The Friday Read: #NYFWM, Super Bowl 50 and Dockers

Editor’s note: Expect these posts once a week on Fridays — consider this a jumpstart on reading for your weekend downtime. Expect a mix of style and non-style content. For more entries, click here

Perhaps you find yourself not paying attention to the runways or the sights and sounds of #NYFWM, the dedicated, NYC-hosted week for menswear writers, editors, buyers and industry pros to get their first look at upcoming seasonal collections. But after spending some time around great media and bloggers at a brand styling suite I helped run on behalf of Timberland, I must say — looking at the American iteration of fashion week is something you might consider. That’s especially true when perennial, classic favorites like Todd Snyder and Billy Reid step in the ring — after all, not every runway show is Zoolander-esque. Timberland-centric events gave me the terrific opportunity to connect with friends new and old, including my buddy Jamal of StyleSocietyGuy (the subject of this week’s Style Q+A), and my pals at Brothers & Craft (who are curating a consistently awesome men’s lifestyle site and brand). So even if you don’t pay attention to runway shows — something that’s admittedly not a huge focus for me, either — I’ve learned there are definitely things you can gleam from those around you, and that’s a rewarding part of any profession. And with that being said, it’s nearly time for me to go take a nice, long nap. And maybe enjoy a brew or two this weekend. Have fun with this week’s #menswear news recap in the meantime!

  • Speaking of NYFWM, Dockers, of all brands, kicked off the second-ever event by hosting a star-studded party  (by the way, don’t sleep on the brand’s Alpha Khakis).
  • In honor of Super Bowl 50 this weekend, the stylish folks at Get Kempt tracked down the best menswear in San Francisco.
  • The team at Well-Spent tells you the goods they’d rather blow their rent money on this month (hint: the piece includes a stellar American Trench merino watch cap).
  • Long “Read” of the Week: If you believe in the transformative power of music, you’ll love this stunning photo series from Narratively (hence “read” in quotes, ya dig?).

Run out of things to read? Look no further.

And on that note, if you made it to the end of this post — congrats! You’re free to enjoy your weekend.

Stay stylish,

-Beau


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The Friday Read: The Force Awakens, Holiday Cocktails and December’s Best Gear

Editor’s note: Expect these posts once a week on Fridays — consider this a jumpstart on reading for your weekend downtime. Expect a mix of style and non-style content. For more entries, click here. 

Some weekend style essentials. Pennant by Sweet Potato Four. Brass money clip by Owen & Fred. Adventure Log by Word Notebooks. Print magazine fit for the weekend made by Gear Patrol.

Some weekend essentials. Pennant by Sweet Potato Four. Brass money clip by Owen & Fred. Adventure Log by Word Notebooks. Print magazine fit for the weekend made by Gear Patrol.

We’re now just a week out from Christmas — just as with last week, it’s tough to believe another seven days have flown by. Have you sorted out your Christmas outfit? Here’s one casual suggestion. Know what to get your wife, girlfriend, mom or sister? There’s a gift guide for that. And do you have your own menswear holiday wish list covered? I hope so! If not, you best get working away. Even with all of my own holiday prep, I was still fortunate enough to spend Thursday evening contributing to a good cause (and enjoying some cocktails!) with two good friends, the lovely Lauren Gould of Brooklyn blog The Marcy Stop, and her equally lovely co-host,  Erica Lavelanet of The Fashion Philosophy.

The two organized a holiday fundraiser, cocktail party and clothing drive at Brooklyn’s Blind Barber, with proceeds benefitting the Bowery Mission and spare coats being collected just in time for the cold weather. It was quite the fun night, and I’m definitely thankful to cross paths with some great people through the course of my day job and blogging! I’m certainly hoping to continue that in the new year. But now’s not the time for resolutions — instead, let’s kick off the weekend with a fresh edition of the Friday Read.

  • Just in time for The Force Awakens, Esquire examines exactly why the space ships in Star Wars don’t make any sense — and it’s pretty enlightening.
  • An unseasonably warm past few months has left retailers struggling to sell cold-weather gear, according to the New York Times — and that’s hit retailers like J. Crew especially hard.
  • Dappered’s Best Bets for December just might be the best thing to peruse if you’re still looking for a gift for you dad, brother or best bud — or if you just want to gift yourself.
  • Style Note of the Week: While this spot has normally been reserved for a great long read, it’s worth pointing  out instead this week that perennial Style Guide sock favorite Richer Poorer has a new addition to its roster.  The brand is now doing T-shirts — they’re made from garment-dyed organic cotton and constructed in Los Angeles, and they look to be great quality. Stay tuned for more on those early next year!

If the weekend still hasn’t started for you yet, read on…

  • Upgrade one of the most basic items you carry every day — your white earbuds — with something a little more premium. I’d recommend Woodbuds, who crafts its earbuds out of natural walnut; the quality is on-point, as I found out for VOUCH Mag.
  • American Trench, another Style Guide favorite, is also expanding its product offering — they’re now crafting an outstanding water-repellent bomber jacket right here in America, as I covered for GearHungry.

 

The Friday Read: 2015’s Best Albums, Common Projects and Star Wars

Editor’s note: Expect these posts once a week on Fridays — consider this a jumpstart on reading for your weekend downtime. Expect a mix of style and non-style content. For more entries, click here. 

While last Friday was quite momentous (it was Black Friday after all), today’s edition of The Friday Read is a little quieter — and  that’s a good thing, because it’s certainly been a busy week! I had the pleasure of attending a few action-packed menswear events in New York City this week, kicking off with an evening at the Club Monaco Men’s Shop hosted by Michael Williams, the founder of noted heritage menswear & lifestyle Web site A Continuous Lean. A more gracious host you couldn’t find — it was great to meet him and chat for a bit. As if the week could go up from there, my friends at PR firm Bollare were kind enough to invite me to the #Force4Fashion event, a star-studded evening featuring special one-off Stars Wars-inspired designs from the likes of Todd Snyder and Billy Reid (it’s even cooler that each piece will be auctioned off for charity). I capped off the week by swinging by the Dr. Scholl’s showroom for a look at the brand’s S16 line. That’s right — Dr.  Scholl’s makes men’s shoes, including these neat boots. Look for more on the brand on the blog in the coming weeks. But in the meantime, enough menswear event talk, yes? We’re still rolling right ahead with a big weekend and kicking it off, as always, with a fine selection of newsworthy items from across the Web. Wherever your weekend takes you, I hope it’s an enjoyable one!

  • Land’s End, they of catalog fame, is making a concerted effort to revamp its brand image, according to the New York Times. That includes bringing in stylish models for its lookbooks and opening up an NYC pop-up.
  • Although it’s definitely boot season around these parts, get a load of the latest Common Projects collab, an update of the classic Achilles Low in partnership with Unis.
  • Popular Mechanics notes that you — yes you, lucky rich guy — can have your chance at buying the last watch to orbit the moon, the famed Omega Speedmaster, on Dec. 15. Save up.
  • Long Read of the Week: Paste Magazine ranks the 50 best albums of 2015 — any of your favorites make the list? I personally loved this year’s releases from CHVRCHES, Tame Impala and Beach House. See, I’m not just all about style!

Still need to get your menswear fix before the weekend?

    • Over at VOUCH Mag, I covered two worthy addtions to your holiday wish list — a great dopp kit from Richer-Poorer and Byrd Hairdo Products, and a stellar duffle via United By Blue.
    • If you’ve been following the brand’s relaunch, you’ll be familiar with the Camel Topcoat from JackThreads (it looks amazing) — if not, check out my latest post for GearHungry.

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The Friday Read: TAG Heuer, Bespoke Post and Vierra Watches

Editor’s note: Expect these posts once a week on Fridays — consider this a jumpstart on reading for your weekend downtime. Expect a mix of style and non-style content. For more entries, click here.

As this week comes to a close, I’m looking forward to some rest, some recovery, the chance to kick a cold — and oh yes, a trip back to Grand Rapids, Mich., to see some great college friends! It’ll be my second time in Michigan in about three weeks, and it’s still great to get back. The weekend should hopefully be a prime chance to check out some excellent spots around Beer City U.S.A. Of course, I’ll be bringing along some stylish cold-weather gear from Iron & Resin, JACHS NY and a nice workshirt from the new Reef x H.D. Lee Shelter Supply collab (you might recognize the name as Lee Jeans). As if things weren’t enough of a whirlwind, the trip caps off an exciting week of prep (and execution) for Timberland’s Spring 2016 Press Preview. Some great media (including Megan Collins of Style Girlfriend) and talented bloggers who I’m fortunate enough to call friends came through to preview the brand’s newest offering, so that was quite exciting. As always though, there’s only so much space for my ramblings in the Friday Read — and we’ll leave the rest of it to some nice news from the world of #menswear. Thanks for reading!

  • While not a traditional news story per se, the following is indeed newsworthy — Bespoke Post reintroduced its ever-popular Weekender Box, featuring an ultra-affordable and durable bag perfect for your weekend getaways (a heads-up that if you’re not a member, you’ll have to create an account — which I suggest you do!). Some other terrific travel bag picks are listed here.
  • TAG Heuer joined the litany of brands offering smartwatches this past week, but according to the New York Times, the brand is using some serious hardware from Google and Intel to position itself as a true competitor to the Apple Watch in terms of functionality.
  • Dappered joins the ranks of yet another Friday Read — does anybody do what they do as well as … they do? Of note, the site’s $1,500 Wardrobe series is back; access the Shirts and Sweaters rundown at that link.
  • Style Notes of the Week: As mentioned above, there’s yet another collab launching with great fall gear that you should keep your eye out for. Although you might not have heard of the West Coast-based surfwear company, Reef could be angling for some serious space in your closet with a seven-piece fall & winter essentials Holiday capsule with H.D. Lee Shelter Supply.

What else did you miss (or want to re-read) in the world of men’s style?

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The Friday Read: Men’s Swimsuits, GQ Suiting and Frank & Oak

Editor’s note: Expect these posts once a week on Fridays — consider this a jumpstart on reading for your weekend downtime. Expect a mix of style and non-style content. For more entries, click here.

Although it’s always outstanding to be on vacation (particularly a trip to Greece), it can be just as nice to get back into the swing of work — and of course, the regularly scheduled Friday Read! Fighting off jet lag was a tall order after a particularly adventurous travel day back to the States, followed by a full week of work — but it’s almost in the books now, with what should be a lovely NYC weekend coming up. I’m excited to kick things off by heading to Blind Barber in the East Village this evening for a custom suit fitting courtesy of my friends at Combatant Gentleman — the brand’s chinos and blazers provide great style for the price, so a full suit (in addition to the one I brought on my Mediterranean trip) should be a great treat! I’m planning on checking out ABC Beer Co. nearby after, too. What’s on your plate? I’d suggest kicking things off with the lineup below, for starters.

  • The Men’s Style section of the New York Times runs through the new world of men’s swimwear — one that’s more tailored, less baggy and much better-looking — in this neat feature and infographic.
  • GQ’s editorial squad is on-point with a selection of small suiting tweaks that can elevate your A-game even further when dressing up in the coming months.
  • Frank & Oak, they of the affordable and highly covetable monthly menswear collections, serves up a very cool primer on how to see London in a weekend  — that city’s on The Style Guide’s list of spots to travel in 2016!
  • Long Read of the Week: So this one is more of a hybrid photo story than a true long read, but it’s pretty mind-blowing — Popular Mechanics covers the world’s 25 most impressive megaprojects, most of which are simply staggering in scale.

Florsheim
Got style on your mind?

Ernest Alexander