John Bartlett the American designer kicked off Olympus Fashion Week earlier today. Favorite of the old money and wannabe old money type folks, he once again does not disappoint with his classic take on preppyness with a twist. A little overdone again on the nautica theme but I guess a lot of his fans are the one’s that can afford sailboats and yachts.

Which brings me to the question why on earth was Tyson Ritter of The All-American Rejects modeling for John Bartlett.

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If you’re visiting New York City in the following days and are thinking to yourself that’s there’s an obscene level of beautiful people, it’s not just your imagination. It’s just a signal that Olympus Fashion Week is in town. Olympus Fashion Week goes through September 8th to 15th and will showcase dozens of designers Spring ’07 collection.

I will showcase some of the bigger menswear designers throughout the week.

To learn more about Olympus Fashion Week visit the official website:
http://www.olympusfashionweek.com

When trends get picked up by the general public(ie. Walmart sells it), naturally there’s a backlash from the fashion elite. One trend on the way out is the square toe shoes that have been popular for several years. Coming back strong are the classic pointy or wing-tip shoes.

Always a good thing when the classics come back in style, not only are the classics generally more stylish but it’s also very generous to one’s wallet because we usually already have the items in our closets. Dusty but nothing a bit of TLC will take care of.

Being a Canadian I fortunately get to enjoy all four seasons, but having a winter, especially a Canadian winter can be killer on a car. Not only will you get some funny stares driving your Porsche 911 in the dead of winter but you will also be asking for a death wish. Rear-wheel drive and anything over 300hp don’t go too well with icy roads. Not to mention the salt will just eat away at the car’s body.

So a lot of us will have a summer and winter car, for the fortunate one’s they would have two nice cars but seeing how we’re not all professional hockey players it’s usually a nice car in the summer and a beater in the winter. A Toronto-based company called Dreamfleet is trying to solve this dilemma with offering what basically comes down to a timeshare for automobiles. Similar to what has been available for airplanes and private jets for sometime now.

Describing itself as an “automobile lifestyle club,” DreamFleet, on its
website, says it offers “four flexible, convenient programs to suit your
personal driving patterns.”. Depending on your membership level you can choose from a variety of luxury vehicles, from a BMW 325 to a Mercedes-Benz CLK500 convertible.

To learn more, visit Dreamfleet:
http://www.dreamfleet.com

Just after my last post about me complaining about the lack of style of the Blackberry, RIM announces today a much more consumer-oriented Blackberry, The Pearl. Now no longer the domain of just the suits, this new Blackberry looks more appealing, has MP3 playback capabilities, and finally includes a camera. RIM also ditched the trademark thumbwheel in favor of a trackball which is suppose to be a lot easier to use and less taxing on your thumb.

The Pearl also is smaller and slimmer than other Blackberry devices making it easier to carry but makes it less effective as a weapon to knockout your personal assistants with, sorry Naomi.

The new device is very tempting, but the smaller form factor means no full QWERTY keyboard. I guess that’ll be a sacrifice I’ll be willing to make.

To learn more about the Blackberry Pear visit:
http://www.blackberrypearl.com

One of my favorite new watch collections was revealed earlier this year, the Longines LungoMare. There’s no doubt that the new collection is targeting a younger crowd with its contemporary style and affordable price, retailing at around $1000. Don’t let the low price tag throw you off, this watch is packed with style. The design is influenced on a older model dating from 1933, thus the reason at the hint of Art Deco styling.

Longines may not be as recognizable watch making brand as its counterparts but watch aficionados would say otherwise. During the early Apollo projects, NASA sent a few dozen watches to see how they would perform under the stress of space travel and Longines was only 1 of the 3 that passed. Ultimately it was Omega watches NASA decided to make the official watch of astronauts.

The LungoMare collection is available in three sizes men’s, ladies’, and midsize.

To learn more visit:
http://www.longines.com

Connetics the company that produces the most popular and only FDA-approved over-the-counter hair lost treatment has released it’s much anticipated foam version of Rogaine. The foam application will make it easier to combat male pattern baldness for the unfortunate souls that suffer from it. Instead of dealing with a messy twice a day application the new foam goes on like your typical mousse. Just spray it on to your hands and work it in your scalp. The best part is it won’t interfere with your other hair products so it won’t be too obvious to other’s that you’re using Rogaine, but just make sure you’re not using it if you’re training for the Olympics.

The new foam Rogaine is available at CVS and other drugstores nationwide.

The Blackberry is the ‘it’ device for the new urbanite, we can’t function without one. It’s like a cop in Compton trying to do his job without a gun, it ain’t happening. Now if you’ve been living in a cave for the past few years, a Blackberry is a device that lets you read and write emails from anywhere with a cellphone tower nearby. It also doubles as a cellphone and internet browser but the main reason one has a Blackberry is for the email functionality.

Now I love my Blackberry, but I have to admit it’s quite ugly when comparing it to slick cellphones like the RAZR. But this is one thing I can live with functionality over style. However, Justin of Dime the basketball/streetball magazine couldn’t and did something about it. With his love of basketball and obvious connections to the industry, he took his Blackberry and with the help of Nike’s Lasarium he etched the Jordan XX allover print on to it. Looks amazing but too bad it’s not available to the general public.

Source: StapleDesign

With the recent terrorism scare in Europe new regulations about carry on products were put in place. Unfortunately the new TSA regulations aren’t too welcoming if you enjoy a high standard of hygiene. No liquids which means a ban on colognes, no aerosol cans which means a ban on body spray, and no gels which leaves a lot of toothpaste and face wash out of the question. As you can see, maintaining one’s upkeep is now a lot more harder but not impossible.

A recent NY Times article gives us pointers on what grooming products will pass security. The article mainly focuses on women’s products but certainly can be helpful to us guys. The basic rule the author gives is to keep to powders, sticks, and wipes.

My suggestion: baby wipes (unscented of course).

Click here to read the full NY Times article …

Everyone has been there before, spending late nights working because your project manager grossly underestimated the necessary time to complete the project. The next day you come to work feeling like death and your eyes are bloodshot looking like you’re ready to compete against Ben Johnson in the 100m. Not only is this bad for your eyes it is also not very attractive and unfortunately it is becoming way too routine for people in the workforce these days.

Of course you can use eye drops but that will just chemically remove the redness and dryness. A new product Tranquileyes is offering an alternative, it’s a soft, flexible goggle that keeps your eye area moist and is suppose to prevent the evaporation of natural tears. Along with soothing dry eyes, it also claims to reduce puffiness and swelling around your eyes.

Visit Eye Eco to learn more about Tranquileyes:
http://www.eyeeco.com

Source: Popgadget.com

Technology is a good thing it can make life easier but sometimes it can border on the ridiculous. And the later category can be used to described the new Hansacanyon faucet which has a built in temperature sensor and will change colors accordingly; blue for cold, purple for warm, and red for hot. Now I’m not too sure what use this has because if I had one of these I would still test the temperature of the water myself to get it just right.

These faucets may be ridiculous but I still can’t help myself from wanting one. They don’t really serve much use but I’m a sucker for things that are stylish and cool.

Visit Hansa’s website to learn more about these ultra-cool faucets …

Source: Apartmenttherapy

In a very brave op-ed by Forbes writer Michael Noer, he suggests that you should not marry a career women.

“Guys: a word of advice. Marry pretty women or ugly ones. Short ones or tall ones. Blondes or brunettes. Just, whatever you do, don’t marry a woman with a career.”

Michael backs his opinion by citing a recent study in Social Forces, which found that women are happier when their husband is the primary breadwinner. He digs down even further and finds even more proof from various research journals including that they will be unhappy if they halt their career to raise kids, unhappy if they make more money than you, you will be more likely to fall ill, and even your house will be dirtier.

It’s actually a well written piece and Michael was very careful to back everything with research. But when you’re making that big of a claim, you’re going to get some backlash and that’s exactly what happened. After numerous complaints the article was pulled down and later reinserted along another opinion piece, “Don’t Marry A Lazy Man” by Elizabeth Corcoran. All in good fun, you can read the articles here …

Caparo is not a household brand but just wait until people start spotting their first supercar the Caparo T1 on the streets of London, Dubai, and Monte Carlo. Caparo is the brainchild of two ex-McLaren engineers so they have all qualifications necessary to build one badass supercar. And with the debut of the prototype Caparo T1 it seems like they are on the right track.

As its outrageous styling suggests, the T1 is all business with bodywork styled for functionality above aesthetics, though I think it looks fantastic. The company promises F1 performance in a street legal package, the prototypes are doing 0-60mph in 2.5 seconds which is just insane. Like the latest F1 cars, the T1 uses a 2.4-litre V8, though supercharged and with a lower rev limit for reliability.

Caparo is aiming for the T1 to be the world’s first production car to exceed 1000bhp-per-tonne, that’s twice the amount of a Buggati Veyron the current most powerful and expensive street legal car. So if you have an extra £165,000 or $310,000 sitting around you should seriously consider adding the Caparo T1 to your collection.

It should be available to customers by the end of this year.

The saying “What’s old is new again” is none more apparent when it comes to fashion and trends. Don’t look now but the once cool-to-you mullet you had in the 80’s is now making a strong comeback in Europe. Maybe it’s the lack of trailer parks in Europe that they can pull it off without being ridiculed, but whatever it is, you can probably expect the trend to hit North American shores anytime now.

The trend started by the fashion icon David Beckham in the early 2000’s is now being carried on by guys like dance singer star Gunther and young soccer stars like Fernando Torres of Atlético. Now coined the “euromullet” it is more subtle but undeniable still a mullet.

I myself will wait for someone like Brad Pitt to make it mainstream over on these shores before donning it myself.

Unlike women and their purses, men’s wallets haven’t necessarily been an accessory to make a statement. The typical selection would be limited to black or brown, more adventurous men would opt for some sort of reptile skin instead of cow leather. A lot of that is due to our wallets hiding in our back pockets so you could easily get away with your ratty 5-year old wallet in your $200 Ben Sherman pants.

Paul Smith the British fashion label has released some of the nicest wallets I’ve seen for a long time that counter the typical black and brown wallet. His latest line of wallets are your typical plain black leather on the outside but have prints on the inside of iconic-british items like the Mini, football, and Triumph motorcycle. But the one which is by far my favorite is the naked girl wallet, which features a Vargas-esque girl holding a phone. There was also a special edition naked girl wallet made for the World Cup which featured the girl holding a soccer ball instead of the phone.

So the next time you’re thinking of accessories, don’t forget to complete the picture with a nice wallet because you don’t want to be embarrassed on your first dinner date with a beautiful girl.