Recently we were introduced to the New York based Gage + DeSoto, a project in which founder Mike Spriggs combines his profound love (shared by me) of books and cycling. Mike, also a former collaborator with Rapha for the New York Cycle Club, recently opened a small storefront in Brooklyn which is open in the weekends and is doing business online around the clock. Gage + DeSoto has a wonderful bike related collection consisting of magazines, books, notebooks and prints, but also has t-shirts, cycling shirts, cycling hats and helmets and all kinds of accessories which you can use on and with your bike. [ Continue reading ]

While Bradley Wiggins will hit the first mountains during the 10th stage of the Tour de France, Fred Perry released this special collaboration. Cycling jerseys were standard mod-attire during the early 1960’s, and Wiggin’s collection is inspired by this unique relationship between the sport and… [ Continue reading ]

Yesterday a new Dutch magazine was launched called Soigneur, a stylish and beautifully made magazine dedicated to road cycling. Documenting the love for cycling and the world around in interviews, photo reports, and background stories the magazine is a welcome alternative to the boring industry magazines. Featured in this… [ Continue reading ]

Definitely the best images made of the Tour de France with no bikes at all are these two images by Robert Capa in Pleyben, Brittany, France, July 1939. The excited crowd watching the tour come by in front of the bicycle shop owned by Pierre Cloarec, one of… [ Continue reading ]

We love denim, and we love gadgets… And we like it a lot when those two join forces. Ikku is doing that. Ikku is a new Dutch company creating accessories for your laptop and i-devices, all made out of recycled and organic denim. Ikku… [ Continue reading ]

When I started road cycling a few years back I bought a simple bike, just to see if this was the thing I wanted to do. After the first km's it felt like I was built for it! When I met Elian, a dutch craftsman building some amazing bicycles, a year ago, I instantly wanted a bike from him as my 'official' road bike. We did a little tour together with The Village from Utrecht to Antwerp and back, supported by Rapha, joint by Ajanaku a.o. and I got infected with the custom bicycle virus... We sat down, talked about steel frames, details, colors, old vs new techniques and we drew the first outlines of my new bike. More then 6 months later it is here, and it was so much worth the wait! [ Continue reading ]

Where Cyclepedia was the must-have app for bike lovers, Road Inc. is it for car-lovers. It’s is a museum like experience with fully interactive Anthology of Cars. ‘Richer than the heaviest book, deeper than a video collection, more immersive than a game, Road Inc. offers users a… [ Continue reading ]

Days away from riding my new custom build bike by Elian Cycles (later more on that) I found these images shot for the first issue of Curves Magazine. The magazine is dedicated to Route des Grandes Alpes. A route through the Alps to the Mediterranean, crossing 16 high… [ Continue reading ]

Last week Maison Kitsuné released their Autumn-Winter 2012 Men’s collection designed by Masaya Kuroki. ‘Imagine a very sophisticated chic man riding his bicycle in the city with a traditional outfit… The epitome of elegance! This is exactly what is running in Maison Kitsuné designer Masaya Kuroki’s head. The… [ Continue reading ]

Last week we received a lovely package with some small notebooks, pens and pencils from Calepino. We love stationary, but are are always very picky which one to use. Years back we started with Moleskine, then moved a level up with Rhodia (also made in France) and we're now very attached to the Midori notebooks. But we can't leave these small books un-noted. In their nice boxes, with rounded corners, robust cover and practical dimensions, they're simply beautiful. 'The Calepino pocket book was designed to be carried anywhere. [ Continue reading ]

For the spring/summer collection of 2012 ‘Uniforms for the Dedicated’ teamed up with the Treehotel in the deep woodlands of northern Sweden. ‘A land flooded in midnight sunlight, where nature strikes balance between time, space and its surroundings, became the inspirational destination for the latest collection from… [ Continue reading ]

Together with 21st Avenue Bicycles, Portland, Draught Dry Goods made this amazing track drop wrapped in 2oz vegetable tanned leather. This one is a special one, tattooed by Draught Dry Goods owner Caesy Oney’s own tattoo artist in Portland, Oregon. [ Continue reading ]

Spanish fashion and textile designer Carmesine Blauvent is a passionate paraglider and the girl behind Blauvent, a line of bags and accessories for paraglider pilots made out of recycled chutes. I completely fell in love with her photo diary ‘about spanish landscapes’. A beautiful view… [ Continue reading ]

Love this newcomer La Belle Échoppe. Simple, beautiful, well made goods with a history and an interesting approach, born from the collaboration between FrenchTrotters and redingote.
Inspired by “Qualités de vie, objets des valeurs quotidienne” from 1991, a book about what’s beautiful and well made, and what was important in people’s life’s at that time, they made a nice curated selection of products, entirely dedicated to “made in France”. My favorites are definitely this grey Desert Boot with recycled rubber sole, made in Lower Normandy by Eimpreinte and the Eau de Cologne à la Française by Institut Très Bien. [ Continue reading ]

London based graphic designer Peter Richardson released his first bicycle under the name Wren Bicycles. A really nice combination of classic styling with contemporary features, uncomplicated lines of the handcrafted steel frame with small wheels and the quintessentially British colour options – Ivory White or Oxford Blue. [ Continue reading ]

After a lovely week in the south of France I’m back. We’ve enjoyed the wine, the weather but sadly enough not the hills on my bike. A broken rear dropout kept me from climbing the hills, which was too bad, especially since Rapha supported us with some really… [ Continue reading ]

This is the proof that a bicycle shop doesn’t need to be a shady, dusty, smudgy place. Pavé Culture Cycliste is an amazing space in Barcelona. A bicycle shop that looks like a gallery, selling all my favorite brands like Rapha, Brompton,… [ Continue reading ]

Our feature in the new issue of Bright Magazine is focused on our ongoing quest for the perfect bag. Clockwise: 1. J. Panther Luggage Co.’s leather Aviator, 2. Bedouin Barbary, 3. COTEetCIEL Traveler, 4. Buzzhouse macbook air case by Atsushi… [ Continue reading ]

We’re back! After a bike ride of more than 250 km, from Utrecht to Antwerp and back, we all arrived safe at The Village coffee & music. I wanted to thank everybody for supporting us along the way! On first hand Rapha for the… [ Continue reading ]

On this early day in spring, with the first beams of sunlight on our face, we started of in Utrecht (the Netherlands) with a group of 10 friends. Bike builders, barista’s, bloggers and likes, on hand made bicycles from Elian Cycles. Now… [ Continue reading ]

The weather is getting better here in the lowlands, but it’s still cold, too cold. And since Rapha will open a temporary Cycle Club in Mallorca I’d really love to escape for a moment and get my bike to the sunny island of Mallorca. Located in… [ Continue reading ]

On Saturday, March 12th, we will hit the road with eight friends to make a journey from Utrecht to Antwerp on the handmade bikes from Elian, to return the next day with fresh roasted coffee beans for the new espresso bar, The Village Coffee… [ Continue reading ]

While preparing our bicycle trip from Utrecht to Antwerp and back later this month, I stumbled upon this nice documentary. 13 cyclists from Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco took their fixies to make a ride from Tokyo to Osaka. Maybe after our ride Utrecht – Antwerp… [ Continue reading ]

After browsing the internet, looking for some vintage bicycles, I found this piece of art. The 1979 Guerciotti Oro was part of the Guerciotti-Ten Speed Drive display at the 1979 New York Bike Show. This extremely well documented beauty was owned (and photographed) by Miami… [ Continue reading ]