Whilst there’s no shortage of casual rain coats out this season – mainly thanks to Albam making several covetable versions – there’s still room the sleeker option; the mac. We hate to make sweeping statements, so we’ll refrain from calling this the best, but it does the job and does it well. It’s also relatively affordable at £198, compared to the overcoat’s pricing of £618. It’ll be too light for heavy winter, but you should get some good wearage out of it whilst Autumn still lingers. (Matches)

01. Pre-Order Jawbox “For Your Own Special Sweetheart” Now

“On November 24th Desoto and Dischord will team up to release a new, completely re-mastered and re-packaged, edition of the Jawbox album, For Your Own Special Sweetheart — a masterpiece long lost in the weeds of major label limbo. The new edition CD and LP was re-mastered by Bob Weston of Chicago Mastering Service and features all new artwork by Jason Farrell. The CD includes 3 extra tracks from the Savory + 3 EP and the LP features a free MP3 download of the album (including the extra tracks).” (dischord)

02. Wall to Wall: Futures Past: Knowledge Box Reborn (above)

“I walk through the hatch-like doorway and stand in the middle of the cube. The images and sounds envelope me on every side–around me, above me, below me–and create a collage of possible interpretations. (Its architect/inventor Ken Isaacs used the term “matrix” to describe the overlapping sensations.) I first stumbled across a reference to the Knowledge Box while doing research for a book on radical environments of the psychedelic sixties. It sounded intriguing. What was a Knowledge Box? I kept coming across other references to it in the periodical literature of the day, mentions by multi-media artists, lightshow impresarios, architects and experimental filmmakers who spoke of the box as a common source and inspiration.” (wsj)

03. Snowshorts

“The SnowShorts($35) have a ridged plastic butt-plate, and while wearing them you can slide down any snowy slope and never have to drag a sled uphill again. If you can play with your kids? There is an adult sized pair, fits up to 42″ hip.” (likecool)

04. Vipp: Trash Cans For Charity

“Fast forward seven decades: Holger’s company, Vipp, is now a third-generation family business with an international market and no small amount of design cache (the Conran Shop began stocking Vipp bins in 1996). To celebrate its 70th anniversary, Vipp has now asked a handful of art- and design-world insiders to tinker with its classic trash can (whose design has barely changed since 1939; the only major adjustment happened in 1949, when the original chromium-plated-steel lid was ditched in favor of a stainless-steel version.)” (metropolis)

By golly, there is a new raincoat collection in town. Norwegian Rain debuts their Autumn 2009 collection of high impact raingear. Bergen, arguably the rainiest city on Planet Earth, is about as proper a city to produce the new line. Working with a high end Japanese textile maker, Norwegian Rain’s jackets remain eco-friendly by using waterproof/breathable material made from recycled fibers.

Creative director Alexander Helle mentions, “We have worked in three years to make the raincoats as subtly functional as possible. All seams are sealed. Air holes under arms and in neck. The water tunnel in the front is an off-shore detail hindering water pouring into the garment while simultaneously allowing air to circulate out. The high-end waterproof/breathable membrane are covered with a satin layer to further keep the technical, high performance visually understated.”

Many more detailed looks at the Norwegian Rain Autumn 2009 Raincoats after the click.

WWD reports in on a new “collection” bringing together NY’s retailer Odin with Duckie Brown. “Edward, the collaboration between Duckie Brown and the influential boutique Odin, will launch Nov. 1. After the debut at Odin’s three locations, Edward’s four creators are hoping to expand distribution of the contemporary label. …Duckie Brown designers Daniel Silver and Steven Cox are known for artistic flourishes in their designer collection, but Edward … is a commercial endeavor, which takes cues from the merchandising insights of Odin co-owners Eddy Chai and Paul Birardi.”

Lavenham drops this patchwork vest to celebrate their 40th anniversary. They dig through their fabric archive to bring forth a variety of panels made to show off the company’s heritage. Check the gun patch on the shoulder and the back vest pocket. A beautiful piece. Well done. (museumark)

More looks at the Lavenham Westly Patchwork Vest after the click.

Browns drops a great collection of wallets as part of their mainline collection. Two of our favorites are the multi-colored takes in leather and lizard skin. Each credit card slip is hit with a color on the leather. Same holds true for the lizard skin version which is more feature rich with its scaly finish. Both are available now for 170$US and 333$US respectively.

More looks at the Brown’s Mainline Multi-colored Wallets after the click.

Eyegoodies shares with us a unique and highly sought after pair of Persols dedicated to Steve McQueen’s Thomas Crown character. “As many are aware a favorite of McQueen were the Persol 714 but with custom tinted lenses. To pay tribute to this we are offering an eyegoodies exclusive: the Persol 714 with custom blue lenses. The top quality French optical lenses manufactured by Essilor and custom tinted provide 100% UV protection.” Here’s your chance to get hold of a pair of highly copied sunglasses.

More looks at the Persol 714 Custom Thomas Crown Edition Sunglasses after the click.

If Etro had a tagline, it’d read ‘not for the faint hearted’. Their primary objective has been colour, colour and more colour for years now and their SS10 accessories collection is a continuation of that philosophy. Ever wanted electric blue loafers? a jellyfish-patterned purple holdall? Ladybug cufflinks? Now’s your chance, because Etro have ‘em all. The conservative amongst you may be interested in these intrecciato patterned shoes (pictured above). We wouldn’t say there’s something for everyone, but there is something for the man who likes to make a statement.

Take a gander at the rest of the collection after the leap.

If 2009 was entitled anything apart from ‘the year the recession hit’ it would be known as ‘the year of the site relaunch’. We’ve lost count of the number of great blogs, stores and magazines who’ve revamped their online digs this year and we can add D.S Dundee to that ever expanding list.

With a list of influences that include Kemal Ataturk (the first democratic president of Turkey for the uninitiated), it’s safe to assume that D.S Dundee are doing more than just reproducing classic country garb. Shooting jackets, double breasted overcoats, corduroy suits and copious amounts of tweed all make an appearance in a slimmed and trimmed manner.

More pictures are (where else?) after that leap.