Please vote for us everyone...

Hey everyone, we have been shortlisted in the ASOS streetstyle competition. We only need a little favor so that we can win... Please click on the image below and VOTE FOR US!!

Effortless Cool defined by an image

If I were to make a dictionary of over used phrases of the English language I would surely include 'effortless style' and accompanying my text would be this image. In practice, for most of us at least, pulling of this style is anything but effortless. Successfully achieving this look is very much like achieving the 'bed head' hairstyle...copious amounts of product and mirror preening are required! This chap as captured by the Sartorialist is effortless cool.

Ordinarily, I might have just linked to this Sartorialist capture over on our twitter account but I felt that it deserved more than just a tinyurl link. Points will surely be knocked off for posing with the cigarette but everything else about it is perfect. Giancinephile recently posted on the Cult of the Effortless Cool where he discussed Paul Helbers words in Man About Town where he described how a 'dirty' casual French look makes a man attractive and intriguing and I do buy into that. Of course, I very much enjoy making the effort but on my off days, I wouldn't mind looking like the chap above...

With regards to the photographer, well, over the course of the last two days we have all been reminded (if there was any doubt) that the Sartorialist is certainly very much still sitting pretty at the top of all Street Style blogs.

No no no no NO! His hair is DREADFUL. It looks like mine when I've just towel dried it crossed with a mad professor's. The outfit is ok but tame. As for the Sartorialist... sorry, but Garance Dore is my favourite nowadays.

Ha, you are being very judgemental this evening! His hair is being blown in the wind so I think the mad professor claim is harsh to say the least! I agree that Garance Dore takes better pictures but sadly she rarely points her camera at men...which is why until she focuses on more men she will not replace the Sartorialist as my personal favourite!

And the winner is....

Happy Tuesday to one and all. As we all return back to our 'normal' lives following the long festive break all remnants of Christmas will be coming down to day (sadly the tree will be in the trash by this evening) and even more heartbreaking...there are very few presents left to open. However, our Happy Socks sponsored sock giveaway allows one lucky reader with the chance to start the new afresh and the draw has just taken place...queue drum rolls...and the winner is Fuschiaboy, congratulations! Thanks for entering everyone and for those of you who didn't win, better luck next time!

Brick Lane on a cold Winter evening

I love the shiny leggings with the cable cardi and the retro-geeky shoes (Hush Puppies?) The headscarf adds the bohemian je ne sais quoi... I am loving it!

2009 is the year I wake up to denim

Ever since my eyes were assaulted by a number of ill fitting all denim ensembles as I was growing up (images of Bon Jovi and more recently that picture of Britney and Justin wearing matching denim ensembles still haunt me to this day) so I tend to avoid denim. This fear has meant the only part denim has played in my wardrobe is to provide a few pairs of that icon of popular culture which are jeans...and nothing more. Over the years I have embarked on a number of quests to find the perfect pair of jeans, trying every manufacturer and style that I could get my hands on which has resulted in me drawing the conclusion that (in terms of menswear at least) there is little worse than shopping for this particular staple...If you are interested I fell in love with the french label APC two years ago now and wear little else because they fit me perfectly, although Uniqlo provide colourful alternatives which should not be overlooked. On the whole, when it comes to denim, despite a number of brands creating interesting denim creations I have let my preconceptions cloud my better judgement and ultimately I have not given this classic yet ever popular fabric the attention and imagination that it deserves. The time for change is now.

A number of Spring Summer 09 look books combined with a well written and image sourced piece within the latest issue of BUCK (which is in my opinion the best yet and will be reviewed later this week) have only heightened the intensity of the light bulb which hovers cartoon like above my head...denim offers more than mere jeans and should be celebrated and worn with gusto this Spring and beyond. The below collages show just some of the denim pieces, including shirts, backpacks and even jeans, which have made me open my eyes to this versatile and stylish fabric...

(Please click on the images to see them in all their glory and to save yourself squinting...)

The collages document a number of pieces from a variety of brands but hopefully they show my newly found admiration for denim. There are a few pieces which warrant more attention so I've picked out a few collections to give a little more information...

I've already noted on the blog how the Lanvin x Acne collaboration made me see denim in a different light so it should be no surprise that it features heavily here. Within this collection denim was used to create a relaxed formal and all round effortless style where rich textures and fabrics were used in a subtle combinations with denim. We saw deconstructed blazers and double breasted jackets teamed with denim shorts and loose fitting trousers, in a variety of hues (from my favourite indigo to that Spring favourite pale blue).

During Amsterdam Fashion Week, the first edition of the Amsterdam Denim Award was unanimously given to Eric Lebon. The Jury members which included Diane Pernet (A Shaded View on Fashion), Mr Yuji Yamasaki (buyer Beams Japan) and the Austrian designers Helga Schania and Hermann Fankhauser (Wendy&Jim) had the following to say: "Lebon creates a complete image which – as far as the silhouette and the use of denim are concerned – is innovative, yet comprehensible."

The work of Latvian artists and designers Mārīte Mastiņa and Rolands Pēterkops (both graduates of the Design and Art School of Riga) under the denim line MRJeans was recently featured on DazedDigital and StyleBubble and the combination of the surreal (both in terms of the photography and in the pieces themselves) with the basic has really left an impression. Jackets have asymmetrical cuts, innovative details are added to denim trousers whilst checked shirts have multiple collars layered one on top of the other that create a multi-structured effect

I've seen glimpses of the next instalment of the Raf Simons x Eastpak collaboration and the denim pieces are wonderful...overpriced but wonderful. I'm torn on the backpack because for me this is one of the best accessories that I've seen for some time but because it is essentially an Eastpak backpack (which were bought as widely affordable schoolbags in my youth), I don't think I can suppress the shrieks of pain and disbelief brought about at the £200 price tag...Away from the Eastpak collaboration Raf Simons has been experimenting with denim for both Jil Sander (as reported on WWD) and his very own Raf by Raf Simons label. The BUCK article showcased a couple pairs of dyed and bleached jeans from the Raf by Raf Simons (which I couldn't track down online) and have instilled a strong desire to replicate something similar by purchasing a cheap pair of red Uniqlo jeans and playing with bleach...as soon as I get my act together I will give it a go and let you see the results...

In summary, there can be little doubt that jeans are a true staple, Yves Saint Laurent once remarked; "I have often said that I wish I had invented blue jeans: the most spectacular, the most practical, the most relaxed and nonchalant. They have expression, modesty, sex appeal, simplicity - all I hope for in my clothes." In my mind, up until recently at least, denim equals jeans and little else. Judging by its inclusion in a significant number of SS09 shows and look books we will be seeing a lot more of denim in the coming months. Previously, this might have scared me but now I am eager to experiment with this great fabric.

Lovely Knitwear Collection for Women

Around Portobello on a very cold day

I think the layered look is really cool, and the very stylish, very shiny boots complement the outfit perfectly.

New Year... (Old) New Socks Competition

What better way to start the new afresh than with four new pairs of socks? We unveiled the Happy Socks competition back before Christmas and although we have had a number of entries already... well, we forgot to give a closing date and then Christmas came along and made us forget about it almost all together (we will work on our forgetfulness in 2009).

The entries already submitted are in the hat, the rest of you have until January 5th to drop us an email with your name and email address to stylesalvage@gmail.com...the winner will be contacted on January 6th.

Happy New Year!

A French couple in London for NYE. Such great style these two have! I love her coat, the fact that both are wearing plaid shirts, and the Union Jack jumper is very appropriate...

New year, new year

Found here

Dear readers! 2009 is as good a reason as any to make some changes and to look ahead. Nothing too drastic, don't you worry. We will be cutting down a little on the more 'news' type posts, mostly because we feel that so many other blogs do this already while other facets of men's style blogging are somewhat under represented (we will still be commenting on some news items though!). We'll be posting more links to that sort of thing (and a whole load of other crap) over on our twitter account so if you aren't following us, please do.

So what WILL we be writing about? We're hoping to do a lot more interviews and have a few up our sleeves for the New Year but if you have any requests or recommendations of who we should be interviewing then please let us know... Steve will be discussing the AW 09 shows with Thom of The Sunday Best while EJ will be largely ignoring them... We WILL start writing that shop guide (the form of which is still undecided but it will cover both online and physical boutiques...even outside of London)... We'll continue discussing the looks we love and the films/videos/photos that inspire us... We'll be posting more varied outfit shots and dressing up that little bit more... We'll be providing more magazine reviews... and we'll be doing so much more, the ideas for which have yet to form in our tiny little minds...

All in all 2008 was a good year but 2009 should be even sweeter, Happy New Year to you all.