A vintage Breitling on display in the company's 57th Street shop.

A few weeks back I got an invite to meet the new Breitling USA President, Thierry Prissert at the watchmaker’s new boutique on 57th Street. Me being someone with a fairly shallow knowledge of Breitling, it seemed like a good opportunity to learn about a very historic brand straight from the head of the company.

Honestly, what I had been expecting to see at Breitling was a lot of very very large brutish watches that don’t appeal to me. Upon visiting the shop and seeing the collection, my preconceived opinion was partially confirmed. But more surprisingly, Breitling also has some very classic looking timepieces that I would definitely want to own.

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When Jack Spade was moving from selling just bags and accessories to also offering apparel, the company put forward a small selection of clothing (suits) that were sized small, medium and large. I can say with little hesitation that this attempt at quirkiness was one of the most appalling things I have come to witness in my short existence in the world of menswear. Maybe I am being too harsh; utterly appalling and disgusting would be another way to describe it. To be completely honest, I was sad and embarrassed that some idiot would actually come up with this idea. Further, I was disturbed that another, altogether different group of idiots would let it actually happen. Well we all make mistakes, and these mistakes only open the door for redemption. That’s how I see it anyway.

As it happens, redemption has arrived for fall and it is pictured herein. To quote the only acceptable Ben Affleck movie: “The faculty have answered, and answered with vigor.”

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Hat maker Quaker Marine Supply seems to be something destined for “discovery” by your favorite local Americana loving menswear shop. Originally founded on the Philadelphia waterfront, the company has been making classic hats (mostly geared toward the seafaring set) in the U.S. since 1946.

The company changed ownership recently and relocated to Portland, Maine in 2003, though it continues to produce some seriously iconic cover — and for reasonable prices. Take for instance the wool and suede ball caps pictured herein. You’ve probably seen versions of these hats in a variety of different stores of catalogs, but the Quaker Marine versions aren’t the cheap imported variety you are accustom to seeing, these are the real deal. Made in the USA and all for 28 bucks.

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• Probably the best 160 second video history of a 160 year old company you will ever see. [Bally] [Pictured]
• An auction full of amazing pilot’s watches [Hodinkee]
• American Apparel makes 53,000,000 garments a year in L.A. [American Apparel Factory Tour]
• MN-based Duluth Pack drops a tasty looking bag exclusive to Barneys [Selectism]
• That shit cray. Nike is getting after the military boot thing. [SlamxHype]

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The denim loving guys at Self Edge sent out an email this morning about their recently acquired almost-new Union Special 43200G chainstich machine. The lore of these Union Specials and their coveted status among denim-nerds is the stuff of legend — which makes the below story even more remarkable. No word as to how much coin the Self Edge guys paid for this thing (or where it came from, which is a better question), but I’m guessing it’s somewhere between a Submariner and a Royal Oak.

More on Self Edge’s new/old Union Special 43200G from the company’s blog:

If there is one machine in the current world of vintage style jeans that has the mystique of a fairly tale it’s the Union Special 43200G chainstitching machine. This is the machine the Japanese first scoured the world for starting in the 1980′s, they wanted them to place in their factories which reproduced vintage styles of American jeans from the 1950′s and before. It was a good twenty years until the rest of the world realized what was happening in Japan, by that time most of the 43200G machines had been bought up by the Japanese factories, brands, and retailers to put in their stores for in-store hemming.

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File this under, better late than never. A few weeks back I got to check out the new items from the second round of Levi’s x Filson collaboration. I went to a little preview for the collection and liked what I saw. Afterwards I got to thinking and wanted to check our the items in person and post some pictures — which you are now finally seeing. All in all, I think this new collab capsule is a nice update to the previous co-labeled goods. The Hunter Trucker is a definite winner in terms of concept and execution. In person the shelter cloth looks a lot more olive than it appears on the Filson website (which looks more sage to me). Also included in the collaboration is a Tin Cloth Sawtooth shirt, a slubby-denim looking hunting vest and a pair of Tin Cloth 505s.

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There’s The Impossible Cool, and then there’s this collection of home movies from Roddy McDowall’s personal archive featuring many an iconic actor and actress enjoying themselves on the California coast. Paul Newman (with his can of Busch beer) is present, as is Jane Fonda (looking exceptionally young and beautiful), Kirk Douglas, Anthony Perkins, Judy Garland and many more of their famous friends who make appearances.

While it is truly amazing to see all of these stars relaxed and having fun with one another, it is also amazing to see what they are wearing. The clothing in these films are incredible. The only branding I noticed during the whole series was a few shots of one perfect red Lacoste polo shirt. A fascinating glimpse into an otherwise private and decidedly stylish life. Thanks to Andy for the tip.

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