Shopping: The Scent of Man

Photo: Getty Images

Feel like smelling good? (The right answer is "yes," whether or not you like to wear fragrances.) In any event, check out Perfumes The Guide by Luca Turin, a leading scholar in the field of olfactory science and his co-author and perfume collector Tina Sanchez. Don't feel like reading the whole book? Fine. Here's a short list of the best masculine scents on the market:

Chanel - Pour Monsieur (chypre)
"Reference masculine - embodies to perfection the accord of fresh bergamot, sweet labdanum, and austere oakmoss that defines the genre - a warm, relaxed, confident voice, quietly melodious and in which you can hear a smile."

Guerlain - Eau de Guerlain (citrus verbena)
"Has a coherent, fresh drydown that completely transcends the cologne genre. If you want citrus, there is simply nothing better out there."

L'Artisan Parfumeur - Timbuktu (woody smoky)
"An affecting start of vetiver, sandalwood, and incense that seems quiet until you realize that, like modern sound systems that can pipe music into every room, one sprtiz fills a house with an odd, distinctly perceptible, but almost infared shimmer of woody freshness."

Spring/Summer Reading List: Sneaker Wars

Photo: Courtesy of Ecco Books

It's no industry secret that fashion thrives on drama. The rivalries, the tabloid stories, the diva behavior and the nit-picking of hemlines, and the hirings and firings could give Days of Our Lives a run for it's money. Barbara Smit's book, Sneaker Wars: The Enemy Brothers who Founded Adidas and Puma and the Family Feud that Forever Changes the Business of Sport, offers up some soap oper-style drama with a big business twist.

Smit's book stitches together the tale of Rudolf and Adolf Dassler, two German brothers who started a shoe company in their mother's laundry in the 1920s. In a family feud, the brothers went their separate ways to start their own sneaker companies. And both achieved incredible successes (and failures) by revolutionizing the sneaker and sports industries. Explore the underhanded deals, the exploitative advertising, the near-bankruptcy, and the vicious competition between sneaker industry titans.

While it might sound like a dull business book to some, Smit follows the drama to provide a riveting story that reads more like fictional drama than a real-life account of the meteoric rise of two magnates in the fashion industry. It's a must-read for any sneaker addict.

Sneaker Wars: The Enemy Brothers Who Founded Adidas and Puma and the Family Feud that Forever Changed the Business of Sport, Barbara Smit, $26.95, Amazon.com

Jil Sander Tell-All Book!; Dsquared Rehearsal; Gossip Girl Garb; Rihanna's Fashion Line; Chicken Poop Lip Balm; Great Wall of Fendi; Luxury Eyeballs

Jil Sander, the acclaimed designer who left her eponymous company after disagreements with the parent company Prada, might pen a book about her life. Unfortunately, the title 'The Devil Wears Prada" is already taken. [WWD]

The NY Times gives readers a not-so-glamorous sneak peek at Dsquared's early morning rehearsal for yesterday's show. [NY Times]

Are you watching Gossip Girl? Now you, too, can show your Brooklyn pride and wear a shirt inspired by the show. [Radar]

Rihanna wants to design a clothing line...Does four or five hit singles give one enough star power to support a fashion line? Maybe she should stick to umbrellas. Chances are Rihanna will burn out before the line even hits racks.  [WWD]

Chicken Poop lip balm? A mystery cure-all balm called Egyptian Magic?  I've got a Brooklyn Bridge I'd like to sell you. [NY Times]

Karl Lagerfeld plans to show stage Fendi's Spring/Summer 2008 fashion show on the Great Wall of China...literally...seriously. ""I have a lot of people working for me, like Mao," Lagerfeld told Fashion Week Daily in February. [WWD]

Fashion brands from Tiffany to 3.1 Philip Lim bring specs-y back (bad joke, I know) and hop on the luxury eyewear bandwagon, so even the little (read: less wealthy) people can get a piece of luxury brands...right between the eyes. [IHT]

Your Fall Reading (Skimming) List

Photo: Getty Images

Skip Sophocles, Dante and Shakespeare and add these fashion tomes to your fall reading list!

New York Look Book: A Gallery Of Street Fashion by Amy Larocca and Jake Chessum ($24.95) Amazon.com

Fashion and interviews from the streets of New York City snapped by the writer and photographer who create New York Magazine's weekly fashion centerfold. But with these centerfolds you won't feel like an idiot when you say "I read the articles!"

Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Luster by Dana Thomas ($27.95) Amazon.com

Dana Thomas explores how luxury brands, once reserved the the upper echelons of the rich, have become marketing machines. It's a must-read for anyone who is obsessed with fashion and designer duds. But will it make you buy fewer pairs of Prada sunglasses? Of course not!

Misshapes by Geordon Nicol, Greg Krelenstein, and Leigh Lezark ($25.00) Amazon.com

A collection of photos from the almost-legendary and now-defunct Misshapes party in Manhattan. Check out the fashion of New York City nightlife including attendees Hedi Slimane, Madonna, Bloc Party, Peaches, Debbie Harry, Evan Rachel Wood and hundreds more who ignored their parents when they said "You're going out dressed like that?"

Friday Fashion News Round Up!

What would Fashion Week be without the blonde bombshell Donatella Versace? Boring, that's what. Lucky for us, she's flying in for the occasion to booze it up with fellow designers, hold a launch event for the company's new "Hit" bag and a private shopping event for American Express cardholders. [WWD]

New York Magazine documents the five worst examples of fashion runway roadkill. [NY Mag]

CFDA reminds designers to promote healthy models, not waifs that will tumble over at the slightest breeze. [WWD]

Fall? Spring? Who cares? We'll still wear the same pair of jeans. [WSJ]

Zac Posen wants to be the teacher's pet. He designed a limited-edition tote inspired by his favorite teacher at St. Ann's School for the Arts in Brooklyn Heights. Proceeds from the back will benefit TeachersCount, a non-profit that supports teachers of course. [WWD]

Cynthia Rowley had three teeth knocked out while wakeboarding in Montauk. Ouch! [WWD]

The MisShapes book! See 1001 photos of oddly dressed creatures of the night...and a few celebrities like Madonna, Hedi Slimane...who attended the MisShapes party in NYC. Do people still go? Or is it totally over once you get the book deal? [NY Mag]

Yves Saint Laurent will distribute two million copies of YSL fashion propaganda newspaper dubbed "Manifesto," starting Sept. 6 and 7 in New York during fashion week. Look for it in The New York Times. [WWD]

An Open Epistle to Tim Gunn

Dear Tim Gunn,

The whole world adores you and we do too. "Make it work", "where's Andre?" and all that. Wonderful. Young designers need your dryly-delivered common sense. You deserve your own TV show.

We've been reading your book, A Guide to Quality, Taste & Style (co-written with Kate Moloney). It's got a lot of cute drawings (mostly of dresses), some great blurbs (Nina Garcia? Wow!), advice for lots of different body types (short-waisted with long legs, you have a bit of a tummy, etc.) and some validating insights into current fashions (we hate flip flops too!)

Your book seems to have just about everything, in fact.  Except one thing: ADVICE FOR MEN!

What were you thinking, Tim Gunn? Do men not crave quality, thirst for taste, and - let's face it - urgently need some guidance on style? Why have you ignored half of your species?

Long Before Harry Hay...

Thomas Cannon shocked the establishment with his 1749 paper, "Ancient and Modern Pederasty Investigated and Exemplify'd." From the vantage point of an imaginary (and satirical) post-gay future, Cannon examines same-sex love in all its delightful variations. According to The Guardian, the text is bawdy and ironic, but not (yet) available to the general public.

Hal Gladfelder, the treatise's discoverer, believes the document to be the first written defense of homosexuality in the English language.

Cannon's writings were so shocking, he fled Britain immediately upon publication, leaving his poor printer to suffer criminal prosecution.