Accessories

Ettinger London Mini Wallet via onlyBrown

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I’ve been meaning to replace the wallet I’ve been using for the last three years but haven’t decided on what I wanted next. So when Kelvin of onlyBrown, an online store of men’s accessories based in Singapore, offered to let me review one of their small leather goods I took this as an opportunity to replace my current wallet. My current wallet is small so wider bills had to be folded three times and it wasn’t good for holding many bills. The wallet I am looking for should accommodate wider bills while still having a relatively small footprint. I looked around their catalog and found the Ettinger London mini wallet in navy. Based on the dimensions it was the size I was looking for and had more than enough card slots and compartments. Continue Reading

Randolph Engineering Aviator Sunglasses

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This is part of a series that features items bought from the U.S. using Globe’s GCASH American Express Virtual Pay and shipped to the Philippines using the freight forwarding service My Shopping Box. For more information click here.

I have always liked the look of Aviator sunglasses but I’m not happy with the brands available in the Philippines. I looked elsewhere and discovered Randolph Engineering, an eyewear manufacturer based in Randolph, Massachusetts, known for supplying the United States military. They won their first contract in 1977 and in 1982 became the prime contractor for the U.S. Department of Defense supplying all branches of the U.S. military. All their eyewear is manufactured in the U.S. to military specifications with each solder joint having a lifetime replacement guarantee. Continue Reading

Anderson’s Braided Leather Belt

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This is part of a series that features items bought from the U.S. using Globe’s GCASH American Express Virtual Pay and shipped to the Philippines using the freight forwarding service My Shopping Box. For more information click here.

There were plenty of great deals last Black Friday and I made sure that I took part in it because of the big discounts. I’ve been on the lookout for braided belts and saw that the Chicago-based retailer Haberdash discounted their Anderson’s braided leather belts to USD 99 from USD 175. Anderson’s is one of the best makers of braided leather belts using beautiful vegetable-tanned leathers handmade entirely in Italy. What made the deal sweeter was a discount code for sale items that knocked 25% off the price tag and brought the price down to USD 74.25. I bought one in dark blue and it’s a fantastic deal for the quality you get. I paid using GCASH American Express Virtual Pay and dispatched two days later to My Shopping Box. It took longer to arrive this time around but it was understandable due to the large number of packages being shipped during the holiday season. Continue Reading

Brooks Brothers Leather Dress Belt

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This is part of a series that features items bought from the U.S. using Globe’s GCASH American Express Virtual Pay and shipped to the Philippines using the freight forwarding service My Shopping Box. For more information click here.

I’ve been looking around for a dress belt recently and saw one that I liked on the Brooks Brothers website. It is made in Italy with brown calfskin leather,  a nickel-plated brass buckle, stitched edges and the perfect width of 1¼”. I went to the Brooks Brothers store that opened in Manila recently and could not find the particular belt. Disappointed, I decided to purchase the belt from the Brooks Brothers website using GCASH American Express Virtual Pay. The whole process took no more than a few minutes. After two weeks the belt was delivered by My Shopping Box to my office. Continue Reading

SWIMS Galoshes – Rainwear for Shoes

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Shoes are always the worst-hit in my wardrobe during the rainy season. I commute and walk to the office so contact with water is inevitable. When shoes are exposed to water for a long period of time it is eventually absorbed by the leather even though I’ve applied waterproofing sprays and substances such as wax and dubbin. I have been looking for a solution to help me address this problem and it is in the form of galoshes; specifically SWIMS galoshes. Continue Reading

Orient Bambino in Rose Gold

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Last December my girlfriend gave me an Orient Bambino in rose gold for Christmas. I’ve been eyeing this watch for some time now and I’m glad that I finally have a proper dress watch. The watch has a retro look with dauphine hands, classic index markers and a domed glass. The strap is a faux croc on brown calfskin leather – a nice touch which complements the rose gold. It’s a watch that’s dressy enough for the office yet short of being formal. And that’s just the way I like it.

Photo by Victor Basa

Mother-of-Pearl Collar Stays

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It used to be that slots for collar stays were limited to the realm of bespoke shirts but these days almost any brand seems to have them. And while most of them come with collar stays made of plastic eventually you lose them because well, they’re not very nice. When you’ve run out of collar stays you want to look for a replacement and nothing is better than ones made with mother-of-pearl. They’re beautiful to look at and exude an understated elegance. It’s made of natural materials so every piece is unique. It doesn’t matter that people don’t see what holds up the collar of your shirt. What matters is that the collar stays you’re using are as beautiful as everything else you’re wearing.

Orient Ray Raven + Olive Drab ZULU Strap with PVD Hardware

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The combination of a diver watch and a NATO strap has been around for quite some time but it’s only now that I felt like stepping up my watch game. Black hardware is what I’m attracted to lately so I picked up an Orient Ray Raven. It’s made by Orient, a Japanese company reputed to have a more accurate automatic movement compared to Seiko. It doesn’t feel cheap for a watch that retails above PHP 9,000. I got it at a discount which makes it a much better value.

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Il Bussetto Card Holder

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Beautiful things aren’t made overnight and are quite difficult to acquire. There isn’t a local retailer carrying the brands I am looking for so I am forced to look for a retailer abroad. When I saw that Kapok, one of my favorite Hong Kong retailers, was bringing in the Italian leather goods brand Il Bussetto I inquired if they were going to carry their line of card holders. I placed my order three months ago in January for a dark green card holder and it arrived last week. It cost me HKD 530 (approximately PHP 3,000) including shipping via FedEx.

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Bellroy Slim Sleeve Wallet – The Perfect Slim Wallet Has Arrived

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Last year I started slimming down my wallet in an effort to avoid back pains associated with bulky wallets and also to project a sleek appearance. Receipts and rarely used cards were out. I only kept cash and a few cards I frequently used. This worked for a while until I realized that the wallet I was using would never become more slim than it currently was because it was never built that way. I searched online and found the Slim Sleeve Wallet by Bellroy, a maker of wallets based in Australia. Back then a new wallet wasn’t that high on my list of things to acquire so I passed on it. Fast forward to March and after a short trip to Singapore I purchased the item at Cumulus.

Cumulus is a shop that retails luggage, bags and accessories from a few brands and is the only physical store outside of Australia carrying Bellroy products. This was an opportunity not to be missed as I’ve always liked to see and feel the goods in person rather than buying based on a few well-taken photos. The Slim Sleeve Wallet is available in two colors: tan and black. I chose tan as black is quite common and sometimes a bit boring. The leather Bellroy uses are vegetable tanned – a tanning technique that avoids the toxins associated with chrome tanning. They are also dyed semi-aniline which will make the leather age more gracefully. Finally, the leather is much thinner than most wallets out there – a key ingredient in creating a slim wallet.

Buying a Bellroy product is kind of like buying an Apple product. A lot of attention has been given to the packaging. What follows is an unboxing. Continue Reading

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