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.