The New York Times has a nice new article up about the recently opened Muji Flagship Store in Manhattan – The Civilized World Finds A Refugee.

“Muji’s bright cube-room on Broadway takes all the ugliness out of shopping. A refined combination of Kate’s Paperie, Uniqlo, Bed Bath & Beyond and the Container Store, it is the folded-down, crisp origami essence of a superstore. Everything here seems a necessity — stationery, bedding, flatware, rain gear — so that for once in your consumer holiday journeying, you can shop for gifts and convince yourself you are not being a slop pig.”

Check it out here.

Japanese clothing chain Uniqlo has made quite an impact in its short time outside of Japan. New York has got its own Uniqlo flagship, London got a new store as well and Paris is following soon. Hopefully the expansion goes at this speed for some time, because if you do not have one close by yet, you are definitely missing out.

The quality is good and definitely more than ok considering the price. If you are in the need of any kinds of basics, Uniqlo is the place to go. With their recent addition of t-shirts, they now also offer in that section a nice selection.

Here you get a first look at their Spring/Summer 2008 collection. They offer very solid pieces in the line, nice classic shorts, striped tees, shirts and more. Details such as the light weight fleece scarfs and the hats, make the collection less standard and boring.

Uniqlo definitely offers everything you need to fill the gaps in your wardrobe. Check out some more Spring/Summer ‘08 styles after the jump.

Visvim has just released their latest products of their Fall/Winter 2007 collection. Among the release were the new Girdwood Boots, which come in three colorways. Other products in this release were the Kenai Wool Shirt, a collaboration with Woolrich, a traditional US wool producer, featuring nice elbow patches in technical nylon. The shirt comes in three colorways. Last but not least they released the Fluxus 03 Crash1 denim, a washed denim with lots of details. Pics via Figure.

Check out the other product after the jump.

Ubiq presents yet another winter boot as part of their Holiday 2007 collection. The boot is based off their popular Fatima sneaker. Just like the Fatima, the Preseren boot features the flap and has tartan check underneath it. The outer sole is thicker to hold you warm this winter. The boot comes in three colorways, each with black suede upper, but different tartan check colorways on the flap.

The Ubiq Preseren will be released at Flauge on the 17th of December. After the jump more detailed images.

Sophnet is about to release some new goods as part of their Holiday 2007 collection. This special release is dominated by their scorpion logo. It features a crewneck sweater, beanie and also sunglasses. Each piece comes in several colorways. The sweater and beanie come in matching colorways and have a nice used look.

Check out the entire release after the jump.

Head Porter Plus is certainly one of the most consistent labels in the market and produce solid collections season after season. In their latest feature, Honeyee presents the Head Porter Plus Holiday 2007 collection. The collection consists of a nice mix of sporty outerwear and subtle mature styles. With Head Porter Plus you can never go wrong, as the line is so simple on one side, but features high quality materials and innovative details.

Some big names out of the Japanese fashion and art scene model the new collection in the feature. Check it out after the jump.

Hiroki Nakamura of Visvim presents their latest products, the Visvim Folk Series. The Folk Series seems to be a new line under the Visvim label very much inspired by native and folk life. Unlike all the other Visvim footwear it features thinner soles and almost has a used look to itself. Not only the look is different from other Visvim footwear, also the materials used differ. For the moment we don’t know much about it, but as we find out more, we’ll let you know.

After the jump another shoe out of the Visvim Folk Series.

Stussy just released a very special new piece, the Stussy Leather Mad Biker jacket. The classic biker leather jacket is made of 100% cow leather in premium quality and features a Thinsulate inslulation. They also gave the jacket a used look. All in all a very special piece that is now available in very limited quantities.

It is nice seeing Stussy taking an unexpected direction once in a while. In this case the outcome is a functional high quality jacket. Of course going into such extremes is not everybodies thing, but if you make something this special it does not have to be. The one who knows, appreciates! After the jump. more pictures.

If you need some real winter boots, then Visvim has got something to offer you now – the Decoy Duck Boot Hi. In terms of colors they keep it simple and concentrate on quality and functionality. The upper is a mix of suede, mesh and premium leathers. Pic via Complex.

These will definitely keep your feet warm. Not everybody will be able to pull these off, but it certainly is a quality winter boot. By the way, they also come in other colorways.