High fashion and couture are not normally paired with bellies and fur. Normally. However, Belgian fashion designer Walter Van Beirendonck sees a veritable canvas on the broad shoulders and fuzzy stomachs of the men intended to wear his 2010 Summer look.

WVB’s Summer 2010 Wonde® is all about branding. Beirendock has incorporated logos and trademarks from companies all over the world, using them as fashionable elements.  This is some serious cut and sew, fellas. The looks are out there but somehow they just fit on the burly bodies that walked down the catwalk… or is it a bearwalk?

Click through to see a whole lot more…and  make sure you scroll down to the end for the underbears!

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My favorite pants company evar, Bonobos, just put out a little promo video explaining where pants came from and why their pants rule. You should totally watch the whole thing (in HD, duh); at the end is a coupon code for a discount on your first sweet pair.

The scrollwheel skid to a stop on this one as I was browsing through the Uncrate feed. I have this perseverant (say: per-seh-ver-ent) phrase of late and its “I’ll punch you in your face.” Mostly, I say (and do) it to my cat Skylar, but I’ve been slipping it out as a term of endearment when talking to John.

Printed on American Apparel Sustainable Edition shirts, and put sold by Little Paper Planes, “Haymaker” puts me in a punchy mood. I wanna wrastle…

Get yours (or mine “M” size kthxbai) for $24 bucks.. comes in bear and chaser sizes. via Rumplo via Uncrate

*OK, not Daddy per-say, but anyone who gifts me from the blogosphere gets the “Blog Sugar Daddy” title for a spell….

I had mentioned  over a week ago on Twitter that I must absolutely have this new pair of Bonobos cords, the “M Streets,” and that someone should buy them for me. Well, seems that a good blog/twitter pal/follower, Michael Cichon/BfloNativeInFla, was feeling generous and bought them for me. Let me say thanks Mike! You rock severely and the pants are much appreciated… and as promised, a post:

Bonobos are the Craftsman brand of pants: quality, durability, and satisfaction unconditionally guaranteed. Plus, they are pants for the man with a little bit of ass and a little bit of style. Allow me to explain:

• Bonobos are handsewn, quality trousers made in NY made from wholesome materials like organic cotton or wool.
• Most of today’s casual slacks suffer from “Khaki Diaper Butt,” a tragedy wrought from mass-produced pants made to fit a form, not a man. Bonobos are designed to fit a man with a butt, with a curved waistband to ensure a proper fit on the hips. It’s OK for a guy to have an ass, and Bonobos are the best pant to show them off.
• Each pair of pants come at at a set length, either 34″ inseam for waists 28-33, and 36″ for waists 34-40. Just stop at your favorite dry cleaners (or ask that seamstress friend of yours) and you can get them tailored to the perfect length. Most Bonobos are also slightly boot-cut, a plus for the casual office dweller who refuses to wear dress shoes, like me.
• You won’t find these pants in stores, except for the headquarters in Manhattan, or at trunk sales throughout the year. You buy Bonobos online at bonobos.com, keeping markups low.
• The return policy is insane: any pant, any time, any reason, you can return your Bonobos for a 100% refund or replacement. And they pay for the return shipping.
• Did I mention they fit and look amazing?

When Michael bought my pants, it went a few days without any word on shipping or tracking numbers. After an email inquiry it turned out that in a giant rush for the new March lineup, staff at Bonobos accidentally let the order fall through the cracks. Most companies would hash off a quick “sorry” and send them along. Not only were they apologetic,  but they overnighted the pants and included a coupon for a hefty discount on the next order. Arriving with the M Streets was the invoice, and scribbled was this cute note that I had to share…

This isn’t the first time I’ve worn Bonobos. I picked up a pair of shoguns last year and they are my favorite second favorite pair of pants next to these M Streets. Since I couldn’t wait to wear them, I asked my friend Crystal from the Co-op if she would fix the length for me. I’m not exactly a 31 waist, but the cords shrink a bit in the wash and come out perfect.

I’ve never had silver pants before, but they look and feel great, and will go with nearly everything. Middleweight corduroy is one of the perfect fabrics for Spring, you heard it here. #tweetit

The love for Pantone never seems to go away, as it penetrates every part of the fashion / design spectrum. Pantone is normally behind the scenes, but Gap is bringing everybody’s favorite color system to the front of fashion with a new Pop Up shop in NYC.

Open from now until February 8th, shoppers can stop in and pick up a Gap tee in a variety of Pantone hues and shades. Pantone has also named Mimosa (14-0848) the color of the 2009 and Gap will offer a special tee in that color, only available on the 5th.

This isn’t the first time Pantone got all fashionista, they did the same thing before with Uniqlo. The pop-up store is right next to the NYC Gap Flagship store at 54th and 5th Ave.

Via PSFK

My workday is half sitting on my ass in an office, and half roaming about the community with a recreation group. I need pants that fit well, look nice, and can flex without ripping or rubbing my leg hairs right off. Up until now, I’ve been stuck wearing chinos’s, taking a hit on fitting, because I need the casual cut to get around. Till now, I’ve been looking for a pant that wins on all three, something I can wear that was made for me, my style, and doesn’t cost me tailor prices. Till Now.

I ran across Bonobos first on Uncrate, a site devoted to gear and goods for guys. They called them the holy grail of pants, and I liked the look of them so I meandered over to Bonobos.com to take a peak.

First glance at the site, it looked like Bonobos were made for preppy well-off guys that wouldn’t dare walk into a department store for anything more than a wedding gift for a cousin he despised, let alone a pair of slacks. But damn, were the pants enticing, so I took a deeper look.

Bonobos are pants that feel like your favorite pair of jeans.  I’m sitting at my desk now, in a fresh pair of Shoguns, and my ass feels SOOO good. There’s no bunching, I feel supported and very comfortable. The material is sturdy, yet light corduroy.

Bonobos exists to solve to two problems we had ourselves. (1) Men’s pants do not fit well; they are either baggy, frumpy, and unflattering. Or way too tight. We make pants that fit and look better, on most gents and especially on guys with athletic builds. The second problem (2) is retail. How could we enjoy paying 120% markup to try on clothes in an uncomfortable public environment where sales associates—who are total strangers—either scrutinize our figures, or pay no attention to us at all? Meanwhile, pricing games are no fun. We’re tired of waiting for sales… but paying full price makes no sense when inevitably everything will go on sale. We got tired of the traditional retail shopping experience. So we are building a different kind of clothing company, one that offers a fantastic customer experience, innovative low-cost distribution, and a stylish product that fits well.

Bonobos come in various style, materials, and colors; each style has a limited one-time run.  Each pant is also gracefully bootcut, with a playful, colorful lining. And, on the Shoguns at least, a hybrid snap/slide fly button which I thought was the coolest thing ever. To ensure that each pair fits, they all ship one length. If you have a puerto rican living with you and a mini sweat shop (like I do), you can get them sized the same day.

Prices aren’t bad either (most are between $110 and $130), but what I thought was the most amazing thing was the Band of Brothers discount they gave me for working the field of non-profit/human service. For that, I am incredibly grateful.

Pants this sweet, you won’t be able to find in stores. Bonobos only sell online, with a understanding open return policy, much like Craftsman, or Tupperware.

If I could replace my wardrobe with one line, (and I probably will over time), it will be Bonobos, ’nuff said.

• Go buy some pants
  

The dresses created by designers Jeffrey Costello and Robert Tagliapietra are flowing masterpieces, cut from the most elegant and luxurious cloth, draping and forming with perfection to nearly every body type. The designers on the other hand, prefer a bit less expensive and more practical approach to their own personal fashion:

The two met at the now-defunct club Sound Factory in 1994 and have been together, personally and professionally, ever since. Back then, Costello was doing costumes for Madonna’s trippy “Bedtime Story” video – “I think that’s kind of why I wanted to start helping,” says Tagliapietra. They live and work in a modest, 1,000-square-foot railroad apartment in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, a third-floor walk-up. Their current intern – coincidentally, they say – looks exactly like they do: a burly, bearded young man in jeans, a flannel shirt and suspenders, more rustic lumberjack than refined couturier.
“We’ve always sort of dressed alike,” says Tagliapietra.
“The only thing more comfortable than jeans and flannels are pajamas,” Costello says. “And I’m not gonna wear pajamas to a nightclub.”
“Suspenders are more comfortable than a belt,” adds Tagliapietra.

Angel had shown me this article yesterday from The Post that featured “the boys.” I’ve seen and swooned over this handsome couple for ages. Half as much for their good looks, I’m more amazed at their success in an industry that simply defies the “bearish” nature. Perhaps that’s why they are still relatively unknown for their incredible work.

The boys themselves – Costello is 46, Tagliapietra, 33 – have their own theories as to why they remain largely undiscovered. “I think part of it is money,” says Tagliapietra. They are looking for backing; until then, it’s just the two of them designing a 28-piece collection twice a year. They can’t afford to hire a full-time pattern-maker or a seamstress, and have no financial safety net. Since debuting in 2005, they’ve been sold in a handful of stores around the world – but even if they got a bump in orders, they lack the means to produce at a faster pace. Aside from their financial constraints, Tagliapietra is stumped. “Who knows why?” he asks.

Costello, too, is perplexed: “I still don’t understand how we do these delicate dresses with such meaty paws,” he says, chuckling softly.

They work 14-hour days – 20 in the run-up to Fashion Week – and when they have free time would rather go to dinner with friends than network. And they are painfully aware that some of their less talented peers have surpassed them in name and brand recognition by cultivating the right fashion-world contacts and celebrity friends: “It’s hard,” says Tagliapietra, to watch other young designers cut deals with Target while they struggle. Last year, they were approached by Lord & Taylor’s parent company, which offered $1.5 million for a 70 percent stake in the line. Ultimately, the deal fell through: “We just wanted fair control,” says Costello.

Meaty paws and a look a like intern? “Coincidentally?” Sure.

• Sew Serious – NY Post

I’ve been meaning to mention something about Alan for a while; he’s the only blogger to ever send me snail mail: a custom postcard in fact. It seems, now, that Alan has gotten himself into a bit of a contest with Times Union for Best Dressed Man of the Capitol Region. Capitol Region being Albany, NY, and best dressed man being Alan, of course.

I won’t tell you to vote for Alan, I’ll let you look at the photos of the other contestants (make sure you click on their pictures from the link below to see the rest of their shots), then make the obvious choice.

Oh yea, Alan is a photographer and a great writer, so don’t forget to check out his site after you vote for him.

• Vote best Dressed Man of the Capitol Region {Times Union}
• Alan Bennett Ilagan {Web Site}