Happy Valentine's!
They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, well, here it is, out front for all to see.
Dark Cycle Clothing has customised this American Apparel hoodie with their design of an anatomical heart. Dark Cycle consists of husband and wife team Coryn and Adam who own a small screen printing shop in Tampa, Florida.
£36.32
As Good As Skinny Feels!
It was Kate Moss who once said "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels". Well, take it from us, nothing feels as cold as skinny. Long-johns have become kinda cool and bonus, they also keep you warm. Along with the 'onesie' trend, skinny trousers and calling everything 'base layers' or 'loungewear', long-johns have, somehow, gone from granddad clothing to funky undergarment. Here are TheChicGeek's favourites of what's out there right now
David Beckham - Long-Johns - £19.99
Uniqlo - Stripe Long-Johns - £12.90
Under - Irving Long John Striped Waffle - £50
Topman - Navy Polka Dot Long John - £16
Sunspel - Thermal Long John - £45
American Apparel - Baby Rib Long Underwear - £24
The Swim Short - 2012
Let's talk swimwear. Okay, so we have the typical floral/patterned variety, the smart Orlebar Brown type, we know not go anywhere near trunks or anything too clingy. We also know that those long 'boarders' look ridiculous and it's best to show a bit of leg, always above the knee.
We always go on about proportion, so judge the short to look in proportion to your width and height. If not sure, go mid-length just on the thigh.
What is new though, and something different to try, is the swim short that looks a bit like a nylon running short. It's cut shorter and has a slightly sexy, retro quality about it. It makes a change from the 'Dad' short and you don't need the body of a Maximuscle dumbbell to look good in it. In fact, it may be the reverse, probably looks better on the slimmer shape.
Gant by Michael Bastian - Hippo Swim Shorts - $148
Marc by Marc Jacobs - Two-Tone Swim Shorts - £135
American Apparel - Nylon Taffeta Swim Trunk - £20
Acne - Vector Swim Shorts - £105
Comment - Can you ever be 'Too Cool'?
News comes from America of the potential for American Apparel to go bankrupt. It recently revealed losses of up to $7million (£4.5million) for the three months to June, pushing debts to $120.3million (£77.2million). A spokesperson for American Apparel told fashion trade title WWD that the company may not survive the next 12 months. The retailer has 14 stores in the UK and employs around 10,000 people across its 280 stores worldwide. It was said to be highly likely to breach the terms of its agreement with its main lender, private equity firm Lion Capital, next month.
What seems to be the problem? Did they over expand too quickly? Is it too expensive for what is it? Has the Made in the USA tag become boring? Or is too 'cool' for most people to understand?
Walk into any American Apparel shop and the term 'achingly cool' becomes apparent. The highly sexed imagery of nympho teenagers appeals to a very small niche. Leotard wearing 'hipsters' - hate that term - prance and scowl as if to say you're not
cool enough to shop in here. I think people have also wised up to the quality which isn't reflected in the price opting instead to shop at Uniqlo for the same skinny product. People have grown tired of the retro porn style advertising and find that the high fashion 'difficult' product dominates over simple basics. I think American Apparel has a very strong and distinctive image which was exciting when it first arived but they haven't evolved it over the last 5 years. They need to become more mainstream but maintain some of the cool if they are to support the size of the business.