Trendspotting: Making a Cameo Appearance

Amedeo Cameo Rings

When it comes to men's accessory trends, there have been several memorable moments. There was the pinky ring. And then two  years ago it was the Buddhist prayer beads and pocket squares. Last year it was the fisherman's hook bracelet and tie bars. And this year it's the leather wrap bracelet.

I'm here to say that I've done it all and I'm totally over everything.

The only bracelet, I choose to wear now is my Miansai rose gold bracelet that makes me think of slave shackles. That's right...slavery. But since I only wear it on one wrist, I feel liberated whenever I wear it. There are no cotton fields in sight for this organic cotton loving brown person. But I'm definitely down for southern comfort food any day. If the Klu Klux Klan had a picnic where they had Popeye's fried chicken and biscuits, I would strongly consider going if I didn't fear being the after party piñata.

But just as I had sworn off all other jewelry trends, I discover Amedeo's beautiful and modern cameo jewelry.

They remind me of the Wedgwood pieces my mother used to collect. In fact, during my last visit to my parents in Naples, we went to Pompeii where they had a large market selling cameo jewelry outside the ruins. I've always thought cameos were beautiful since they were the original selfie. But most of the jewelry that they sold at the market looked cheap and too dainty.

Amedeo's take on the cameo combines modernity with his classical training in southern Italy. They truly are works of art since each piece is handmade. The tricky thing about cameos is that they each have to be made by hand to size it correctly for a setting. This gives each piece a personality, making the jewelry feel like an automatic heirloom. It's something you know that you can wear and enjoy now; and it will be a piece your child will also enjoy later on in the future.

YES
Start a jewelry collection that has meaning. I'm going to save up for the monkeys or the skull. My heirs are going to be bad ass philosophers. Fingers crossed.

NO
If you have a cameo piece that you've inherited from someone in your family, then you don't need this. Your job is to enjoy and take care of what's been passed on to you and for you to pay it forward.

MAYBE
You saw that Amedeo does a cheap version of this cameo jewelry on HSN. There's not shame in him making money off the masses. But if you want something worth having and not a passing trend, then it's worth the extra money for the pricier line. Just don't go into credit card debt buying it.

Bawlin for Balmain

It's tears of joy because this Balmain dress shirt is everything.

YES
It's the perfect wrap shirt. If I were a rock star looking to stand out from the other bands, this would be my front man look on center stage.

It also reminds me of my old fencing shirt. And I loved cutting a bitch with my saber.

NO
This is not for a guy who is a little thick in the middle. It will only accentuate your belly.

MAYBE
You want to be an haute couture Jedi knight. This would be the shirt that would get Yoda's approval.

Trendspotting: Optical Illusion Shorts

YES
It's the perfect pair for the guy who doesn't want to be noticed on the beach or in life. If you do wear this out, there's only 2 ways to pull it off successfully.

1. Wear it with a matching top and go full on Versace circa 1993. But don't wear the matching accessories. That's cray weird.

2. Wear it with a plain black or white shirt because finding the accent color to match ain't that easy. You can try, but you will undoubtedly fail.

NO
You don't need these snazzy shorts to enjoy the summer. But wearing a pair of these would definitely require major cojones and/or self-esteem and/or a yacht where you can wear whatever you want...because you're on a yacht.

MAYBE
You look like tan mom, honey boo-boo's dad or Carrot Top the comedian. In that case, anything to draw attention away from your face is warranted. Get two pairs of these shorts immediately. Do it for the children.