As work boots go, Wolverine 1,000 Mile Boots are an investment. Horween leather. Goodyear welting. Made in America. Even if you are not actually constructing skyscrapers with the boots in Wolverine's 1,000 Mile collection, you're still going to want to take proper care of them. Here's how:

A year and a half ago, I met Edward Armah at one of the Market week shows in New York. He had two innovative concepts: reversible bow ties and "pocket circles." I referred to his pocket circles as "the biggest innovation in pocket squares since the invention of the pocket square."

Within a year of launching his company, he's getting press in the industry rags, a presence in the Vanguard section of the biggest show last week in New York, and photos of well-dressed Italians wearing his circles at Pitti Uomo (the big menswear show in Florence that precedes New York).

But what is a pocket circle? How does it work? We've used the illustration above for the past year, but we finally felt his unique & innovative product deserved a video. So at long last, the pocket circle in a minute (the actual instructions are less than 30 seconds): 

And you can shop his Pocket Circles here...

As you may have noticed, we are slowly starting to introduce more video to our website. We are probably 3 years late to this, but better late than never.

If you go to our page describing Peter Millar's Microfiber Jacket today, all you'll read is: 

"Peter Millar's Microfiber Blouson Jacket features button cuffs, a partial elastic waist, front slant pockets, and contrast collar underside. Lined."

In the store, however, if a customer is considering the jacket, we will always grab a glass of water and pour it on the jacket. The water beads right off, and the customer often takes it then and there. Theoretically, it works with wine or coffee as well although we have yet to try. 

Now, with the addition of video to the site, we'll be able to better demonstrate some of the features and functions that make the products we sell exceptional. Watch the video and you'll understand why we love this jacket (and why my eyes are 3/4 closed in the preview frame). 

Peter Millar Microfiber Gregory Blouson Jacket  $125

 

Much of my inspiration for On The Fly was born of my own frustrations when shopping for myself. And don't get me wrong, I loved the stores where I shopped. But there were always little things, nagging frustrations, pet peeves, that made me think: "if I ever have a store of my own, I'd do that differently." I have now — had the store, that is — for over 7 years. 

But the menswear retail landscape has changed since we started, and there are changes we need to make in order to keep up. Specifically, I want us to re-evaluate how well we're living up to our tagline: "solutions for the modern gentleman."

Here's a simple example. Back in the day, when I was buying expensive Italian shoes from a local store, I'd make the (mostly) emotional decision to invest in a $500+ pair of shoes, and the sales associate would invariably ask: "do you need shoe trees for them?" Well, of course I do. I think the first time I answered, I mistakenly assumed they were giving them to me with the shoes since I "needed" them. Of course they weren't; I think I paid $30 or $40 for trees.

It's not a big deal, paying for shoe trees. It costs the store money to have them. And I wouldn't be surprised if the vast majority of men don't use shoe trees at all, so why throw in something that the customer may not even value?

But that's exactly the point: the customer may not value them because he doesn't understand why he needs them. They help prevent creases in the leather, absorb moisture from wear, and most importantly, maintain the shape of the shoe. If you're investing in an expensive pair of shoes — and good shoes should be viewed as an investment, since they will typically last much longer than a cheap pair — the #1 thing you can do to care for them is to give them at least a day or two off after wear. The #2 thing you can do is provide them with shoe trees. (The #3 thing would be to shine them regularly.)

So as of today, On The Fly will ship a complimentary pair of shoe trees with every pair of full price shoes costing $250 or more.

We don't have to do it, we want to do it. We'll trust you value it.

In 3 days, I'll leave for New York for Market where I'll have the privilege of meeting with our vendors and buying for Fall 2012. Lots of tasty sport coats, and if you like layers, there's lots of layers!

 

Men who like to appear sharply dressed with minimal effort should take note of Peter Millar's Nanoluxe* shirts: the Twill Gingham (pictured) and the Tattersall.

Nanoluxe shirts are first treated with a special liquid to swell the fabric, yielding a smooth surface with excellent crease resistance. A light, pliable, polymer tape is then applied to the seams, after which the shirt is cured on special forms. 

The results? Compared with ordinary dress shirts, these are more wrinkle resistant, maintain their shape better, and have less seam puckering. They're ideal for travel, especially when you'd love to arrive at your next meeting with a crisp looking shirt on your back. At home, you can wash and dry them like ordinary laundry (no ironing required), saving you both time and money on your dry cleaning bill.

*Despite the name, no nanotechnology is actually employed to produce these great results.