The Sunday Best

223. The Fine Art of Not Letting People Get What They Want | H&M

The web is a-flutter with talk of the coming Comme des Garçons line for retail juggernaut H&M.

Style Salvage wonders if Steve will wear all the polka dot pieces at the same time.

We Are The Market (which provided the picture up top) are fans of the tailored jackets.

And Fashionista has the largest selection of photos, or rather it did before H&M asked them to take them down. Which makes perfect sense because nothing creates buzz like not letting people see what you're offering.

Well done H&M. Kudos for following the path of television companies that rip videos from YouTube because they'd rather have control than actual fans of their work, Lord knows what would have happened if pictures of your clothes were plastered all across the internet for free so that people could rave about them and basically sign over their first born in anticipation.

Message from retailers to consumers - we know the economy is shite, but screw you anyway. You know what, H&M? How about sewing your buttons on with thread not made from papier-mâché.

206. Man-kup? | Benjamin Bixby | Spare Change: $8500, $1195

Linda Grant on The Thoughtful Dresser has given me more fuel for my manpurse fire - make-up for men. It's not the product itself that bothers me--I once painted my fingernails Hard Candy Taxi yellow--but the branding of the product:

Guyliner, a £6.50 kohl pencil, will be in stores this week, closely followed by Manscara, a clear gel for lashes and brows.

Haven't we moved beyond this juvenile wordsmithing? And in what way is Guyliner different from any other eyeliner? Is it composed of BBQed steaks?

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Still no more pictures with a Fall release...not the most stellar marketing.

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Loro Piana baby cashmere peacoat

Hickey Freeman shawl-collar dinner jacket

187. Joodito, or The Curse of Technical Apparel

Here in the Pacific Northwest many of us have been afflicted with Technical Apparelitus, a peculiar brand of sartorial disease that forces the sufferer to be garbed in highly technical outdoor apparel no matter the chosen activity.

Hence people will grocery shop in parkas that have scaled Everest, and have coffee in Bikram's yoga Lycra-infused halter tops.

I was briefly cheered when I saw the eco-friendly Nau come out with some tailored outdoor pieces, then saddened to hear they had collapsed, then confused to learn they were back again. (Just like being in love.) If you're an XXL they still have sale items on offer.

Joodito is an Etsy store that offers what I consider a better take on the ubiquitous cotton zip-up. Made from salvaged pieces, it's the kind of thing I'd make, and force Charlie to wear, if I only had a bit more skill.

162. Gilt Groupe | Invitation

A reader has informed me that you need to be invited by a member to sign up for Gilt Groupe, an inane system since membership is free and limitless a good way to keep numbers down. So I've been parading these sales like a jerk, but clearly it hasn't mattered until now.

If you want an invite just email me or leave a comment. Even though I never buy anything I like to poke around and see how the other class lives.

161. Resort | Richard Chai

As an Asian man I take an inordinate amount of pleasure in seeing other Asian men succeed, especially when that success comes in arenas where we are normally silent, such as fashion, and not, say, piano recitals.

By all accounts, Richard Chai is a successful man.

What is not clear is whether Mr. Chai is a friend of women, for if he is he shows it in a roundabout way. A roundabout, heavily shouldered way.

It will avail you not one whit to stare at those magic dots with your eyes crossed - no beautiful dress, or dolphin in space, will appear. It reminds me of one of these, with some sort of mystery ailment:

Of course, you might need a formal squid tube dress for those evening events.

But then, perhaps you should count yourself lucky not to be dressed as a wedding cake with a black fungal growth.

Do my eyes deceive me, or is she wearing a giraffe-patterned body stocking?

160. Ralph Lauren Accessories at Gilt Groupe

As I write this there is a Ralph Lauren accessory sale at Gilt Groupe. I still can't afford anything, but for my more well-off readership...

$1000 Now $348

$3400 Now $1000

$1295 Now $448

Sign up for the Gilt Groupe here.

140. United Arrows | Men.Style video

For someone with no knowledge of the language, I buy a lot of Japanese magazines. The Japanese are experts at taking a look or trend and making it their own, often going further with it than the originating culture. One has only to see their embrace of rockabilly or goth to know this. And while perusing these periodicals I found that more often than not one store was associated with the clothes and accessories I liked - United Arrows.

Men.Style posted the following video tour of United Arrows by Tim Blanks. I give Blanks a lot of grief on this blog--lord knows almost all of it is jealousy. That said, the shirt he is wearing in this video is god awful. Blanks - you are a fashion insider. Step it up.

Two things that stood out for me - Chief Creative Officer Hirofuni Kurino saying he can dress business one day, punk style the next, and Blanks observation that Japanese men are not devoted to one style.

131. A.P.C. sale (I miss New York)

The A.P.C. store in Williamsburg is having a 70% off sale this Wednesday and Thursday. Go, my New York brethren. I shop vicariously through you. (As seen on Trash Bag Aesthetic).

A.P.C. Surplus
33 Grand Street
Brooklyn, NY

5. Barker Black

Style.com asked the brothers behind Barker Black to list off 10 fashion essentials. Could I be their long lost brother?

Barker Black Fashion Essentials