Daft Punk Replica Helmet – Etsy

| Posted by ck1 on May 12, 2012 in Accessories, Art & Decor, Style |

Get your very own replica Daft Punk helmet. Not sure on whether there’s a Thomas Bangalter helmet available as well, but the Guy Manuel helmet on display looks fantastic.

$1400
Via Etsy.com

Mondo Avengers Poster

| Posted by ck1 on May 5, 2012 in Art & Decor, Style |

Just released today – get your Mondo Avengers poster designed by Tyler Stout. Very limited quantities.

$60
Check the link for purchasing details.

IKEA Uppleva

| Posted by ck1 on Apr 17, 2012 in Furniture, Style, Tech, Televisions |

Say what you will about those goofy Swedes from Ikea, but you know as well as I do – you’ve got something from them that you absolutely can’t do without. Now, after building four chairs and a table from Ikea last year, I can only imagine the level of language heavily dipped in vulgar verbosity required to build this particular item, yet, I love the ingenuity of it. This is what people want, give it to them – it’s such a difficult concept to get across to big business these days, isn’t it?

The Uppleva is an all-in-one entertainment system, it includes a cable hide-away, full HD flat screen TV, blu-ray / dvd / cd player, speakers and a wireless subwoofer. All of which will somehow magically come in a flat packed box with nefarious instructions on how to create it. Watch the video below for full details.

If I may impart a level of Ikea wisdom I have used to great avail over the years – wherever Ikea has you put two pieces of wood together sans bonding agent, add wood glue, and you will be tremendously happier with the finished product.

This looks like a winner from the Apple of cheap furniture.

$TBD – coming this fall to Ikea’s worldwide.
Check out the press release here (you’ll have to use Google to translate it.)

BIEGERT and FUNK QlockTwo W Watch with Words

| Posted by ck1 on Apr 17, 2012 in 1, Feature, Style, Watches |

Speaking of watches, how about one for those of us that struggle with the abstract notion of quickly reading and deciphering two different sets of hands set against a circular structure of well placed numbers? Now, I will readily admit, I’m actually quite good at it now, but as a younger man it actually filled me with a subset of angst when asked the time while I was clearly wearing a watch. I would worry that the asker was somehow dissatisfied with the speed of my response, indicating that I was, well, slow. No more! No more, I say! All you have to do now, my angst ridden watch wearers, is read. You can do that, can’t you?

$TBD – coming this autumn.
Check it out at qlocktwo.com

The Sony Smart Watch

| Posted by ck1 on Apr 17, 2012 in 1, Style, Watches |

The smarter way to, well, not drop your phone I guess. It would be neat if it had some sort of voice recognition feature, that way we could wear our watches backwards like it was the 90′s and talk in to our wrists like we were CIA agents, but I digress, deeply. Where were we? Oh right, the watch – I was still thinking about being a CIA agent – anyway, yes, the watch will feature full support for apps from Google’s Play store and will allow you to control your Android phone via tailored apps that function and support the watch. You’ll be able to send tweets, control your tunes, update Facebook and send tweets all from a screen with less resolution and far less real estate than your Android phone!

$149.99
Available from the Sony Store Online.

The Sound Sofa

| Posted by ck1 on Apr 12, 2012 in 1, Furniture, Style |

Concerned about where to put your rear speakers? Worried about sound coverage being optimal? Have you considered putting the speakers in your sofa? I’ll bet you hadn’t up until now. CSL-Sofas out of the UK has you covered with their latest sofa design, the sound sofa. No word on airplay capability, but there is bluetooth and an iPod dock – so you’re covered.

$1600 Approx.

Check out the whole range at csl-sofas.co.uk

Adidas Originals 2012 – Court Deck Mid Vulc

| Posted by ck1 on Apr 2, 2012 in Shoes, Style |

Lovely pair of Adidas Original gear that blends styles effortlessly. At home on the court, your yacht, or a biz-casual stunner – you’ll be guaranteed a good understanding (get it?).

These shoes feature a rich pull-up leather upper, embossed Adidas custom 3-Stripe look, waxed cotton laces and the iconic Adidas vulcanized outsole. For a more nautical look and feel, there is also a version that combines a canvas upper with washed out printed Adidas 3-Stripe.

$100
Available soon from the Adidas Originals Store.

Adidas Climacool Seduction

| Posted by ck1 on Mar 26, 2012 in 1, Shoes, Style |

While Nike flirts with sock-like FlyKnit shoes, Adidas continues to pump out some of the most stylistic shoes on the planet. Did you know that Puma and Adidas used to be the same company? It’s true, owned by the brothers ‘Dassler’ Adidas and Puma were formed when ‘Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik’ split shortly after WW2. One brother formed Adidas, the other, Puma. You might also be unawares that Adidas owns Reebok, TaylorMade golf and your favourite confortable biz-casual shoe – Rockport.

I’ve long been a fan of the Climacool series, and I own a pair as it is. I normally don’t tread quite as close to the colour barrier as these shoes do, but if you’re going to make a statement, do it with primary colours – not neons. With the Seduction, Adidas got it right – they’re gorgeous.

Update: Added new Climacool Seduction commercial, featuring David Beckham, Lionel Messi, Derrick Rose and Katy Perry.

$100
Check them out at Adidas.com

Sebago Men’s Beacon Boot

| Posted by ck1 on Mar 21, 2012 in Shoes, Style |

Every man needs a quality pair of what I will term, for lack of a better one, desert boots. These are casual, meandering, easy-going yet classy boots that will suffice for a summer evening at the park or county fair – making sure you’re not only stupendously handsome, but a classy dresser too.

$135
Sebago Men’s Beacon Boot from Amazon.com

WTaps Harris Tweed Leather / Wool Gloves

| Posted by ck1 on Mar 20, 2012 in Accessories, Style |

We may be heading out of the winter season, but there’s never a bad time to get yourself a pair of gloves that are going to be with you (until you lose them on the train, that is) for the better part of the rest of your life. Quality, craftsmanship – those are the things we spend hard earned money on. So, put your mountain ski-gear gloves away, and get yourself a pair of grown up man-gloves from WTaps.

$142
Check them out at havenshop.ca

Ferrari 150º Italia at 1:5 scale from Amalgam

| Posted by ck1 on Mar 18, 2012 in Art & Decor, Style |

There’s diecast models, plastic models, dinky cars, “fine” models – and then there’s Amalgam, which as far as I’m concerned, exists within a category all to itself.

This is a 1/5th scale model (think huge) of absolute stunning attention to detail, no stone has been left unturned in an attempt to ensure that this particular model is as fine tuned and as perfect a representation as possible.

As Formula 1 teams are constantly searching for performance gains, as well as tweaking their car components based on the particular circuit they’re racing, this particular model is the 2011 Ferrari F150 in it’s 2011 Silverstone (British GP) spec.

While these 1/5th scale models might be a bit pricey for some, Amalgam does offer smaller models, miniature steering wheel replicas, engine replica and other assorted automotive goodness as well. Highly recommended.

$7097.00
Check them out at AmalgamCollection.com

Tudor Heritage Black Bay Reference 7922R

| Posted by ck1 on Mar 15, 2012 in Style, Watches |

Tudor, up until recently, had always been thought of as the poor-man’s rolex. The subsidiary and subservient of the two brands, the Tudor was an also ran. Things, however, have begun to change. A new following has sprung up around the now iconic Tudor, the brand itself has responded by creating feats of fancy such as the Black Bay Reference, a nod to diving watches of yesteryear.

$3500 approx.
Check it out at TudorWatch.com

Nike Flyknit

| Posted by ck1 on Mar 6, 2012 in 1, Shoes, Style |

The process of running, whether it be on terrain or out-of-viable-ideas has brought us the next generation in shoe technology from Nike. Where do we find ourselves? We’re working on weight reduction, gone are the plastic polymers and light weight foam – replaced by, wait for it, knit fabric. The idea taken from, most likely, the light and durable carbon fibre, this new paradigm is set to make it’s worldwide debut during the Olympics to what I’m sure will be a tremendous amount of fan fare. Is it worth it? Probably not. No shoe advance made within the past ten years has eclipsed the fact that running shoes became more rigid and form fitting about 25 years ago, it was at that point that we, as they say, plateaued.

So what’s up then?

Awesomeness.

That’s what’s up.

Why won’t Nike just come out and say, hey, you know what? These aren’t going to make you run faster, they’re not going to make you jump higher, but guess what? They’re friggin awesome, we’ve built a whole new production technique around them, they’re rigid, yet light, they expand and contract far more reliably than leather – and above all else, they’re awesome – right?

But no, we have go through this whole B.S. routine about how I’m going to become a better athlete by wearing them.

We’ll get there eventually. I’m sure.

$TBD
Check it out here insider.nike.com

Suunto Core – Glacier Gray

| Posted by ck1 on Mar 1, 2012 in Style, Watches |

Suunto has always made a quality product. I own one of their compasses that has been a backpack stalwart for me for longer than I can remember. It’s simply perfect for the job it does, has exactly the functionality I need and is constructed of tough, long lasting material. I don’t, currently, own a Core watch from Suunto – but I suspect the engineering and level of quality will be of similar standards.

$299
Check it out here at Suunto.com

Suunto Core Altimeter Watch Glacier Gray, One Size from Amazon.com

There’s also an interactive site here that will demonstrate more features of the Core watch.

Rockford Socks, Brown

| Posted by ck1 on Feb 29, 2012 in Accessories, Style |

There’s more than just a passing distinction to Sock Monkeys from these particular socks. These are definitely Sock Monkey material. I can see three, four, five different types of possible Sock Monkey styles and iterations – and guess what else, before they’re Sock Monkeys? You get to use them as socks!

$7
Check them out at the WoodLandsShop.com