Today one of those things you never thought would (or maybe should) be documented was documented. Today GQ published the Oral History of Menswear Blogging and I have to say it is pretty interesting. Somehow I managed to harass my dad and make fun of Lawrence Schlossman all in the same article — sorry guys. And if you can’t tell, I was only (mostly) joking.

Some choice quotes below and full article here.

Michael Williams: Maybe I’m out of touch, but I never liked the whole double monk thing. I think a lot of this stuff has gotten out of control. At the Pop Up Flea [in 2009], some dude showed up in a henley and Carhartt overalls, seriously, with like a bandana in his back pocket. That shit looks weird at a truck stop in rural Pennsylvania. You can’t be wearing that shit in SoHo. Now it’s all these Italian unstructured garment-washed jackets.

Lawrence is like the leader of all these little things. He’s the one that gets on bracelets and shit. I never subscribed to that either, the whole bracelet thing. I’ll leave that to Man Repeller, I’m good on wearing 10 bracelets. I’m not at fucking summer camp.

Lawrence Schlossman: I think the age difference in bloggers determines how susceptible they are to experimenting style-wise. An older guy, such as Michael, has had more time behind the wheel and knows pretty quickly when he has absolutely no interest in something. I wear them because I saw Kanye West wear them at Coachella.

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The fall catalog from Beauty & Youth United Arrows showed up at my office a little while back and I am starting to suspect that it was sent just to taunt me. The Japanese shop is one that I always make a point to visit while in Tokyo. This season the guys at Beauty & Youth went crazy making up some awesome Harris Tweed clothing and accessories — which were far and away my favorite items on offer.

In addition to the private label, Beauty & Youth are also stocking some great footwear like the corduroy Vans and the limited distribution Irish Setter boots from Red Wing that are pictured below. It’s a solid offering of updated classics that has me contemplating a trip to Tokyo, or at least an email to my proxy.

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Convincing your best friend to drive you to downtown L.A. to check out a new shop isn’t always an easy thing. As someone that lives in New York I get the aversion to “downtown” — it’s a big commitment. Similarly for me, at times it is difficult to get me to leave my twenty block bubble in downtown New York. Luckily though, my friend didn’t mind making the trip and today we got to check out the new retail arm of maker Apolis for the first time.

The new shop, dubbed Apolis: Common Gallery is a minimal men’s retail store on East 3rd Street that stocks all of the complete line from the burgeoning menswear label, along with nearly all of the brand’s many collaborations. The simple space, true to its name, also serves as a gallery to showcase the content (film and otherwise) from the company’s many sourcing and humanitarian missions all over the world.

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Another Pop Up Flea in the books — a big thanks to all that participated, either as a vendor or those that just stopped by to check things out. The event has become much more than just a chance for folks to come and buy stuff, for that my cohort Randy Goldberg and I are truly proud. Speaking of Randy, much respect to him for all of his hard work and imaginative thinking. I would be hard pressed to name another project that I have as much fun producing — so cheers to you Mr. Goldberg. Pop Up Flea sort of came together at the last minute this year due to our struggles to find a suitable space. Eventually we found the venue (thanks to Whitney for that) and it was full speed ahead. I’m glad it all worked out. Randy and I are really proud of all that has come out of people attending the flea and the vendors putting in the effort to make it all happen. My thanks to all of them and to all that came by or supported other ways.

Below are some photos from the event. Some pictures are mine, some are via Travel Well and some are from Simple Threads.

See more here:

Travel Well | Simple Threads

Read more here:

New York Observer | New York Magazine | GQ

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Last year Jamie Milestone (of London Undercover) and I first collaborated on a Black Watch plaid and orange cashmere scarf a scheme I lauded as “world’s greatest color combination.” Well, we didn’t have any intention at stopping at a simple scarf. So this year we got together and made up another collab, but one closer to London Undercover’s roots. We took the same wonderful color combo and made a limited edition London Undercover x ACL & Co. umbrella. Along the way, we’ve basically discovered that everything looks better in Black Watch and orange, this not being the exception.

More info from Mr. Milestone about our newest collaboration:

When we both met in Paris to discuss the project, we pointed out that it was in fact, our French cousins who first turned the modern Parasol into a waterproof rain umbrella. It very quickly crossed the pond and took off in London… much to the dismay of local coachmen who were doing very nicely transporting locals around in the rain. It felt fitting that we develop the umbrella in one of the oldest factories in France

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The time is upon us, the fourth ever Pop Up Flea is happening this weekend in New York City. We’ve got 30+ vendors participating (brand list below), all but ensuring that there’s something for everybody. To give you an idea of what to expect, we made a little video highlighting just a few of the folks you will see at the flea.

During the process of assembling the roster, my cohort Randy Goldberg and I were guided by the conviction of quality goods with no obsolescence. We think we’ve exceeded our original goal, but we’ll let you be the judge. We will be at 159 Bleecker Street Friday, Saturday and Sunday — hope to see you there.

If you can’t make it, follow the action live on the Twitters via @pop_up_flea. Music (from the video): Middle Brother “Blue Eyes” Courtesy of Partisan Records.

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A little over a year ago I stumbled upon The Good Flock from Portland, Oregon and picked up one of their wool iPad cases. I still use that case nearly every day, it even works with my iPad2 and smart cover all together. I toss them in a bag, am on my way and don’t have to worry about it. In the past year the product line has grown and The Good Flock now offer additional items like leather goods, bags and a more complete line up of technology cases. I love the wool stuff and my iPad case always gets lots of love from people, but the waxed canvas bags are, in my opinion, really something special.

The Tokyo Bag (above) is far and way my favorite. On the surface it is a standard waxed canvas tote (of which we have seen many similar variants before), but when you drill down further you start to get a better idea of the functionality that is built into its design. The carryall has a total of eight pockets (four on the exterior, four on the interior) which come in amazingly handy. If you want to drop your keys, phone, cell phone and sunglasses all in their own compartment it’s a maneuver orchestrated with ease. I don’t ever want my keys and phone in the same pocket (because of the potential for scratches) and same goes for my glasses, which makes me appreciate the pockets on the Tokyo Bag. It’s a simple concept but one that I got into immediately after using the bag.

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While up in Toronto this week we met up with some friends at their office in the city to check the place out and then have dinner. Upon arrival we got a little tour and then had a little meeting, very standard stuff. Once that was over we packed up and started to head out to have dinner — right before we were to leave, our friend Jeremy said there was one other thing he wanted to show us. We then went into his business partner’s office and discovered the most awesome thing every imagined by man: a super huge and massively detailed RC race track that was so big that it had to be built in the room. The best part about it, the guy’s wife didn’t know he had it made (or of course, how much he spent on it) so we are bound to secrecy and can’t disclose his identity.

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It’s that time of year again, Pop Up Flea time. Come December 2nd, 3rd and 4th we will be holding the fourth edition of our menswear market of desirable new and vintage goods — and all are welcome. We’re excited to release the brand line-up soon, but until them know that we are going to have a lot of the great folks from previous PUFs, and a bunch of great new labels. This could be dangerous — hide your kids, hide your wallet, hide your wife.

*New Location*
159 Bleecker Street, NYC
December 2nd, 3rd & 4th.

View Larger Map

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Occasionally something will land in the ACL inbox that warrants some attention on the wider internets, this short video by reader Adam Lytle is certainly one of those things. This year when heading up to his family’s annual hunting trip in Michigan Adam packed his 7D (I’m assuming — and you know what they say about assumptions) to capture what has become a cherished male bonding tradition with his family. It’s not necessarily about how much game that is “harvested,” it’s more about the stories and the time together in the outdoors. It’s something I see in my many sets of old Kodachrome slides, America’s love of hunting and fishing. Watch the video and read more about Adam’s family tradition below.

Every October for the past thirty years, my father and his brothers have come together in northern Michigan to spend a week hunting roughed grouse and woodcock amidst the color change of the leaves. The trip was originally organized by my grandfather, Robert J. Lytle as a way to spend time with his four sons, all who grew up tagging along on his many trips into the woods. On his passing, in the early nineties, his ashes were spread over his favorite hunting grounds. Every year we return in his memory.

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There are certain companies that make me crazy with how awesome their stuff is — Schoolhouse Electric is definitely one of those companies. It’s like Restoration Hardware, except real and everything is made in America. With the launch of its new website (which goes live today), Schoolhouse is releasing a few special items not previously seen. My favorite items is this classic 1960s wall clock which is made in partnership with IBM and offered today for the first time.

More info from Schoolhouse:

Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co. partnered with IBM to exclusively produce their iconic 1960s standard issue wall clock. Over the last 100 years IBM has evolved from producing time clocks to pioneering data processing. This classic clock celebrates IBM’s product heritage and centennial along with Schoolhouse’s recent product expansion into iconic American home and office products.

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