don't want to be your monkey wrench

I have a soft spot for accessories made out of everyday objects. Whistles, zipper pulls, dice, nails, they're all up my alley.

Husam El Odeh for Topman wrench bangle

I gouged out the rhinestone the moment I got home, but decided to glue it back in soon after. The sparkly stone has grown on me, and so has the idea of bangles on men.

photo from Topman

at the Alejandro Ingelmo F/W 2010 presentation

Alejandro Ingelmo, shoe designer

I had the privilege of exchanging a few brief words with the designer at the Alejandro Ingelmo presentation at New York Fashion Week. He isn't exactly what I imagined the designer of such over-the-top and gaudy-cool women's shoes to look like, case in point:

webbed booties in lavender leather and gray suede

shine, straps, and buckles galore in the background

but what he seemed to be was someone talented and constantly focused on improving his craft. We chatted a bit about these men's combat boots in an interesting matte distressed leather:

Sticking out like a sore thumb amongst his usual busy men's sneakers, the boots were a work in progress, according to Ingelmo. He was developing more visible treads to place on the boots, much like the treads on the soles of these heels:

rubber and silver treads on high-heeled pumps (photo by Chris Reed)

I'm really looking forward to what comes out of this prototype. Ingelmo is a master at detail, and I would like to see his maximalist sensibilities translated on to men's boots and perhaps even dress shoes in the future.

Manning the door was the intensely British and painfully stylish Brandon Acton-Bond, who made me, for a moment, look with dismay at my wardrobe fattened up with high street fluff.

Alejandro Ingelmo's press prince, Brandon Acton-Bond, in an Ivan Grundahl half-kimono, Issey Miyake lace turtleneck, Dr. Martens boots

and a charming Inca pin from his grandmother.

You can virtually rummage through Brandon's closet in the latest post by video style blog Stylelikeu.com. I'm beginning to think brooches are the new scarves.

From Bus to Bespoken

Hello from New York Fashion Week! The one thing they don't tell you about fashion week is that many of the shows (and to be frank, most of the shows worth watching) are held in such obscure galleries and studios placed so far apart in the city that your wallet takes a beating from all the cab rides and your feet get punished from all those long walks you take feeling guilty about how much you spent on cab fare the last trip.

lineup at Bespoken FW 2010

But it was worth all the twenty-dollar bills surrendered to cab drivers and nails digging into the flesh of the neighboring toe, excuse my language. I got to the Bespoken presentation, my first show for this trip, and it was fashion magic: the warm lights, the clothes, the crowd of incredibly creative people who live and breathe fashion.

Bespoken is a British brand that takes the merits of bespoke clothing: meticulous tailoring and quality fabrics and fuses those into handsome, modern pieces that would suit a wide spectrum of men of different styles.

Here's a photodump of what my eyes saw at the Bespoken presentation:

This red trimmed and feathered hat would go well with my current favored look: the deranged artist.

I've recently discovered the joys of the lapel pin. This silver dagger brings a hint of pirate flavor.

Over lunch with Mimi (of Brook and Lyn, good stuff for girls, check it out!) yesterday I started toying with the idea of starting my own line: small, concise, well-tailored, and with a whiff of that Dandy Project crazy. It's a long shot, it'll be hard work, but I think it'll be worthwhile, if only for the entrepreneurial experience. The only thing I can promise is that I will try. Stay tuned!

Whirlwind Weekend

(Minus the actual storm, please.) I'm off to New York Fashion Week for five days and I've got an overflow of exciting things lined up for me. Talk has been going around about this snowstorm that is about to hit the Northeast; I've already had to reschedule my bus ride because of this. Kind blizzard, please spare this first NY Fashion Week I'm ever attending! I'm hoping the next five days I spend immersed in that scene would give me clarity on whether or not I would like to get into such a nutty industry after I graduate.

But, snow or no snow, I will be roaming the roads of Nueva York in my newish B Store navy suede lace-up boots. They are deceptively warm, comfortable enough, and effortlessly cool.

Lace-up boots by B Store - it's the mouse gray laces against the blue suede that sealed the deal for me.

Ray-ban glasses, tailor-made blazer, Zara shirt, Husam el Odeh for Topman pin, Comme des Garcons belt, H&M jeans, B Store boots

A closer look at the Husam el Odeh brooch:

Incredibly clever, this is my favorite networking tool of late.

With my sister sporting my glasses and a really nasty gum infection.

See you in New York!

Spiked Straps

When the winter is brutal and you live in your one thick parka and it's just too cold to have your gloved hands outside of your pocket toting a briefcase, this hard-edged backpack can do much to uplift your look.

Givenchy studded leather and nylon backpack

A couple of closer shots of the bag, from Style Samurai:

on Preview Magazine's creative director Vince Uy, one of the most stylish men in Manila, in my honest opinion

This might seem like just another iteration of the studded-all-over trend that still prevails in fashion, but there's something about the contrast between the juvenile innocence of a backpack and the almost alienating toughness of the silver spikes that I find rather charming. I just wish it also came in an all-leather version.

Does anyone know the price points on this studded beauty?