Dries Van Noten's New Paris Men's Boutique

The iconic menswear designer Dries Van Noten is finally opening his first boutique in Paris in the 6th arrondissment across from the Seine River giving admirers and patrons of the collection a chance to shop some of the finest in men's fashions in the world. The shop occupies a space previously used as an art gallery and after viewing photos of the boutique it's no surprise the new store's aesthetics almost mimic a museum of manliness. The store isn't too frilly that a man would be uncomfortable there, but it also isn't boring and uninspired either. I would definitely say that Dries Van Noten's store is certainly a living blueprint of what I want my dream walk-in closet to be. Items are cozily grouped with each other but they also effectively blend into the surrounding living-room style scene which moves the visual merchandising away from the overdone minimalist look of naked racks of clothes and clothes hanging alone in awkward corners. It's the quintessential man-cave, if you will, yet this cave doesn't house the traditional fare of beer-guzzling, misogynistic men who have no qualms about going to market in that shirt they just slept in and whose bodies haven't had the luxury of feeling a cashmere blazer. Check out more photos of the store after the jump.

Brand of the Day – Express

Today I’m featuring one of my favorite brands, the All-American, always-stylish men and women’s apparel store. Known highly for their styles that tend to cater to the tastes of the psychographic group of the man previously known as the metrosexual and the woman who fancies herself an It Girl, they have no problems hitting their target audiences. The only thing more impressive than the brand’s extensive supply of clothing that is both cutting-edge and far from overpriced is the superb and attractive visual merchandising. When I step inside the walls of an Express store, I can’t help but feel the same way Holly Golightly from Truman Capote’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s feels; absolutely nothing could possibly go wrong and absolutely nothing I choose to buy could go wrong in a place like this…