Trendspotting: Zip, Line & Sinker

Found these pair of shoes on LuisaViaRoma by an Italian shoe company named Finale Unlimited by design duo Lucio Finale and Luca Salomoni. Unfortunately, they're a small company that doesn't have a cross design partnership with a Kenneth Cole, Timberland or mega-Target to percolate up to the fashion scene, but I enjoy their design with the zipper up the front. 

YES
If you're like me and you're tired of fussing over laces

NO

If you live a blessed life where flip flops are the only footwear you need

MAYBE

You're still into the color blocked and wedge platforms that's currently happening at the moment. When you're done with that, you should look into this.

Watch Out: It's a Wrap

 

I recently discovered this Italian shoe brand called Fessura. Holy Crap! Their shoes are fly!

They're shoes for people who are bored of the usual. And that would be me. Learn more about them at Fessura.com. 

YES

If you grew up living for Transformers, which has subsequently spilled over to adulthood, then you undoubtedly also love this shoe. Because until my car can turn into an ass-kicking robot, these shoes/sandals/bandage wrap combo will have to do. 

NO

These aren't Jesus' Nikes. I don't think these are meant for working out in the gym either.

MAYBE

These pumped up kicks just don't do it for you because they're too weird. Oh well.

File under Watch Out.

WTF Rick Owens

Read this on Details.com and thought how ridiculous this quote is.The man lives off the money he makes from clothing etc. To tell people to buy less and exercise more is so LA.

Naturally there's a grain of truth in what he says. Consume better things and focus less on the material. If you really want to enhance your physicality then do it with crunches versus buying the must-have tube top of the season. Perhaps that's why Rick's clothes cost so much because he views them as investment pieces that you'll have for a lifetime.

YES

Designers say the darndest things.

NO

Despite Rick's attempt at discouraging me from buying his clothes, I still like the man and his weave.

MAYBE

Perhaps he doesn't need money or clothing or even food to live. He can survive off endorphins generated by every push up. More power to you Ricky.

Chukka Kahn

Trolling the web for inspiration during my lunch break, I found this image on GQ.com's Best of GQ Endorses page. Didn't care and didn't really read the text about Unis Lee and her inspiration to remake khaki shorts and charge $180 blah blah blah.

Article aside, I did care about how they styled the picture. Love how the chukka boots--also known as desert boots--look with the shorts. For years, I've paired my shorts with sandals, loafers, sneakers and high-tops. ALL BORING!

But this year, I think I will try to wear them with a pair of classic Clark chukkas like this one below with a green sole. The benefit of wearing a shoe like this with shorts is it gives the look a more buttoned up look. I'm also tired of seeing espadrilles and boat shoes. Seriously people, you're in Manhattan, not Nantucket or the Spanish Riviera. Unless you have a boat parked on Pier 54, I'm not buying it.

YES

Your Chukkas should be seasonal. You can't wear your winter ones for summer. Otherwise, your feet will be stanky.

NO

This is not for the faint of heart. You'll need a pair of cojones to pull this look off. Or you just need to be a professional GQ model.

Also not recommended for guys with big stocky legs or guys who are rail thin. You can find a mirror. You can tell if you fall into one of these categories. My recommendation to you....is pants.

MAYBE

You're confused and are thinking of Chuck Taylors as Chukka. They're not related, but Chuck Taylor's are also perfectly fine with shorts.

Ready for Battle

 Although the fabric was originally designed to help soldiers blend into the environment, this fabric pattern is having a fashionable moment to help men stand out this spring. But I think that camouflage is a classic men's staple that every man needs to incorporate into this closet...just like the denim jacket, blue jeans, gingham, classic white button up, the basic t-shirt and the trench. Everyone can use a little camo.

And I'm not saying this just because I'm a military brat.  Camo can help toughen up a look and provide it with a visually interesting detail that can break up the silhouette. A camo pocket square can go a long way. 

I've bought a pair of green/brown camo pants recently and have long owned a blue and gray camo cotton jacket that I wear often in the urban jungle. If you've ever been to a sample sale or food festival, you know it's war.

But neither of my camo pieces will be worn together because it would be overkill and I don't live in Sarah Palin's Alaska. If you need a lesson on how to wear camo in all of its iterations for modern every day living, please use the recent Dries Van Noten Spring 2013 collection as your basic guide on how to pull off camo. 

Now that you have it, let's go to battle. Every boy and girl has a little GI Joe fantasy inside them. 

YES

I Heart Camo and You Should Too. But not all camo is created equal. There's digital camo, camo made up of animal prints and traditional camo. Pick what works for you but if you're looking for a classic piece invest in the traditional camo print in a color that won't scare the children.

NO

Camo doesn't make you cool. Money makes you cool. And a gun doesn't give the look authenticity. It makes you look like Ted Nugent's disciple. Bang bang.

MAYBE

You're already enlisted in the military and you're paid to wear camo every day. You are #Winning.

Trendspotting: Where is the Love?

The devil is in the details and you could see that clearly in Burberry Prorsum's latest collection for Fall 2013. Since I'm in my black and white phase, I noticed this little ditty in the Burberry show that had me at hello.

I mean the black suit with a black dress shirt with the white hearts is perfect. What's not to love about this look? Anyone and their mamas can pull this off. 

YES

If you love to look good, this is something to keep in mind.

NO

This won't help your compatibility stats on Match.com. It might help you come off as super cheesy and needy on a date though.

MAYBE

You're coming out of a bitter divorce and you're just not in the mood for love.

Reality Really Bites at DKNY

I've noted in previous posts that the 90's are having a flashback moment and no where is this more true than the DKNY Fall 2013 show.

It makes sense that they are capitalizing on the Gen X comeback since that's when the brand really took off and became a part of the zeitgeist. They've also just reissued some of their original 90's classic designs in partnership with Opening Ceremony. Naturally, they are charging millennium prices (i.e. hellah expensive for stuff you can probably still find at the salvation army)

But the reality is, each of the DKNY look bites. Looking through the collection is like talking to a narcoleptic with a sleeping pill addiction. It just puts you to sleep.

Where's the grunge? Where's Marky Mark hip-hopping around in his low rise baggy jeans? Where's Ethan Hawke being pessimistic in the movie and in real life? Where's the wow?

YES
Avoid the DKNY collection. There's nothing new here. They should have left this in the 90's.

NO
Not even Donna herself can save this. Good thing she sold the line when she did. Make that money and leave like Julia Roberts in that classic love story about hookers with a heart of gold.

MAYBE
You can pull off this look if you get a discman and listen to Nirvana's greatest hits.

Boom: You've Been Photobombed

This hilarious slideshow needs to be shared far and wide

Click Here for Slideshow

YES
A successful photobomb requires spontaneity and perfect timing.

NO
There are no restrictions or age limits. I photobombed by nephew's christening last week just to make it memorable. Devil horns while in church just seemed like an appropriate Kodak memory.

MAYBE
You were the victim of a cruel photobomb attack and have developed PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). You are now a photo-pacifist.

Trendspotting: Proportionately Yours or Not

With full disclosure I have to say up front that I'm a Y-3 groupie.

Yohji Yamamoto's collection for Adidas is always just so f*cking cool. Even if there are pieces that look like it just escaped from Bellevue Mental Facility (see 2nd image insert), I don't judge the clothing, I just think that I'm not good enough to wear Yohji's creation. I'm so sorry. Please forgive me for not having model proportions and having to take into account my safety on public transportation.

This fall, master Yohji wants us to play with proportions. I've always loved toying with short versus long or baggy versus tight. In order to take on this new challenge for fall, I will need to start looking at my closet with a keen eye to see what I can work with. I'll just need to pick up a pair of parachute pants or shorts for my next trip to Baghdad.

YES
Playing with proportions can help you hide your imperfections. I'm a fan of wearing a short tight jacket over a long untucked shirt with tapered pants (see picture 1).

NO
These looks are not country club, ski lodge or shooting range  approved. Not really sure where you'd wear this parachute short comb in real life.

MAYBE
You're a straight up and down kind of person and there's no room proportion. You're missing out.

Pedestrian Texting

I can't take it anymore. Pull over dammit!

As a professional street walker (without the sex), I am annoyed by the amateurs I see on the sidewalk every day. Technology is amazing and wonderful, but I don't need to be a part of your accident waiting to happen. I'm even at the point where I don't even bother to move to avoid a streetexters, I just walk right into them.

If your message is so engrossing that your texts veer you straight into traffic, I think it's time to take a page from Ellen and Oprah and pull your ass over to finish your beautiful text sonnet.

I'm not alone here either. It seems that a town in New Jersey is looking to fine streetexters $85 if caught walking and texting.

YES
Texting is not a right, it's a privilege. The privilege is that I have good enough sense not to grab your phone from you, throw it to the ground and do my break dance on your latest smartphone device.

NO
Do not act like I should be watching where you're going. If you walk into traffic, it's all on you. I am not your mama.

MAYBE
You don't have a phone, you live in that North Carolina town that prohibits technology and you don't have any friends to text. Congratulations, you're probably 100 years old and lonely because all your friends are probably dead. Awww...xoxo #sad

3 Fs: Fabric, Fit, Finishing

Like most male peacocks, I've been thinking about the spring season ahead especially because it's been below freezing in New York City. What warms the heart is the thought of sunshine, lemonade, flower blossoms and naturally Tod's loafers. Spring also marks the mating season. With Valentine's Day coming up, I'm in the mood for love.

And like any self-respecting peacock, I would like to prune my feathers as the urban flock begin to shed their winter layers to show off to the opposite, same sex, bi-sexual, bi-curious, asexual and closet heterosexual birds.

To help out my fellow peacocks, I want to share the 3 Fs you need to take with you to the store as you shop for your spring wardrobe:

1. FABRIC: Whether you like bright prints, plain solid colors, polka dots or stripes, try to buy soft, breathable fabrics. As the weather warms up, you'll want something that will let your skin breathe. If you see a label that says Pima cotton touch it and then touch a regular cotton shirt. Your hands will guide you Daniel-san.
2. FIT: I tend to move towards looser fitted clothes for warm weather. The worst feeling is to have something tight and uncomfortable. But I don't go crazy and buy man-blouses. I just avoid shirts that have the darts in the back.
3. FINISHING: The devil is in the subtle details. Your buttons don't need to double up as mini saucers, but look for the little things in clothes that you enjoy. Whether it's the tabs to keep sleeves rolled up, hidden buttons or an unexpected print that's revealed when you roll up your pants, these are the subtle things that catch the eye.

YES
Be a Follower and join the flock.

NO
If you follow the 3 Bs to your wardrobe...seasons are BULLSHIT...I only BUY...BASICS

MAYBE
You want to add an extra F to my list and say F-U to me. It's a free country for now and you can exercise your right to free speech while you still can.

Neck to Neck

So I got an email from Levi announcing their latest 504 jeans. The denim itself is lackluster and looks like something that goes to a Costco to die in wholesale. Even the model didn't know how to work the pair of jeans standing as stiff as an Egyptian marble statue looking into the far distance. I'm not showing the new 504s because what's the point. There's no need to share disappointment.

But what caught my eye in their email ad was the way the model is shown wearing his neckerchief with a simple polo shirt.It may seem obvious that I've been into a neck thing lately. I can't help it since I'm always looking for different ways to transition out of wearing long heavy scarves into something a little lighter for spring. 

Plus I have a collection of bandanas that I've only used to wrap my head while running. But this gives me a new idea of how to wear it without trying to look like a cowboy. Put a baseball jacket over this and you're ready to party anywhere. Wear it under a blazer and chinos and you'll look like a modern take on British ascot.

YES

Especially if you have one of those breathing devices through your trachea. This would be a nice way to hide it (always looking out for the disenfranchised).

NO

Don't wear this with a chambray/denim shirt unless you're a real 10 gallon hat wearing cowboy and you're main mode of transportation is a horse versus a vehicle that only runs on horse-powered engines.

MAYBE

You're a traditional ascot man and you've got an Earl or Duke title to match. To that I say carry-on and cheerio!