Take A Bow...

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Bow ties are the alternative to the normal ties, especially for those who wanna up their sartorial look into another height. Typically seen on museum curators or librarian geek or even old professors (or Lanvin's Alber Elbaz!), nowadays bow tie has been given a modern twist so that it won't be too synonymous with those said group anymore. Anybody who is everybody who wanna be different and preppy can try 'em with more contemporary feel. From various fabrications and patterns, to the slight tweak on the design whether making it smaller, layeres or in whiskas-look, I think bow ties are perfect not only for tuxedo, but also for casual, nonchalance trendy ensemble.

At Mr. Porter, there're various to choose from and the editor gave you the variety in how to rock the bow ties look. Either in the typical tuxedo Lanvin style, or with a plain chambray shirt, or even with plaid top - it's the choices that you can try.

Care to unleash your preppy edgy look, anyone?

[pix from mr. porter]

My choice: the bow ties that I got last year from Kitschen at OneUtama, Damansara. I love the spotty and the stripes which is very modern and fun. [Click here to read prev entry]. I also got the knitted mustard bow tie from Topman too, which is quite cool. The most important, it's cheap! [click]

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Bow, Wow

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Time to spice up the look with these cool bow ties from Topman. One that is called the grey neppy neat bow tie, which look a bit like wool (though it's actually a polyester) and could even be mistaken for a Lanvin. And the other which I love to see is the leopard-print bow tie made of cotton. Both are limited editions at Topman which may be flying off the shelf pretty soon.

If you think you wanna do your preppy geek look without trying too hard, these bow ties would definitely be it. It looks awesome, especially on a white shirt like in the pix. Costing just £10, it'll absolutely be dear to your wallet...

[pix from topman]

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SHORTLIST Style: The Best of Summer's Woven Belt Trend

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Leather, suede and canvas entwine to create this season’s must-have accessory: the plaited belt.

[pix from shirtlist, issue 178]

From left, clockwise:

Chestnut hand-weave leather belt and gold buckle (sold separately) by ELLIOT RHODES
Black leather weave belt with gold buckle by RIVER ISLAND
Brown woven belt with beige stripe by WHILLAS & GUNN
Tan leather lattice belt by KAKADU TRADERS
Black weave belt by COLLEZIONE at MARKS & SPENCER;
Classic plaited toast coloured leather belt by MULBERRY
Navy woven cotton lattice belt with white border by POINTER
Red suede woven belt by FIN’S
Thin plaited black leather belt by MULBERRY
Multi-coloured elastic woven belt by ANDERSON’S
Brown plaited leather belt with oval buckle by POLO RALPH LAUREN
Cream canvas woven belt with red stripe and gold buckle by MARNI
Brown leather weave belt with gold buckle by RIVER ISLAND
Brown woven leather belt by HUGO BOSS BLACK
Light beige leather lattice belt by KAKADU TRADERS

If you think woven belt in color would be too 'limited' to pair it with everything, choose black. Just like what I did. Ha!

Black woven belt - Uniqlo (top), Zara (bottom)

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A Little List of Things to Love...

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A little list of things to love at the end of May. Something military. Something with splattered paint. Something Madras. Some camo to take when surfing the wave. Some folder to protect when surfing the net. And a bag to fill 'em all. 

Now... what's my bank balance again? 

Double breasted military-inspired jacket - Ann Demeulemester @ Browns Fashion

Splattered paint shirt - Dries Van Noten @ Browns Fashion

Camouflage swimwear - Sundek @ Restir 

Alhambra Madras check bow tie - J. Crew @ Mr. Porter

Albert weekender bag with centre flap - Mulberry

iPad case - Dior Homme

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School's Out, What Should You Pack?

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School is officially ended for its first term! Read : school. As in kindergarten, primary and secondary schools. Not university or colleges, okay! How envy I am to the teachers out there coz they got to take a long break before it resumes in another two-weeks time. ~ sigh ~ For sure, those teachers would definitely be feeling overjoyed and overwhelmed just like in the Mastercard ad video!

Anyway, long break for the school means the parents are definitely thinking of going for a vacation. In fact, not only the parents - others who're singletons or anybody else out there would also thinking the same thing - wanna whisk away from the daily work for a couple of days and winding off somewhere without having to see those spreadsheets and MS words documents for a while. At least I do. Hmmm... where should I go for a break. Would it be a vacation away from home, or just do a staycation instead..?

So, how should you pack? Or what should you pack? Not to worry coz the people there at Mr. Porter has come up with some travel essentials which you could bring with for that break. Designer luggage? Check. T-shirts and loafers? Check. Some lighter knits and linen jacket? Check. Sunglasses? Check that too. Passport? Unless if I'm fleeing the country, then I don't have to. Whatever it is, you should always travel in style!

Am I forgetting something in my luggage? Owh... my iPad! :)

p/s: next week rasa mcm nak balik kampung... huhu.

Shirt - E. Tautz, Trousers - Mr by Rouland Mouret, Sunglasses - Linda Farrow Luxe

Shoes - Polo Ralph Lauren ; Holdall - Yves Saint Laurent ; Blazer - Richard James ; Sunglasses - Ray-Ban

Swim shorts - Hartford ; Polo shirt - Polo Ralph Lauren ; Sunglasses - Gucci

Shoes - Car Shoe ; Case - Filson ; Hat - Lock & Co Hatters

Sweater and blazer - A.P.C ; Polo shirt - Polo Ralph Lauren ; Sunglasses - Cutler and Gross

Travel wallet - Bottega Veneta ; Passport holder - Lanvin

[pix from mr. porter]

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A Little List of Things to Love...

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A little list of things to love for the weekend. Something buttery-soft dark chocolate biker. Something artsy splattered paint Mickey. Something camo chrono for the wrist. Some white leather down under. A quilted golden bronze for the earcandy. And a Bird's Nest for the phone?

Time to check the credit card limit...ha!

From top, clockwise:

Leather biker lacket by Rick Owens

Mickey by... tee @ Uniqlo

Camouflage chrono watch by Michael Kors.

Schott x Converse All Stars 'Leather Jacket' white hi-top sneakers,

Quilted headphones by Audio Chi

'Bird's Nest' iPhone case by inCase

[pix by farfetch, uniqlo, michael kors, hypebeast, selfridges; inCase]

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Leopard-print Tie : Great Minds Think Alike?

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Is it a case of great fashion minds think alike*?

Nigel Barker is seen wearing the leopard-print tie during the judging in the recent episode of ANTM Cycle 16. Probably to go with the same theme where he shot the model hopefuls in the show earlier wearing the faux fur collection by Rachel Zoe while holding the baby jaguar. Leopard, jaguar... aren't they having the similar 'spot' on them?

[snapshot from ANTM Cycle 16, Episode 5]

However I can't pinpoint what's wrong with the tie that Nigel wears. Something is not quite right going on there. The combination of colors which is slightly off, perhaps. The one that I got last December might look better than his. Plus, while Nigel's tie is of course from one of the big labels out there, mine is very cheap though. As long as it looks good, that matters!

[pix from previous post]

*Aku great fashion minds, ker? X kesah lah Senah oi...lol.

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GQ Style Italia : Time for Scarves!

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I have a huge number of scarves and still keep it in my possession. Last time when I'm living in the you-know-where , wearing a scarf is not just for the sake of accessory per se, but it also as a protection to the body. I have different types of neckwear - from the wool fringe muffler for fall, to the snood for winter and lightweight scarves for spring and neckerchief for summer - scarf is truly a piece of clothing that can also spice up your outfit. 

Mentioning scarf as a protection, it indeed serves as a barrier from my body to the harsh climate. Take snood for example, if I don't protect my neck and chest area during the winter I'll definitely be getting pneumonia now due to the cruel cold weather. Or the neckerchief and lightweight scarf which I always wear during summer - without 'em, the inner collar of the shirt I'm wearing is definitely gonna be smudged with the stain from the sweat, since I always walk in the scorching heat back there. And it's ugly... that's why wearing neckerchief can protect from the dirt definitely.

Anyway, these editorial from GQ Style Italia gives variety of scarves for men to choose from for the Spring/Summer season. Lightweight, prints, plain, short, long... they look good especially the one with monogram LV. How to wear depends on you: let it loose, or wrap it around, or even tie it like a neckerchief. Or you could wear it as a substitute to a tie, if you know the twist!

[pix from gq style italia]

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A Bike on Your Cuff

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My colleagues at the uni has a new craze right now: cycling. It's a massive craze that they have many cycling activities going on for months now which is quite astonishing. From the 40-km ride that they had earlier this year, to the one climbing up the hill which saw not many people to conquer (coz most are ...ehem.. big size!) and even cause injury, to the jamboree with the gathering of various cyclists throughout the country. Truly, this is a huge craze. Nevertheless, I think cycling is an awesome sport coz not only your stamina is tested, but it's a great exercise to the lower body section too. Don't believe me? Then ride a bike now and go up a hill... then you probably have a good idea of what I mean!

A friend of mine, H, keep on asking me when am I gonna buy a bike? Coz apprently he recently bought one though his cycling is only limited to his neighborhood area. I asked how much he has to pay to get a good bike. It's a cracking RM2700! (almost £600) Just for a bike, are you kidding me? I'd rather buy another iPad2 for that price! Then I can download any cyling app, so that I won't have to ride an actual one, ahaks!

I know back there in London cycling is also a big thing. They even have a special bicycle lane on the side of the road coz so many people like the idea of healthy living and going green. The Mayor Boris Johnson is a keen cyclist, and even chase a thug one time with his bike. David Cameron also always cycle to work, prior his job as a Prime Minister (now he wouldn't have to do it anymore, right... coz his office is right down the house at No. 10!). And I heard you can also find huge number of bike in Holland as well as in the worl'd most-populated city, China.

Btw, if you're not a keen cyclist or the one who think spending RM2700 for just a piece of two-wheel, you might wanna get this bike instead. Cost very less (and size very small), it's the bicycle cufflinks from Paul Smith in black enameled metal, and Shanghai Tang in silver. These one for sure will 'ride' on your cuff in style. And the best part - you won't have to worry about the punctured tyre! 

 

Bicycle cufflink from Paul Smith @ Mr. Porter.

'Traditional' bicycle cufflink from Shanghai Tang.

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Highstreet Vs. High End: Knitted Tie

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The last time I wore my knitted tie to the office, my colleague, R, asked whether what I'm wrapping around my neck is socks. "Kau pakai stoking ker?"  She asked. I think it's funny coz I can't blame her when she mentioned that since my tie does look like a pair of socks in a way. Probably because both share the same 'attributes' - they're both knitted!

My encounter with knitted ties is not too long ago - back in 2008 - when I dropped by at Uniqlo Oxford Street and found they got a great collection of knitted ties in various colors. There's horizontal stripes, plain and dotted pattern. And yes, they're all have 'blunt' square in the end. And one of them is this one. (click here to read previous post).

What I'm quite surprise is that Paul Smith also has a similar version of the 'dotted' pattern in the new SS11 collection. The look and all is almost similar, if not the same, with the one that I got from Uniqlo. While this Paul Smith cost a whopping £84, my highstreet knitted tie cost only £7! See the price difference? So, which one would you choose? Only you can decide. 

Btw, if you look closer, the dotted pattern resembles 'hearts'. Brilliant, don't you think?

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You Say Dilemma. I Say, Not Anymore.

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[pix from men's health, illustration by z.a.]

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