Featured in the February issue of Monocle, a collaboration between two companies still making and assembling their goods in the U.S. — Freeman Transport, a Montana bike company, and Billykirk, a small leather goods and luggage operation out of New York formed by brothers Chris and Kirk Bray.

Scan from Freeman Transport’s blog

From the pages of Monocle:

“We’ll bang on about bike lanes until the couriers come home and we’re also hooked on hand luggage. So, when a bike firm from Montana, Freeman Transport, and a New York-based baggage manufacturer, Billykirk, teamed up to produce a foldable full-size bicycle with its own carry-on bag we demanded a viewing. The fixed-gear track model is currently available and this year they will add a commuter, “cyclo-cross” and road bike to the range.”

And for a look at the people behind-the-scenes, which is really the best part of a small company, click over to Benjamin Ferencz of Freeman Transport’s column on Selectism where he takes us through his recent trip to NYC to talk business and indulge in pleasures (of the food and dive-y bar variety) with the Billykirk brothers, Michael Williams of A Continuous Lean and Taavo Somer, who operates a wholly different breed of Freeman. For Ferencz, Thursday starts with Balthazar. Friday starts with Balthazar. Maybe that’s the key to a good day in the city…

There are plenty of reasons to pick up the latest issue of Fantastic Man, which has been out on the shelf now for a while, but one bright spot in particular is its feature on Tyler Brûlé, editor of Monocle. If you don’t live near a newsstand or specialty bookstore that carries it (I’ve had luck at Atlantic News on 3rd and 12th and St. Mark’s Bookshop), it’s worth tracking down online — try Colette or American Apparel.

Mr. Brûlé’s been a man to watch since he brought Wallpaper* Magazine to international prominence by promoting a new brand of aspirational living. The Fantastic Man feature and interview tracks his path from there to when he left the magazine in 2002 to focus on his design and branding agency (now known as Winkreative) to the creation of Monocle, perhaps the most-lauded new publication of the last few years for its strong international coverage (Monocle has its own bureaux around the globe), style-conscious eye, inventive online presence and Economist-style musings, often from Mr. Brûlé himself who also writes a weekly column for the London Financial Times.

The piece does its part to get into the head of Mr. Brûlé, an editor whose idea of a celebrity is Peter Jennings and who — as Fantastic Man puts it — wouldn’t know what to do with Lindsay Lohan if you gave her to him.

But Tyler Brûlé’s always thought about things a little bit differently than the rest of the world, making business decisions which have caused their fair share of raised eyebrows in the past; for example, running a shot of an anonymous Japanese helicopter pilot as the cover on the Monocle debut issue, an editorial choice Mr. Brûlé addresses in the FM interview.

Consider also offbeat partnerships, such as Monocle’s scent collaboration with Comme des Garcons, Scent One: Hinoki. Along with the bold decision to set a subscription rate that’s 50% higher than its cover price (but which gains subscribers access to exclusive online content) and the opening of a physical Monocle retail store in London to sell its goods this past year, there’s been plenty of room for doubt. But there’s one thing you learn after spending some time following the man and his work: never bet against Brûlé.

For those who live without a calendar, January is almost over. That can only mean one thing folks: Valentine’s is right around the corner! Before we release our special Valentines’ Gift Guide,
check out Swank Bears, the new hotness blazing across the Pacific Rim. Classic.  Exotic.  Organic.  Artisan.

With these boutique’d teddy-bears, limited designer fabrics and genuine sheepskin leather meet a single craftsman at a production rate of a-single-bear-a-day.  Fear of conformity?  Only 49 other connoisseurs would own your specific make.  Get your Swank Certificate and Henna emblazoned collectors set (with exclusive Onyx necklace) here.

Got Swanky products?  Be in touch with Phil at GEDDEM dot com for your review.

The re-birth of Joy Division? It takes a lot to make that leap. Their album, To Lose My Life, just debuted at number 1 in the UK. Maybe it’s all about right time, right place.

For me, the realization came in two parts. First, a recent post by Jake Davis. Forgive the overload, but the man raises a good point:

“To walk into every “cool” restaurant, boutique, and club and continually hear Substance is kind of… not that “cool” anymore. Is it possible to kill an artist twice? I’m not saying don’t throw Transmission into the mix every couple hours but for the past five years they’ve been the dominant sound of the hip. Ian is tired… Let him sleep for a little bit…”

Second, a recent viewing of Control, the Ian Curtis biopic by Anton Corbijn. Maybe that’s the power of cinema, especially when someone disappears into the role as fully as Sam Riley — to help you realize you’ve been missing something or someone all this time, and maybe you’d forgotten just how much.

White Lies, from out of West London, may not be Joy Division but what they do captures that spirit and brings it into the modern age. A British rock band covering ‘Love Lockdown‘ on the BBC? This is definitely something new…

Click over to their Myspace to watch a short film that pulls together clips from their singles (‘Unfinished Business,’ ‘Death,’ ‘Lose My Life’), moody, romantic camerawork and brooding male/female voiceovers into something much bigger.

And as a sign that the creative ones tend to stick together no matter the medium, follow the links to beautiful videos for ‘Death‘ and ‘Lose My Life‘ directed by Andreas Nilsson (his resume includes filmwork for Jose Gonzales whose song ‘Heartbeats’ graces the Fallon Bravia ad from yesterday’s post).

Great song, wicked video. Thanks Kitsune Noir. There’s a creativity that’s borne of necessity and all it takes is one well-executed concept. Sometimes, it also takes a million little balls. From the Friendly Fires site:

“We made this video for the song just before Christmas. As you can see, it involves us dressing up as nihilist street mimes and playing black instruments in a completely black studio. Millions of polystyrene balls flew around as if propelled by poltergiest, forcing their way into our mouths, ears, sinuses and navels. The little blighters were still emerging from our bodies some weeks after the shoot.”

It reminded me of this old TV spot for Bravia done by Fallon. Never discount the power of a simple, big idea.

Tuthilltown, operating out of the Hudson Valley, is NY’s first distillery since the days of Prohibition. This is a great story in itself as it signals a return to local craftsmanship.

But it’s the Tuthilltown design that first caught my eye. Bottle choice, label design, wax seal — it’s everything right about whiskey. Michael Williams of Selectism, A Continuous Lean and Paul+Williams hit it on the head in a post about the resurgence of rye. His comments, stemming from a dissatisfaction with Jim Beam’s marketing concept for (rī)¹ (their foray into the burgeoning rye market) put my feelings into words:

“To be completely honest, I am underwhelmed with the approach, the name and the branding. In my opinion, the trend in the cocktail / spirits world right now is based on old-timey mixology and decor. Think Mad Men’s Don Draper and Roger Sterling downing cocktails all day and night. Not a chemistry set and the word ‘ultra-premium.’”

All images from Tuthilltown’s site

How did Tuthilltown get it so right? In a way, they didn’t have a choice. Ralph Erenzo, one of two partners in Tuthilltown, explains:

“All our design is done in-house. I designed the current apothecary bottle and we had it produced in cooperation with O.BERK by a firm in Germany. The overall package design incorporated the “look” I had in mind from the start and also a variety of practical necessities of starting a brand with lack of sufficient funds for design.

Our goal was to give an apothecary impression, with a period aesthetic — modern but reminiscent of early 20th century typestyle. Both my partner Brian Lee and I wanted it to be simple and classic, straightforward.

As for the wax seal:

“The wax seal came about because we could not afford to purchase a machine that would properly seal the package and still maintain the look I was after. It turned out to be not only in keeping with the design concept, but also remains the cheapest, simplest means of sealing the oddly shaped top of the bottle with the flange and pull cap.”

For New Yorkers and Californians, peruse Tuthilltown’s long list of retailers, bars and restaurants to pick your poison. As for me, I’ve got my eye out for the Manhattan Rye or the Single Malt at Fette Sau.

We caught wind of this for the first time over at Jake Davis. Produced by the twin brothers Dessner from Brooklyn-based The National and featuring exclusive tracks from some of the best currently out, this has all the makings of a great project. Cat Power? Sufjan? Beach House? Along with a new track from The National themselves, who released my favorite record of 2007, I’m ready to sign on. And this is all before you consider the cause, which is fully something to get behind in itself…

Dark Was the Night, out on February 17th (available for pre-order now) benefits Red Hot, an international organization dedicated to raising awareness of HIV and AIDS. DWTN is their 20th compilation celebrating their 20th anniversary. Until the album release, you can check out one new track a day on the Myspace page.

Below, the full tracklisting (after the break)

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