How to Dress like a Manly Man

By Monique Bellamont - March 2016.

Ack!

It is that word many "manly men" shy away from - metrosexual.

Which we women find silly because it reveals that many men are so homophobic that they refuse to deal with anything that is remotely "gay".

As such men's high fashion has suffered over the decades to the point that men really can only wear suits and uniforms. Anything too risque and they feel they are being emasculated

However done right, men's high fashion doesn't have to look metrosexual.

What it should look like however is:

Rugged.
Cool.
Capable.

And a touch of James Bond doesn't hurt.

As such high end clothing for men really needs to flatter a man - building a bridge between "uniform / suit" and "rugged casual wear".

Check out the image below to see what I mean. The men in the photo below, all wearing clothes from Toronto-based company Kish Wear (see http://www.kishwear.com/), look rugged yet sophisticated. And this is what men want when it comes to high fashion. They want to look professional, yes, but they also want to look like they could doff a cowboy hat and ride off into the sunset at the same time looking heroic while they do it.

 Now as a single woman who dates a lot I have to imagine waiting in a coffee shop for the guy I met off POF to show up.

And then he shows up wearing a black bow tie, wearing a white shirt, suspenders, a black jacket with fur collar (I am describing the photo on the right here) then I am going to be instantly impressed and have the following first impressions.

#1. This man is intelligent. He is smartly dressed.

#2. This man knows how to dress properly and takes care of himself. He probably bathes daily, does his laundry regularly, and might even wear cologne on special occasions.

#3. This man probably knows how to treat a lady. If he treats himself well, then he probably treats others well too.

#4. This man has a job / career. He wouldn't be able to afford this quality of clothes if he is still living in his parents' basement.

#5. He looks like Viggo Mortensen. Part of that is just the hair and beard, but the clothes completes the package.

#6. Retro. And anything retro is cool. So that is automatically a bonus.

Thus, first impressions, I would be very happy to meet a man dressed like that. Whether his personality matches mine, that is another topic, but the first impressions means that I will be taking this man seriously and he will be having my undivided attention while I sip my latte and contemplate a second date.

Below are some photos from Kish Wear's 2014 Winter Collection available at http://kishwear.com/lookbook/winter-2014

L’Agent by Agent Provocateur Fall/Winter 2014

This is actually from LAST year, 2014, and it is currently December 2015... However not so old that it doesn't matter. Why? Because lingerie fashions really don't change much from year to year.

Agent Provocateur's stylish ways don't change much from year to year either. They're pretty awesome every year.

Plus I like the whole old school exercises thing they did, juxtaposing lingerie with exercise equipment was quite smart in my opinion.

Retro Swimwear for Women

Looking for ideas for retro swimwear or bikinis for women? Look below and check out some interesting ideas.

The ideas below are a mix of styles from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s - with a dash of modern versions of the classics thrown into the mix.

Enjoy!

Black Capes Rock

I think capes are awesome. I am amazed people don't wear them more often. They are great Spring and Autumn wear. Also good for a funeral and business casual too.

Cloaks, cape-dresses and jacket-capes are also awesome.

And black cloaks are awesome for Halloween or goth wear.

People who wear Black look Sexier, More Confident and More Intelligent

UK retailer buytshirtsonline.co.uk recently conducted a survey to determine what customers thought about different colours.

What they determined was that BLACK was by far the best colour when it comes to customer feedback on the topics of Sexiness, Confidence, and Intelligence. See the charts below to see the results.

Black and Blue make the person appear to be more intelligent.

Black is considered to be the most attractive, regardless of gender.

Black and Red inspires the most confidence.

Also their survey determined that RED was considered to be the most arrogant colour.

Red by far is considered to be the most arrogant colour to wear. Orange apparently is considered arrogant by association.

Taken together with the fact that black has a slimming effect and is the go to clothing colour for artists showing their work at art galleries, what you realize is that black is ultimately one of the best colours to be wearing. Sexy, confident, intelligent, slimming, artistic, and only a tiny dash of arrogance.

What is also interesting is how orange is basically the worst colour to wear. Orange is 2nd last, next to pink, in intelligence. Orange is only slightly better than brown for attractiveness. Orange is dead last for confidence, while simultaneously came in 2nd for arrogance. That is a bit weird that orange is considered to be the least confident, but very arrogant at the same time. Bizarre.

So word to the wise - buy more black clothing in the future! Like the awesome black cape below:

Isabelle Caro dies of anorexia

Back in 2010, Isabelle Caro, a French model whose anorexic body appeared in an Italian shock ad campaign, died at the age of 28. She had been suffering from anorexia since the age of 13.

Caro is most famous for being featured in a shock ad campaign by Italian photographer Oliviero Toscani in 2007 for an Italian fashion house. Under the headline "No Anorexia" the ad in newspapers and billboards showed Caro naked, vertebrae and facial bones protruding.

We have decided not to show any images of that campaign here for the sake of decency.

Her acting instructor and longtime friend, Daniele Dubreuil-Prévot, says that Caro actually died on Nov. 17 after returning to France from a job in Tokyo, but the news wasn't released until after Boxing Day in December.

Dubreuil-Prévot said that Caro "had been sick for a long time," referring to her anorexia.