NOWNESS today (and everyday) drops some of the best original content in this business. They are indeed the best example of big money doing things right in media for a market which is still trying to determine which road to follow – or lead. “Designer Rick Owens is a romantic of the highest order. While his creations display the precision of a master craftsman, his ideas are rooted in nostalgia and fantasy. To showcase the titanic bed, daybed and elements that make up his latest furniture collection, Pavane for a Dead Princess, he and his wife, Michele Lamy, installed the pieces—which together amount to two tons of alabaster—at New York’s Salon 94. Owens took a load off to talk with us about 30s Hollywood, haiku and artistic monasticism.”

Read the Rick Owens interview on NOWNESS.

“From an old New England recipe.”

Rarely, in our discussion of heritage and Americana do we touch on toiletries. We don’t discuss shampoos much anyway. Sure, the occasional shaving product has struck our fancy, and here and there a fragrance might spark interest.

J.R. Liggett’s doesn’t do anything fancy. It’s a company born from a personal discovery – of that above mentioned recipe – and natural growth. As a bar shampoo, it’s something out of the contemporary norm. As an product, Liggett’s shampoo flows from old tradition, even if as a brand there isn’t standing on heritage (commercially available since 1985).

Best of all, it works and doesn’t irritate a sensitive scalp.

The team behind Damir Doma and Silent have big plans for conquering some new territory. Their latest project, COTEetCIEL, tackles the accessories space for computing and mobile devices. “COTEetCIEL creates functional yet aesthetically pleasing everyday accessories that appeal to both a savvy, creative clientele, as well as fashion devotees worldwide. Laptop diver sleeves in second-skin fits, spacious rucksacks or messenger bags, minimalist handheld-device pouches, or microfibre screenpads, COTEetCIEL’s range of accessories protects your work-and travel essentials in style.” Looks as though Oki-ni has stock.

More looks at the COTEetCIEL Sleeves and Bags after the click.

I’ve got a hankering for baseball jerseys at the moment. In wool flannel, they simply have a timeless appeal. As garments, they also hold history well. Take the 1942 Sacramento Solons home jersey as an example.

A bit of team history -

One of the long-time members of the Pacific Coast League who were oftem runners-up. they brought joy to their faithful fans by winning the pennant in 1942. In 1945 Jo Jo White starred for the Solons leading the league in hits runs and batting average but the Solons were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

I love the “Health” patch on the left sleeve. Similar patches were worn throughout the WWII years, but this particular patch only appeared in 1942. In the hands of Ebbets Field Flannels details like that are never lost, nor are the production values of yesteryear. The Sacramento Solons jersey is made of white flannel with chain-stitch embroidery on the front. The team patch hits on the right sleeve, and the red contrast piping works a charm too. Manufactured, of course, in the USA.

The jersey also happens to be the flannel of the week, meaning you can snap it up at a rather handsome price.

Yep, we’re still into pleats. So, if you’re offended by pleats or don’t want to read please look away now. Still here? good. It’s nigh on impossible to describe a pair of chinos without using the words ‘with a twist’ so we’ll just say that we think they’re a good looking pair of chinos; a perfect alternative to the usual chinos you probably have by now. Not to mention that they’re dressy enough to smarten up any outfit (provided you roll up those trouser legs, overlong trousers flatter no one). (Studio Homme)

Take a leap, see those detailed images.

We don’t care for Shepard Fairey. There, we said it. No big reason behind it, we’re just not that into him. Iggy Pop, on the other hand, is a man we’re definitely into. In fact he’s so legendary to us that we’re willing to overlook those adverts – we just play ‘Raw Power’ and all is forgiven. So, despite us not caring much for Fairey, Iggy Pop’s inclusion as interviewer makes this worth a read. One interesting answer is when Iggy Pop asks Fairey about how that Obama image came about.

I’ve also made a lot of political art in the past where I was criticizing people like George W. Bush—I worked very hard in 2004 to make anti-Bush imagery. But then Bush got reelected, and so I thought I needed to reevaluate my approach to mainstream politics. At that point, I’d had a kid, a daughter, and as the 2008 election campaign was beginning, I had a second daughter on the way. So I started to think, “This isn’t about me augmenting my existing brand of pissed-off rebellion. This is about my daughters’ future.”

Read the interview here.

Wallpaper, the magazine with the best taste in websites, have been working on some collaborations. They’ve teamed Martine Rose up with Timberland to produce a piece of outerwear for the Spring/Summer 2011 season. No pictures yet, but above is an informative video about the process.

01. Chinese scientists demonstrate 2Mbps internet connection over LED

“LED data transmission used to be all the rage — we fondly remember beaming Palm Pilot contacts via IrDA. Then we got omni-directional Bluetooth and building-penetrating WiFi, and put all that caveman stuff behind us. But now, scientists the world over are looking to bring back line-of-sight networking, and the latest demonstration has Chinese researchers streaming video to a laptop with naught but ceiling-mounted blue LEDs. The Chinese Academy of Sciences claims to have realized a 2Mbit per second internet connection that transmits data simply by modulating the flicker of the little diodes, and imperceptibly enough to have them serve as room lighting as well.” (engadget)

02. … Next BMW 3 Series to gain hybrid version

“Now it looks like the 3 Series will be the next in the company’s stable to get the electric motor treatment. While speaking with shareholders, BMW head-honcho Norbert Reithofer let it slip that we’ll be seeing a hybrid version of the company’s bread and butter 3 Series fairly soon. When is that, exactly? It’s hard to judge from Reithofer’s statement, but given that the 5 Series hybrid is slated for sale next year, we would guess the tech-laded 3 will pop up in 2012.” (autoblog)

03. 111 Coke X Dwr X Emeco Navy Chair (above)

“t is amazing how good the plastic version of a steel design classic can feel… you have to sit/lift this new 111 Navy Chair is! The Emeco classic remade in a special formulation of rPET (Recycled Polyethylene Terephthalate- recycled plastic bottles) mixed with glass fiber for strength ~ where each chair contains 111 recycled plastic Coke bottles! Apparently over the last 4 years ~ Coke instigated this project, challenging Emeco designers/manufacturers to adapt the chair. While this launched in milan (frozen in a block of ice! – see pic on next page!) ~ the launch party for it at DWR” (notcot)

04. Finisterre Cemetery

“These strange concrete constructions form a cemetery, somewhere along the coastline of  Finisterre, Spain. They’re the brainchild of Spanish architect César Portela. It’s just so very much unlike any cemetery I’ve seen before… The other-worldly grey boxes, placed so disorderly… They’re just there, without fences, looking out over the infinite ocean, timeless.”(minimalissimo)

“To mark the launch of the latest fragrance from Comme des Garcons, entitled “Wonderwood”, the Brothers Quay have produced an exclusive short film..” (via HS)