I resist putting up this story on the 708 Cycling Racing Knickers. It’s the polyster. But from their description we may be onto something else which is more durable and rider ready. “The city is made with a medium weight recycled polyester, hemp fabric that looks and feels like denim and is highly abrasion resistant.” The knee and crotch are double reinforced to protect from ripping. You know how it goes. Handmade in St. Louis. Long live.

More views of the 708 Cycling Racing Knickers after the jump.

We’ve featured a few shirts by custom shirts of Alexander West before, and being as interested in process as we are garment, recently took the opportunity to get a sense of the Alexander West experience.

Appointments begin with a comprehensive consultation about what YOU want and need out of a shirt. This includes a full introduction to the types of fabrics available (weaves, etc.) and discussion of styles fit for casual and dress usage. From there, measurements are taken. After that, it is time to pick options. Collar type (aided by a little chat about what best suits your face), style of cuff, and placket look are all part of the parcel. Once these tasks are completed, you pick your monogram placement and after the West team cuts your unique shirt pattern a perfectly fitting custom shirt arrives in 5 weeks.

The whole experience is designed to instruct the customer and provide the ultimate in shirting needs

The images after the jump will give you a little idea about the look and feel of the Alexander West fitting process.

We dig the looks from the emerging Parisan based The Individualists. “The debut collection ‘Birds’ is a smart balance of both safe and daring design approaches. Young and fresh, the range brings fourth looks as contemporary as a sheer u-neck darted in all the right places or as traditional as a bib collar shirt. Allowing for both fitted and loose, oversize garments, the light and dark, sometimes fun, other times serious collection represents a beautiful duality. From the subtle inclusion of birds across the back of a shirt to a lapel neck piece and dusted shoulders, the collection is a clever reinterpretation of modern classics.” (fashionisto… of course!)

Here’s a preview of the Woolrich John Rich & Bros. Spring/Summer 2010. While we recognize that the collection would follow the trend of “city surf” and “maritime,” we were stopped by a new descriptor: “glamping.” We’ll let them explain. Glamping is “a new word that comes from the combination of ‘glamorous’ and ‘camping’ and the new outdoor trend in which the traditional American camping style is reinterpreted in a fashionable way. As a result, the clothes combine sophisticated luxury with the practical functions that you expect from Woolrich.” It’s definitely a good way of putting up. Classic looks re-worked for you by Woolrich John Rich & Bros.

More looks from the Woolrich John Rich & Bros. Spring/Summer 2010 after the jump.

Acquire raises awareness on the Hermes Pendulette Clipper Travel Clock. We’re pretty sure Nick, our writer down in Philly, will bring some good critical analysis later on in the comments below, but for now, we hope someone will kindly gift us this coming Holiday season with such a travel clock. ”The Hermes Pendulette Clipper Travel Clock will not only serve you well on your journeys but it has a bit of an heirloom quality that will age beautifully as its passed down from generation to generation.”

More views of the Hermes Pendulette Clipper Travel Clock after the jump.

We previewed the Berlin based QED house back for their Summer 2009 collection. The collection, while centric to the classics, did bring their taste of modern to the looks. They extend even further with their Autumn/Winter collection. Symmetry flows in and out of between vests, shirting, and the black knit hoodie (shown above)  - my favorite. (coutequecoute)

More views from the QED Pour Homme Autumn/Winter 2009 after the jump.

Joshua Clover examines how we engage in pop music and its social context through a deft analysis of disparate genres – from pop to grunge and acid house to rap. In the year that the Berlin Wall fell, pop music too found great change in its approach to social issue. Clover looks directly at groups like Public Enemy and George Michael, and also at folks like Nine Inch Nails and U2. He wonders if pop had been biding its time to 1989, only then to find its true sensibility.

1989 is out this fall from University of California Press.

Available now from Amazon.

Salvatore Ferragamo has been making desirable and expensive luggage for a while now and judging from his AW09 pieces, that looks set to continue. This bag is made from boiled wool and the handles from calf leather, so you can see why the bag would cost the amount it does (€1300 at the time of writing). But if you’ve got it like that or you can really do without eating for a month, then there’s few better places to be spending your money. (Luisaviaroma)

It’s still odd for us to be recommending Autumn pieces in the heat of summer, but sometimes we can’t help but pass on a bargain. This Velour cardigan is from their AW08 collection and for some reason ASOS have been unable to shift it since last year. They’ve now moved the price to a ridiculous £36 (down from £180) – which in retail terms means ‘will someone please buy this godamn thing?’ (ASOS)

Take a look after the leap for a couple of detail shots.

Eye magazine turns us on to the news that BBC Radio three have an interesting series one off show about the relationship between Jazz music and graphic design (the show is available on BBC iPlayer for the rest of the day). Design writer Adrian Shaughnessy, film maker Marc Silver and animator Michal Levy all weighed on on the relationship between the two forms, which has been brought several interesting artworks. Although a lot of focus is put on blue notes record designs – which are amazing – it’s easy to forget that the whole genre took special care in designing memorable works.

Take a look at some of those designs after the leap.