On the Street....Hanson Place, Brooklyn

On the Street....Andi & Jordan, Brooklyn

On the Street......All About the Shades, Florence

The Unstoppable Anna Dello Russo, Milano

Wasn't This What They Really Meant For Casual Friday?

On the Street....Military/Floral, Milano

On the Street....West 24th Street, New York City

On the Street....Francesco Clemente, Bond Street, New York City

This was the first time, in a long time, I was really nervous to ask someone for their photo.

I have always loved Francesco Clemente's work and his personal style (notice the frayed sleeve of his well-worn linen jacket). For me, he is a real icon of the New York art scene.

Here is a link to a great interview he did with Charlie Rose. I love what he says about "boredom" and "waiting" playing a huge role in the creation of art. As a street photographer I understand exactly what he's talking about.

Can I Have My Gourmet Magazine Back?

Ok, this was funny for a while, but the joke is over. I want my Gourmet magazine back!

Come on Conde Nast, don't you think you overreacted pulling the plug on Gourmet so quickly? Not only was it my favorite food magazine, but it was also my favorite travel magazine. I not only wanted to eat the food but I also wanted to go to that place and meet those people.

To make matters worse the archives of Gourmet are either so buried in the Epicurious website or they are gone completely. The only element that is still easy to find are the recipes. If that's all they thought was worth holding onto then they didn't realize what they had in the first place.

How about this Conde Nast: if Gourmet was pulled as a reaction to the economic crisis then can we set a Dow number that will mark the immediate and simultaneous re-introduction of Gourmet? Let's say at 11,000 we go quarterly and at 13,000 we are a monthly again!!

All kidding aside....I'm serious....bring back my magazine.

This Collar Brings Back Memories, Florence

This type of shirt collar reminds me of my first Armani way back when I was in high school around 1985ish.

It had the same type of snap collar detail, but mine was in a beautiful grey/white/red stripe. I asked my Mom to buy it for me for Christmas from LS Ayres (luckily it was on sale), and after a month of begging it was under the tree on Christmas Day.

I loved that shirt SO much that I didn't dare unwrap it from the orignal packaging until around March! It took a while after that before i could actually start wearing it. Just between you and me, I think I still have that same shirt in storage back at my Mom's place.

It's great to have such fond memories of a first "designer" piece of clothing. They say "clothes don't make the man/woman" but that passion I had (and still have) certainly shaped the course of my future.

On the Street....Franca Sozzani, Milano

At Jazz-Age Dance Party....Erika, NYC

Jazz-Age Dance Party p.2, Governors Island, New York

Jazz-Age Dance Party p.1, Governors Island, New York

On the Street....The Fab 3, Florence

On the Street....Lucia, Florence

Pitti Uomo Recap....The Uniform, Florence

On the Street....All Viv, All the Time, Milano

Pitti Uomo Recap....Bold Solids

At this recent Pitti Uomo I surprised to see so many shirts in bold solid colors. As you can see in these two examples, it can be done very well when toned down with a navy suit.

The choice of color is extremely important. Because of the shirt's boldness, if you make the wrong choice, everyone will notice. To be honest, I can't really imagine a loud purple shirt looking good on anyone.

Along those same lines, I think it would also be a mistake to try and match a boldly colored shirt with an equally bold patterned suit. We'll see how this emerging trend plays out, but let's watch this with a very cautious eye.

The Perfection of a Simple White Blouse, Milano

It's been great this summer to see all these cool young ladies embracing the understated sophistication of a well-designed blouse. Whether new or vintage, cotton or silk, solid or patterned, the blouse has been severely under appreciated the last few years.