Max Berlinger

Thanks to its super-sleek, modern aesthetic and all-natural products, Malin+Goetz has become a cult hit for beauty and grooming insiders. The brand is a necessity to many a celebrity and can be found at the hoity-toitiest of salons, gyms, spas, luxury boutiques, and hotels -- but don't let that fool you, it's democratic prices make it an indulgence that anyone can afford. After quickly sweeping the East Coast, the company (headed by cuties Andrew Goetz and Matthew Malin) is following its Manifest Destiny-like calling with its newest location on Larchmont Boulevard, a trendy see-and-be-seen boutique mecca in Los Angeles's fabulous Hancock Park neighborhood. Brooklyn’s Bernheimer Architecture, a leading New York design firm, created the West Coast flagship drawing from both classic and modern influences. For example, the store features an antique table from upstate New York—where it was originally used as a counter in a haberdashery shop over a century ago—juxtaposed with a lighting installation designed by award-winning designer David Weeks. With a sophisticated gallery-like entrance and cobalt-blue façade, grooming afficianados may think they've just entered Nirvana upon entrance...and they wouldn't be too far off. 

-- ALEX TAYLOR WILLIAMS

238 N. Larchmont Boulevard. Los Angeles, CA 90004. 323-391-1884. malinandgoetz.com. 

In response to the success of their trimly-cut Ludlow suit, J. Crew has opened a shop solely dedicated to the popular style. The retailer introduced The Ludlow Shop in New York's TriBeCa tony neighborhood. The suit—which features slimly-cut trousers and a slightly shrunken blazer—originated as an appeal to a younger generation ready to embrace a more classic, European way of dressing. CEO Mickey Drexler told WWD last month that, "The Ludlow suit has become a business unto itself," prompting them to build a space entirely dedicated to it. In addition to multiple fabrications of The Ludlow, the specialty boutique features complementary apparel, including dress shirts, footwear, and neckwear, to complete the look. Tailors are on-hand to perfect the fit and monogram garments for an added dose of glamour. The best part? The price is set at an extremely reasonable price range: $400-$1,500. If you're unable to swing by the Big Apple's outpost, you can always procure one of the off-the-rack offerings online, but if you find yourself wandering the streets of NYC and feeling a little shabby, feel free to peruse the dapper goods at 50 Hudson Street. 

Photo courtesy of JCrew.com

Not everyone can make it to Sydney, Australia for the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade on March 3, but thanks to some exciting new technology, everyone can watch it.

 
Beginning Sunday, March 4, highlights from the parade will be available on the newly launched website mardigrastv.org.au—and before then, viewers can check out other content, including artist interviews, behind-the-scenes footage and other Mardi Gras surprises.
 
“We are ecstatic that this partnership between Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and Optus provides us with an amazing opportunity to share our LGBTQI Parade with a wider audience,” Mardi Gras CEO Michael Rolik said in a statement. “The digital medium is in-line with current viewing trends and means that people from small regional towns in Australia through to the biggest cities in the world can share in the unmatched excitement that comes with Parade. It will allow our community’s diversity and unified message of equality to shine across the world and we couldn’t be more pleased.”

Photo courtesy of Mari Gras TV

New York Pride might not be until June, but come this Sunday, March 4, LGBT people will have plenty to march about in the Big Apple. 

As a reaction to the historically bigoted St. Patrick’s Day parade, Sunnyside, Queens will be hosting the first ever "St. Pat’s For All" parade—featuring City Council speaker Christine Quinn as well as local politcos Danny Dromm, Rosie Mendez, and Jimmy Van Bramer—which really drives home the a sense of of inclusivity. 

“The 'St. Pat's for All' parade is the first in more than two-and-half centuries of NYC Irish parades to be open and welcoming to all people, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity,” the parade’s organizer’s said in a statement. “The parade's theme, ‘Cherishing all the Children of the Nation Equally,’ is taken from the 1916 Easter Proclamation of the Irish Republic. It's an opportunity for all of us to come together in our diversity and to honor our common humanity and heritage.”
 
For more information, check out the group’s Facebook page here.

Los Angeles, being anchored by the lucrative film industry, has no deficit of shopping hot spots. In fact, it's abound with neighborhoods solely dedicated to the worlds of commerce. There's the upscale designer flagships that line Rodeo Drive, the ecclectic mix of thrift shops and cult labels that are at the foundation of LaBrea Boulevard, there's the cool corridor of effortlessly chic stores on lower-Melrose, and Beverly Drive's endless array of boutiques where celebrities spend their post-facial/pilates class downtime perusing high-end goods. Los Angeles is also no stranger to a mall, and although it may be the newest of the bunch, the mighty Grove looms large, with its Disneyland-like façades and al fresco joys. 

Topshop, the British high-street shopping Mecca has proven its worth in gold in New York City, where even on weekday mornings one must elbow their way through the throngs of hungry consumers, but the mega-emporium has finally decided to look West. Yes, The Grove will serve as home to the West Coast's first ever Topshop location, satisfying the shopping urges of many a lad and lass that can't be fulfilled via ecommerce. The shop's design has yet to be finalized (the image above is but a rendering), and the company noted that a lot of back and forth went into persuading the popular shopping destination to welcome them. With Topshop's unsinkable track record, we have a feeling that once the UK behemoth opens, The Grove's corporate heads will be pleased with the business—not to mention cool caché—that will flock to the new location. 

British-helmed, New York-based label debuts in Boston just last week. Did that just blow your mind a little? Hope so. Clothing line Rag & Bone, which has been stamped with Anna Wintour's approval via a CFDA Award, has been around less than ten years, is already sold at many a luxury boutique, and has even launched a small satellite army of their own stores. New York City alone has five, plus Washington D.C. and Tokyo each have their own nook. Now, Boston's shopping alley Newbury Street has a Rag & Bone outlet to call their very own. The store, which opened on February 16th, carries the full range of men's, women's, shoes and accessories that the label -- headed by David Neville and Marcus Wainwright -- has to offer.

As is their way, the store's design works with existing architechtural features and attempt to highlight the orignal "bones" of the space, while adding small flourishes, such as their signature glass and brass facade. 

Rag & Bone Boston is now open at 111 Newbury Street, Boston, MA 02116; 617-536-6700. 

Famous costumes and dresses, priceless gems, works of art. These are what you might imagine when you hear the word museum—old and pretty things.

These days you may even think of dead human bodies, though those are neither necessarily old nor pretty. But anyone in Columbus, Ohio will soon have the chance to see something that might seem even less appropriate for a museum exhibit. And that would be the point.

Controversy 2: Pieces We Don't Normally Talk About is not, as the name implies, the first one at the Ohio Historical Society to try and stir something deep within visitors. It is the first, however, to deal strictly in items with a racially charged history of which depict we -- at least nowadays -- would deem racially insensitive or offensive.

The items run the gamut from things a creepy grandpa might collect, like a Nazi flag, to far more unsettling pieces like a child's bowling ball set depicting ethnic caricatures (pictured above). And it is pieces like the bowling set that make the collection so interesting and disturbing.

They were, like a 1946 Cleveland Indians jacket or Paul Laurance poem, not given a second thought not so long ago. The exhibit shows people just what was not only accepted but common just one or two generations ago and that proximity is what will put people on edge.

Running from February 29 through the rest of 2012, Controversy 2: Pieces We Don't Normally Talk About is sure to be a fascinating exhibit that begs the question, "Are we so different?"

Check it out at the Ohio History Center, 800 East 17th Avenue, Columbus, Ohio 43211.

The Fashionn Institute of Design and Merchandising (known as FIDM), opened their annual exhibit (its 20th!) featuring the best costumes from the films of the previous year. For those who are both cinephiles and style addicts, this is the perfect intersection of film and fashion to prep you for the rapidly approaching Academy Awards. Get up close with some of the best apparel to grace the silver screen during 2011. Included are the flirty flapper costumes from The Artist (above), the Elizabethan garb from the Shakespeare thriller Anonymous, the Victorian flavored numbers from Jane Eyre, and the glamorous creations that were made for Wallis Simpson in Madonna's W.E.

For more information on the exhibit, now open through April 28th, 2012, click here. 

As part of the continued efforts of Vogue magazine and the Council of Fashion Desigers of America to promote and support fresh US-based design talent, ten former finalists of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund have been selected to take part in the second edition of "Americans in Paris." The initiative, which is being underwritten this year by Tommy Hilfiger as it was last, whisks the lucky group to Paris, where they will be fêted by the US Ambassador with an intimate cocktail party, and given access to a showroom space to welcome retailers and buyers who are in town for the Paris Fashion Week. Included among the chosen few are womenswear designer (and former Out Magazine Hot List-er) Prabal Gurung, menswear designer Billy Reid, the boyfriend design duo behind Creatures of the Wind, and the ever-sexy (and sadly, straight) Simon Spurr. Congrats to the lucky group, and may we suggest to make time for some wine, cheese, and a croissant or two while wheeling and dealing in the City of Lights. 

British fashion and art magazine i-D is known for its striking covers which almost always feature a model or celebrity winking or covering one eye. For their lattest issue, the glossy is celebrating the Chinese New Year with twelve different covers (four to hit newsstands, eight that will live online), each featuring a different portrait. Photographer Chen Ma hopes to that,"the series of portraits [celebrate] the diversity of beauty in China today." The covers were done in collaboration with MAC cosmetics, so you can imagine that there is some pretty wacky make-up realness happening. You can see a slideshow of the images here, via The Cut. 

Another day, another collaborative effort from the folks at Opening Ceremony. What do they have up their sleeves this time? Just a friendly partnership with the atletic label Adidas, to help celebrate the summer Olympics, taking place this year in London. Starting in July, expect to see a roll-out of the sport-inspired goodies, which will consist of approximately 100 offerings, ranging in prices from $100 to $600. 

People all over the world know that if you're in Beverly Hills, dahling, and you're looking for the most exclusive designer shops in the world, you hit Rodeo Drive. The crowded thoroughfare is the West Coast's rendition of Fifth Avenue, playing host to only the most elite of designer boutiques. Last week, Rodeo welcomed a new neighbor with the opening of G-Star, making it the very first denim brand to plant its roots on the famous boulevard. To fête their latest bit of real estate, the label welcomed a slew of celebrities to check out their new location -- including the dreamy DJ Mark Ronson, True Blood's resident stud Ryan Kwanten, our nerd-crush Joel McHale (from E!'s The Soup), Out100 honoree George Kotsiopoulos, and le French actress Clémence Poésy (who will be starring in G-Star's spring campaign.) The emporium is marked by an imposing charcoal tower looming over the street entrance, beckoning you into the store, which is loaded with an ample supply of denim delights within. In other words, it's a dream come true for any jean fanatic -- and this being Southern California, you can be sure there are plenty of lurking around, waiting to snatch up a few pairs before shuffling on down the street to Gucci, Dolce, Prada, and beyond...

At this point pop-up shops have gond from novel idea to a fashion industry standard. If there's an empty storefront in America, there's a burgeoning fashion label scouting it out. And while pop-ups populate the landscape of any major city, big name designers tend to shy away from setting up a temporary digs. Just in time for the cool kid migration to Florida for Art Basel in Miami, the venerable house of Dior has signed a short-term lease on a space in the city's Design District. According to WWD, the 3,100 square-foot store was designed in collaboration with German artist Anselm Reyle and will feature a rotating list of celebrity DJs spinning tunes amidst colorful decor, a nail salon offering free manicures, and a purple-and-pink camouflage food truck stationed outside serving fresh Galic pastries to the either emaciated or buffed throngs of couture-loving passer-bys. Sadly, it appears that products for sale will be strictly lady-oriented, but that doesn't mean that the boys won't stop in to ooh and ahh over the Dior delights (and get a mani). 

The mistress of musical mayhem and all things having to do with self-promotion -- Lady Gaga, that is -- will be unveiling her latest project tonight at midnight. Her yuletide collaboration with Barneys New York, known as Gaga's Workshop, will feature an array of specially curated gifts and trinkets by Gaga and will be displayed in an installation-esque world of demented holiday cheer at the Madison Avenue flagship, starting tonight at midnight when the diva cuts the ribbon, signaling that the store is open for all her monsters to enjoy. But this latest project isn't just a commercial exercise -- the pop diva will be donating a portion of proceeds to the charity of her choice.

Click HERE for more information on Gaga's Workshop, open tonight.  

Spring cleaning is a common ritual for many people, but perhaps even more important is the autumnal cleanse. Packing away your shorts and flimsy tees and pulling out the heavy outerwear is a crucial step to surviving the wicked devices that Mother Nature unleashes come winter. Yet this past weekend, when I found myself surveying last year's cold-weather duds, I felt -- well -- sad. I needed a wardrobe refresh and I needed it fast. While Sex and the City's Carrie Bradshaw somehow cultivated a treasure trove of designer goodies from what I can only assume was a paltry salary as a weekly columnist, the truth of the matter is that HBO was lying to us -- you and I both. Writers -- even of the fashion variety don't make that kind of dough. 

But if you're smart, and fashion-hungry, there are solutions -- one very exciting on in particular. Should you happen to live in New York, I have a secret for you (sh!). It's called the Woodbury Commons and its a mere bus ride away. Head over to Port Authority and buy a two-way ticket to this retail Valhalla (who knew paradise was in Jersey?). Some snobs may poo-poo an outlet mall, but with shops like Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Prada, Balenciega, Yves Saint Laurent, and Dior there, this is by no means a cheapy swap meet. Luxury label's offer major, major discounts for past season's creations. Needless to say, our new Balenciega puffy coat will keep us warm all winter and didn't drain our bank account. 

For more information on the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets, click here. 

--MAX BERLINGER

It's been a couple of seasons now since the whole Navajo and Native American trend has infiltrated the fashion world. With stylish powerhouses like Proenza Schouler, Opening Ceremony catching on to the trend and the revival of heritage brand Pendleton plus the ever-influential Junya Watanabe hinting at the trend for fall 2011, it's clear that there is no end in sight for these indigenous-inspired prints and patterns. Will Leather Goods, based in Eugene, Oregon and established in 1981 has long been championing the movement, regardless of its standing with the luxury fashion world. In fact, the label's focus has always been domestically-produced, hand-made artisanship with quality materials -- and all that attention to detail shows. Flipping through their catalog is enough tomake us want to take a weekend trip just to use their bags.

But while their bags are stunners, the company also makes a plethora of gorgeous belts and some funky suspenders and beautifully masculine woven bracelets. So perhaps you're a city slicker, but dream of conquering the wild, wild West? Sporting one of these bad boys will definitely show that you're a cowboy at heart. 

For more information visit their website here.