Daniel Craig channels Steve McQueen in Quantum of Solace with a shawl-collared cardigan. The cardigan is black ribbed-knit wool cardigan with five black leather buttons, two patch pockets and turned back cuffs. Bond had only worn a cardigan twice before, and that was when he was undercover as Sir Hilary Bray in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. So Daniel Craig is really the first to wear a cardigan as James Bond, and the second time Bond wears a cardigan is in Casino Royale. It gets much more screen presence in Quantum of Solace.
Underneath the cardigan Craig wears a white Tom Ford shirt with a long-pointed semi-spread collar, placket front and double cuffs. The khaki pants are Levi’s 306 STA-PREST jeans, the same style as the cream-coloured jeans from earlier in the film. The shoes are Church’s Ryder III two-eyelet chukka boots in brown suede with Dainite studded rubber soles. The aviator sunglasses are Tom Ford model TF108 with blue lenses.
Whilst Quantum is far from my favorite Bond film I think the wardrobe is great. Though Skyfall is superior in terms of plotting I think Quantum blows it away from a sartorial point of view and Craig looks his best in it.
An excellent look. I have tried to imitate it since seeing the film at the Odeon Leicester Square on its initial release on a special trip to London.I finally found a black one with brown leather buttons in France which I pair with chinos, Clarks desert boots and an ivory shirt with 2-button barrel cuffs. And I got a navy cardigan in that style too ! It is funny to see how many brands issued shawl collar cardigans since the film’s release. To think Mr Roetzel in our favorite book considered it outdated (my brother hates them, calling them grandpa look!)! Zara, H&M and other fast-fashion brands were indeed quick in issuing such cardigans. Was our James a trend-setter on such a type of garment?
I think you’re right about Daniel Craig reviving the cardigan. Steve McQueen wore them well, but even by the time Lazenby wore one as Bond they were a bit out of fashion. In the 1950s Roger Moore modelled cardigans, but at that time men weren’t thinking so much about being “fashionable.” For American children in the 1970s-90s, we knew the cardigan from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. Though Fred Rogers was always a neatly-dressed man who favoured pinned collar and tie bars, the fashion industry wasn’t looking to him for trends. But because of him I wanted a cardigan, though I haven’t worn one since I was 5 years old.
Dear Matt,
The Steve McQueen influence is obvious with Daniel Craigin QoS (the Harrington jacket revival is another trend-setting phenomenon: I bought myself navy models from Ralph Lauren and Ben Sherman from then!). To confirm the trend I bought the black cardigan 2 weeks ago at a Galeries Lafayette store in my local Champagne area. The color alternative in store was the blue shade Steve McQueen wore in very famous pictures. But the best example is the brown item in Bullit with the additional button to close the lapel for warmth.
Regards from France
DC look very good in everything.
I can´t wait to see the Look for the next Movie.
I bought one in this general style from Marks and Spencer back in, I think, about the mid nineties. Often wore it with a cotton polo neck. I haven’t seen “Quantum of Solace” but I think this is a great look actually and am inclined to agree with the consensus that he should have stuck with the look adopted in this movie for his most recent one.
I too have always associated cardigans with my elders or grandparents. However, although I still think a middle aged person is more appropriate to wearing such clothes, I agree that Craig looks smart, athletic and debonair, very 007. I think Craig looks excellent in all of his casual clothes, an impression he doesn’t achieve, in my opinion, in Skyfall with his suits.
Completely agree with the comments above. Craig pulls off what I think is a most difficult look – the cardigan.
one of my many favorite craig-era bond outfits…so the cardigan is Black then…always thought it was a deep deep navy.
A good look, but I have a hard time accepting it as Bond – the look channels McQueen to the point where it ceases to be a homage and becomes an imitation.
Can’t say the Levis 306’s sit well with me either – 517’s (polyester, not denim) would have been a bit more dignified.]
Granted, someone here will undoubtedly chop my head off because the 517’s are boot cut and look like something Roger Moore would have worn, but it would have looked better than these things – looks as if Craig pulled them off the rack at Banana Republic.
I think that blue shirt and gray cardigan would better fit Craig’s spring complexion. But it also looks good.
I think this outfit is excellent. Since 2008, the cardigan has made quite a comeback and I agree with Matt that this film had something to do with that.
I own three cardigans (alpaca, merino, cotton) and wear them often due to their versatility. I think that as long as the sweater fits, it looks no more like an old man would wear than say, pleated pants or a bow tie.
I actually tried this cardigan on at Harrods a few years ago but it was slightly (substantially!) out of my price range, though very luxurious. I was able to find a more than adequate substitute at Brooks Brothers for about a tenth of the price of Tom Ford’s
Given that the general consensus appears to be that, overall, a cardigan is regarded as a garment more suited to an older gentleman but that Craig makes it look more hip, then it’s interesting to speculate on the reasoning behind the absence from the Bond movies of the blazer since 1995 and the sports coat since, I believe, 1987. Two garments that also appear to carry the same connotations.
I’m not so sure the blazer is completely out of fashion. In the States it is a staple of the Ivy League style that I see people wearing all the time, particularly this time of year. Perhaps the costumers feel that blazers have become too Americanized for Bond? I really don’t know. I think they suit the character well due to his naval and Etonian heritage but the Craig films have yet to mention Bond’s naval background.
Blazers have been seen as too old-fashioned in the UK for quite some time now. But I could sooner picture Daniel Craig wearing a tweed jacket like Connery’s in Goldfinger. I’m not sure how fashionable they are in the UK, but in America they’ve seen a resurgence amongst a certain group of young people. And from how he was dressed in Skyfall it looks like they’re trying to dress Daniel Craig like someone 20 years younger.
Here in Ireland, the majority may wear a suit to work if required but then “leisure wear” seems to be the apparel of choice for many. This means track suits and other slop. Someone like me who wears sports coats, blazers etc. (for work and “dressed up leisure” time) must look like some kind of dinosaur. Most younger and middle generation Irish men dress awfully/modernly. It’s hard to believe the effortlessly dapper Brosnan hails from Irish shores.
The Blazer is difficult these days in America. I typically see them on older fraternity-like men, in the “California Tuxedo” as it was referred to on this blog https://www.bondsuits.com/?p=97
I like a blazer in a Dr. No like look
https://www.bondsuits.com/?p=26
and I have copied this particular look many times, but I rarely wear it anymore. Changing times.
Funny – it used to be that blazers and sportcoats were the youthful, dressy/casual alternative to dark suits. When did the fashion gods decree that it should be the other way around? I must have missed the memo….
Craig’s looks so natural and elegant in this outfit, it’s quite impressive. Even if I am not mad of the association of white and black, which is present in every kind of clothes nowadays -it seems that designers have forgot other colours do exist !-, the association works here. I just preferred the outfit he wore in Casino Royale in his hotel room -black/dark navy cardigan, dark sweater, grey checked pantst and black shoes I guess. Perhaps Matt will add the cardigan to the Bond essentials in a few years !
I personally prefer the cardigan worn in CR when Bond was speaking with Mathis on the balcony in Montenegro. Is this the same one that Craig was wearing on his boat when speaking to M on his mobile? At any rate right after CR came out I noticed many fashionable men including cardigans in their wardrobes again. And since then, they have become amazingly mainstream, especially among younger men (just see how many there are in any Gap or H&M).
As for blazers, to my Canadian mind I find them hopelessly outdated at present. Like all clothes there will be a time when they are considered cool again. One thing that I’ve noticed in the last few months is that several stylish men in the financial district – from mid-twenties to late-thirties – have taken to wearing pattern sports coats. I’m guessing that this is due to the Mad Men influence; however these jackets have subtler patterns and look quite sharp to my eye. Not sure if that would be an appropriate look for Craig’s Bond, though…
Aren’t those pants way too short? I can’t help but notice that every time I watch this scene. They seem to rest at the ankle and not 1 or 2 cm above the heel as it should be…
Trousers that are this narrow need to be that short when wearing boots. Since they are so narrow, making them two inches longer would only result in the trousers bunching up on the top of the boot. If he was wearing lower shoes and not boots the trousers could be a little longer.
I agree. Trousers which are too long actually have the effect of shortening the legs. Modern designers are now going for the ultra short look on suits which looks ridiculous in my opinion.
On the subject of blazers, I often wear for casual a double breasted navy one with gold buttons. It is old fashioned but the ladies do generally appreciate the look. Really depends where you are.
I remember seeing this look – skinny trousers, shorter hems – in films in the 60s and always thought it was an interesting look. I’ll sometimes see younger guys wearing pants they bought off the rack with an unaltered inseam, and the longer they are the more terrible they look IMHO (if they’re slim). I was quite nervous the first time I had suit trousers hemmed to match dress boots instead of shoes, but they look quite good.
As for Craig’s Bond, he wears boots quite often so there are plenty of examples of his trousers being hemmed shorter to accommodate them.
OK Matt, really valid point there. You are right.
The matter is, we the ‘normal, mortal people’ usually have our trousers measured to be worn more or less with every kind of footwear. If you cut some trousers just to match boots then you can forget about wearing them with anything but boots. Which might be a luxury for some people at the times being. But hey, it’s Bond.
Anyway, maybe I’d like to see those trousers just one inch longer. It’s one of those kind of strange things regarding the clothing in QOS, with a lot of excellent looks and outfits but some weird things such as the too short tie at the arrival in Bolivia…
Excellent web by the way, congratulations and keep going!
Sorry, I meant too LONG tie in Bolivia.
Anyway, the best tied ties (the best looking knots) in the whole series in my honest, modest opinion…
I agree this is a great look and Daniel carries it well. I have copied it on several occasions and have received compliments. I don’t think the cardigan is an older gentleman’s look. It is pretty ubiquitous these days.
I do have a question though: are Daniel’s shirt sleeves 2-button barrel cuffs? In the scene where he’s knocking on Mathis’s door the cuffs look like double cuffs.
By the way Matt, I love your website. It’s very insightful for those that want to learn more about dressing in the style of Bond.
Yes, they are indeed barrel cuffs. In the shot knocking on the door the cuffs may be unbuttoned. You can see them better when he is sitting at the table.
Looking at the cuffs closer, they do appear to be double cuffs, just they are quite skewed underneath the cardigan’s sleeves.
Isn’t this just the same Tom Ford shirt he wears throughout the movie?
I believe it is.
I really like the Tom Ford shirts in QoS. The collar has a nicely spaced spread and also pointed quite long too. A slighly less flamboyant version of what Moore wore in some of his films. And this style looks great under the cardigan.
So wearing a French cuff shirt with this ensemble doesn’t break the flow of it being a casual outfit? I always thought a French cuff (double cuff) shirt was meant for a more formal affair.
I don’t think double cuffs are appropriate with this outfit, and the cardigan’s sleeves don’t fit well over them. But it’s currently fashionable to wear double cuffs more casually.
This is my absolutely favourite look, the whole ensemble is simple yet sophisticated, however one question in relation to the cardigan is what is the etiquette for the lower button on the cardigan? From what I can see DC has all the buttons done on his cardigan, but I have read elsewhere that the last button on a cardigan should be undone just like a waistcoat.
I don’t think there is rule for cardigans. I always thought there was a strict rule for waistcoats too but since reading Matt’s articles I’ve learnt that the rule only applies if the bottom button is situated on the cut-away part of the garment. Eg. Button six with five to button. But there’s also six button six to button. Matt? Is this correct?
Ditto.
A bit late but what do you think, Matt?
If the bottom button is able to fasten, it may either be fastened or left open. Often the bottom button is so low that it must be left open so you can sit down comfortably.
I never noticed anything “flamboyant” about the collars of Moore’s shirts in any of his Bond films!!
I thought this look was a bit too casual for the setting especially being in an italian villa. I thought the gentleman driving Bond on the boat on the way to Mathis’s villa was better dressed; Anyway you could do a piece on him?