CUTTING the EDGE:

THE SEVEN-FIVE
MILAN FASHION WEEK

CUTTING the EDGE slices through the entire week and gathers the most memorable colors, trends and names to study, wear and (definitely) admire for Spring 2012. What Gerard Gotladera chooses and what he's learned from these shows.

No expert advise here gents, trust me.

I'm only a huge fan of menswear (among the billions) and not some big time magazine editor who knows all the right stuff. But as a spectator from thousands of miles away, watching some shows live---and God knows technology is his blessing, and anticipating what's bound to pop-up on NOWFASHION, I've come to enjoy the late night headaches I've endured to see whether or not Dolce & Gabbana's doing something new or what Miuccia Prada's got up her sleeve now or what I could possibly wear from Moncler Gamme Bleu.


While the experts have come out with 160-word (or less) tweets of what they think rocked the shows and somewhere in a mess of names you'll see a common look from, say Gucci, gaining tremendous respect and props, here at THE EDGE I bring you what a commoner thinks is great.

A personal take on Fashion Week, to put it elegantly, so don't keep your expectations lost in the clouds gents. I'm no Peskowitz or Eugene Tong, but I do love menswear and out of that love comes a natural reaction. With help from these specialists, of course---including the awesome, awesome photos from SONNY PHOTOS, I present to you what I saw as spectacular, chic and what I'd most probably wear come Spring 2012.

Without further a do, here are SEVEN of the collections that I believe have rocked my socks during Milan Fashion Week. Big names for sure, but also really big on style in my book. The Seven collections and the Five things (trends) I learned from them.



ERMENEGILDO ZEGNA

Jacob Coupe in a stunning champagne suit, pale pink shirt and a tea green tie
Lesson # 1: The power of color

Lesson # 2: Wrinkled = good

The Look: Polished, refined and surprisingly relaxed, a collection that's simple at its core, but rendered and delivered to exceed Paradiso heights. Dreamy's the word.

The Lessons.: 1) NEVER underestimate the power of color. Doing the review for this one, I had to look up what other shades of blue or green exist and never in my wildest dreams would I ever encounter such delicious hues on clothes, such as pistachio or tea green or something such as an Eton blue. Just stunning. Also, these greens that keep freshening up the runway are definitely one of the biggest trends from Milan.

2.) Maybe having a well-pressed suit or pair of trousers isn't always a chic idea. Well, at least in Zegna's case. Check out how luxurious and elegantly worn-in these looks seem and it's effortless magic. Not only at Zegna, but at Armani too the softest of creases make such amazing elegant touches.

3.) TRAVEL! I'm pretty young and traveling big time is on my bucket list---which will come in the future, so for those of you are already well to travel, please do. Zegna and most of the other huge names, actually most of what's fueling fashion, is an education only traveling could afford. These looks are inspired by the French Riviera, and so is Ferragamo, Gucci takes its cues from the Brits and Moncler Gamme Bleu does a little of what could be worn outerspace. So, travel, travel, travel! (Even to outerspace).

4.) Two button suits look less rigid, more casual but still formal-ready. It's a great investment I believe, maybe not in Zegna pastels---if you prefer to stick to the really classic, dark ones, but when spent on wisely and tailored to your proportions, it's a lifetime's treasure. (If you do get them in Zegna pastels, get them in ALL Zegna pastels).

5.) Still go sockless. Especially if you're kicks are as handsome as Zegna's glistening lace-ups, it's the best way to go.

CUTTING the EDGE:

Telling Time with Iguzzini Watches

The backcase of the Mars Explorer:
Just one of Iguzzini's cool signatures

In the age when having things made in small quantities for the knowing few, strikes as a selfish philosophy to some,  watch company IGUZZINI proves, doing impeccable time pieces for the few has more heart in it than snob.

In an exclusive look into the company by THE EDGE, CUTTING the EDGE is honored to bring you Iguzzini watches' inspiring story of charity and quality, something so rare and important that the world ought to know.

HISTORY

Iguzzini's story is the stuff  East-meets-West tales talk about, things that Ermenigeldo Zegna for this season (menswear) has highlighted and also those thick, dusty textbooks we leaf through for school that prove all so romantic. The Western, hearing of exotic, far-off places and the promise of wealth, comes in the form of Italian entrepreneur Federico Iguzzini, who ventures off into Asia, landing at the developing Shanghai city, to start his own watch company. 

In 1903 he started assembling the finest watches for the Eastern elite and would continue doing so for nearly four decades. Due to Asian historical turmoils such as the Sino-Japanese conflict and the closing of China from the world, Iguzzini's watches had to shut down. Despite his search for relocation, Iguzzini would have failed at his attempts since death had loomed near. 

THE PRESENT

Centuries after, brothers Lander and Stephane Michel decided the company was worth the resurrection. Not only were they touched by the story of Iguzzini, since they were sons of the world, but they believed bringing in this time and age high-quality time pieces that manage to balance both luxury and charity was an honorable obligation to everyone. 

Spearheaded by the Michel brothers, Iguzzini watches are back with lines that celebrate stories of the world and of human life and heritage. They produce only a limited number of items and are distributed to select retail stores. But what's most moving---if you will, about the second life of Iguzzini watches is just how much heart they put into it. Sure these pieces are assembled with utmost care and materials are sourced only from the finest points of the globe, but also a handsome portion of the profit are donated to various charities spread about in different places. One of which is found here, in the Philippines. The Michel brothers have spent years of their lives here in the Philippines which is why the very controversial watch Independencia de Filipinas was inspired by a national hero, Jose Rizal and also has such deep history engraved with it. 

To borrow from the company's background, their goal is to "create products meant to inspire" and at the same time educate their patrons of the different depressing issues our world is suffering today. Their chic, brilliant and novel designs are not just works of art, but of the drive to help alleviate the troubles of poverty where poverty is heavy.

All their lines are just as blessed with story and the past, culture and how it affects the present and most definitely telling of the times to come...

THE WATCHES

As Iguzzini continues to "Change the World Through Time", here on THE EDGE, I am thankful to have access to information and photos from the company itself to share with you readers what they offer now and hopefully, inspire you to start changing the world along with them...

India Explorer's back case

India Explorer's Front

Old Shanghai Explorer's back case

The CIVILIZATION line tells the story of some of the world's most famous civilizations, celebrating their cultures by way of using their characters for the dial and recognizable iconic figures and places for their beautiful back cases. 

Lunar Explorer Chronograph

My second favorite back case after the Mars Explorer Chronograph's

The SPACE EXPLORERS is personally, the most handsome of the collections. The sleek black strap, thick and masculine is the perfect partner for the silver lug and band end piece and the very complex dial and watch face. But the back case is incredibly framed with beautiful, almost haunting shots of Mars and the Moon. The value of this one will puncture the ceiling since Iguzzini's only made 30 pieces of the model. One stellar investment for sure.

The engraved side of the Grand Bleu Dive Watch

Grand Bleu Dive Watch

This stunner, is one of Iguzzini's most promising...Meet the GRAND BLEU DIVE watch. Also made in a quaint number of 30, the Grand Blue Diver's Watch could plunge and stay water resistant to 2000m...And that's one of the farthest, deepest a watch could go. Expectations will sky-rocket with this one, since it's a new model and THE EDGE is one of the few whose privileged to learn of this. Also available in a younger, orange face. 

Independencia de Filipinas watch

A lesson in Philippine History: the first flag of the Philippines on the case-back

The watch's beautiful box

The complete Mi Ultimo Adios on the box's inner lid

The much talked about Philippine watch or more specifically, the INDEPENDENCIA de FILIPINAS watch retails for $6,000, a portion of which goes to ERDA  Foundation here in the Philippines. This watch has so much to offer both Filipinos and foreigners. Stephane Michel, who was responsible for the genius design of this timepiece, felt it best to honor the Philippines (which he called home once in his life) with a watch that celebrates one of our history's most pivotal moments: the fight for the country's Independence. National hero Jose Rizal's perennial first three stanzas of Mi Ultimo Adios--- a poem written by Rizal just hours before his execution, is microprinted on a papyrus-colored background as the watch's dial. Eight important provinces which ignited the battle for freedom word the inner rim of the watch, including Tarlac, Cavite and Laguna. Superb quality flows even unto the genuine crocodile strap that comes in custom colors. An automatic watch made of Swiss materials, this piece is housed inside an elegant box that comes with an extra strap and a magnifying glass that enables one to read the poem on the face of the watch and also the complete work on the box's inner lid. There's style to consider most definitely, since this one fits heroic status that parallels with the story it comes with. The history, inspiration and love Stephane Michel has poured unto this timepiece is a noble work, and what's incredibly amazing about this watch is just how much knowledge of Philippine history (Michel knows) it could educate foreigners and Filipinos alike. 

Much gratitude, I owe to Sophie Leroy of Iguzzini Watches for giving me the exclusive information and photos of the company, ROGUE magazine for picking this story up and that first Iguzzini person who spotted my short mention of their watches. 

-Gerard

CUTTING the EDGE:

THE TRUSTMAN AFFAIR

Contrary to popular belief, the perfect crime surprisingly doesn't involve killing someone...No blood ought to be shed, no spine-chilling screams to be heard, but the perfect crime, seems to be, a smooth ride in a Rolls Royce to a cemetery, NOT to deposit a dead body, but to take home the prize of a crime so smart, so brilliantly executed, only one man can pull it off...

The handsome clothes, the beautiful iconic ladies, the subtle energy of Boston in the afternoon and the two leading men whose names and faces history has granted legendary status, all possible courtesy of the excellent writing of the famous 1960s and 1990s hit The Thomas Crown Affair. 


THE EDGE has scored an exclusive interview with Mr. Alan Trustman (left), the scriptwriter behind one of cinema history's most elegant films to have ever been screened and remade decades after its inception. 


Mr. Trustman opens up to Gerard Gotladera's questions and why he "hates" the ending of the Pierce Brosnan version, why King of cool, Steve McQueen feels like Trustman knows him and the real story behind  the perfect crime he's immortalized on film.

G. Gotladera: The first version had a sad ending taken from a romantic point of view, and then the latest one had them both on a plane, happy and relieved that after all the chasing and reassuring, they ended up together. What made you change the ending for the second one? Was it your call or someone else's?

A. Trustman: I hated the ending of the second adaptation of The Thomas Crown Affair. I believe it was Pierce Brosnan's idea. I originally wrote a love story about two people who couldn't make it together and I believe putting them together in the end makes the audience feel cheated. There were 12 re-writers on the second film adaptation and I received a story credit. I was so angry about with the new ending that I was tempted to refuse the story credit mention.


For the original film adaptation, the director shot  three versions of the final scene. Steve alone, Steve with Astrid and Steve with a new lady. They previewed all three in San Francisco and as I predicted, the audience was furious at the second and third ending.

Pierce Brosnan, staring at his favorite picture in the remake

GG: What I loved about the second adaptation was the introduction of art in it. Aside from the smoother, more advance means of "stealing", to me Mr. Crown suddenly had an interesting, aesthete side to him, one we probably had a glimpse of in the original. How did this come about, because it definitely changed the 90s version? I also read for a Visual Arts class that art thieves are either unaware of the value of the art, they steal just to prove that they could, or they know exactly its worth and trade it in for drugs. Which one was  it for Mr. Crown?

AT:  I shouldn't answer that as it was the idea of one of the new writers. I thought it was a good idea and as I read it, Crown did it both to prove he could and because he loved the picture. Somehow I don't think that it was intended, but it was my reading anyhow.

Steve McQueen & Faye Dunaway

GG: What I find most magnetic about your work are your two main characters: Thomas Crown and Vicki Anderson. There is so much depth to both of them and I believe Vicki's a unique female character during those times. Who were your inspirations for them? Is there a real Thomas Crown and Vicki Anderson?

AT: Crown was who I wanted to be. What did he have to worry about? "Who I'm going to be tomorrow?" Vicki was a woman I had loved all my life but she was crazy. And, married to someone else. She is still living and I cannot, in good conscience, identify her.

GG: I know that Steve McQueen wasn't the original choice for Mr. Crown. One of his books (Portrait of an American Rebel) mentioned that he wanted it so bad he sort of "lived" the blue blood lifestyle Thomas Crown had. Was it that which proved most convincing about McQueen or was it something else about the now legend? And how was it working with him?

AT: I wrote it for Sean Connery and was disappointed he refused the role (years later he told Walter Mirisch he should have taken it) so they gave it to Steve. I had Arthur Krim arrange to screen for me every piece of film on Steve and spent a week in New York seeing his movies, making notes on what he could do, what he couldn't, what made him comfortable, what didn't, and I rewrote the character right in the middle of his comfort zone range. He loved it. He loved all my work, said "I don't know how, but he knows me".

GG: Pierce Brosnan for me, was a perfect choice. He played all the qualities of a man like Crown pretty well and convincingly. But were there other choices you (or they) had for the role? Or was he the only one for it?

AT: Brosnan chased it. Loved the character, was responsible for the remake, and wants to remake it again or do a sequel as I understand it. I wrote the original for Connery, so Brosnan's love for the role is ironic but understandable as well.

GG: The 90s version Thomas Crown---the character, was awfully too smooth and the original in the 60s had a certain charm about him that felt relatable. Brosnan's Crown was always handsomely in control, always cool and collected. McQueen's, however, had quirks, like how he behaved during the chess scene with Faye Dunaway or how he reacted after seeing a man outside his townhouse. They played the same role but were incredibly different renditions. Were these products of the actors or of your writing?

AT: You have that absolutely right and what I liked about McQueen were the quirks---except for kicking his legs and hee-hawing after the first robber, which was the idea of the cameraman, and something to which I objected. Steve had a violent potential and I thought it was delicious in a proper Bostonian.

GG: Thomas Crown is such an elegant name, just like both films.

AT: That's exactly right. I wanted elegance. I still think the name works.

 Angelina Jolie for VOGUE

GG: Are the rumors true that you have a sequel in store for the film? One that has Angelina Jolie in it?

AT: I have been told (and as mentioned above), Brosnan wants a sequel and I had a brief conversation with a director's manager.

I have just written something else for Angelina Jolie, Twenty-two Lovers, which you can purchase as a novelized screenplay from Amazon. It is a new form of screenplay for people who can't read screenplays and visualize the movie. It appears to be a novel, but it isn't. It's really a screenplay.

One of the best techniques devised in the film: The Mosaic Screen

GG: I've come to understand that film, like the arts, reflect the times that they were produced in. During the late 60s, you had your work filmed and I believe it was one of the pioneers of its kind. Do you think your work reflected something going on during the late 60s to the early 70s, or was it merely a product of your free time?

AT: Very intelligent question. I was in the process of giving up on the United States and actually left the country for four months in 1969. I had supported the Vietnam war and then decided that I was wrong. Then we had the Kennedy assassinations, Johnson's quiting, market collapse and the Chicago riots during the convention. I decided the dollar was going to collapse and fled. I was premature, but here we are again.

GG: Finally, could you call The Thomas Crown Affair your masterpiece?

AT: I loved The Thomas Crown Affair, but BULLITT did ten times the business. I do not consider myself capable of writing a masterpiece.


For more information on Mr. Alan Trustman follow him on Twitter and check this out.
Thanks to Mr. Saverio Mancina for the interview....

CUTTING the EDGE:

NO GREY AREAS

One of the things that a man (or woman) should own is a grey sweater.

A timeless, ageless and classic wardrobe is never complete if a grey sweater's missing. Along with your pressed white shirts, slim khaki trousers, black leather jackets, suits and denim jeans, the grey sweater is just as relevant as any of these pieces.

King of Cool, Steve McQueen had immortalized the grey sweater in The Great Escape and for quite some time, his look has been the peg for the stylish and conscious set. Angelina Jolie looks as sexy when she's--- you know wearing close to nothing--- in her loose grey sweater, skinny jeans and heels. Drake's slouchy double-grey version on his latest music video Find your love is inspiring, even when it's incredibly spare. My own sweater is thin enough to wear in tropical weather and is also recommendable for colder climates with the help of layering. Dries Van Noten's Fall 2010 grey sweater came in a neat, dark shade with black cuffs, paired with strictly tailored olive green trousers and black patent shoes and it's perfect.

But what's the fuss about anyway? It's just a sweater after all...

Grey's more than just an option for Drake

Dries Van Noten's Fall 2010 Look # 36

Angelina Jolie sexy as hell in a grey sweater

The grey sweater goes beyond classic elegance. It's probably one of fashion's most flexible items since it's incredibly basic and the color goes with most things. A black sweater's too heavy for those rainy summer get-aways, a white one too pure and difficult to wear for some complexions. Grey achieves the balance between the heavy and the immaculate, and a lot of people look good wearing the color. Whether it's a gunmetal grey (one I really love) dove grey or granite, there will always be that handsome shade you would want to and can wear with virtually anything. Go vintage and iconic with a dark grey crew neck with trim khaki trousers. If you're in the mood for something easy but still dressed up, opt for a slimmer sweater, black straight-cut jeans and desert boots. For corporate measures, layer yours on top of a clean white button down and tuck it in black slacks and for some added sophistication, don a navy silk tie and it's an instant seriously chic look.

The crewnecks above (left: Topman, middle-down: J. Crew, right: Gap) are only some of the lots of grey sweaters available everywhere and they're not difficult to scout. But the best reason why the grey sweater is in fact a proper style investment is its easy access to all the possible seasons. Again, during those rainy summer days, anything black would make you sweat too much and a cover up such as a grey sweater, in a light fabric doubles as a stylish suit of armor and protection from the natural elements. Definitely in the fall, it's a must and even if it's as diaphanous as a feather, it could still get you through the cold with proper layering. Along with your trusty pair of Chucks, those black croc belts you always go to and that institution of a shirt---the white button down--- the grey sweater stands as a classic, elegant and handsome piece that would never go out of style. Surely, no grey areas about that.

-Gerard

CUTTING the EDGE:

A Brazilian in AmericaAren't we all going crazy over the stars and stripes of recent style? Robert Pattinson walks out of restaurants wearing his button downs open to reveal comfy grainy v-necks, channeling (according to GQ) Paul Newman elegance. JFK's influence still smooths over so much of today's cool essentials: boat shoes, khaki trousers, Converse sneakers. And who would not agree that the ultimate in comfort is a breezy, plain white tee? The stylish dress it up and down and all come out as impeccably good-looking men (and women). If there has been any time in our age that the world of fashion bowed down to great American style, it must be this season.
DETAILS magazine's June/July issue did it best, putting Americana as the theme of their issue with great stills from Anthony Cotsifas, great style picks from preppy classics to surfer-inspired garb to a truly All-American actor for a cover (Bradley Cooper). Editor Daniel Peres sums the season up perfectly saying "Never before has being 'dressed like Americans' been such a badge of honor." Most collections for 2010 did pick up on the utility and relaxed elegance of masculine American style. This is great for people like me who believe that style is all about a balance between looking good and feeling good. My cool cousins up in Tennessee take to worn-in Birkenstocks, faded, vintage-looking boot cut jeans and t-shirts that come in maroon, grey and white and they always look so relaxed and casual but never frumpy or disheveled. My late grandfather whom I credit most of my style know-how to has Ralph Lauren basics stacked up in all different colors, much like his son, Uncle Ed (who happens to be the father of my Southern cousins). It sort of runs in the family that despite our purely Filipino heritage, we admire and naturally dress for stylish American comfort.

Since the clothes have all been Americanized, editorials of late too dive deep into American fashion. Most interesting would probably be the rise of the handsome stunner, Arthur Sales, who's Brazilian blood and looks, somehow mesh perfectly with denim shirts and plaid pieces. Sales has been in demand this season, walking for a huge number of designers like DSquared2, Dolce & Gabbana, Corneliani, Armani and booking big campaigns like American Eagle. I've always been pretty amazed by these Brazilian models and I owe that to how Manila treats them. Here it's all Brazilian madness when it comes to campaigns and magazine covers. But what makes all these photos season favorites---aside from a new favorite model---are the colors, the clothes and the superb tribute to the elegance of Great America. photos: American Eagle ad (above) and Dean Isidro's Shoot with Sales (opening and middle image) from Male Model Scene

CUTTING the EDGE:

THE BIG '09 (part 3)

For the last part of the 2009 round-up, CUTTING the EDGE cuts straight to the point as to why GLEE's such a hit, dreams of riding a foldable bike, shares jokes from the year's funniest (and sexiest) woman AND laughs at Sean O'pry's analysis of shouting like a dinosaur.

Wayfarers & the bridgeless noses it has been sitting on: EYEWEAR OF 2009

Face it...nobody really gets over wayfarers. The moment Robert Pattinson stepped out on one of those scenes from Twilight (one amazingly eye-rolling film) wearing wayfarers, tweens, twenteens and momeens all went swooning. I just couldn't stomach naming that the movie moment of the year. You just knew that the 50s original from Ray-Ban never will die. Cary Grant---above, sported one of the first pairs in world (style and movie) history and I say it's his movie moment that all of us should be swooning over. Yeah, even the men. The beauty of the wayfarers is that even people without handsome noses (and that includes me) suddenly look like bigtime celebrities wearing them. Trust me, whenever I wear my wayfarers---they're brandless wayfarers cause I couldn't afford the real ones just yet, it immediately punches up some cool to my otherwise plain style. So to people who tried to steer away from the wayfarers, drop all pretentions and just succumb to them. You know you want them anyway.

photo: Bulldog

SCOTT "The Sartorialist" SCHUMAN: 2009's Most Stylish Man

If you don't know The Sartorialist, then you really haven't been on the internet. From style savvy kids to photography disciples to bookish human beings, the blog that has been sweeping the streets of fashion capitals the world over is one of the most visited pages on the internet. Manned by the coolest photographer ever, Scott Schuman is the genius behind the street-style blog The Sartorialist and the reason why he's this year's most stylish man is because it takes more than dressing the part to be one. For him to be able to see people beyond their clothes and focus more on their ways of self-expression is telling of his vision, taste and most of all, his knowledge of real style. And that is why he is 2009's Most Stylish Man.

Check out his blog here----> The Sartorialist
Photo: The Sartorialist

GLEE: Series of 2009

Joanne Gotladera on Kurt

"I think GLEE is awesome. I love Kurt---and everybody else in the show, and I think we should all follow him and embrace the truth. Kurt has inspired me greatly, and above all, he has inspired me to come out...

I, am actually a man."

Of course, my sister's joking. I once was a fan of the show. Religiously---with her, I'd follow the series and download their songs. Their revivals of Don't Stop Believing by Journey and Gold Digger of Kanye West and Jamie Foxx were a few among the tons of great songs they've been singing. What's more interesting about the show is that it was produced by the same people behind Nip/Tuck and you immediately see the similarities between the two shows: how the content always has some adult spin on the story and how that adult spin actually makes for an amazing show. There's more to GLEE than cool singing and "L" photos. Sadly, I've grown tired of it. It doesn't make it less of a good series for 2009 though.

-Joanne Gotladera is my sister and she will be watching GLEE after American Idol's season something.

photo: Fanpop

IF MODE: RIDE OF 2009

I have always wondered if biking around Metro Manila requires a license...And honestly, I seriously---and secretly, question that in my head. One thing's for sure though, biking around AND in Metro Manila is the closest you could get to sky diving...or better yet, high-wire walking with no training whatsoever with a billion shards of broken glass to catch your clumsy fall. You get what I mean. Maybe Manila isn't the safest place to bike around in, but this modern, ultracool bicycle would be your BEST ride had we all been situated in New York City. Surely, you could get one yourself and bike around safer parts of the metro, but it wouldn't be worth the 50,000 peso ($2, 250) bill you'll be paying for this one. Designed by Ryan Carroll, Michael Lin and Mark Sanders, this bike promises less of the bulk a mountain bike has and more of the easy-chic ride a New Yorker ought to have. It folds, has none of those oily, visible chains AND is just incredibly too cool to ignore. One day, when Manila starts boasting of smarter drivers and less polution, maybe they'd have a better version of this. Hopefully, I'd have enough money (and physical strength) to get me one. By far, the best ride I have EVER seen in 2009.

Check out more cool cool stuff on -----> AREAWARE

photo & information: AREAWARE, GQ

THE HANGOVER: Movie of 2009

Gus Lacson on the comedy

"I liked The Hangover because it was the best comedy I've seen in a long time...It didn't seem to try so hard. It reminded me of classic comedies like old school ones. Simply hilarious. I never stopped laughing. You need movies like this...ones that don't try so hard.

Not all comedies do a great job like The Hangover."

- Gus Lacson is a good friend who looks like Taylor Lautner, reads GQ and ESQUIRE and opts for the classy local magazine ROGUE to read. He's also stylish...

Quotes from the movie courtesy of IMBD:

Alan Garner: Tigers love pepper...they hate cinnamon.

Mr. Chow: It's funny because he's fat!

Sid Garner: Remember what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. Except for herpes. That shit'll come back with you.

Stu Price: She's got my grandmother's Holocaust ring!

Alan Garner: I didn't know they gave out rings at the Holocaust.

CHELSEA HANDLER on Tara Reid

"I have more respect for somebody who's like, "Yeah I like to party, screw off," than for Tara (Reid) who talks about not partying and ends up passed out underneath a Subway-not a subway station, but the actual sandwich shop- two days later."

from Chelsea Handler's Fan Site

photo: Blippitt

The FACE you WISH you had: Sean O'pry on shouting like a Dinosaur

Taken from Interview Magazine with an interview written by Matthew Edelstein

"Hmmm, I did this shoot recently where they asked me to yell like a dinosaur. I put my arms in really close like a T-Rex. He was like 'That's not a dinosaur.' I was like, 'But his arms are short. He can't reach.' I guess I looked a little bit mentally handicapped doing it, but as you said before it kind of escaped me-that shoot."

from Interview Magazine

2009 wouldn't be 2009 if super duper model Sean O'pry wasn't BIG. Sure there were those well-known faces like Garrett Neff and David Gandy---not to mention Karl Lagerfeld's muse (if that's what you call him) Baptiste, but Sean O'pry really has that unique face. He reminds me of old Hollywood films and how he would perfectly fit in classic movies like James Dean's Rebel Without A Cause. What's really good about O'pry is that he's more than just a handsome face. He's full of personality (based on YouTube) and he's humble and has humor. I still dream of that day when I wake up and my face is of Sean's. I'd freak out at first, but then I'd make sure that I won't spend an entire day inside my room.

photo: Male Model Scene

It's SOFT & it's HARD...it's Spring 2009

Probably the most confusing season of menswear I have seen, Spring 2009 had it difficult when it came to a defining look. Take your glance at Yves Saint Laurent's old school cool collection that boasts of slouchy coats and soft trousers. Then feel energized checking out Kilgour's modern and sleek (sharp even) collection. Alexander McQueen had the tightest jackets around and the sharpest shoulders while Patrik Ervel had rounder, softer versions. Whichever side of the style field you're playing---played, for, Spring 2009 sure did have you guessing: which kind of tailoring would win? The sharp or the soft? Either way, Spring 2009 still had it good.

photos: GQ

"BASTARDIZATION of a CLASSIC?" or COOL?! You decide: WATCH OF 2009
I could never afford a Rolex. And even if I could in the future I wouldn't get myself one. I believe that it takes a man of a certain stature and age to be able to pull off an authentic, more-expensive-than-your-life Rolex and I never see myself being one of those few men. I fancy a Patek or a Cartier more than a Rolex (and that's also because I know so little about luxury brands of watches). HOWEVER, when these models came out: Rolex Explorer designed by Fragment Design, I had given the brand much consideration and attention. I think they're cool, but readers of the blog Highsnobiety think otherwise...I don't know. Still, I think this collaboration is something so 2009.

read some of the comments here-------> Highsnobiety

photo: Highsnobiety

DENIMania
There's been no other season/year that denim took on all sorts of cuts, colors, washes and reinventions. Levi's still remains as the go-to establishment for some investment jeans. Dolce & Gabbana created this year's best looking jean jacket (left). GQ has some dissertation on what differentiates a pair of A.P.C. jeans from an A.P.C. x Supreme pair. Jeans were ripped like we were all kids from the 90s. Jeans were folded to show some hairy ankles like we're all prepsters. Jeans were cut too skinny to rob off the legs from blood circulation. Jeans were just everywhere this year (like Beyonce or Lady GaGa or Justin Beiber or the Blackeyed Peas)... The best advice I've read about jeans is that no matter how schizophrenic fashion gets, you should settle with what works best for your height, body and style.

photo & information: DETAILS

Some of the BEST stores to get your denims from (locally and globally):

TOPMAN for modern cuts and cool washes.

the GAP for reasonably priced, money-worthy pairs.

ACNE for some high-end versions

A.P.C.

Bench for cheap, local-made denim

Folded & Hung for quick purchases (both are originally from the Philippines)

RECO jeans and SMARTER.com for eco-friendly pairs.

Why Italian GQ's February 2009 issue with Gaspard Ulliel on the cover is 2009's BEST men's magazine cover...And why GQ is probably this close to beating TIME magazine.

......American GQ for me has been the most worthy of my money magazine for 2009. I have learned more than just folding my jeans like they were afterthought. GQ felt like---sappy alert, I had an older, stylish and smart brother. It reads like a person who's gone through a lot without being too emotional and instead, tampering all that with sick, manly humor. There's substance to GQ---like Russian crime stories and sensible intervies of scandalous celebrities, that no other read gives. TIME magazine truly is good and intellectual, but for me there's more to life than knowing about Barack Obama's 275th day in office. GQ on the other hand, covers politics, the world, culture, style, food, health, relationships, technology, art, literature, humor and just all the things you would want to spend money on when it comes to taking home a glossy. GQ is the bible for all kinds of men who value their time and their lives.

......I was clicking through Flickr, Google and GQ.com and I stumbled over this amazing cover. I couldn't believe it that I had never seen this magazine cover before. It's pure magic. The Ray-Ban Clubmasters, the chicly unkempt kept hairstyle, the colors of the fonts and that soft vintage appeal of the photo, the handsome face of French actor Gaspard Ulliel and how his eyes are blank and his lips slightly open...Everything about the cover is truly telling of the year that has been: 2009. I see here exactly what I've been observing about the year. We're all clawing at some past we highly romanticize about. It could be how my grandmother speaks highly of the 50s, or it could be all these nods to the past: how Pete Yorn and Scarlett Johansson both sound cool and "old" and how most songs are about partying like it was the 80s. I for one have been hooked on old films and James Dean and Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard and soon Marlon Brando. Something about 2009 made it all easy for us to look back on the past. It could've been the recession for Americans or some sick tragedies that we Filipinos have gone through. Whatever it may have been, the world---for me, is chicly summarized by this cool, vintage-like cover: we're all gaping blankly at some time we wish we could go back to. Or at least experience.

photo: Flickr

CUTTING the EDGE:


THE BIG '09 (part 2)

For the second part of CUTTING the EDGE's year-end special, Gerard Gotladera takes great advice from The Dark Knight and The Terminator's Christian Bale on (you'll never guess) STARVING, copy pastes---with sources cited of course, one of the BEST articles on style and culture from GQ and crowns Joseph Gorden-Levitt as the Posterboy of 2009...

bow tie photo: Highsnobiety

I want my Preppy Style Back: The BEST article on Style (and Culture) of 2009

Taken from the article written by Will Welch from GQ's June 2009 issue:

"Now we have Vampire Weekend singing about madras while wearing...madras. Andre 3000 switched from P-Funkster to dandy in 2003? Six years later, Pharell Williams in bow ties and T.I. in rotating roster of sweaters in color of sherbet. And don't get me started on the designer crowd; during the last New York fashion week, grown men were walking around in tortoiseshell glasses, Pee-wee bow ties, braided belts, pants hemmed short of their ankles, and $300 boat shoes with no socks. In the middle of February. Yes, we here at GQ have been-and always will be-fond of classic American style, but this runway-palooza looked like it was taken over by an army of overgrown 12-year-olds in middle school uniforms."

Read more here----> GQ

CHRISTIAN BALE on STARVING

Taken from GQ's June 2009 issue "A Nice Quiet Chat with Christian Bale". Written by Andrew Corsello & photographed by Terry Richardson

GQ: You once described what you did for The Machinist-starving off a third of your body- as "calming". Can you eleborate?

Christian Bale: I guess you just sort of have to focus on other...pleasures than food. So you focus on things of the mind. It really is almost mind control. And I found that very calming. Usually, you're getting nervous energy from what you're taking into your body. Since I wasn't putting anything in, I was left in a low-energy state. I didn't have the energy to sleep much at all, if that doesn't sound too strange. But that absence of energy was replaced with an ability to focus in a very slow and steady way for hours and hours. Physically, I was incredibly relaxed- I really didn't have a choice-but mentally very acute. It was very nice to be in that state while it lasted. My family enjoyed that one as well, after they got over the horror of looking at me.
photo: GQ

BOAT SHOES: Shoe of 2009

Forget about the boat shoe killings---even if some are still really, REALLY killing them, I believe in the power of a classic. These boat shoes from Sperry's Spring 2010 collection will certainly be on the top of my list of "to-buys" starting January 1. Everybody has fallen in love with these classic pairs and I tell you, even if they are being mutated, beaten up and lived in for an entire month (ehem, guilty), they'll never go out of style ever again.

photo: Selectism

YOU DESERVE A TREAT: Wendy's Frosty

Taken from DETAILS' September 2009 issue "You Want Fries With THat? The 25 Most Fulfilling Things To Order When You're in the Mood to indulge at the Drive-Thru" written by JJ Goode

" Don't ask why it comes with a straw. The Frosty is no milk shake but rather some sort of milky mutant ice cream that seems both liquid and solid through the last spoonful-or, as ardent fans prefer, the last dipped fry. Sure, there are new fancy flavors, but the subtly chocolaty original wins over even those who usually vote vanilla."

Seriously, I could eat this all week and never get sick of it. Or maybe I would, but the mere fact that I could stomach the biggest size they have (in our shores) just confirms how beautiful this desert is. There are those few treats that you spoon and feel amazingly comforted after and Wendy's' Frosty has got to be one of them.

Once in a while, eating something like this wouldn't hurt...really. Just run your life after eating the biggest one.

photo: Jumped Off The Ladder

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Heads Will Roll & Coldplay's Strawberry Swing: Videos of 2009

These two music videos are 2009's smartest, coolest and BEST videos. If you haven't seen these two yet...where the hell have you been for the past 12 months?

Watch videos here-----> The Yeah Yeahs & Coldplay

Barack Obama & The Recession

Taken from Great Personalities

"We have a long way to go on our road to recovery but we are going the right way. Our measure of progress is the progress the American people see in their own lives. And until that progress is steady and solid; we're going to keep moving forward."

I LOVE YOU, MAN: Not just the movie

Bromance has been the most romantic relationship two straight and decent men could ever have. And 2009 has been the time of the bromance.

Check this blog out and analyze your current bromance/friendship.

Read here-----> JUST A GUY THING

JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT: The Posterboy for Geek Chic

His character on the pretty little movie (500) Days of Summer was probably the most 2009 character ever: he writes for sappy greeting cards, has some incredible knowledge of architecture, fell in love with Zoey Deschannel and listens to some of the "coolest" tracks ever. Undeniably written to cater today's sort of estranged youth, that little movie that did---I know it sounds odd, for me launched the charming and multi-talented Mr. Gordon-Levitt to geek chic posterboydom. 2009 paved the way for all the nerds and the outcasts (that aren't as emotional) to claim IThood over the once Hip-Hop, "dumb" kid-nominated pop culture. Sporting clear wayfarers and bow ties and all such 80s geeky fashion, every adolescent to twenty something something dude wanted to be smarter than the dean of Yale. NOW, everybody dreamed of reading something from more substantial than TIMES magazine or at least get their hands on that oh-so Japanice new book The Train Man. Everybody listens to intellectual songs and goes to watch intellectual movies. And by intellectual we mean those movies that never make it to cinemas and instead are shown to the intellectual crowd at the Cannes Film Festival (in short indie films). Chris Pine would've been a good geek chic posterboy, but he's too cool to be geek chic cool. Joseph Gordon-Levitt however fits the bill: he's thin, sings and acts the way the geeks and the nerds wish they'd act. To Joseph Gordon-Levitt, congratulations for being the anti-thesis of the old cool kid. He represents the new cool kid...

photo: GQ