Imagine, a place packed with the best dressed men from all over the world, curated by The Sartorialist, Scott Schuman. Scott did it. Last month in Florence during Pitti Uomo, he brought together 25 men, all with their own and very unique distinguished style. As Scott puts it: ‘These guys have so much in common and yet, for most of them, their paths never cross. Just imagine, someone like Gianluca, with his dreadlocks and modern-minimalist aesthetic sitting next to Lino, with his old-school Italian charm…. Mr. Kurino and Simone Righi discussing their first suit, Kanye and Terron talking about whatever it is those two super funny characters could dream up…’ Such a great idea!

Again, as always, season after season, year after year, some fantastic imagery for the Spring/Summer collection of Libertine-Libertine. We saw the collection at Pitti and Capsule last weeks, but with this ton-sur-ton twist in the photography it gets even better! Photography by Sacha Maric, concept by Libertine-Libertine and Sacha Maric under the Art Direction of Marco Pedrollo.

Last week Maison Kitsuné released their Fall-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 new Fall-Winter 2012 collection is a modern reinterpretation with a French twist of the now famous British Tweed Run, the old time cycling club! A collection suitable for work, leisure and elegant times!’ We simply love this sophisticated mix of traditional looks and street inspired details.

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 ‘Uniforms for the Dedicated’ named the Blue Cone Colony, which project also entails photo, film and music from the collective.’ The collection is a beautiful accumulation of garments out of hemp, recycled cotton & PET, organic jersey, and fabrics hailing from Japan and the images are simply beautiful!

Walking around at Pitti Immagine Uomo it was hard to see something new. You get used to styles, images and qualities. There was only one brand that really blew my mind. Ten C, The Emperors New Clothes. Its a brand designed by Alessandro Pungetti and Paul Harvey and is made exclusively in Italy. They have only seven jackets in one fabric. The outside fabric comes from the car industry and is used for rooftops. It’s an amazing rock-solid fabric that will last for ever. ‘Tank-like’ like Selectism is putting it. For the inside they have different linings, varying from shearling wool to quilt, to keep you cool during the summer and warm during the winter.
‘These timeless and iconic jackets are created to live and age with you, and the incredible Japanese jersey will, with time, mould itself almost imperceptibly to you. It will become part of your life’s story like the dented wristwatch from when the Bungy broke and would have broken your arm had you not being wearing that watch. The tent that wears the scars of every event it has ever been to with you. That pair of jeans you just cannot throw away. They will become exclusively yours.’
It’s truly next level in quality and style. Keep an eye out for it.

Last week Style Ledger came up with two really nice video features. The last one was a look at American manufacturing, with a focus on the Martin Greenfield factory in Brooklyn. The first one is this feature on one of the top new stores in the US, Modern Anthology, in Brooklyn, NY. ‘The owners John Marsala and Becka Citron have done a terrific job creating a very unique and smartly edited collection that successfully blends classic vintage pieces with newer items.’ Truly an amazing boutique!

Last week I got this lovely present from Deus, the 300 page hardbound picture book of Deus Ex Machina, ‘The House of Simple Pleasures’. We spotted the brand back in 2009 and since than, followed it all the way to Holland. The book is beautifully designed and illustrated by the multi-talented creative director of Deus, Carby Tuckwell with some amazing photography Dustin Humphrey and Chris Searl. It breaths the whole culture, the lifestyle of riding the waves and driving your custom bike in some incredibly inspiring sense of freedom. We’re glad that this brand landed here, where there are no waves and no hills, just some flatland to cross.

The second in a row, our monday’s addition to Another Gift Guide, is the ‘Monday’s Must Haves’ by Tenue de Nîmes, Miscellaneous and the Red Wing Shoes Store Amsterdam. This monday with the super warm Red Wing Shoes Work Gloves, the Nudie Jeans Tight Long John Tour Used Indigo, the lovely Travelteq x Tenue de Nîmes Limited edition Laptop Bag, a beautiful Roberu Iphone 4 Case in blue, and the very nice Tabi Bookmark by Maison Martin Margiela. More next week.

The must-have for this season is definitely this new Arholma Grön (or ‘British Racing Green’, ‘Forest Green’, ‘Weed Green’) raincoat by Stutterheim. Together with off-white lining in the very best cotton and straps in the same quality and colour, this is THE coat to hide both body and soul when out in a forest. Or just to really stand out amongst shadowy looking people in the city.

This beautiful jersey by Tenue de Nîmes and Armor Lux deserves a good place in ‘Another Gift Guide‘. A classic piece with a modern twist, in an amazing quality. This limited edition sailor stripe was knitted and manufactured in Quimper, French Brittany for Armor Lux and Tenue de Nîmes. The shirt is made from 100% combed soft and quality cotton yarn. Go get it here >

Costume National asked Sergei Sviatchenko from Close Up & Private to give his take on the Autumn/Winter ’11/’12 collection. The result is “The Beetles News”. In a mix of photography and collage the style is inspired on a concert back in 1965 from The Beatles in Milano. An inspiring mix of classic style and minimalism. As Ennio Capasa describes it: “In Sergei’s work I see many of Costume National’s characteristics: simplicity, attention to detail, pop style and minimalism”. Be sure to check the CoNSCIOUS video project as well – pretty amazing!

Tomorrow, during the 3rd anniversary of Tenue de Nîmes, they will launch a limited edition pair of hand-dyed indigo Chuck Taylor All Stars high top sneakers.
The Chuck Taylor All Star serves as a perfect muse for Tenue de Nîmes. With deep roots in style and culture, both the Chuck Taylor All Star shoe and indigo denim have led somewhat parallel lives. The Chuck Taylor All Star shoe and a pair of jeans have long been a staple of youth culture and music and have served as a symbol of independence for decades. Fittingly, Tenue de Nîmes asked the legendary denim experts, the Manabe family from Okoyama in Japan, owners of the Momotaro brand and Rampuya dyeing factory, if they would be able to indigo-dye a limited amount of 50 pairs of high tops. The decision to create a new version of the indigo dyed Chuck Taylor All Star was made after the world turned upside down when the the Oxford version of the Indigo-dyed Chuck Taylor was released in July of this year.
The shoe is available here.