Golfers (male and female) focus on improving their stances and swings. Blair Beskin focuses on improving their belts. “Everybody loves woven stretch belts for comfort, but they can look nicer,” says the twenty-seven-year-old, who studied fashion merchandising at the University of Alabama and got the idea from eyeballing her dad’s golf attire. The fix? Replace the cheap leather tabs (the front, holed section) with a more luxurious alligator skin crafted in fifty-six steps at an Atlanta workshop by a small team of artisans. The accessories are fashion forward, too: The Filbelt (named after Beskin’s mutt, Filbert) can be custom ordered in an almost limitless choice of tab finishes and strap colors that range from staid tan to bold red-and-white. “Instead of just putting on a belt, you’re planning your look around it,” Beskin says. “When you look good, you feel good.” Even if you never make it onto a golf course.
>Alligator-and-woven belts, $155 from blairsbelts.com
MORE MADE IN THE SOUTH:
>Style winner: Maho Shades
>Style runner-up: Lina Rosa
>Style runner-up: Jenni Earle
>Style runner-up: Blair’s Belts
