Coming from the good people at Dunhill, an incredible piece about the legacy of Jaguar, the XJ13, and how it’s affecting thought to this day.

The biggest shoe release in history is upon us, and until now, the most famous shoe never made, and there are only 1500 pairs. Marty McFlys shoes are back from the future and being auctioned off to benefit The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. There isn’t much else to say other than these are pretty much everything the originals were, being created in 1989 by legendary Nike designer Tinker Hatfield, and now being recreated by him with help from Tiffany Beers. It’s as true to the original prop as possible, though you’ll have to wait until 2015 for the power laces.

Check them out here, and be sure to play around with the destination time on the site, there are some nice easter eggs, including an appearance by Mr. Hatfield himself.

Hit more to check out some great videos and more pictures.

Everyone knows that I’ve been a long time fan of the work being done by Palladium, their urban exploration series is some of the best work being produced right now on a branding and marketing level, is hugely informative and infinitely shareable. In this episode Pharrell Williams explores Tokyo, and how it’s not only managed to survive since the earthquakes of 3/11, but surpass expectations.

A new favorite of ours, handmade in New England, is a very simple line of luggage for the modern man. Focusing on the ideal designs, and eliminating the unnecessary, J.P.L.C. is creating a line of products which will stand the test of time. The Aviator was named after the engineer/craftsman who makes it, flying as a hobby for over 27 years, he considers the Aviator the ideal bag to take up on his flights over New England. Built to store all of your daily carry, if it’s good enough for him, it’s surely good enough for you.

This is the first of a new series we’re presenting, dedicated to those things which are among our favorites, and usually things we’d like to have ourselves.

We’re starting this feature with a car from Alfa Romeo, and while the legendary Italian automaker is renowned for many iconic cars, my own favorite is the simple and refined 2000 GT Veloce. Produced in Turin between ’71 to ’76 and designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro for Bertone, the 150 hp pocket sports car, had a fantastic engine that made an even better sound. Alfa, never being known for great reliability, meant that owners were always tinkering and improving under the hood, creating even more unique versions. The GTV was also a winning racing model, contributing to much of Alfa’s notoriety within racing circles. 

The latest in the Depth of Speed series, focusing on cars that are close to our hearts… and I could watch the intro all day long.Via HBTV

Our friends at Sixpack have released their latest collection for this autumn, and while being a great looking lineup, it also includes our good friend and favorite artist, Steven Harrington who has contributed a couple of designs. Among the other talents on board are Jonathan Zawada, Cody Hudson, LS. Benway, Raphael Garnier and many more which you can check out below.

Opening in Tokyo and curated by Kenmei Nagaoka, the shop will sell clothes, furniture, electronics and many other items of interest. Basically a collection of important designs and classic pieces, we hope to have the chance to see it for ourselves soon.

Comme des Garcons, via HUH

Going live yesterday is the latest venture by Gilt, Park & Bond, will be a luxury retail site for men. The selection of products is very closely curated, and the editorials contained within the site are a treat as well, allowing the user to experience an immersive online shopping experience. Still in it’s prelaunch phase at the moment, the site will officially launch on the 16th alongside GQ‘s september issue, with a featured selection of products being chosen by the editors themselves.

It’s not like us to review ‘apps’, but there are a couple that I use daily, that I feel need attention, though I’m sure most people know about them at this point. The first is Zite, which has been around for a while now (in iProduct relative terms). Having used Flipboard for awhile, I was familiar with browsing my favorite sites in a more enjoyable manner, but Zite goes a step further than plugging in sites you want to read. After choosing subjects you’re interested in, it curates an entire magazine from many different respectable sources, and then you can further personalize your future choices by voting on which articles you enjoy reading, and what you’d like to see more of. It’s a genius system that I rely on daily for my updates, one fix we would like to see though is an offline mode, where, like flipboard we can download the content, and then go where we like.

Spotfiy is new to the scene, and available mainly to your desktops and portables, but with a premium membership ($9.99 a month) available on your smartphone as well. This service allows you to listen to any song imaginable, curate playlists, listen to your choices offline, share with friends on facebook… the whole nine. Great for anyone who loves to listen to new music, but hates the hastle of downloading, finding, and weeding through piles of tracks they don’t like.

Recently I moved to the nations oldest former naval yard here in Boston, quite a historic area which serves as home to the USS Constitution. As those of you may have spotted on my twitter or google+ feed, this weekend we were visited by the fleets only other commissioned sailing ship, the USCG Eagle, originally christened the SSS Horst Wessel, a ship with an incredible history.

Designed for the German Navy in 1936, the ship was christened by Adolf Hitler, and strangely would be the place he would eat one of his last dinners. After the war, the ship was claimed by the US for war reparations, and immediately christened the Eagle and set to work as a coast guard training ship. The ship has since served host to John F. Kennedy, Queen Elizabeth II, and many an eager naval cadet, ready to travel the world. Serving as a training ship and a goodwill ambassador now, it can be spotted at ports around the world.

The original figurehead, significant symbol for both the US and Germany.

Berlin’s Civilist has been working with Vans on a Syndicate collaboration that we are really liking the look of. Inspired by Berlin’s skate history and it’s political landscape, we just appreciate it’s clean look and the added details that go into most Syndicate pieces.

With so many big American brands taking manufacturing overseas and changing entire industries within the USA by doing so, it’s nice to see in this piece, independent manufacturers that are out there and fighting hard to make products locally and rebuild the lost trade industries of the country. LASCO (Los Angeles Shoe Company) believes that it is important to adhere to high quality domestic sourcing and manufacturing for every all components of their shoes, even down to their laces. There just shouldn’t need to be any alternative.

Apologies for the back to back car videos, but this is another interesting one. Like a mashup of How it’s Made and a music video, BMW documents the processes that go into creating a 1 series. Interestingly, the soundtrack is created entirely of sounds from this routine.

via Hypebeast

Tenue de Nîmes has released hand-dyed, natural indigo Chuck Taylors, limited to 50 pairs, created by the Manabe family, denim experts from Okoyama in Japan. While this is a brilliant looking shoe, perfect for the summer, this also gives us some good ideas for our old chucks we’re not wearing anymore.

Dieter Rams has forever been one of my major design icons, a person who revolutionized the way we thought about products and their function. Born of German simplicity and esthetic, his designs are a balance of tool and usability, and eliminating fuss and what we might not need to actually do with something. Using a Rams product is almost like learning how you should actually use a product properly, for the first time. Rams was hired by Braun in 1955, and went on to head their design department, releasing some of the most legendary product designs we’ve known, and inspired the likes of Jonathan Ives in his product creation for Apple.

I must say though, while I love his products, and his studio furniture… His home (brought to us by Yatzer), while interesting and a testament to his thinking, certainly does not look like a comfy place to relax, his studio and workshop though, look ideal for their purpose. Also, if you haven’t yet, and you appreciate his design, you’d be smart to pick up As Little Design as Possible.

Showing now until August 8th at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA is the first US museum show to highlight graffiti and street art. Through the exhibition we learn how the movement has transformed from it’s beginnings in the 70′s through to the mainstream culture it has since become, and the people and events it has shaped along the way, from music and film, to skateboarding and beyond. The video above is entitled “Street”, and is a tour around some NY inspired streets, built with art from some of our favorite artists which are Todd James, Barry McGee, Stephen Powers, Devin Flynn, Josh Lazcano, Dan Murphy, and Alexis Ross.

Luxuria – C. R. Stecyk III