ve seen before but each person has their own view naturally and what they’ll accept. I do envy those who look so great in them though.
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yeah, jeans are definitely not everyone’s best look. OTOH, because almost everyone has some figure particularities, that means on an everyday basis, most people don’t judge so much about how jeans fit. (Obviously, however, that’s not true for a fashion shoot like this one! We care!)
It’s also hard not to wear what everyone’s wearing. And jeans are popular because they’re practical, as well. That photo was taken at one of those moments when a dark wash was at the pinnacle of style (I was noticing this last fall — the darkest washes I’d seen in years were on offer) and IMO jeans should look at least a little worn to be really good looking. You’re not usually going to get that in a fashion shoot, either. The dark wash makes the bagging look baggier.
As is obvious, I spend way too much time thinking about this!!
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No, I read your piece on the other pants for Richard and you hit it perfectly though I did agree with another about the view from the rear. From the front it was perfect illustrating exactly what you said. I like it is very interesting because jeans are so American really and we all want to look good in them but so many of us don’t. I have had such a time finding ones to fit at all as I lost a lot of weight and still I’m not happy with them but the dark ones are my least favorite too. They are often heavier and baggier and simply don’t have the shape and don’t we all want them to fit to the right curve? Now maybe men don’t but women do! We want to at least think we look good and fit in. I had thought about Richard with the thinner fit down the legs. He is quite physical and that creates the issue with the thighs and as you note we all have some physical peculiarities that may cause issues. I’m just too lazy to go out and really work on finding that perfect fit and Richard has said himself that he has no clothes sense so obviously for shoots he takes what he is given and that certainly shows in shoots such as this. My bet is when not working he just wants to be comfortable and really doesn’t care what he wears but have we seen that much of him when not working and what he wears. I’m just getting into photos of him so not sure about what there is of him when not working.
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I also got a Google alert for this. Despite the sweater he looks so gloriously
dangerous, definitely vampiric. LOL! to the ‘no’ button.
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Dangerous, indeed.
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RA can even wear those shoes ;o)
Sorry, Servetus, I don’t really like them, but RA in them makes them bearable.
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it’s okay 🙂
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Well I would say they are shoes not boots but I like them. The sweater, well too small really, prefer the coat in the other photo really. Now I certainly would volunteer to save him from himself but I digress here. He wears what they tell him to wear but yes he should have a “no” button. Says he has no clothes sense but that sweater? That looks like a Fisherman sweater to me.
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Thanks for the comment, and welcome, Peggy.
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agreed. quite hideous “jumper”, cool boots… in fact he would look perfect in just the boots! 😉
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now there’s a thought!!!!
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The boots I am not to sure about, but they are way better than the sweater. Any time RA wants to come to Wisconsin to fish, that is all right with me, good fishing by me.
Good luck on the first day back at school. Speaking of I got to work on my homework tomorrow. We started back last week. I go back to work this week and the students come back next week. I guess summer is almost over, rats.
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I had a think and that sweater might be very warm if the temps go to -40 F. One never knows how cold it will get in January here in the cold north of Wisconsin. Then who cares what it looks like as long as it is warm.
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He’s obviously planning a trip to your neck of the woods, Katie70!
Sorry the summer is over — but i hope you enjoy the classes and the return to routine somehow anyway.
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He was dressed for the photo session with inappropriate clothes (for him at last), too long jeans and that hideous sweater (never liked LV stuff). It’s so evident these aren’t clothes normally dressed, but something put on a man like he was a coat anger. Nevertheless, RA is splendid. I’d take him with any dress, even those unfortunate Tokyo and NY Premieres suits 😛
@Servetus: this time I noticed the boot/shoes and yes, I really like them! 😀
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aha! my work here is done.
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Rip out those big letters and take off the t-shirt, Richard!..there..now it’s better :]`
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he could just go topless 🙂
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*sigh* 🙂
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I quite like him in the LV jacket thing…he looks cuddly! 😉
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Cuddly — I think that’s true …
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I can handle most of it, but I think I may have nightmares about that sweater. However, for those looking to catch up with him, there is no way you could miss him in it. A silver lining in every cloud. LOL!
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That’s true, that sweater is like a neon sign 🙂
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I like the boots/shoes also. And there’s feet inside. Lovely, hard-working, Sydney bridge climbing, mountain hiking, yoga-toned, dancer feet, which are connected to those long, straight, muscular legs that…well…I should just stop right there, shouldn’t I?
I think it. Others have said it. It’s understood, isn’t it?
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Mmmmm. Feet. 🙂
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Guylty would certainly be able to make something out of this perfect *spoof* material. The poor chap looks as he has got a knot in his guts (therefore it is a brilliant idea to focus on his legs). Maybe the steak tartare from yesterdays dinner was beyond shelf live.
Although the photographers he comes across are better than the ones from the past – there are obviously still stylists around suffering on a severe taste disorder.
By the way – who is the target group of this ghastly magazine? People who develop an eye disease?
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target audiences = young, stylish urban men.
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I’m looking at the new Ben Rayner photos, I really like the black coat he’s wearing. And then it hits me: the sleeves are too short and I think “Oooo Servetus isn’t going to like that…”. See what you do? 😉
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That’s exactly right. that’s exactly what i thought!!
I should be his auntie.
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Having serious doubts about letting “stylists” etc. take over one’s life. Good luck, Guylty, when you deconstruct the Rayner photoshoot. Wasn’t THAT keen on Tokyo/NY styles, either (minority report here.) Electric blue shiny something??? Leave the chap to stylish overcoats, pea-jackets and GOOD jeans, and stylish tuxes. That makes his brand.
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I think you don’t have a choice, in a magazine situation.
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Not keen on the boots. I like desert boots generally but these have that protruding sole that Armitage often goes in for even though they make his feet look enormous. He looks like Ronald McDonald in them.
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Well I think it is because of the way the jeans fit, or don’t fit actually. I like the shoes but I could find better ones and I’d say boots that would go with the right jeans that wouldn’t make the feet look so big and would compliment the jeans too.
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Hmmm. I guess I don’t think those shoes make his feet look bigger. He has huge feet.
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He is a tall one and I suspect he does have large feet. That is fine, no problem and I don’t dislike the shoes but I think there are boots that would suit better and with the right jeans he would look fantastic plus get rid of that sweater. I could wear that sweater and look better in it and that says it all really, bit scary really. Any of us could find a better sweater for him or as someone else suggested already, he could go topless.
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I agree- nothing wrong with big feet, or big anything 😉 ( well someone had to go and lower the tone and we were all thinking it) but there are shoes that would suit better .
Although why I am quibbling over the shoes when the rest of the outfit is so dire, I don’t know…
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True we all know what they say about big feet but we were talking about the shoes after all and even better shoes wouldn’t save the outfit. though perhaps sneakers could help the jeans somewhat.
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I laughed out loud when I saw that picture. That sweater is going to be a character of its own in the RA world, I’m betting. I feel some inspiration for a new SFR coming on! 🙂
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Do it, Nat!!!
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Since we are all friends, I will admit that I pick shoes for hubs inspired by Armitage’s footwear. But these shoes, hmmm… prob not 😦
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Good to know. Obviously I’ll admire your husband’s shoes as well 🙂
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Please, Nat – GO for it! PLEASE!!! 😀
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New clothing from Harrods perhaps?
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[…] eye, as the cuff button did last year, or the trouser break. I live for the trouser break because I’m such an Armitage boots freak, and I’ll write a whole history of how The Armitage has worn or not worn this style feature […]
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Everyman receding? Pondering the subject position(s) of Richard Armitage fans, including my own | Me + Richard Armitage said this on December 2, 2013 at 2:09 am |
[…] Yeah, I know, I’ve got a thing for The Shoes and the Boots that make the Armitage. […]
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Feet on the ground Armitage | Me + Richard Armitage said this on February 28, 2014 at 4:17 am |
[…] know I have a little love affair going with Richard Armitage’s footwear choices more generally, and Thorin Oakenshield’s boots […]
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Thorin Oakenshield’s beautiful boots | Me + Richard Armitage said this on July 8, 2014 at 11:02 pm |