Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Studded Flag Well-Worn Hi, $64

You may have heard that the theme of this year’s Met Gala is Punk. Which seems a bit odd at first, considering the event is organized by Vogue editor Anna Wintour, whose standard look of sheath dresses and Chanel glasses  is way more prim & proper than punk.

Then you have the fact that Kanye West is rumored to be the performer, and Beyonce (she of the sparkly bodysuit nipples) one of the celebrity organizers. Both musicians have their rebellious moments; West, on multiple occasions, Beyonce’s “I’m not bubblegum pop” attitude of late telling other singers to Bow Down to her NSFW tromp l’oeil costumes. Still, even the risk takers are more fashion punk than OP (original punk).

We’ll bite though – while Wintour’s type of fashion doesn’t seem like the most likely pairing, movements have to evolve to stay alive. The fact that punk has lived long enough to become a point of inspiration for the unlikeliest of editors, to break into the unlikeliest places says something for the strength of the original idea.

Staple Paradise Pigeon T-Shirt in White, $28

Pigeons don’t get the admiring glances of exotic birds, or elicit the type of admiration that eagles, falcons and large birds. Common to almost every major city around the world, pigeons are the Rodney Dangerfields of the bird world. Familiarity not only breeds contempt in this case, but  often even worse – indifference.

Which is why we really love this tee. An ordinary bird, on the most ordinary kind of t-shirt, but something different that reminds you there can be a something worth admiring in the everyday things that don’t often draw a second look.

The Nike Foamposite One Paranorman (pictured) have a low asking price of $1500, and go as high as $4500. At retail they sold for $220.

While women frequently take the rap for shoe obsessions, anyone who’s known a sneakerhead knows shoe worship regularly crosses gender lines. The Cut takes a look at teen sneakerheads who are finding the sneaker market more lucrative than the street market.

“Fueled by testosterone and a few lone moms handing out bagels and Capri Suns, attendees stormed a Best Western ballroom, dragging around trashbags full of shoes as dubstep blared from a D.J. booth. Wallets stuffed with fat rolls of $20 bills were taken out; shoes were swapped. It was Rick Ross–style hustling, only the PG-13 version.” {NYMag}

One 15-year-old seller, who also trades in flavored electronic cigarettes (at a much lower price) says mastering the sneaker market is “better money than selling weed.”

Indeed the Nike Foamposite One Paranorman Galaxy can be currently found on eBay for $2800, with asking prices on other sites as high as $4500. While the sneakers may be street, the nature of the trade borders on luxury, and not just for price. Originally retailing for $220, the markup is primarily based on limited original supply. Unlike Birkin bags and similar products that can generate waitlists to buy from brand controlled scarcity, the majority of the markups for sneakers take place in the secondary market.

Teens and under-25s may control the sell side of the market, but the guys who shell out  thousands for a pair of sneakers are likely the 30 and 40-somethings who once learned the art of the trade themselves 10 or 20 years ago. While some worry about the fad dying out, the men who redefine well-heeled tomorrow are more than likely the same boys selling to that crowd today.

The moodboard for Michael Bastian’s Fall/Winter 2013 collection

Menswear often leans towards heritage and a designated color palette (black, gray, blue, brown or red in various levels of intensity), so it’s interesting to hear about the thought process that goes into a collection with the goal of pushing boundaries while maintaining wearability. While women’s fashion gets to exhibit creativity through colors, bold patterns and unusual fabrics, menswear has always been held to a more attainable standard.

“Let’s see how far we can keep pushing this American look without falling into the preppy trap. And you can go through this and say that the Fair Isle sweater is preppy, but we’re showing it in a different way.” – Menswear designer Michael Bastian to GQ

Of his most recent collection, which opened with a feathered vest, Bastian says “I still do that thing where if I wouldn’t wear it myself, even on my most confident day, it doesn’t go in the collection.”

Which all seems to be part of the designer’s push to continue pushing designs that are distinctly American (read: wearable, geared more towards the casual and active than buttoned up and perfectly polished), but not chained to heritage.

Capsule is one of the largest fashion tradeshows for menswear. Like most things that turn into “one of the largest ______” shows in any given category (CES) the number of vendors and new products to take in can become overwhelming. Luckily the guys at Kempt were on hand to give a totally unscientific, pseudo-scientific breakdown.

Since most brands show clothes that won’t be available for about six months—and because the show is enormous—we decided the best thing to do was break it down, using our patented scientific formula. {Kempt}

Our favorite observations? The count of bearded men in heritage denim lingering around as street style bait (147), the jacket (1) they considered “borrowing”, that we’d definitely “borrow” if we were friendly like that, and the tip off on “mill direct” (72 utterances) which seems poised to become the new “heritage” denim.

Fancy is already known as Pinterest with a business plan, so their entry into the celebrity subscription market doesn’t come as a huge surprise. Ashton Kutcher’s big money may still come from acting, but his numerous angel investments in tech startups are well documented. So it really seems like it was only a matter of time before Kutcher lent his name to a Thing of the Month venture, and now that time is here.

The A+ Box is a $45/month (with a reported $90 value) box of goodies sent out each month. From preview pictures, the goods appear to be guy focused. 12Society‘s entire business model is based around the same idea (at a slightly lower price point of $39), with celebrity curators like Nas and Tim Lincecum.

It’s interesting to see the slight difference in subscription models by gender. ShoeDazzle and BeachMint, who both bet big on the celebrity backed subscription model, both used style surveys in an attempt to personalize monthly recommendations. 12Society and Fancy both seem to be banking on the premise that guys will go in a bit more blindly if the right name is attached.

Louis Vuitton‘s latest poster boy is record setting Olympian Michael Phelps. In a campaign shot by Annie Liebovitz, who has been behind the lens for many of the luxury house’s Core Values ads, the 22-time Olympic medalist splashes around a bathtub next to a monogram canvas tote.

A questionably placed bubble that probably should have been airbrushed out also appears, and even for a swimmer it seems a bit odd to bathe in goggles, but whatever works for getting the gold.

And, of course, you no longer have to lay awake at night wondering about how Phelps’ medals get around.

They’re not really designed for cycling, but we’d like to think that somewhere out there, a shoe designer was pacing back and forth looking at his shoe collection, then his bike, lamenting the fact that his beloved casual shoes just weren’t cut out for late night bike rides, where it really is important to make cars aware of your presence through bright colors or reflective strips.

3M reflectivity might make more sense on a cycling shoe than a dress shoe, but that hasn’t stopped footwear label Del Toro from creating this uniquely reflective series of casual footwear. Available in an EVA-equipped wingtip, or a classic rubber-soled sneaker, each shoe appears unassuming enough at first glance, but comes to life at night under any concentrated light source. {Hypebeast}

We’re still not sure of the backstory behind the shoes, but completely reflective footwear does sound like a cool (and yes, a little out there) concept, and surely there will be nothing but glowing reviews – pun intended.

In Iraq, this style could be deadly.

CNN reports on a small, but culturally significant trend in Iraq. Young men who wear longer hair, dark, fitted clothes with skull iconography and symbols viewed as Western, have been labeled by the Iraqi Interior Ministry as Satanic, with threats of “moral police” to stamp out the trend. Referred to as “emo,” the style is associated with gay men, though many of the teens and young men who embrace the style are not gay.

Though the concept of fashion police is usually a laughing matter, an unnamed Interior Ministry official confirmed that 14 young men in Baghdad had been murdered for dressing in emo style over the past few weeks, and human rights activists put the number at more 100 since February.

Teenager Kamel Saad told CNN he cut his hair so as not to become a potential target.

“I’m not the only one. All my friends in the school decided to change their hair style and change their clothes, too, even though we’re not emo or gay,” he said.

Saad said a group of men, who identified themselves as community police, entered his classroom two weeks ago and asked students to tell them about other students’ suspicious behavior.

“I thought it was about terrorism, but later, when the police explained more, we realized that they were talking about emo,” he said.

Though a number of leaders, including a senior Islamic cleric in Iraq, have denounced the murders, most of the young men CNN spoke with have shaved their goatees, cut their hair and decided to modify their appearance to avoid being targeted.

How much has Gillette spent convincing guys that their razors are “the best a man can get?” There’s no definitive figure, but a significant portion of what you pay for the brand name blades goes towards marketing and advertising to implant that thought in your mind.

A new product of the month startup called the Dollar Shave Club (you’ll have to take our word on this, the flood of guys interested in dollar razors has kept the site down most of the day) wants to cut all of that out and bring pricing down to where  it would be if you replaced TV spots and magazine ads with social media. As the name implies, that price is just $1 for a 1-month supply of double blade razors. The fanciest package is $9/month and offers a month’s worth of six blade razors.

“I don’t know if you’ve bought razors lately, but this is astoundingly cheap. In fact, razor blades are the cliché people use to convey a business that continually bilks customers out of money, long after a modest initial purchase. (See also: Printer ink. Bastards!)

One time — when we were particularly strapped for cash — my husband and I were in Costco comparing per-razor costs trying to figure out the best way to buy these obscenely overpriced four-blade luxury items in bulk. At one point my husband screamed in frustration at the heavens, “ARE THEY MAKING RAZOR BLADES OUT OF OIL!?” Like most consumers, the price points just made no sense to us. An eight pack of Gilette Fusion Pro-Glide razors can run you north of $50.” {PandoDaily}

 Judging by how long the site has been down, social media and online marketing – which was kicked off through a partnership with Thrillist - seems to be working pretty well. It’s too early for reviews on how quality compares, but if the Dollar Shave Club razors are half as good at a fifth of the price, we’re pretty sure lots of guys will take the savings and go for second best.