GANT by Michael Bastian

Today Michael Bastian showed his Spring/Summer 2012 Collection for GANT it was a riot of color titled "Sunshine Days", think when the Brady Bunch took that trip to Hawaii in 1972! There were novelty surf t's cargos in purple and turquoise, hibuscus camo, monkey embroideries and the cutest turtle print that included random turtles in beach hats! These are not serious clothes, these are clothes meant for fun, all you have to do is put them on!

Soul Models

Each fashion week, not only are the fashion designer and brands busy preparing their shows, but so are the modeling agencies. This is an important time for all of them to get their models booked for runway shows in order to be photographed and have their images seen by millions of people, which then gets them booked for more lucrative commercial jobs throughout the rest of the year.

In order to compete, the modeling agencies put together elaborate Show Cards to get the designers and booking agents attention. My favorite by far this year is Soul, they did cards which have a photo of the model as a child on one side and then a runway shot on the other. You can see my favorite cards above, these are only sent to select people, but for more Soul models go to http://www.soulartistmanagement.com/models.html

Mark McNairy

I just came back from Las Vegas and curating a section of the MRket Show. I also managed to check out a few of the other shows and saw what is perhaps my favorite collection of the spring 2012 season. Mark McNairy has nylon camo shirts, khaki (and camo) shorts embroidered with daisies, short sleeve shirts made from dead stock 70's Lily Pulitzer-esque fabric, fluoro nylon anoraks, zebra and leopard print carpenter shorts and much more!

I must (and will) have, if not all, a good deal of this collection, I plan on placing an order larger than most boutiques. Unfortunatelty it won't be in stores until next spring, you can buy a McNairy's current season here at http://www.markmcnairy.com/

Rainbow Obliques

I've had the image on the right on my computer for the longest time and not for the reason you might think. I love this rainbow tattoo, unlined, looking like it was drawn in magic marker, it's genius. I always wondered who this guy and what the story was behind it (no pun intended). Then today I opened up the September issue DETAILS and there he is, there's no name given, but he's a surfer from Whale Beach, which is in Australia, north of Sydney. I'm going to track him down and ask him about the tattoo.

Sharks Tooth Necklace

This is what I love about this sharks tooth necklace:

I got it on Etsy.
It's sterling silver.
It's going to tarnish beautifully.
It was only $60.
It was made entirely by hand by a former dentist, who retired to Florida.
I bought it during "Shark Week", so I feel like it was a souvenir.

Buy it here http://www.etsy.com/listing/77412858/large-sharks-tooth-necklace

80'S GQ

When I was a teenager, my parents had a beach house on the mainland of Long Beach Island, My mom, sisters and I would spend the entire summer there and my dad would come down on weekends and for two weeks in July. In my bedroom, on the shelf of my bunk bed, I had a stack of GQ magazines, 80's GQ was SO GOOD! Bruce Weber taking bright saturated pictures of Jeff Aquilon, Buzzy Kerbox and Sinjin Smith all in Speedos and covered in sand from playing volleyball on Miami Beach. They say that the olafactory sense is your strongest, but looking at these magazines takes me right back, life seemed simpler, better, you can buy a piece of it here on ebay for $25.00 http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-GQ-GENTLEMANS-QUARTERLY-July-1982-/120763116691?pt=Magazines&hash=item1c1e0aec93

The Elder Statesmen

Yes, this is a $475 t-shirt, yes it's cashmere, yes it's handmade right here in the USA. Don't criticize it until you try it. The Elder Statesman is Greg Chait, the company is named after his brother. Greg is based out of LA and if you ever get a chance to meet him, please do.
http://www.barneys.com/Basket-Weave-Short-Sleeve-Tee/501075908,default,pd.html