Monk Shoes, Job Interviews, and the Collins/Obama Connection

January 29, 2009

Hearts and Minds: Obama’s no jacket required policy wins over Esquire, may or may not be a Phil Collins reference. [Esquire]

Streets is Watchin’: Monk shoes continue to be awesome. Also, leather gloves. That is all. [The Sartorialist]

On the Job: Job-interview style, courtesy of Men.Style’s infamous vloggers. [The Choosy Beggar]

Prance By: Google accidentally kills a deer. Let’s just pray it was a hybrid car. [Gizmodo]

—R.B.

Written by Kempt · Filed Under Around The Web

Brushed Off

January 29, 2009

It is the province of a gentleman to cultivate a few eccentric tastes. Nothing too edgy, of course, but you should be able to think of at least one thing that is entirely yours. Even if it’s only your toothpaste.

This one (via NotCot) should give your mouth a pleasantly anesthetized feeling, but we bet you’ll swear by it by the time you finish the tube. And you’ll be one of the few who does.

—R.B.

Written by Kempt · Filed Under Around The Web

Loose Threads: Glam Edition

January 29, 2009

It’s one of the less useful rules of style, but worth remembering: If you’re a rock star, you can get away with just about anything. There are still limits though, and these boots might just fall outside them.

Made for Justin Tranter of the Semi-Precious Weapons, they’re a size 12 with a patent leather model still in the works. We love glam rock as much as the next guy, but the trick is usually to come off like an androgynous alien, not a cross-dressing off-duty policeman.

And it’s not 1972 anymore.

—R.B.

Written by Kempt · Filed Under Around The Web

Up Close

January 29, 2009

If you’ve walked past a newsstand this past week, you might have seen an uncharacteristically craggy Brad Pitt staring back at you. And, for once, it isn’t CGI.

The special effects come from the photographer and photorealist painter Chuck Close, apparently at the request of Mr. Pitt himself. We don’t doubt that Pitt can get whoever he wants to take his picture, but Close isn’t a glamour artist like Annie Liebowitz, and the result ends up looking positively Eastwood-esque.

Through Close’s lens, you can see the sun-damaged, eerily smooth skin, the worry lines, and everything else 45 years of life has done to Pitt’s face. It’s a view we rarely get of actors, but as W points out, and if he’s going to start aging gracefully, he might as well start now. You can’t stay blond forever, and getting comfortable with an aging face is something many stars never manage.

It’s a good idea, but it still doesn’t explain the mustache.

—R.B.

Written by Kempt · Filed Under Around The Web

Making History

January 29, 2009

For many artists, there’s no higher calling than perfectly capturing a moment in time. We’d say this qualifies.

We doubt many people are looking for mementos of 43 at this point, but this is pretty much the cream of the crop. It’s up on eBay right now and could be yours for just a few hundred Euros…about the price of a new pair of shoes.

—R.B.

Written by Kempt · Filed Under Around The Web

Refined Tastes

January 29, 2009

This time of year, it pays to have a pair of snow-ready shoes handy. They probably won’t be the best-looking thing in your closet, but they’ll spare you the trouble of galoshes and get you through the slushy time of year with all your finer footwear intact.

At the capsule show, Gourmet showed us some of the best examples we’ve seen so far, along with a respectable showing of straight sneakers. Their zippered shoes—which we keep wanting to describe as “spaceman shoes”—are definitely a good idea, but the crown jewel is to the right. Look at the matching rubber bottoms and you’ll start to get the idea. This is the first time we’ve seen a shoe that could genuinely call L. L. Bean an influence.

Score another one for Maine.