It’s an ongoing debate, backpack versus tote in our office and luckily, Porter has dropped a beauty of a compromise. While we’re partial to Porter’s original nylon pieces, their ‘Smoky’ series uses a unique Cordura Duck fabric, woven from a combination of organic cotton with Cordura nylon yarn. The result is an incredibly strong fabric which is resistant to abrasions and intended to age beautifully even moreso than their usual straight up nylon goods. This bag is a versatile backpack/tote hybrid; adjustable cinches at the sides, one zipper at the side for easy internal access, strap which over the top opening with snap closure, two external snap-closure pockets, two internal velcro-closure pockets, padded shoulder straps, straps for option to carry as tote. Available here.

HB has a great first look at the collaboration between 3sixteen and our favorite footwear company from Perry, Maine – Quoddy. We’ve been followers of Andrew Chen and his NY-based label 3sixteen for quite sometime and this latest release has us somewhat impartial. On one hand, we love the richness of the dark navy uppers with white contrasting stitching and the fact these are handmade right in Perry. On the other hand, we were hoping for something above a Sperry Top-Sider Authentic Original Chukka. Arguably, Quoddy’s craftsmanship goes above and beyond that of Sperry and this collaboration works, we just felt it left much to be desired. The shoes are now available in limited quantities at Bows & Arrows.

/////HOLIDAY GIVEAWAY BAG CONTEST/////

Here’s the deal.

2009 has been kind to us and we want to return the favor with a few of our favorite products from the past year:

WANT Les Essentiels de la Vie Organic O’Hare shopper bag | CXXVI t-shirt | Inoue Brothers scarf | Bread & Butter Skincare | SUPER Havana Glitter sunglasses

TO ENTER:

Leave a REPLY with a one sentence holiday story involving the above items.

AND | OR

(via Twitter)

RT @limitedhype TELL A ONE SENTENCE STORY & WIN A HOLIDAY GIVEAWAY BAG http://tiny.cc/APxVk

We’ll draw on January 4th, 2010 when we return. We’ll see you next year!

/////WINNER – JUSTIN LIVINGSTON, NY/////

Walking down the street, I’m done here – I’ve had enough
Need to get iced out, everywhere, I’m lookin rough
CXXVI on the tee, Havanas help me see, my skin
is looking smooth with a kit from B&B
It may be winter, cold as ice, my neck ain’t gonna freeze
with a scarf from the bros. Inoue, it’s feelin’ like a breeze
Walkin’ down the street I got my swag back, swagger
People staring down cause they jealous of my bagger
Stocked full of all the daily things I’d need
Les Essentials de la Vie… est maintenant fini.

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A special place is reserved in Nigel Cabourn’s heart for British military uniforms and their storied history of serving function and purpose during battle, and yet they were made durable enough to withstand the rigors of a long day out in the trenches. In making these uniforms, there was very little compromise and it’s with a similar attitude that Cabourn, out of respect for the men that he idolized as a child, shows no hesitation in instilling these ideas into the clothes that he makes, never settling for less than what his father besought of him by always striving to be the best. For this upcoming collection, his father was his direct source of inspiration. An old army handbook complete with a handful of pictures and a few journal entries was enough to bring the younger Cabourn back a few decades and into his father’s shoes. Conceived while on duty in Burma and India, it depicts his travels as he got to experience new cultures in far away lands and perfectly exemplifies why Nigel holds vintage attire in such high regard – because of the stories they’re able to tell.

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We’re pretty happy about the relative resurgence and interest in canvas as of late when it seems everybody is trying to get in on the leather game. We know, we know, canvas never left. But arguably, the market seemed to have been missing some grounded pieces aside from YMC and In God We Trust, with Mismo and BillyKirk being on the opposite end of the spectrum. Parrott is over 20 years old, but copping some much well deserved respect as of late by riding the wave of recent interest in American heritage pieces and products made in the USA. All products are still made in Greenville, North Carolina with many local residents still buying directly from the factory. Made from heavyweight 18oz cotton with a navy blue 18oz cotton duck double bottom, this Worker’s Tote might just be your new best friend for decades to come. Available here.

There might be some flack for this comment, but for all the brands coming out with their version of a varsity jacket, with the exception of the quickly-sold-out Wings+Horns varsity and maybe the nonnative Student, there haven’t been any clear winners. That should stir the pot in some circles who stand by NSW and Supreme’s recently dropped pieces, but why is it so impossible to find one without a mismatched color palette and never ending supply of patches? At the very least, Japan’s Uniform Experiment is offering up a clean model with subtle color combinations. UE’s splashes of green can be a turn off for some, but in our books, it’s always worked well. This dropped earlier this month but they’re still available here.

Simply gorgeous but certainly no surprise from Visvim and Hiroki Nakamura these Americana Deck-Folk are fire. Back again is the Horween oiled cow-hide leather we spotted earlier on the FBT’s in early November (and of Alden fame), with the usual sneaker platform. Really into the fact Nakamura went with a lower profiled sole as opposed to the thicker ones found on Visvim’s other boat shoe slash sneaker lovechild, the Hockney. Other quality characteristics remain intact, hand-stitched components, natural cork footbed and we’re going to guess cushioned EVA Pylon midsoles because, well, why would you get rid of those? In typical visvim exclusive fashion, these are only available by request or draw at visvim.tv.

While we normally stay up on Shofolk’s always impressive line up of footwear, we sometimes miss out on some of their well fabricated outerwear pieces. Case in point, Folk’s heavyweight 700g Melton wool overcoat from Italy. The best thing going for Folk’s pieces are the little details that aren’t found on any other pieces off the racks. Like the the 6-hole button detailed stitching to spell out FOLK, the cotton rope drawstring with leather caps that match the backing buttons, and even the softly colored, pixelated interiors that bring fond memories of a Paul Smith lining. There hasn’t been a shortage of quality coats this winter, and this one unfortunately, has been discovered a little too late.  Available here.

Relative new comer in the game, Volta Footwear has been taking the dressier elements of your typical Italian-designed shoe and fusing them with a casual sneaker spirit, all in a unique Chukka-esque silhouette. While it’s rare that new comers specialize in only one model, in only their second year, Volta balances their mono-product approach with a wide array of different color options straight from Milan. These hybrid boot-sneakers were inspired by the footwear development of the last 50 years, which is why you’ll instantly get their retro vibe and timeless (yet very modern) lines. These are shoes simple, refined, made to be worn everyday and self-described as an “instant classic”.

We caught up with Volta’s Brand Director and one of their designers, Mauro Simionato, to find out more.

LH: What is the main inspiration behind the brand and the designs?

MS: We wanted to create some footwear to replace sneakers and boots. Better yet, we aimed for an evolution in footwear. Something to come after sneakers and boots. A third, new choice if you will. After so many years of “sneakers everyday and everyway”, we all got kind of sick of them, and started to look back to casual ankle boots, to our old pairs of Clark’s and Doc Marten’s. But at the same time, we got used to trainers, to the comfort and feeling. So we said to ourselves, “let’s make a pair of boots that look and wear like sneakers”. Anyways, we were not the first to have such a goal; Clarks did it already some 50 years ago.

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As you can tell from some of our recent posts, a top-notch laptop bag or brief is on several of our wish lists.  We previously covered WANT Les Essentiels de la Vie’s 72 hour travel bag.  The brand sources their Italian leather from the same suppliers as front row luxury brands like Louis Vuitton and it certainly shows.  I had a good look at their De Gaulle laptop bags this week at Opening Ceremony in Los Angeles and they are both soft to the touch and impeccably constructed.  They come in two different sizes (14 and 17 inch) to suit a multitude of laptop sizes and several colors, such as black, burnt henna, grey, red, dark brown, and white.  I was particularly a fan of the hunter green color.  They are also available in white canvas.  And, of course, they all feature the brand’s signature silver and gold zippers. Keep it locked for our behind the scenes at WANT in the new year.

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When it comes to alcohol, beer tends to be seen as that distant cousin you never want to see at family gatherings; that one person who never seems to showers, is overweight and shows up in stained sweatpants and velcro shoes. Yet to those who chose to educate themselves, there as as many subtle differences to the palette with Ales as there are with Merlots. And most often than not, these differences are fairly easy to pick up.  While it might not be as posh as sipping red in a leather chair, every man should know why you don’t order a Budweiser when there are others available.

Across the pond in Chiswick, stands the historic Griffin Brewery, London’s only remaining traditional family brewer. Since 1845, Fuller’s has been brewing high quality ales, running pubs and winning awards. For the past 12 years, Fuller’s Head Brewer, John Keeling has been crafting limited-edition bottle-conditioned Ales (meaning yeast is left in the bottle to continue fermenting). These Vintage Ales are more like fine wines; maturing slowly over time and made with the years finest collection of malts and hops.  With only 160,000 bottles produced, the 2009 Edition of the Vintage Ale is a strong, dark ale with a creamy white head. At first taste, you’ll be overwhelmed with perfumy hops, caramel and an almost fruity smell. Unlike lesser-quality brews, it goes down very smooth without a strong alcohol aftertaste. Yet if you keep this in the cellar for a few years, the taste will evolve into something even more spectacular.

If you can find it, this Vintage Ale makes the perfect gift for any beer lover, unless of course they’re the type to wear their free Budweiser t-shirt whenever the chance arises. If that’s what you have on your hands, might as well go shop at Walmart and pick anything with a Nascar logo on it.

For more information on Fuller’s, tasting notes and where they are distributed, visit their website.

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