As I discussed in my last post, I had to take a small.. um, sabbatical from blogging for a few days. During that time, some of my favorite brands released their AW 2009 collections. By far the most surprising (to me) was Messagerie.

The high-end Italian menswear line is far from a household name, but damn, this is a step in the right direction.

Their winter collection includes tailored suits, shirts, coats, jackets, bags and accessories. Not only does the new line create a clean, sophisticated look, it manges to make bow ties look cool.

Just when you though Pee Wee Herman had killed the bow tie forever...

-JM

You know that old saying "when it rains it pours?" Well, it has been ringing true for me this past week.

I have been getting quite a few emails asking where I have been. No blog posts? No Tweets? No Facebook? No Myspace? Nothing? Unless you are in my immediate family (or work for me) chances are you haven't heard much from me in the last few days. So, I will use this post as a platform to address the million dollar question: "Where have you been??"

DISCLAIMER: This story involves no death, disease or divorce. Just a string of expensive, obnoxious and irritating annoyances.

Here's the abridged version of the story:

I come home at about 12 am the other night and decide to do a quick load of laundry before I hit the sheets. My washer and dryer are in my garage, so I put on my sneakers and head down the steps. When my foot hits the ground in the garage...SPLASH! My garage is totally flooded. After some searching, I noticed that my hot water heater had busted and was streaming water all over the place. This was just the beginning ofof my string of bad luck.

Eventually, I got everything cleaned up and got a plumber to come out and replace the water heater. Just as the guy gets there to replace it, the power goes out (that means no AC in the 98 degree Virginia summer). Once the power company came out and fixed the power, I realized that my laptop wouldn't come back on. So, after heading to BestBuy (who told me my warranty expired one month ago), I spend all day trying to get it repaired. It couldn't be. My laptop has breathed it's final breath at the ripe old age of one year. I did the only thing I could: I grabbed my backup data and headed to the Manselle Media offices only to find out that our network has just crashed. Believe it or not, that's not the end of the story, but, I have satisfied my need to boo hoo like a baby. So, I will end this post here. Long story short, everything is back to where it needs to be (except my poor laptop).

We all have days/weeks/months/years like these. Sometimes it really feels like fate is out to get you. Like the world is testing you. But, those are the times when we need to find that inner strength and say "Fate, you will not defeat me." After all, your ancestors endured the likes of slavery, genocide, the holocaust, plague, famine and every disadvantage imaginable. But, somehow they got through it. The human spirit is a funny thing. No matter what the world throws at you, you always have two options: defeat it, or let it defeat you.

-JM

At Manselle Media, a lot of logo design projects come across my desk. One of the things that I enjoy most about marketing, is watching the branding trends. Some have been great (web 2.0, the color green for all things earth friendly) and some not so great (the attempts to mimic Obama's change motifs).

One of my favorite recent trends has been the liberal use of bar codes in logo design. Of course, use of such a simple starting point will no doubt become tedious in the near future. But, as these below examples show, the results can still be quite impressive.

Cheers,

-JM

The number one topic that I have been getting emails about since starting this blog is men's fashion. I have been getting questions about stylish, but appropriate attire for meetings, interviews and everyday life. So, as part of Life Is Nothing Without Style, I have decided to start a style series entitled "You Need." The series will chronicle items that every grown, professional man should have (but many don't). The first item up is a biggie... a perfectly fit suit.

What many men (especially young men who have never had a job that required a suit) don't understand is that the FIT of your suit is it's most important feature. Think about the last time you saw a man in a suit. That man always appears to be one of three things: a businessman, a church deacon or a defendant. Trust me, you do not want to look like the second two. When people see you in your suit, you should exude the sophistication, intelligence and confidence of a man who lives a certain lifestyle. In other words, the way you wear your suit should tell people this is who I am, I'm not just dressed up for a special occasion. You wear the suit, it doesn't wear you.

A prime example is shown below. The man in the photo is Evan Ng (photographed by Paola Kudackp). It may appear at first glance that he has received some kind of high style make over. In reality, these are the effects of a perfectly fit suit.

How to buy the perfect suit:

Have yourself professionally measured by a tailor (most higher end menswear shops have one on staff).

Buy European, slim fit or tailored fit suit.

Have the tailor take in or let out the suit as he sees fit (he knows more than you, just trust him).

Buy from a quality brand. Ralph Lauren, Oscar De La Renta, Calvin Klein and DKNY all make great suits at good prices.

Never buy your shirt and tie in a box together. EVER.

Stay tuned for a follow up piece on how to adorn your suit.

Cheers,

-JM