Back to School Advice

It’s that time of year again.  The time of year where one bad choice in fashion can ruin a teen’s entire year. Back to school shopping is a huge time of the year for retailers and children.  For the kids and teens it means a fresh start. A great outfit can make everyone forget about that horrible mistake in fashion you made last year. 

Parents, listen to your children and children, listen to your parents.  For example, your teen wants a pair of pink skinny jeans and you want them to were some khakis;  so you get a pair of slim or skinny twill pants in burgundy.  I remember when I was in high school everyone was wearing Polo and Tommy Hilfiger.  I wanted a pair of Hilfiger carpenter jeans with Tommy Hilfiger stitched down the side, I was also going through a hip hop fashion phase. They were hideous (also expensive) and my mom pay for the jeans. I was dead set on getting them, but I finally gave in and bought some denim elsewhere. I was super mad at my mom.

I look back now and thank my mom for not letting me waste a lot of money on these horrible jeans.  I still make decisions when I buy most things on a scale of how much this piece of clothing would embarrass my family. This is the same reason I don’t wear offensive t-shirts or jeans that are too tight even if they might be in style.  This brings me to another point. Guys please stop wearing jeans made for girls. They make extremely skinny jeans for guys now.  I don’t have anything against guys wearing super tight jeans, but girls jeans are not made for a guys body. Our bodies are very different. Also, parents stop buying clothes for your teens without your teens being present to either try them on or to give their opinion.

Parents and teens get together, go shopping together and make smart decisions.  Parents sit down and watch your child’s favorite shows and get ideas on fashion choices. Teens listen to your parents and take their opinions with a grain of salt. Also look for the best deals, not just the cheapest rack in the store.  You didn’t want that piece of clothing the first time around, so why would you want it now. We can come together and help everyone dress better this school year.

New York is for Shoppers Part 2

When we left our last post, our heroes were heading downtown to the meatpacking district. We did make a pit stop in Little Italy with my wife’s relatives and they treated us to a wonderful lunch at Il Cortile. After lunch we hopped a cab and headed to the meatpacking district, with the new Levi’s boutique as our destination.  The Levi’s Meatpacking store is a premium concept store housing only the finest fits and washes in the Levi’s catalog. If you can’t find the perfect fit for you there is also an in-house tailor to custom fit your jeans. Let me be frank, this is not a store for an everyday jean shopper.  This store caters to people who appreciate high quality denim and those who want their denim to fit perfectly. It’s not a huge store, very long and narrow, but it is packed with Levi’s greatest hits.  You might even walk right pass it and never know because the main sign is a blank red Levi’s arch. All the usual suspects were accounted for and stored in their own little sections. This store also carries some of Levi’s more exclusive collaborations; at the time it was Levi’s x Pendleton. I most enjoyed the window display that showed Levi’s support for the newly passed gay marriage bill in New York. I only wish I had spent more time in the store but it was our first trip and we still had lots to see.

 

(in front of the store not enjoying the muggy weather)

I didn’t buy anything at the Meatpacking store this trip. Mainly because we still wanted to do some shopping at the Chelsea Market and we were pressed for time. I did make one more stop at Urban Outfitters to pick up the 501 cutoff shorts I had seen earlier that day. I do recommend that you check out the stores I have mentioned if you are looking for some of the best of Nike and Levi’s. We returned home tired and beaten to a happy puppy who desperately had to go to the bathroom. The adventure doesn’t end here I just got back from a trip to the city this week.  It was partly a sightseeing trip, and partly me trying to convince my wife to move to the city when she finishes culinary school. Stay tuned for part 3 of my posting on NYC, the next one is in 3-D.

Levi’s for Cyclist!

I just ran across an article, from the blog Refinary29, about the newest line from Levi’s.  The collection is geared towards urban cyclists using their bikes as transportation. The Levi’s Commuter Line may look like regular items you would find in any store, but it’s what is inside that counts.  The jeans boast 2% stretch for getting on and off with ease; this also helps with comfort while riding.  It doesn’t stop there, the jeans use advanced fabric technology to avoid stains and to help keep sweat from funking up your jeans. Don’t worry about showing too much crack to the people behind you, these jeans have a higher back rise. If you still aren’t sold, there is a utility loop for a bike u-lock.  I would recommend you wear a belt, because most u-locks can be very heavy.

To go along with their denim, Levi’s is modifying their famous trucker style jacket for a rider friendly fit.  The arms have an accordion sleeve to help with ride height and a similar cotton/stretch blend for comfort. There is also a hidden iPod/iPhone sleeve to help keep you going on a long ride. The jeans will come in a skinny fit for $78 and the trucker jacket with run for $128 respectfully. Look for these to hit selected Urban Outfitters in August, but if you just can’t wait the Union Square store in NYC should have these this week.

via Refinery29

New York is for Shoppers! Part 1

Welcome back readers!  I enjoyed and loathed this hiatus I have been on the past few months.  A lot of events have happened in my life; I got married and moved to NY. No, I didn’t move to NYC, but a smaller town north of the city, Poughkeepsie. It’s not exactly the fashion capital of the state but it’s a lovely little historical town and I only have to take a 45 minute train ride to the city.

My wife and I decided to make the excursion to the city on a rainy Sunday.  We hurried to the train station excited for the adventure.  I had the whole trip planned out on my iPhone, which consisted of all stores that I didn’t have available in Florida. Every place seemed like it was walking distance from Grand Central Train station.  I was so wrong.

New York City is humongous.  Every building towers above you and all the streets look the same.  When I was looking at Google maps, everything looked so close and walking to all my destinations would be no problem.  My first stop had to be Niketown on 5th Avenue, but we had arrived to early and nothing was open.  We started to walk down 5th Avenue passing street after street avoiding the rain and traffic.  I soon realized we were headed the wrong way. (damn you Google maps!)

We then trucked back the other way and stepped into Urban Outfitters to avoid the rain.  This Urban was amazing.  It was set up like a NYC style loft, with tons of wood displays everywhere, including a giant Levi’s emblem with nails driven into the wood for a nice 3-D effect.  My wife bought a dress and I bought an Obey tee, shocker, and a kidrobot Simpsons figure. 

We moved back to the street with the rain and wind picking up as we moved on towards Nike.  We passed all the really upscale stores, and finally arrived at Niketown.  I was not expecting a five store mega store.  I was expecting a lot of shoes and that’s exactly what I found.  I believe it was the flash of the store or the fact that I was shopping in NYC for the first time, but I just had to get a pair of shoes.  The fifth floor my was destination of choice; this housed the Sportswear line and vintage shoes.  I picked a nice vintage Nike Air Vortex in light blue/black.  They came in a light orange vintage Nike box and we headed out to meet up with my wife’s relatives that were in town so we could get some lunch. We had been in NYC for 2 hours and I only had 2 stores checked off my list.  I had a lot of places I still wanted to visit and we had a lot of ground to cover. 

To Be Continued!!