The Shophound

JON CARAMANICA GOES SHOPPING: Short-Burn Nostalgia Edition

In this week's Thursday Styles, Critical Shopper Jon Caramanica presents readers with what seems like a first. VFiles is, apparently, a store based on a social platform. While we were wrapping our heads around that idea, we took a quick look at Vfiles.com, which appears to be a compendium of fashion and pop-culture images and media that could easily send the distracted down a rabbit hole of time-wasting from which there may be no escape. Caramanica calls it "consuming the existing in order to make something new." The value of the result may be open to debate.

But back to the store. Our shopper compares it to "shopping in an office," but finds fascination in the shop's fixation with 90s fashion, nightlife and media —think of it as the internet discovering the last minute before everything in our culture got processed through the World Wide Web.

But the items themselves are alive with history, building blocks for someone inclined to mainline the 1990s in all its forms. That’s the sea VFiles is swimming in — short-burn nostalgia, a choice based on beauty or convenience or both.

It puts Caramanica (and The Shophound, for that matter) in the odd position of seeing someone pore over the detritus of a lost era that doesn't actually seem too far away. It also reminded us that when retro styles come around you need to think twice about re-embracing them if you wore them the first time around.

Critical Shopper: Building Blocks All in a Row By Jon Caramanica (NYTimes)
VFiles 12 Mercer Street at Howard Street, SoHo

AWARDS CIRCUIT II: Meet GQ's Best New Menswear Designers For 2013

Yesterday we got not only the latest group of CFDA Award Nominees, but also GQ's choices for Best New Menswear Designers. This year's crew has been narrowed down to four from last years bumper crop of six labels, but they still show the strength and depth of creativity in America's burgeoning men's fashion industry. Once again, GQ has teamed up with the Gap which will offer capsule collections from each label this Fall in select stores and on Gap.com. because the field has narrowed a bit, each brand will be able to add a few more items to their assortments for the chain. The designers include:

Aviator Nation designed by Paige Mycoskie based in Venice Beach, CA. As you might guess by the location, this is a surf inspired line offering a retro-tinged lifestyle collection for men and women and, soon, kids as well.

Bespoken designed by Liam and Sammy Fayed (pictured above) based in New York City. Another brother act, the Fayeds are inspired by classic Savile Row style. It doesn't hurt that their father is the current owner of legendary shirtmaker Turnbull & Asser. The label should be familiar to shoppers at Odin and Bloomingdale's.

Baldwin designed by Matt Baldwin based in Kansas City. Originally started as a denim brand, Baldwin has added a full sportswear collection all made in the U.S.A .

Ernest Alexander designed by Ernest Alexander Sabine based in New York City. Starting with leather accessories and bags, this label has evolved into a complete lifestyle collection. The U.S.A. made label can be found at its eponymous boutique in SoHo on Thompson Street.

It's a slightly less celebrated but more geographically varied group than last year's bumper crop of designers, but the honor is invaluable in raising a brand's profile. Of last year's group, Ian Velardi has since received an award from the Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation, and Todd Snyder was just nominated for the CFDA's Swaravski Award for Menswear. This year's designers' Gap collaboration lines should appear in stores in October, so look for previews to start appearing in late summer.

The Best New Menswear Designers in America (GQ.com)

FLIGHTS OF FANCY: Have Another Look At Cartier's Mesmerizing Short Film

We don't know what you were watching on television on Sunday night (actually, we don't even remember what we were watching) but we do remember being transfixed by what we thought was a commercial for Cartier that went on and on for a whopping three and a half minutes. Titled L'Odyssée de Cartier, it follows the brand's mascot, a jeweled panther come to life (apparently a jaguar, in this case for those who want to quibble over big-cat genus terminology) as it sprints from St. Petersburg to China to India, ultimately winding up in the Place Vendôme home of Cartier at the side of supermodel Shalom Harlow. Where else would one go after such a trip? Along the way it encounters giant golden dragons, a menagerie of other Cartier animal baubles come to life and pioneering aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont, the first customer to commission the jeweler to make a wristwatch. It's a stunning example of state-of-the-art cinematic visual effects, and was obviously made by sparing no expense. The ball's in your court now, Tiffany.

It's not unusual for European luxury brands to make extended commercials that run as movie trailers overseas, or even during special events like the Oscars, but it is unusual for them to take out an entire block of commercials during a night of regular programming, or eally run even a condensed version of such an ad on American Television at all unless it is for a fragrance. In this case, it was a delightful surprise, and now it has hit the web, so click above as may times as you want (we highly recommend the HD/Fullscreen options if your bandwith allows). There are worse ways to spend three and a half minutes.

L'Odyssée de Cartier (Official Site)

FREE STUFF IS GOOD STUFF? A Scathing Look At The Oscar Swag Circuit

We have long since given up any hope that the bountiful Fashion Week swag we used to know would make any sort of comeback, but Gawker's Hamilton Nolan has discovered that any bit of free stuff left has been sequestered in Beverly Hills Gifting Suites for celebrities during Oscar Week.

Nolan toured a few swag suites and came up with a withering look at the dubious tradition of giving free stuff away to greedy famous people.

The types of people who willingly go to Beverly Hills gift lounges are ugly in a way that only beautiful plastic people can be. As hard as I tried to pick up on the special little details, it proved impossible for my brain to avoid dumping everyone there into neat, stereotypical categories. They just fit so well.

Nolan proceeds to eviscerate not just the B and below-list folks who show up to haul away bags of free goods they probably don't even want and definitely don't need, but the many sub-premium brands who fill their multiple gift totes. Eventually, he aims his wrath at the entire City of Beverly Hills , and why not? They can take it.

By the end, you won't want to touch a swag bag with a ten foot pole, but don't worry. That feeling will wear off the next time someone hands you a tote full of stuff.

I Went to the Pre-Oscar Celebrity Gifting Suites and All I Got Was This Sense of Disgust (Gawker)

EMPLOYEES of the MONTH: The Shop Clerk Lives With A Love Match Between Joinery & Hickoree's Hard Goods

A while back, when The Shophound arrived on the interwebs, New York Magazine's "Ask A Shop Clerk" was a weekly feature that we always looked forward to covering, and occasionally skewering, but then one day it sort of faded away, occasionally popping up for a teasing reappearance. In the past few months, however, it seems to have become something of a monthly feature, and this week, in anticipation of Valentine's Day, it features a love match made in hipster heaven —that's Williamsburg ..duh.

Emil Corsillo of Hickoree's Hard Goods and Angela Silva of Joinery, two of the neighborhood's more prominent recent retail additions, are apparently a couple, which is obviously adorable. As their interview covered tha typical "tow shopkeepers in love" ground, up came the inevitable question: Do you think of your stores as “hipster”?

Both retailers demurred to committing to the term, which has become almost as annoying as "yuppie", especially to those who are likely to fall into the category. The next question, however settled the matter pretty well.

NYMag: What’s your favorite item in stock right now?
Angela: Shoulder bags made out of Brazilian feed sacks. But I get the most compliments on useful stuff, like a toilet brush with a wooden handle.
Emil: Splatter-painted mugs and bowls.

Yep. You two are hipsters. No question about it. Own it!

Ask a Shop Clerk, Couples Edition: Angela Silva and Emil Corsillo (NYMag)
Joinery, 263 South 1st Street near Havemeyer St
Hickoree’s Hard Goods Floor Two, 109 South 6th Street near Bedford Avenue, second floor, both in Williamsburg

GENDER IDENTITY: The New York Times Wants You To Know That These Menswear Bloggers Are Totally Not Gay

Probably as a lead-up to the upcoming Men's Fall 2012 shows in Europe, and the market shows in New York next week, the Thursday Styles is spotlighting a group of influential bloggers in the burgeoning menswear arena, and the first thing they want you to know is that they are totally straight. Seriously, it's in the title.

Straight Talk: A New Breed of Fashion Bloggers makes sure to describe the five gentleman behind Mister Mort, The Marcus Troy Experience, Jake Davis Blog, A Continuous Lean, Sartorially Inclined and How to Talk to Girls at Parties and  as "hyper-masculine dudes" who look at men's clothes the way their red-blooded brethren follow sports. No mincing Queer-Eyed queens here, thank you very much. These manly men are making fashion safe for regular guys, so you keep your sequined Dolce & Gabbana blazer away from here, Brad Goreski.

Is it a coincidence that this article comes on the heels of GQ's Reblog This: The Oral History of Menswear Blogging which features many of the same players? Make of that what you will. GQ's more in-depth piece focuses less on the sexual identities of the bloggers, but illuminates us more fully regarding the truckloads of swag that these guys are pulling in, which the Times only touches upon. Well, damn!
*Note to designers: UPS comes to our house too. We'll be Instagramming and Tweeting next week from Project and Capsule. Just sayin'.

Straight Talk: A New Breed of Fashion Bloggers (NYTimes)
Reblog This: The Oral History of Menswear Blogging (GQ.com)

POP-UP ALERT: GQ Teams With Park & Bond For A Meatpacking District Holiday Shop

There may be a dearth of menswear on the West side, but downtown, it's a different story. Starting tomorrow, GQ will be teaming up with nascent men's online retailer Park & Bond for a ten-day pop-up shop in the Meatpacking District. The site and the magazine have already been collaborating on a series of monthly picks since Gilt Groupe's latest venture launched this past Fall, so this is a quick move from online retailer to freestanding store, even if it's temporary and has a little help from an iconic magazine. Whether or not there will be a permanent Park & Bond store sometime in the future remains to be determined, but, for now, the temporary store will carry the monthly “GQ Selects” items as well as GQ’s “Best Stuff of the Year,” as featured in the December issue. Therer will also be other merchandise plucked from Park & Bond's impressive roster of men's designers and brands including outerwear, apparel, denim, accessories, footwear, watches (new and vintage), tech and grooming products from labels such as A.PC., Common Projects, Etro, Filson, GANT, Jack Spade, Lacoste, Mackintosh, Oliver Peoples, Orlebar Brown, Paul Smith, Simon Spurr, Thom Browne and Vilebrequin. For tricky gift giving, the store will have a special group of gifts under $50 to make your Holiday Shopping that much easier. Various other special events are also scheduled throughout the 10-day duration of the store
Oh yeah, we hear they'll be serving drinks, too, which should be enough to get pretty much anyone down there posthaste.

GQ at Park & Bond 414 West 14th Street from December 8th-18th 11am to 6pm Wednesdays-Fridays, 11am to 7pm on Saturdays and 11am to 5pm on Sundays, closed Monday and Tuesday between Ninth Avenue and Washington Street, Meatpacking District

LUXURY DOG RUN: A Canine Crew Cavorts Through Bergdorf Goodman

It's no longer enough to produce lavish window displays and a Holiday advertising campaign. Stores must operate on all media channels to compete for business, hence, we have "Unleashed", Bergdorf Goodman's Holiday Video embedded above. Cleverly tying in to the store's "Carnival of the Animals" theme, the video shows the elegant store overrun by a pack of wild dogs... or, well, maybe just a group Upper East Side house pets.

Still, there's something strangely mesmerizing about watching this play group frolicing throughout the the store, and the video promotes not only the legendary retailer but also the Humane Society of New York with a sweet subplot (can a four-minute video have a subplot?) about Bergdorf's iconic doorman and pet adoption. If Christmas shopping at Bergdorf Goodman is just a bit out of your reach, then adopting a pet in need of a loving home may be a worthy alternative.

Previously:
The Window Watcher: Bergdorf Goodman Unleashes A Holiday Menagerie

TODAY'S SPECIALS: Your Met Ball Roundup

The Shophound has been preoccupied with all sorts of mundane things today, and all anyone else can find to talk about is the Met Ball or Osama Bin Laden, so at the very least we wanted to round up the significant Costume Institute stories for your easy access without having to use that pesky Google. As for Bin Laden, we can only paraphrase Chevy Chase's Weekend Update days in saying that as far as we know he, just like Generalissimo Francisco Franco, is still dead.

The New York Times has tasked Eric Wilson with reviewing the party,
Suzy Menkes with reviewing the show,
and Cathy Horyn adds a typically pointed blog post.

If you missed Daphne Guinness' dressing up in Barneys' window, the store has the video streaming on its website, The Window. In all honesty, we have to say it looked a bit stupid amateurish at best from the video, and ultimately, it's not very interesting to watch, but it got Barneys and Guinness truckloads of publicity, which, we suppose was the ultimate goal. Racked has one of its signature minute by minute livebloggings up with some genuinely interesting crowd photos, and it is actually much more entertaining than the actual event in the way such things can be. They also have a different video from another angle posted HERE for those of you out there who are unreasonably obsessive.

If you found Guinness' antics disappointing, The Cut has a video of Iman actually getting ready for the ball in the discreet privacy of her hotel room. She turns out to be the perfect combination of real human being and impossibly glamorous creature from Fashionland. Every second is a general lesson in fabulousness. She's one model whose talking we never tire of hearing.
In addition, they have The Fug Girls going to town on the celebrity guests as well as one of its signature Q&A Party Lines Slideshows.

And then, of course, there are the guests and their clothes. As usual, Style.com is the most exhaustive with a whopping 131 photos! Its new competitor Vogue.com has a meager 84 shots. While Vogue has an arguably superior collection of well taken, evocative party photos, Style.com remains the winner in thorough coverage and correctly identifying each attendee as well as the designers of their dresses (something which Vogue oddly doesn't trouble itself with at all). The only thing we miss is vintage W's merciless ratings system from 4 stars down to FV (Fashion Victim) back when it was a biweekly broadsheet. Yeah, we're old. So what?

If that's not enough coverage for you, then we strongly suggest you step away from the computer.
Eat something.
Go outside for a nice walk.

Oh, and you might want to click the image above for information on the actual Alexander McQueen exhibition at the Metropilitan Museum of Art running through July 31.

GOODBYE AGAIN: Cintra Wilson's Post-Critical Shopper Interview Clarifies All Sorts Of Things

Over at The Huffington Post, David Coggins has an illuminating Q&A with former New York Times Critical Shopper Cintra Wilson in which she answers questions any fan might have. In short, her departure wasn't entirely voluntary, but again a result of the Times' preference for assigning regular columns to staff writers rather than freelancers. They're just friends now. In fact, Wilson is currently working on a different piece for the Times, so her byline won't be entirely absent from the paper. There's more about The JCPenney debacle, her approach to writing, her other work and her upcoming book about fashion, along with plenty of bon mots from the always fascinating Ms. Wilson. Read it HERE.

Fear And Clothing: Cintra Wilson's Fierce Fashion Prowess by David Coggins (The Huffington Post)