My Bests of the Month

February was a month full of action in many different areas – both good and bad. While we saw two athletes at the top of their games caught for cheating, we witnessed a speedster (in a car anyway) jump off the fringe back into NASCAR stardom, an under-dog movie sweep the Oscars, a superior actress remind us why she truly is the best, and one of the best rappers alive win big at the Grammy’s. Here are my bests of the month.

The Director: Danny Boyle
The star British filmmaker of the year’s Cinderella movie, Slumdog Millionaire, took home an Oscar for Best Director at this months Academy Awards. His earning was just one of the eight awards the movie took home that night.

The Driver: Matt Kenseth
NASCAR Sprint Cup driver, Matt Kenseth shot out of the gate this month, winning the season’s first two races, including the Daytona 500 and last week’s race in California. In doing so, Kenseth has led a combined 91 laps and has made new crew chief, Drew Blickensderfer, look like a genius. The challenge for Kenseth will be maintain his triumphant rebound from last year’s “trying” season, in which he finished 11th.

The Crazed (But Successful) Rockstar Rapper: Lil’ Wayne
Lil’ Wayne, the most prolific man in music, put his stamp on 2008 with his incredible release, Tha Carter III. All he needed was the hardware to go with his uncanny popularity and this month he received just that. Weezy earned four Grammy Awards, including Best Rap Album, Best Rap Solo Performance for “A Milli”, Best Rap Song for “Lollipop”, and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for “Swagga Like Us”.

The Designers: Dolce & Gabbana
Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana went back to their roots for their show at New York Fashion Week this month. The show was my favorite of the Fall/Winter 2009 clothing lines, as many of the outfits were chic, slim-fitting and clothes I can see myself in.

For the show Dolce and Gabbana wanted to emphasize the importance of close connections in hard times. The collection had an Italian Rat Pack feel to it; the clothes appeared to be fit for the chic nightlife.

Take a look at the full fashion line here.

Best Magazine: INside Magazine
Okay, so I am Associate Editor for the magazine based here on IU's campus, but our Arts Issue that came out this month was truly the best issue we’ve ever done. The entire staff worked very hard in putting together a great, informative issue. Learn about a film geek, where to see great art, how to dress better, and how to create homemade art in our four department articles. In the features read about an incredible artist on campus and find out what inspires student artists (painter, composer, photographer, dancers) to create.

Local Store: Andrew Davis Menswear
For the second month in a row this chic menswear store takes the cake in my local area. This weekend the store facilitated a trunk show by Coppley, a wonderful menswear store located in Hamilton, Ontario (yes, Canada). Coppley Vice President, Dennis Wilson was in town to not only showcase his store, but he also did custom fittings for men who signed up. I signed up for my fitting and Dennis took all of my key measurements for a sleek black suit that will be made with ultra torto fabric. I had never heard of this fabric before my fitting. It doesn’t wrinkle and it’s very light weight, making it great all year-round.

In addition to the fitting, ADM gave out free ties (I chose a burgundy-ish maroon-ish colored tie by Private Stock) and free lunch, consisting of sandwiches, chips, cookies, and bottled water. The guys were great to talk to and after a while Esquire Writer At Large, Tom Chiarella came through for his fitting. I picked his brain for close to an hour before the fellas broke out a bottle of wine by Robert Talbott (yes, the same guy known for designing luxury ties). ADM store owner, Andrew Mallor was very generous and showed me all of the deals they had available. You better believe I’ll be back there frequently.