Monday is Mopar, is a weekly dose of Mopar goodness provided by HotWheels.

“Gianfranco Ferré” Spring Summer 1985 Milan Pret a Porter Woman by Canale Moda.

Patrik Ervell is an American-born menswear designer based in New York City. Ervell is a graduate of University of California, Berkeley where he studied political science, economics and art history.

Ervell is noted for using innovative and unusual fabrics including gold foil, vintage parachutes, fabrics died with oxidized iron and copper, handmade rubber raincoats, horsehair, and most recently splash-dyed silks. His designs are characterized as utilitarian, minimal and elegant.

Patrik Ervell debuted in 2005 at the New York City concept store Opening Ceremony. Upon winning the Ecco Domani Award for Menswear in 2007 he debuted his collection in his first runway show. Since then, Patrik has received nominations for the CFDA’s Swarovski Award for Menswear in 2008, 2009 and 2010. Ervell was the runner up for the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Award in 2009.

In 2011 he was nominated for GQ’s Best New Menswear Designer in America, and the CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year. Ervell shows his menswear collections twice yearly at New York Fashion Week, showing in both presentation and runway show formats. After seasons of presentations, for his Fall Winter 2012 collection Ervell returned to the runway presentation. Patrik Ervell is carried around the world at stores such as Barneys and Opening Ceremony.

Sam Haskins, born Samuel Joseph Haskins (born 11 November 1926, died 26 November 2009), was a South African photographer best known for his contribution to nude photography, pre-Photoshop in-camera image montage, and his books, the most influential of which were Cowboy Kate (1965) and Haskins Posters (1973).

From 2000 to 2005 he has focused on fashion photography for Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Allure and New York. In 2006 he republished Cowboy Kate in a ‘Directors Cut’ edition with some additional images. In 2009 he published, under the family imprint The Haskins Press his first book in 24 years.

‘Fashion Etcetera’ is a thematic slice through his archives that explores a lifelong passion for fashion, style and design. He suffered a stroke on 19 September 2009, the opening day of his exhibition to launch ‘Fashion Etcetera’ at Milk Gallery in New York and died at home in Bowral, Australia, nine weeks later.

Our Spring/Summer 2012 collection has arrived! New this season is a v-neck shirt for men and a racerback tank for women. Also included is a 5 color graphic tee featuring American model and actress Paulina Porizkova. Shot in our Los Angeles showroom our inspiration for this season is high-end luxury meets lifestyle casual for the ultimate combination of quality and comfort.

Special Thanks goes to Ann-Marie Hoang, Preston Alan DeNunzio, Portage Chicago for supplying the eyewear, and Calmatic Filmworks.
Click Here to Purchase our Spring/Summer 2012 items.

The Lo-lifes were unified under a single label (Polo Ralph Lauren). “We weren’t thought of as greedy cats, killers, or thugs—we were original, trendsetters, and go-getters.” And now we’ve spread around the world: Spain, Brazil, Australia, France, and too many other places to name.

“In the late 80s, death was all around us in Brownsville and Marcus Garvey Village. We supported each other through some of the harshest times in Brooklyn’s history—crack was raging and guns went off daily. Before we were known as the Lo-lifes, we were just friends who wore Polo and Ralph Lauren. We spent days in the pool and at the local jams, bagging pieces, and living our lives.”

“Our only concerns were money, hoes, and clothes. We had reputations for bringing home the finest pieces and staying fly. At first, cats around us took this as a weakness; they thought we couldn’t get busy. We proved them wrong on many occasions.”

“We lost many of our brothers along the way. I did their names on walls, looked at their young faces in coffins, and cried with my brothers. Every tear, drop of blood, and funeral added weight and value to the name Lo-life. We hold it in high regard; we don’t take it lightly or allow it to be abused. We are a family first, call us what you want after that. 2LLs: love and loyalty!”

René François Ghislain Magritte was a Belgian surrealist artist. He became well known for a number of witty and thought-provoking images. His work challenges observers’ preconditioned perceptions of reality.

Magritte was born in Lessines, in the province of Hainaut, in 1898, the eldest son of Léopold Magritte, who was a tailor and textile merchant,[2] and Régina (née Bertinchamps), a milliner until her marriage. Little is known about Magritte’s early life. He began lessons in drawing in 1910. On 12 March 1912, his mother committed suicide by drowning herself in the River Sambre.

Magritte’s work frequently displays a collection of ordinary objects in an unusual context, giving new meanings to familiar things. The use of objects as other than what they seem is typified in his painting, The Treachery of Images (La trahison des images), which shows a pipe that looks as though it is a model for a tobacco store advertisement.

Contemporary artists have been greatly influenced by René Magritte’s stimulating examination of the fickleness of images. Some artists who have been influenced by Magritte’s works include John Baldessari, Ed Ruscha, Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, Vija Celmins, Marcel Broodthaers, Jan Verdoodt, Martin Kippenberger and Storm Thorgerson. Some of the artists’ works integrate direct references and others offer contemporary viewpoints on his abstract fixations.

We’re currently putting the final touches on our release for Spring. Here’s a “sneak peek” at some of upcoming products for S/S 2012. Be sure to stay tuned in as we will be releasing some very exclusive pieces this Summer.

A season defined by the details, FW12 menswear was a great start to the year. Out of the mass of imagery presented from world class designers, 9 times a day for 9 days straight, we’ve selected the collections that stuck in our heads the longest.

Louis Vuitton
“Animated, that’s one way of describing the latest from Louis Vuitton. Animated as in literally having exaggerated qualities, in an awesomely tailored kind of way. The scarves were jumbo-big; the coats had clean, geometric prints; and every look had some serious texture.”

Jil Sanders
“Raf Simons must have swallowed the red pill based on the procession of Agent Smith clones at Jil Sander this season. Supple leather outerwear draped over precision-cut tailored pieces, all blacked-out save for the contrasting pop of white shirts (and a pair of animal-embroidered jumpers). Consider this Neo-minimalism.”

Junya Wantanabe
“Junya Watanabe picks up where his Spring 2012 outing left off, a farmer’s market. This season, however, Watanabe visits the contemporary co-op and creates a collection of polished parkas and barn jackets in tweed and denim, paired with overalls and leather patchwork pants, all in clean, unwashed finishes.”

Versace
“Versace’s latest was packed with look-at-me-now psychedelic patterns, blood red suits, and shearling-sleeved denim jackets. Oh yeah, there was a sunflower-print jump suit, too. What we mean to say is that this catwalk wasn’t for the faint of heart. Somewhere in the sea of the theatrics, totally wearable pieces lurked—badass leather jackets, sharp khaki suits, and slim gray jeans that the every-dude could pull off with ease…relative to that jump suit, at least.”

Dries Van Noten
“Groovy man, or sir, really, would be the appropriate response to Dries Van Noten’s psychedelically charged runway this season. Colorful prints, looking like the portfolio of an LSD-induced tapestry weaver, were used in everything from peacoats to pants, but didn’t overwhelm a collection that was very much grounded in reality. Sublimely tailored topcoats and a series of dark suiting looks maintained the gentlemanly, refined aesthetic so associated with the brand.”

From boots to brogues, tasseled loafers to knit kicks, there was an abundance of eye-catching footwear on the runways this season. Here are the Top 5 Kicks you need this fall. (Top To Bottom) Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, Dries Van Noten, Givenchy, & Neil Barrett.