Three Sheets to the Wind with Fashion Designer Thaddeus O'Neil (2024)

In "Three Sheets tothe Wind," we invite a noteworthy subject over to The Standard for aconversation over three drinks. Apparently, the expression was coined becausewhen you’re sailing a ship, three sheets (sails) makes things go…off course. Which happens tobe our idea of the perfect conversation!

With Fashion Weeksailing into New York, we sat down in that legendary room, The Top of TheStandard, with CFDA-endorsed designer Thaddeus O’Neil, who broke into thefashion world with his surf-inspired creations after detours as a philosophy student, model, surfer, and photographer’s assistant. O’Neil and Standard Culture’sassistant editor, Elena Feldman, ended uphaving a few sheets before the official three sheets began, and they sailed astray.

(*Actually drink three. They started early.)

ELENA FELDMAN: Okay. Drink number one—wait I meant question— [Both laugh super hard for 10 seconds.]
THADDEUS O’NEIL: Question one, sheet three.

Is this a date?
Yeah, we’re clearly on a date. Hello?

Great. What’s the story behind your name?
Nothing crazy, my mom always just loved the name.

Are you superIrish?
I’m definitely Irish. Dad’s Irish German, Mom is Swedish, Welsh, andEnglish, so classic American mutt. I wonder if Trump’s wall will exclude therest of the entire world, because I really wanted some Mexican in my lineage and that could potentially be ruled out.

I’m Mexican!
See? We wouldn’t be having this conversation if Trump built thewall. Which is annoying, because I love this conversation and we wouldn’t haveour date!

What were yoursummer jobs growing up in Long Island?
I started out mowing lawns when I was really little. I would mow at a rice farmer’s pace, because I didn’twant to kill any frogs. I tried to work in a restaurant and was a terrible waiter.I liked to talk more than I liked to actually bringpeople what they ordered. And too many days off for waves. That never went downwell.

I read that yougot your start in fashion as a model because your Fire Island neighbor, BruceWeber, shot your family portraits when you were a kid. What was it like havingBruce Weber as your neighbor?
With Bruce, itbecame a thing where embraced you into this whole other world, so it became nota neighborly world but a whole different fashion world. He started taking pictures of my sister and my father first, and theneventually me, too, so you were always invited into these creativeimaginary worlds.

As someone whoclearly has a brain, did you ever bristle at being bossed around as amodel?
No. A lot of the male models I work with now for my own brand, they’re smart guys, and that’s who I try to work with for everything. Girls and guys. Just really smart, spiritual people.

After modeling andassisting photographers, it seems like one day you just decided to pick upfashion design. Was that really the case?
Yes and no. My mom reminded me that I’d make her photograph me in my outfit every morning before school. And then, it wasn’t just that I leapt into it. I had been informally making pieces for myself for a while.

What’s yourmorning routine?
My wife and my boy, Cassius, sleep in.So I wake up, make coffee, and try to get the dogs walked quickly. I have two dogs, Hemingway and Shirley. Hemingway looks like a grizzly bear slash Chewbacca fromStar Wars. He’s like 120 pounds and I’ve been living in the East Village for 6years and every time I walk him someone stops me to ask me what he is. I’m justlike “He’s a Chewbacca. You saw Star Wars right? This is the real one.” Andthen I come back and make my son breakfast,feed him, have a little chat, take him to school, and then go to thestudio.

If you could trade hair with anyone who would it be?
Sinead O’Connor. Shaved head. Before I had long hair, I always had ashaved head.

You moved to NewYork City to be with your wife. Where wouldn’t you have moved for her?
There’s no place, right? Oh well, I do need to be near an ocean,that’s one thing. I haven’t been put to that test yet. You’ll have to get back to me in the next "Three Sheets to the Wind."

Is your son namedafter Cassius Clay?
Sort of, yeah. I really just like the namedCass. I wasn’t trying torepeat the classical Romanness of my name. It just felt like a good way to getto Cass.

What’s somethingyou want to pass down to your son?
Respect for nature, respect for women, and just love for humankind.

What’s yourparenting philosophy?
Just trying to be a guide,because you don’t own these people.

What’s the lastnatural phenomenon that moved you deeply?
I was in the Japanese equivalent of a deli having breakfast andwatching Hurricane Sandy ravage New York.

What is yourAchilles heel?
Probably tequila.

What is your ideaof a stylish person?
My idea of a stylish person is just someone in tune with themselves.Anyone in tune with themselves in just innately stylish.

We’ve entered anera where genders are blurring. How do you think gender roles will be different50 years from now?
I think gender has kind of asserted itself at different times. In terms of dress, I still think we havebiological…I’m biased. I respond to a woman in a dress more than I respond to aman in a dress, let’s put it that way. Gender’s always something we’reinfatuated with. They’re in this constant play. So I think the game is always going to continually evolve and we’reall bystanders and participants, and gender is clearly a game to be played.

Oh geez, the sheets are hitting me hard.
[Laughs.] That’s good! I need another sheet.

We’ll get you one.So what do you want to accomplish in fashion?
It’d be nice to be a part of the conversation, which is what I want to do. It’s the Samsons and the Davids that are actually saying something really interesting, and it’s easy for that true voice to be thrown out before they get a chance to really express it. I think social media will maybe change things, but we’ll see.

Last question: Canyou say “rural juror” three times in a row?
Rural juror, rural juror, rural juror.

You freakin’ didit! Look at you!

[High five.]

What’s that from?

30 Rock.
I’ve never heard that before. I guess being culturally obtuse has itsprivileges. [Laughs.] It was fresh.It was a challenge.

Let’s get youanother drink, shall we?
You should try what I was drinking, the Getaway Driver.