The Maps & Intel page has been updated again, this time with Los Angeles bars and restaurants. This map is a whopper, the most comprehensive to date. The gastro-guide is a partnership with the excellent Kitsune Noir who contributed (along with his best friend Max; thank you Max) heavily to this. Happy dining!
I recently updated the Maps & Intel page with a handy guide to Los Angeles shopping. While the New York map has been on the site for a while, its LA centered counterpart has been long overdue. LA is one of my favorite places to shop and this map is a good starting point for anyone interested in doing their thing, materialistically. Please do send on suggestions and additions, this is only the beginning. Also, many thanks to Meagan for doing a lot of the legwork on the map. LA drinking and dining to follow.
Los Angeles Shopping Map (Men’s):
This could be the definitive source for how to tie a bow tie. Complex tapped men’s accessories designer, film maker and Paul + Williams’ client Alexander Olch to preach the bow tie instructional gospel.
Click the image to watch the video.
Speaking of shoes, the folks at the storied English maker Grenson have a very handy guide to footwear terminology. So next time you are out shoe shopping you can drop some knowledge on the sales clerk and earn the respect you deserve.
It should also be pointed out that the real inventor of the Goodyear Welt was Christian Dancel. Charles Goodyear (heir to the Goodyear tire fortune) mearly bought the rights to Dancel’s machine, which is how the term Goodyear Welt came to be.
If you haven’t noticed already, there is a new addition to the header called The American List. The idea of making a collective listing of American made products came to me as I was searching the internets for previously undiscovered brands that produce goods domestically. I found that the Made in the USA lists that are out there are generally pretty crappy and inevitably unstylish. So there you have it, a list of American-made yet fashionable things is born.
The lovely Joanna Goddard from Glamour’s Smitten blog asked me to put together a guy-orientated gift guide for her readers (for the ladies). You can see the full feature here.
I put together two Google Maps for the ACL faithful. One is a men’s shopping guide, and the other is a reference to where to drink and dine in the city. The restaurant/bar map is an adaptation of a friend’s very well made map of the same subject. I owe many of the well researched listings to him. The maps will live in the aptly named “Maps” section of the sidebar on the right. Your suggestions for additions are much encouraged and appreciated.
The Details team seems to be dedicating more space to the front of book news pages these days. I noticed the new look in March but I didn’t get a chance to go over it here. I was impressed with the improved section from the April issue. The art direction has been cleaned up and redesigned creating a fresh new look. There are a few enjoyable pages of news and service in the section. One that I particularly enjoyed is a breakdown of presidential style through the years. I noticed that Details didn’t play favorites and featured four Democrats and four Republicans. The story was an interesting way to discuss the 2008 presidential candidate’s style because normally those features are brutal.
This week I’m doing press appointments to show our new AW08 collections. Olch is showing ninety-four styles of ties this season, almost twice as many as last season. Out of those ninety-four, one bow tie has garnered the most attention from editors. It is made of a very soft Alpaca fabric and some are skeptical that it can even be tied. In one appointment I was even challenged to tie it – which inevitably brings up the discussion of learning to tie a bow tie. I learned the skill about five years ago by repeatedly tying the bow shape on my leg for practice. Once my hands had learned the motion, I switched to my neck. I wouldn’t say that method is the most effective, but it worked. There are a lot of guides out there teaching men the essential skill of tying a bow, most of which are crap. I did manage to find two informative and helpful videos on the subject for those still working to master the art of tying a proper bow tie.
I like to join things merely for the sake of membership. The more obscure the group the better. Two organizations that I think are endearing and worth joining are the Letter Writers Alliance and the Corduroy Appreciation Club.
The Corduroy Appreciation Club
New York is the capital of the service universe. If you have a crazy idea for a company, New York City is the one place that has enough people with the disposable income to make it a success. With everything in the world being “luxury” these days, companies have to work hard to find new services that distinguish themselves to the 10021 set. Enter Flatrate Elite, the high-end moving company that provides the world’s only true luxury moving experience. The company professes to have thought of everything, from providing you with your own private “elite liaison”, to setting up all of your electronics, to moving your rare wine collection. This really seems like something Michael Shvo would think up. How long until Flatrate Elite is the official mover of the W New York Downtown? Also, how has this not been covered in New York Magazine?
Literally, all you need is a Centurion Card and a lot of nice stuff that needs moving. You barely have to know your address. Okay, all you have to know is your name and how to use your cell phone. That’s it!
More info from the company’s website.
“Led by your personal Elite Liaison, we’ll handle everything you need for your move from start to finish. From planning and logistics, to unpacking and setup, we’ll move you to your new home while beautifully managing and protecting your art, antiques, wine collection, pianos, buildings, and more in the process.”
Las Vegas never fails to amuse me with its outdoor advertising. I remember on one of my first visits in the nineties seeing the signs for the 1-800-DNA-Test companies that help you figure out who fathered your child. Ridiculous. The trend continues with the amazing – Las Vegas style Swiss banking vaults. These Private Vaults help secure your stacks of cash and keep your wife/ex-wife/future wife or the federal government at bay. Supposedly the company uses retina scanning to keep you free from pesky record keeping. My question is, what happens when the “ultimate protection” decides to leave town in the middle of the night? I suppose that would be a typical result for Vegas, going home without your money…
