A lot of interesting stuff comes out of Japan, so we’re always glad to see it a little earlier.

The Pursuit Aesthetic put us on to our Eastern connection. It’s called Style from Tokyo, and we’ve already seen more loose-weave shawl collar sweaters than we ever expected to find on those shores. Unlike most street style blogs, Style from Tokyo seeks out the unusual, so don’t be surprised if you see a few too many hobo-chic drifters sporting blaze-orange blazers. That’s just how Tokyo works.

It’s a nice place to visit, but we wouldn’t want to live there.

For a little over four years, Dubai has grown in the public’s imagination as the Vegas of the middle east, where Islamic devoutness could forge a local truce with unrestrained capitalism and a flood of oil money could fund obscenely ambitious construction schemes. But now that the boom times are over, the idea of a luxury oasis is seeming a lot shakier.

The Telegraph recently devoted 1500 words to cataloguing Dubai’s troubles, but the gist is familiar enough: lots of construction debt, less money than they thought, and a dwindling supply of optimism. The buildings are still going up, but no one is sure how they’ll pay for it all…at least until oil prices go back up.

Somewhere, Dana Thomas is smiling.

A Continuous Lean’s Japan jaunt has unearthed a lot of good stuff, but this is our favorite so far.

Classic Americana brand Red Wing has been making this model for the Japanese model exclusively. Of course, it’s still stitched together in good old Red Wing, MN, but it’s a little stocker and smaller to accommodate Japanese feet. And, of course, we imagine it looks quite a bit different in a culture that’s more used to sneakers and oxfords. Stuff like this is rugged enough too be eye-catching in Los Angeles. We can’t imagine what they make of it in Tokyo.

A closer look»

It looks like the grand tradition of the schoolyard brawl is slipping away. A recent survey by The Economist ranked the U.S. 17 out of 18 in terms of the battle-readiness pre-teens. French-speaking Belgians are the roughest kids on the block, with almost half of eleven-year-olds in at least three fights over the past year, with the Czechs only slightly behind. The U.S. comes in at 14%, second only to the famously peace-loving Germans.

This just confirms what talk radio hosts have been saying for years: kids these days are soft! Isn’t there some sort of national anti-effeteness program we can institute?

We also noticed that Spanish women are particularly violent, a potentially invaluable nugget of information.

See the data here

The Britons have been doing pretty well for themselves lately, but we’re surprised to see the latest trend coming from a corner of history we overlooked. Remember the Raj? Apparently Savile Row forgot too.

The empire may not have worked out so well, but certain designers are indulging in a little Kinks-y nostalgia. Duncan Quinn—whom you may know from a MOTH or two—just unveiled his latest line of ready-to-wear ties, inspired by the British Raj, and paired with a few of our favorite helmets, in case you need protective headgear to go with your new look.

We can’t imagine Waris is very happy about the new colonial chic—and actually, we can’t say we blame him—but who are we to question Mr. Quinn?

Check out Quinn’s launch party in New York»

We’re pretty happy with the current Bond theme, but there’s always room for improvement…

British semi-stars Joe Cornish and Adam Buxton recently recorded dueling themes for the upcoming Quantum of Solace as part of a “song battle,” and the results are staggering to say the least. Apparently some Brits—or at least some comedians—are none too happy with Bond’s new sensitive/brutal side.

In our favorite of the two songs, Cornish ends up waxing nostalgic for the days of Roger Moore, underwater cars and Union Jack parachutes. Say it ain’t so, Joe!

Contrast and compare theme songs after the jump»

So far they’re most popular among the hip-hop crowd, but Clarks Desert Boots are one item that’s ripe for crossover. The desert part means they’re impervious to sand, but the main appeal is the roomy, bubble-like front.

The Japanese have already caught on. Clarks is going halfsies with Japanese brand SHIPS to land in select Tokyo retailers with a rare ebony-leather version of the classic boot. They don’t look half bad…from here, anyway.

Apparently not everyone shares our sanguine take on Ralph Lauren’s Olympic uniforms. In fact, so far the web response to the outfits has been positively bloodthirsty.

Gawker—a reliable snark purveyor—calls out the polo logo for upstaging the Olympic rings. It’s true that the logo makes the branding play a little more shameless than it might have been, but that’s the American way. We’re building a brand here! This is for the good of the nation!

Scrambling for more angry voices, Gawker quotes a commenter on a fairly benign Project Rungay post, saying “They made the team look like a 1948 yacht club.” But, of course, that’s the whole point.

And, in case you were curious about the other, more hallucinatory parts of the pageantry, you can catch a colorful overview here.

Photos of the Ralph Lauren-designed U. S. Olympic Uniforms have finally surfaced, and we have to say, we’re pretty impressed. We had held out hope for a preppy Olympic team, and it looks like we won’t be disappointed. From the stark white slacks to the striped cloth belts, these athletes look like they’re heading across the Pacific in yachts. We’re reasonably sure Beijing has never seen anything like it.

Well played, Mr. Lauren. Well played.

For another picture of Mr. Lauren’s work»

With ties trending British, it’s a good time to have an overseas source.

A Suitable Wardrobe turned us on to Drakes London, a bespoke tiemaker that specializes in Albion-inspired patterns and skinny-but-not-too-skinny cuts. In other words, the genuine English article.

More on our English Connection»

With social conscience becoming an increasingly valued part of a brand, it was only a matter of time before charities decided to get in on the action. That way, they can finally make some real scratch.

UK Vogue is reporting Oxfam’s first designer boutique in London’s Westbourne Grove. An all-star team of British designers contributed to the store, which combines donated designer clothes with unique and reworked pieces from the London College of Fashion. Of course, it’s all sustainable and fair traded to within an inch of its life. After all, they’re still about fighting poverty»

This week’s Monocle features a story on a London store called Albam that has made its name by promoting local production—meaning within the UK, or failing that, within western Europe—in favor of the higher profit margins but questionable labor conditions of East Asian factories. It’s a common enough tale, but we couldn’t resist a little peek at how things work across the pond.

More on Monocle’s local crusade»

Savile Row is rightly known as the world center of tailoring, but too often the attention falls on the expert cuts—which you can get a good-enough approximation of in Hong Kong or New York—rather than the heirloom fabrics that usually don’t travel farther than one shop.

Luckily, the internet comes to us all. And apparently so does tweed»

Monica Feudi via IHT

It’s fairly common for a writer to stretch a thin idea farther than they should. Generally, the worst that happens is a puffier-than-usual puff piece. But when a designer does it…things can get ugly.

See just how ugly»

Ralph Lauren has landed a contract with the U.S. Olympic team, outfitting 1500 athletes for the opening and closing ceremonies in Beijing. The past three games were outfitted by Canadian apparel company Roots Ltd., but the committee decided their designs were too informal, and chose the preppy stylings of Mr. Lauren.

As Fashion Week Daily points out, Ralph is getting fairly small fee for the outfitting—“less than $10 million” was as much as the reps were willing to say—but the move will let them make inroads into Chinese markets.

Ah, the rewards of patriotism.

via Fashion Week Daily

Much as we like the Old Vegas ambience of some movie theaters, we’ve ready for something more forward-looking for a while now. And as it turns out, Hong Kong has been looking too. Welcome to the AMC Pacific Place Cinema.

More pics after the jump»

With London slowly leaking history and Anna Wintour preparing to invade Milan, it may be time to find a new fashion capital. (Other than, you know, New York.) Allow us to suggest a dark horse candidate: Shanghai.

More about Shanghai’s growing fashion district»