Pitti Picks – a guest post by Eugene Rabkin

Text and photos by Eugene Rabkin

It’s the end of the second day at Pitti Uomo, the premier menswear trade fair in Florence that brings thousands of exhibitors, buyers, and journalists together. I have dutifully braved the stylish crowds and combed through a thousand exhibitor booths, on the hunt for something special. Below are a few of my favorite things.

1. Faliero Sarti scarf

Faliero Sarti is one of the best scarf makers in the world – both their fabrics and treatments are top notch. The edges of this modal/silk blend gray scarf had been spray-painted in red.

2. Bothos bag

I quite liked this leather tote by Bothos. The folded upper part and the black studs made it interesting but not cheesy.

3. Heschung boots

Since everyone seems to be wearing ankle length pants at Pitti (hmmm?), I thought these boots with the contrasting upper would peak the interest of passerbys, should you fancy hemming your pants a few inches higher than usual. Heschung is an iconic French company that’s been making men’s shoes since the 30s, so you get your heritage fix, too.

4. Mismo bags

Mismo is a newish company out of Denmark and I liked the unique color combinations, materials, and details of their bags. It’s not easy to improve on classic shapes, but they’ve managed it well.

5. Bastong parkas

In the world of reproducing classics at the highest level and making them modern Korea is becoming the new Japan. Bastong is one of those companies that use highest quality materials, such as Harris Tweed from Scotland and Komatsu Seiren technical fabrics from Japan. Their goods are extremely well made, and sometimes that’s all one needs.

6. Tobias Wistisen bracelets

Wistisen is a Danish jewelry designer who has been working in living in Paris for some years. He works with local artisans on his handmade jewelry.

7. Marshall headphones

Crap headphones are a pet peeve of mine. Ditch your ugly and subpar-sounding white ear-buds in favor of these all-black Marshalls.

8. The Last Conspiracy boots

So, this has unwittingly become a Danish-heavy list, but I could not do better than this laceup boot from The Last Conspiracy. It’s made of culatta (google it, you won’t regret it) in Portugal, using a Goodyear welt (you should google that, too).

9. Patchy Cake Eater jackets

I always pay an extra special attention to Japanese exhibitors, because they are so good at those tiny details that demand careful examination. This NB3 flight jacket was stripped of its lining to become a windbreaker. I also fancied a black nylon windbreaker lined in washed brown alpaca. Yum.

(Top photo by Vanni Bassetti)