Posts with tag miami

The Playboy empire is spreading -- aside from the nudie magazines and clothing, it's reaching out into fragrances, too. The ladies from The Girls Next Door attended a party in the penthouse of Manhattan's Hotel on Rivington to celebrate the launch last week, and shared some details about their favorite scents.

Alright so you want to wear a white suit. Phhhooo, this is a toughie. White suits often make a man appear like he thinks his ish don't stink. You know the type: majestic yet totally tacky, sexy yet a complete ago maniac, cool yet far from innocent. The bastards. Studs like P.Diddy and David Beckham are prime white suit candidates. And didn't Al Capone and Scarface wear them too? As you see it takes a heck of a man to rock this right.

So if you think you've got the stuff to pull a white suit off here are a few more rules to follow to make sure you're the dapperest don in the room.

Pssssst. Have you heard? Karl Lagerfeld has a tinsy crush on male supermodel Brad Kroenig. The former University of Miami soccer player has served as resident muse for the Chanel designer for quite some time now.

If time has proven anything it is that Ponce de León was way off mark. Aside from the bikinis washed upon the shoreline of Miami the closest thing to a Fountain of Youth in Florida has big mouse ears on it. Those cars with the New York plates? Those people aren't young, Ponce.

No, the Fountain of Youth can be found on me -- on my face to be exact. You see, I'm closer to 40 30 than I have any right being, and yet I have enough blemishes and pimples to be invited to prom or tested for steroids. Sure, it's kind of fun being the guy that can buy beer at the dance, but testifying before Congress? That's lame.

That's why I tried Advantage Acne Spot Treatment by Clean & Clear. It is a salicylic acid acne medication. Yeah, that doesn't mean anything to me either. However, it also claims, right on the tube, that it "won't overdry skin," which is good. The only thing worse than having a big pimple on your face is having a big pimple on your lizard face. That's awkward.

All I know is that it works. Fast. I've got a tux to rent and a corsage to buy. I can't afford to worry about my complexion.

Online shopping has changed the way that Americans spend their money. Whether you are in Bangor, Maine or San Diego, California, the world wide web gives you access to the best goods in America, all from the comfort of home.

But internet retail cannot fill the special place in my heart that I reserve for new shops in other cities. Whether it's a piece of jewelry, a great outfit or a plain white t-shirt, what you buy on the road can become a special souvenir to remind you -- months or even years later -- of that great trip where you scored that totally unforgettable item.

Earlier this week, I told you my favorite worldwide cities. Well, here are my favorite stateside shopping ports-of-call:

1. New York City
Well, of course, New York is the best city for shopping in America. They have Barneys, they have Henri Bendel, they have Stella McCartney and soon they will also be the first American city to have my favorite international store, TopShop London. If you are in the mood for smaller boutiques or vintage clothing, New York offers you everything you could possibly crave, especially if they make it in black.

2. Miami
There are few urban cities in an America where you will not be tempted to buy or wear anything that is black. Miami is one of these, which for better or worse, is a great place to visit if you are looking for something colorful to perk up your wardrobe. While you're there, be sure to check out the Bal Harbour Shops and the Lincoln Road area. The Bal Harbour Shops was once named the best shopping center in America. (How 'bout them apples?)

4. Chicago
Chicago may very well be known as a great place for boutique shopping. But to me, Chicago will also be the great city of department stores. My favorite, admitted for nostalgic reasons, has to be Marshall Fields on State Street. (It's actually Macy's now, but it's still the same old turn-of-the-century building.)

5. Las Vegas
Over the past ten years, Las Vegas has been transformed from a seedy Sin City to a true destination for luxury shopping. Fendi, Dolce & Gabbana, Prada, Chanel, Louis Vuitton -- why Las Vegas might as well be known as the Milan of United States, of course, with much smaller churches and Elvis Impersonators instead of runway models.

6. Portland
So, Portland might not be the place to go for expensive designer goods, but if you are looking for the unique and one-off item that no one else will have, Portland is the place to go. Check out the Pearl District for hipster boutiques. Just make sure you save some time for digging through Red Light Clothing Exchange, Portland's most famous vintage clothing store.

7. Seattle
If I could create the perfect city, I would definitely put Filene's Basement next to Nordstorm's, which would be only a few blocks from the uber-trendy Marimekko store, which would be just a stone's skip off of the ocean. Sounds an awful lot like Seattle, doesn't it? Well, I might change a few things about the city (like the weather), but on the whole, Seattle is right up my alley when it comes to shopping.

"If you want to be a cowboy, you go to Texas," says Steven Kolb, executive director of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), and if you want to be a fashion designer, you have to be in New York. "That's just the way it is."

But despite this well-known tradition, other US cities are vying for attention from the fashion industry. Fashion Weeks are popping up in places like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Miami, and some younger, newer designers are choosing to stay out of New York. Forbes highlights five designers in these cities as well as in New Orleans and Seattle:

• Suzanne Perron - bridal wear designer out of New Orleans with Vera Wang and Carolina Herrera pedigree
• Orlando Espinoza - women's separates and dresses in Chicago
• Colleen Quen - dressed Tyra Banks and Paris Hilton out of San Francisco
• Nicolas Felizola - Venezuelan designer in Miami
• Suzanne Jaberg - her line Suzabelle is out of Seattle