The Princess and The Peacoat: Amanda Brooks has a thing for men in uniform. [Men’s Vogue]

Okay, Who Farted?: Gucci and Louis Vuitton unveiled diamond-encrusted, WMD-proof gas-masks at the Bucharest Luxury fair because, really, who wants to survive a ricin attack in just any old thing? [Complex]

So? New?: R29 introduces us to our new neighbors. [Refinery29]

Spin Cycle: Damien Hirst shows no mercy to Levis Jeans. And you thought that cow had it bad. [Gawker]

Long May it Rain: Barbour employees worldwide will enjoy tea and cake tomorrow at 4pm to celebrate the waxed-cotton giant’s centenary - and nothing could be more just and perfect. [Vogue UK]

Deal Alert: Again, Racked comes through with discounts on Original Penguin. [Racked]

Apparently the recently-departed Nau isn’t quite so departed anymore. The Portland-based ecowear marque has gotten a much-needed and much-deserved second chance from Santa Barbara’s own Horny Toad. The Toad favors more casual (and somewhat unremarkable) button-ups, making it a somewhat unlikely brand marriage, but we’re too grateful to hold a grudge.

More on resurrecting raingear»

Our favorite performance outerwear shop is getting back in business starting tomorrow, just ahead of the rainy season.

We’re talking about Nau, a Portland marque that went briefly out of business this May only to be resuscitated by the like-minded Horny Toad. Their new gear isn’t that much of a break from the old, but you’ll have to get it online instead of in brick-and-mortar outposts, and it’s still the best rain protection we’ve come across.

We don’t expect it to make much of a crossover to the boutique scene, but it’s definitely worth a click or two.

via Slate

It’s hard to look good in the rain, but luckily we got some much-needed leadership from Mr. Obama.

Just make sure you’ve got a solid jacket. Don’t worry about a hat; that’ll just make you look like you’re hiding. Ignore the weather and get dramatic. You’re determined, you’re unflappable. You’re so in the moment, you don’t even notice the rain.

Of course, it helps if you’ve got a campaign staff waiting with a dry set of clothes.

The pea coat has been the formal overcoat of choice for quite some time now. It might be time to give the trench coat another try. Of course, it helps if it’s in black wool instead of Bogart’s usual canvas-colored gabardine.

This one comes from our old Brit friends at b store with a stripped down look, a slim silhouette, and a comfortably bathrobe-like belt. East Coasters might want to sit on it until spring, but it should be a welcome addition by then.

And knowing London, we bet it does pretty well against the rain.

Now that we’re heading into the rainy season, it might be a good time to get your outerwear in order. And if you’re more into hoodies than parkas, we’d recommend this lightweight shell, known to the Nau crowd as the Rebound Jacket. (Hat tip to acquire)

As usual with Nau, the fabric is space-age, silent and much lighter than you think, but the best part is that it’s knit instead of woven, so it breathes without letting through rain or the occasional gust.

After this, you may have to take up jogging.

The high-tech fabric game can be a tough one. It rules out any retro influences off the bat, leaving designers to more or less fend for themselves. And, when you’re splitting your time (and your fabrics) between clothes and bags, the risk of looking like Matrix castoffs is real.

Acronym manages it as well as any we’ve seen, mostly by sticking with a somewhat baggier take on clothes that are already staples. It looks like the fabric reacts badly to being tucked in…but we’re not complaining. It’s hard to focus on the perfect drape when you’re building rainproof, wearproof, and all around indestructible weaves.

And, unlike most of what you see on this site, these clothes are best appreciated in the midst of a rainstorm.

See more from Acronym»

The performance parka has a lot of potential—especially now that we’re headed into the rainy season—but so far nobody’s been willing to put their chips behind an ultra-high end version. At least nobody outside of Japan…

Visvim deal in goretex rather than the more trendy waxed cotton, but there’s still some serious tailoring involved. This poncho splices the intricate check in just about every way possible, keeping things just this side of optical illusion, and add in a cigarette pouch on the sleeve for good measure.

Of course, that still doesn’t mean stateside shoppers are ready to line up for ponchos costing upwards of $500…but stranger things have happened.

See more of visvim»

For chiefly functional items like raincoats, the styles haven’t changed much in 70 years. So absent a bit of new technology (i.e. the Nau crowd), your best bet is a brand that’s been building up cred for a few decades…or one of their more recent collabs.

Someone else got to Mackintosh first, so the folks at A.P.C. turned to a Canadian slicker marque called K-Way, resulting in this puffy anorak. Not a bad idea for summer rains…especially if you run across a storm that makes you lose your faith in waxed cotton.

Via Street Peeper

As anyone on the East Coast can currently attest, a good raincoat is a very useful thing. Fortunately, London’s been facing rainy Junes for upwards of a thousand years, and they’ve picked up a trick or two.

This gentleman’s shawl-like overcoat comes via Aquascutum, a more modern alternative to marques like Mackintosh and Baracuta (and creator of this ad). The shoulder flaps make it seem both more impermeable and more sartorially adventurous than the competition—a remarkably good case for leaving your umbrella at home.

With the weather taking a turn for the brisk, it may be time to revisit our favorite supergroup-inspiring heritage item, the rubberized cotton raincoat known as the Mackintosh.

Now that their J. Crew collab’s a bit harder to find, you’ll have to track down the real thing. You can find one at C.H.C.M with classic tan instead of the showier black watch plaid. Stroll through the virtual shop and you’ll see extra details like adjustable shoulder pads and riveted vents under the arms that never quite made the transition to its stateside counterparts. Of course, heritage isn’t cheap, so it’ll also set you back just under a thousand bucks.

Just close your eyes and think of Scotland.