A couple of Makr bags have just landed at French Trotters and here’s our pick of the bunch. Given men’s natural love for all things navy we often find ourselves forcing ourselves to get accessories in different colours, if only to break up the monotony of an all blue outfit. Looking like an Americana incarnation of the blue man group is never a good look. (French Trotters)

Finding wearable pieces of Bernhard Willheim is a little like finding a needle in a clothing haystack. Well, here’s that needle. It’s not anywhere near as kerrazy as most Wilheim pieces, and it’s all the better for it. (The Corner)

Magculture turns us onto the latest magazine to create an iPad app, Self Service.

Denham has begun offering an interesting set of products around the WOAD Dye made in Norwich, England. WOAD has been around for some centuries and specializes in growing and harvesting the woad plant to make their dye. It is supposedly the last remaining farm in England to do so. Denham looks to help push their cause with not only a a denim release as well as a pair of scarves made from WOAD dye but also a DIY kit that allows the user to “dye” their own shirts.

More looks at the WOAD Dye DIY Kit by Denham after the click.

Eastland has been a major player in the shoe industry for decades. This season they release a new addition to their collection. The “Seneca” is a limited edition release that is composed of their “classic five-eyelet camp mo chukka.” The boot offers: premium suede uppers, pigskin sock, cushioned footbed and a natural rubber outsole. The suede detail gives the boot a totally different look without compromising the traditional Eastland style. I’ve had these boots before and they were always a hassle breaking in the leather versions, with the suede it should make the breaking period a breeze. A solid shoe for the cold winter. It’s available at EastlandShoe.

These accessories, reworked elements of Triumph motorcycles, were designed in collaboration with the Birmingham Institute of Design. Prototypes for now, but our fingers are crossed some will make way to mass production. Design Boom has the full story.

01. The New Starbucks Logo

“From the start, we wanted to recognize and honor the important equities of the iconic Starbucks logo. So we broke down the four main parts of the mark – color, shape, typeface and the Siren. After hundreds of explorations, we found the answer in simplicity. Removing the words from the mark, bringing in the green, and taking the Siren out of her ring. For forty years she’s represented coffee, and now she is the star.” (dieline)

02. Tea House by David Jameso

“This Tea House by David Jameson makes an unusual and ephemeral addition to a suburban Bethesda backyard – its bronze and glass volume floats over the grass like hanging lantern. ” (notcot)

03. YesPleaseMore Pop Up Store

“Taking a cue from the commercial world, a Colorado organization recently jumped on the pop-up bandwagon again with YesPleaseMore, a temporary store featuring locally-crafted goods from more than 70 Colorado-based artists and designers. The retail project is part of a three-pronged initiative to provide an economic development platform that gives credence and support to a recent report that the state’s creative industry is its fifth largest economic producer. (An unsurprising fact since Colorado ranks fifth nationally for it’s high concentration of artists.)” (coolhunting)

04. The Sartorialist: an example of intuitive research?

“The first thing I do after I go through my morning pile of email, is check out http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com . Those that know me would never call me a fashionista, I think “Geek Chic” was the closest I ever got to a compliment on my “look”, but the work of Scott Schumann aka The Sartorialist has always fascinated me. The way he captures a culture through a moment. Possibly it connects to the very intuitive way I do my research. Not the official stuff with rigor, but the real stuff that inspires emotive and non conventional solutions. We don’t tend to talk about it, because, well, its messy, non-linear, and it misses more than it hits, but the seed of the most wonderful things tends to come from that kind of ether.” (core77)

“Official video for ‘We Got More’, taken from the album ‘Eskmo’ on Ninja Tune.”

Mr. Williams returns for a second year in the row to Tokyo. I unfortnately did not. But luckily, ACL gets sprnklings of his visit every now and then. The latest is a unique  look at a designer whose work with a heritage outwear company,  is more known than his own line – at least outside of Japan.

“Tokihito is probably best known (though I think he still flies largely under the radar) for his wildly successful (and completely badass) Barbour Beacon collection. Outside of that, Tokihito and his own line TO KI TO don’t have much of a presence outside of Japan, something that needs to change. Tokihito has some serious design skills and is deserving of all of the good words that can be sent his way. When it comes down to it, I wouldn’t be afraid to say he is one of the best designers in the world.”

More looks after the click.

“Nomad Brush is a unique artist paintbrush. Made with a long handle and soft bristles, it is the first paintbrush stylus for the iPad. 
Available February 2011.”