NBA, Quiksilver partner for team-branded board shorts

The National Basketball Assn. and Huntington Beach-based surf brand Quiksilver have inked a multiyear merchandising deal that will put NBA team logos, designs and colorways on Quiksilver men's board shorts, both companies announced Thursday.

The initial collection includes eight designs featuring seven of the NBA's 32 teams. That's one style each for the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Dallas Mavericks, Chicago Bulls, Orlando Magic and reigning NBA champion Miami Heat, and two versions (yellow or black with purple) for the fashion-forward Los Angeles Lakers, on 22-inch outseam boardies that incorporate Quik's "Diamond Dobby" fabric technology (basically a weave that uses a raised-diamond pattern to decrease skin contact and cut down on rashing and chafing while surfing).

The NBA Quiksilver board shorts retail for $65 and are available through Quiksilver's flagship stores and website, and will eventually also be sold through the NBA's online store (which currently has team-branded boardies by G-III on offer). Quiksilver also makes pro football-branded board shorts through a partnership with the National Football  League.  

RELATED:

Quiksilver's first women's store gives surfwear a boutique feel

High heels and Marchesa tops: NBA, NFL ramp up fan fashion

Potter heads: Team USA Quidditch jerseys now on sale

— Adam Tschorn

Photos: The first team-branded board shorts rolling out to retail as part of Quiksilver's multiyear deal with the NBA includes designs catering to fans of (from left) the Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Boston Celtics and New York Knicks. The initial offering also includes the Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks and Orlando Magic (not pictured).  Credit: NBA  

Band of Outsiders stages 'longest show ever' in Paris

For the Paris Fashion Week debut of his Band of Outsiders label, Scott Sternberg has decided to tweak the live presentation format by featuring a single model who will change into different looks from the spring 2013 men's collection over the course of a 60-hour stint in a Paris gallery window.

The "longest show ever" -- their words, not ours, but it seems logical -- is being streamed live through the label's website (and embedded below). It kicked off at 9:30 a.m. local time in Paris on Wednesday, and is scheduled to run until 9:30 p.m. on Friday, and is taking place in what Sternberg's press announcement describes as: "a small compartment built from cardboard boxes and wood planks adjacent to the window of an anonymous gallery in Paris," with the model visible through a window on the street.

The model will be on display (kind of like the folks who occupy the fish tank crash pad behind the front desk at the Standard Hotel in West Hollywood), from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time, only leaving the compartment every 90 minutes to be photographed and to change into a different look from the runway collection.

Besides being a novel -- and no doubt buzz-generating -- way to present a collection, it suddenly makes every interminably long runway show we've ever sat through seem like a breeze by comparison.

RELATED:

Band of Outsiders debuts new digs

New York Fashion Week fall 2012: Band of Outsiders

New York Fashion Week spring 2012: Band of Outsiders

-- Adam Tschorn

 

Photo: A model sits in the window of a Paris gallery as part of the 60-hour presentation of Band of Outsiders' spring 2013 menswear collection. Credit: Thomas Samson / AFP/Getty Images

Mr. Porter, 'Suits' wheel out a bicycle promo built for two

If your daily commute across Los Angeles Wednesday (or Thursday) finds you crossing paths with a well-heeled, two-wheeled flash mob, it's not a crowd scene dream sequence being shot for a Pee-wee Herman movie, it's a cross-promotional awareness campaign between USA Network's legal drama "Suits" (which kicks off its second season June 14) and the men's luxury shopping site Mr. Porter.

Groups of identically clad gents -- decked out in gray Acne suits and white Converse sneakers -- are set to bicycle the streets of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago on Wednesday and Thursday, handing out copies of the website's "Mr. Porter Post" publication along the way. For anyone unfamiliar with the show, the bicycle part of the equation is a nod to "Suits'" bike-riding, suit-wearing Mike Ross character (played by Patrick J. Adams). 

The velo fellows kicked off the promotion Tuesday in  New York City (where the TV show is set and Mr. Porter's U.S. offices are located) with the rolling panache mob taking to the streets and a fashion show of "Suits"-inspired looks curated by the Mr. Porter team on the High Line.

As part of the promotion, Mr. Porter has a dedicated "Suits and Style" web page that can be found here. As for the second season of "Suits," that can be found on your local USA Network channel starting Thursday at 10 p.m./9 Central.

RELATED:

Q+A: Gabriel Macht 'Suits' up for USA

Details, Kaleidoscope to help men shop Coachella style

Mr. Porter meets Malibu: Men's luxury shopping site celebrates SoCal cool

 -- Adam Tschorn

Photo: A publicity photograph shows the kind of suit-wearing, bike-riding spectacle that will wheeling about the streets of Los Angeles on Wednesday and Thursday as part of a joint awareness campaign between the TV show "Suits" and the men's shopping site Mr. Porter. Credit: Mr. Porter

Your Stylist: To climb the corporate ladder, think fit first

All The Rage recently received the following e-mail from reader Sabrina Nicole Hurt asking for some style advice:

“I read your 2011 article “Clothes Make the Man,” (yes, I know I'm a little late, but it's what popped up on my Google search when I started this makeover a week ago) and I was wondering if you have any tips for dressing a slightly bigger guy for a more casual job. I'm engaged to a man who is working as a mechanic, but wants to move up in the corporate world. I have a few tips in mind, but could use some help getting him up and running. Help would be greatly appreciated.”

We figured it would be most appropriate to seek the professional advice of costume designer Dayna Pink since she was the one who used an extreme wardrobe makeover to help transform Steve Carell's character in “Crazy, Stupid, Love,” and offered men some sage sartorial advice in the aforementioned article. But first we needed to get a little clarification from Sabrina: Does “slightly bigger guy” refer to height, weight or both? And, what does the subject of her makeover efforts currently wear when he does dress up? She responded:

"He is bigger in weight, [it is] concentrated in his shoulders and belly. He wants to start his own business as the owner of a garage. He's a mechanic.

He loves rock music and is a vintage kind of man, so when he dresses up, he wears a black button-down [shirt] and jeans. That's about as dressy as it gets.”

Pink, whose recent movie credits include “The Lucky One,” and the recently wrapped movie about Las Vegas magicians titled “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” (starring Jim Carrey and Steve Carell, and due out in 2013) offers the following tips:

“I may sound like a broken record when I say 'It's all in the fit,' but it's all in the fit!

I think everyone looks better when their clothes are well-tailored, but I find it particularly true with people who are overweight. For some reason, [those with] larger body types can have a tendency to purchase clothes even bigger than they need to, which adds bulk and gives [a person] the appearance of being larger than they actually are. So, the first rule is: Make sure it fits.

Secondly, if corporate is the goal, then vintage doesn't necessarily apply. I think there is a place for vintage but not in the boardroom or in a corporate situation. I would try a well-tailored pant -- in a dark color -- and a shirt with a dark blazer for meetings. A good fitting blazer can do a guy a huge favor! It can cover some issues and read ‘professional’ all in one quick glance.

I know the look sounds basic, but a great jacket and pants can be the sexiest thing when it's the right fit. And don't forget to make sure that the shirt underneath is tailored as well. When he takes the jacket off, the shoulders of the shirt shouldn't be oversized.

Since he is hoping to be a business owner and the shop is more casual, he will likely just be in a shirt and pants most of the time, so a dark chino and tucked-in shirt with a belt will never go out of style and it reads professional.

Wearing well-fitted clothes will make him look and feel better, which just may help him climb that corporate ladder!”

RELATED:

'Mansome's' Morgan Spurlock reveals his favorite grooming products

On our radar: Menswear designer Todd Snyder

Five Four launches an online shopping club for men

Your Stylist: Casual, stylish, well-fitting menswear

-- Adam Tschorn

Photo: Steve Carell wears ill-fitting khakis and jacket as a pre-makeover Cal in Warner Bros. "Crazy, Stupid, Love." The movie's costume designer says fit is foremost for any man trying to climb the corporate ladder. Credit: Ben Glass / Warner Bros.

Is the post-metrosexual manscape landscape the 'mansome era'?

When it comes to answering the big questions about masculine identity and the male grooming ritual, Morgan Spurlock's latest movie, "Mansome" may barely scratch the surface (in spa terms that would make it more of an exfoliation than an extraction), but since the topic is being tackled on the silver screen at the same the makers of men's lotions, potions, salves, tonics and shaving implements are seeing increased sales, I decided to have a chat with Spurlock during his recent West Coast press junket. The result appears in Sunday's Image section.

Over the course of the interview, Spurlock shared some of the surprises and regrets from getting the documentary from idea to screen. One high point was finding Ricky Manchanda, a New Yorker who, at first glance, appears to be nothing more than a preening peacock of a narcissist.

"What I love about Ricky’s story is that he's a guy who has dealt with something we’ve all dealt with on some level -- peer pressure and being ridiculed by friends .... [A]nd Ricky’s saying: 'I’m not going to be that guy, I’m going to fit in by society’s standards.' That was a real 'aha' moment for me. "

Although there are a lot of voices (and I mean a lot; the press notes list 28 commentators by name -- from famous comedians to bloggers -- which doesn't include a slew of random men- and women-on-the-street interviews) there was some insight Spurlock wishes he'd been able to include.

"I would have loved more magazine editors and more people like that to chime in on their role in what’s happened," Spurlock said. "But it’s hard to get a lot of people to talk about how they've contributed to it. ... And we tried to get people from the modeling business to talk about it from the male modeling side  and we couldn’t get people to go on camera to talk about that."

Most discussions about male grooming and societal expectations eventually touch on the dreaded M-word -- metrosexual -- and when the topic finally came up Spurlock sounded ready to kick it to the curb once and for all.

"What’s the word for the post post-metrosexual era? I don’t know what it is," Spurlock said. "But I do know that we're beyond metrosexual. That was a term that came out to describe these men -- was almost a slag against them -- because they were engaging in something that had been quintessentially associated with gay culture [and] it was a negative connotation."

"We're at a place where [men taking care of their appearance] is being seen as normal, and it's becoming more accepted in society. So maybe we're living in 'mansome' era."

RELATED:

Male grooming essentials

Review: 'Mansome' is as shallow as its subject

Morgan Spurlock's manly misfits celebrate 'Mansome'

-- Adam Tschorn

Photos: The men featured in "Mansome," Morgan Spurlock's new docu-comedy exploration of male grooming rituals, include New York City clothing company executive Ricky Manchanda, left, and the filmmaker himself. Credit: Warrior Poets

Frugal Fashion: Christian Siriano hatless in pastels at the derby

The hats at the 138th Kentucy Derby would rival any royal British social event, with stars such as Ginnifer Goodwin, Debra Messing, Cyndi Lauper and Mary J. Blige all donning oversized, elaborate headgear. It wasn't just women, either. Joey Fatone, for instance, wore a black-banded straw panama and Kellan Lutz an impish newsboy hat. But some attendees ditched the tradition and managed to look derby-appropriate, sans hats, in fun and flirty spring pastels.

Designer Christian Siriano, winner of "Project Runway" Season 4, attended the derby looking fierce in a pair of pastel blue trousers, a patterned T-shirt, blue blazer, shiny black shoes and his signature skinny rim frames. He appeared comfortable and chic in different shades of blue for just the right pops of color.

Siriano's blazer was a bold choice, helping him out on the red carpet without a headpiece. For a similar look, get the Oxford blazer from Zara.com for $159. Pair with a patterned T-shirt, such as the Asos top with all-over native print from Asos.com for $26.09 or the off white sponge pattern crew from Topman.com for $36.

Continue the pastel theme with the tailored lightweight slim-fit khaki from $39.99 from Gap.com or the Ben Sherman slim chino pants in oxygen blue from Nordstrom.com for $89.90. Try a pair of leather sneakers with white soles, similar to Siriano's, for a bit of polish to finish the look. Try the Clae Powell leather sneakers from Zappos.com for $110 or the Clae Hockney shoe, also from Zappos.com for $61.99.

These pastel blues, sleek sneakers and patterned tees will work as well for a summer party as the look did for the derby.

ALSO:

PHOTOS: Hats from the Kentucky Derby

Frugal Fashion: Coco Rocha pretty in a peplum

Frugal Fashion: Marguerite Moreau at the Tribeca Film Festival

--Jenn Harris

Photo: Designer Christian Siriano attends the Kentucky Derby on Saturday in Louisville, Ky. Credit: Michael Loccisano / Getty Images

Five Four launches an online shopping club for men

Local lifestyle brand Five Four has jumped on the subscription e-commerce bandwagon with Monday's launch of the Five Four Club, which, for $60 a month, promises to ship an assortment of its men's denim, footwear and sportswear -- with a retail value of up to $120 -- right to your home or office.

The Five Four crew says the sign-up process -- which includes an initial style survey -- won't take more than 60 seconds to complete, and points out that each monthly surprise package will switch up the merchandise mix to help round out the wardrobe.  

It remains to be seen if Five Four can persuade guys to shell out $60 a month for a package of clothes -- free shipping and easy exchanges and returns aside -- but we're pretty sure they've done their homework. After all, the brand, which began back in 2002 as a business plan at USC by then students Dee Murthy and Andres Izquieta, is now  carried in 500 bricks-and-mortar doors across the country, has a flagship store at Westfield Culver City, and has a bewilderingly diverse celebrity fan base that includes professional footballer Mark Sanchez, musician Jay Sean (who currently appears on the Five Four Club's home page) actor Zac Efron and suspender-wearing legend of the interview circuit Larry King. 

RELATED:

Details, Kaleidoscope to help men shop Coachella style

Wahoo's and Five Four launch co-branded taco menu

Suit yourself: Men's custom clothes are a mouse click away

Five Four X Movember: A handlebar (mustache) for each wrist

-- Adam Tschorn

Photo: The landing page of Five Four's new subscription e-commerce service for men. Credit: Five Four.

On our radar: Menswear designer Todd Snyder

New York City-based menswear designer Todd Snyder is having a banner year. With barely three seasons of his namesake label presented to buyers and the press, the Ames, Iowa, native started off 2012 with a February nod from GQ magazine, which chose him as one of the best new menswear designers in America.

That was followed, in March, by a Council of Fashion Designers of America nomination for the Swarovski Award for Menswear (given to new, emerging and up-and-coming brands) along with Phillip Lim and Antonio Azzuolo, an honor Snyder calls "a complete surprise."

We first crossed paths with Snyder back when he was senior vice president of menswear at J. Crew, and his stint there (he left there in 2008 to launch his own label) coincided with the company's push into heritage brand collaborations with the likes of Timex and Red Wing, and the opening of the men's-only Liquor Store boutique in New York City. Back then he spoke about how his Iowa background was an asset in the quest to tap into the power of America's authentic legacy brands.

Snyder's emphasis on heritage was still very much in evidence when we caught up with him on a recent Thursday after a trunk show at the Neiman Marcus in Beverly Hills. 

"My father always said if you want to be the best, you need to work for the best," he said, by way of explaining a career arc that included working for the Gap and Ralph Lauren before landing at J. Crew. "And [J.Crew chief executive officer] Mickey [Drexler] was my finishing school." 

A few minutes later, Snyder opened his sport coat and pointed to a label inside. "I did a collaboration with Southwick," he said, referring to the Lawrence, Mass.-based men's clothier that dates to the 1920s. "It’s a way of paying homage to my grandfather -- he wore Southwick, and my dad wore Southwick”

The rest of the collection (the Southwick partnership includes just suits, sport coats and a tuxedo) has a similar familiar-but-different vibe, the kind of luxe take on standard-issue garments that Billy Reid is a master of -- though filtered through Snyder's Midwestern-meets-military mind set instead of Reid's Southern sensibilities. Key pieces from the spring and summer 2012 collection -- which takes inspiration from the 1975 Jack Nicholson movie "The Passenger," includes selvedge chinos (in khaki and white, $325), Bedford cord trousers, dark, raw denim jeans ($275), cargo shorts ($225), bold check button-down shirts ($185), and outerwear pieces like a zip-front nubuck leather jacket ($1,500) and a poly-coated Italian wool peacoat ($595). 

In addition to Neiman Marcus stores (and website), Todd Snyder's collection is available at Ron Herman at the Fred Segal Center on Melrose and Confederacy locally, as well as Odin New York and Bergdorf Goodman (including both retailer's websites) in New York.

The ultimate recipient of the CFDA Swarovski Award for Menswear will be announced at a June 4 event in New York City, and even if his namesake label doesn't take top honors, Todd Snyder's high profile, appreciation of heritage and luxe take on the American classics ensure he's not just a blip on the fashion industry radar.

RELATED:

Shopping: Give him space

Denimology: If pants were a single malt

It's party of six for GQ's best new menswear designers in America

-- Adam Tschorn

Photos, from top: Looks from Todd Snyder's spring and summer 2012 menswear collection. Credit: Kenny Thomas.

Fashion designer Todd Snyder, one of three nominees for the CFDA's Swarovski Award for Menswear. Credit: Kevin Tachman.

Bonobos brings its britches to bricks and mortar

After five years as an online-only men's pants brand, Bonobos is moving into bricks-and-mortar retail, spurred by a $16.4 million investment led by Nordstrom Inc.

A select offering of Bonobos' most popular pants (chinos and non-iron trousers priced $88 to $98) will hit the shelves of 20 full-line Nordstrom stores -- including the Grove and Fashion Island locations -- on Monday, with expanded and seasonal offerings available through Nordstrom's website and at select stores.

Founded in 2007 by Stanford business school buddies Brian Spaly and Andy Dunn, Bonobos launched with a single product -- pants designed for guys with a more athletic build -- and an online-only business model. In the years since the label has expanded into additional menswear categories including suits, shirts, shorts and a line of Los Angeles-made denim. The Nordstrom deal marks the first time the label will be sold outside of the Bonobos website or New York showroom.

Bonobos' move offline also represents Nordstrom's deepening investment in online retail, with the $16.4 million minority investment led by the Seattle-based department store chain following the March 2011 acquisition of flash sale site HauteLook.com.

RELATED:

Bonobos launches a collection of L.A.-made denim

Nordstrom delves into online flash sales with acquisition of HauteLook

Pants Pants Evolution

 -- Adam Tschorn

Photos: At left, a 2005 file photo of a Nordstrom department store (Credit: Douglas C. Pizac/AP Photo). At right, a pair of Bonobos "Shamdaisies" stretch corduroy trousers from 2008, the brand's second year in business. Credit: Bonobos

 

Details, Kaleidoscope to help men shop Coachella style

Yes, one part of the Coachella convergence of music and style is about pairing bands with brands (a topic Times fashion critic Booth Moore wrote about for Sunday's Image section). But the other big part of it is the opportunity for fashion folks to observe what the festival crowd is wearing.

Street style photographs (perhaps "field style" is more accurate) of festival fashions now routinely make their way to service-oriented "get the look" articles in fashion glossies and style blogs, many of which end up running long after the event (or in advance of the following year's).

But this year Conde Nast men's magazine Details, in partnership with shopping app Kaleidoscope, plans to dramatically shorten that turnaround time to 72 hours, serving up a shoppable gallery of five to 10 men's looks from Coachella's first weekend (April 13 to 15) to the magazine's website by that Sunday night. According to a Details representative, the gallery will grow by an additional look each day during the following week that will capture the stylish either at the festival or one of the many Coachella-adjacent parties. Another handful of images, culled from the festival's second weekend, will make for a total of 20 to 25 shoppable looks. 

What Kaleidoscope brings to the table is technology that analyzes the images, breaks them down by garment (i.e. poncho, striped cardigan, war bonnet, five-pocket jeans and the like) and suggests where -- from a list of Details' retail partners that includes Mr. Porter, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Saks -- the item (or a very similar one) can be purchased. To get a feel for how the technology works,you can test drive a demo version of the company's mobile app, which is currently only available for Android devices, at Kaleidoscope's website.

According to Details' announcement, this is the first time any magazine has used Kaleidoscope's technology. "We are piloting this at Coachella," said the publication's editor-in-chief, Dan Peres. "But hope to scale the model to be used in in many different ways.” Peres also noted that the technology fits with the Details readership, which research indicates is "socially savvy and hyper-engaged."

"They are 105% more likely than the average man to post on social networking sites and four times more likely to Tweet brand recommendations, like a brand on Facebook, and recommend a product online,” Peres said.

If it works as described, the combination of Kaleidoscope's technology, Details' festival fashion photos, the retail partners' ability to deliver in-stock goods, and the two-weekend Coachella schedule could result in a kind of micro trend where what's worn in weekend one can directly influence what's purchased for -- and worn to -- weekend two.

Throw in the fact that both weekends will have the same lineup of musical acts and it looks like we're in for a massive case of déjà vu in the desert.  

 RELATED:

Coachella essentials

Coachella musicians hip to fashion

Critic's Notebook: Coachella remodels itself

-- Adam Tschorn

Photos: Details magazine and Kaleidoscope are teaming up to make festival looks -- though not necessarily the ones on display at the 2011 Coachella Valley Music and Art Festival -- easily shoppable through an online gallery. Credit: Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times.