Funny Stuff is all around

You have no doubt spend hours during the course of your life looking over footwear both in physical stores and on the Internet. The selection of shoe styles available will make the most picky among us smile. However, when making that final decision on a brand of shoes, you need to take into account price, style, durability, comfort, and the overall appearance. This is no less true with men’s boots.

When it comes to side zip boots, men might complain that they’re too fashionable or stylish to be masculine. However, zippered boots are quickly becoming one of the hottest new trends in male fashion - with ultra-manly brands like the Australian Boot Company and others coming out with “city boots” that are both comfortable and cool.

For an overview of some of the best-looking zippered men’s boots on sale this year, read on.

Kenneth Cole New York City Boot ($200+)

This city boot from Kenneth Cole is both sleek and sophisticated. The shoe is made from a soft mix of suede and leather and comes in a muted gray, so you can take your shoe wardrobe away from standard and boring black.

There are few details, no embellishments and a general style that’s cool, calm and collected. The best part about these well made city boots? The non-slip heel means they’re great for banging around town on a wet or snowy day.

Hugo Boss Ankle Boots ($175+)

These boots are designed to function and look good - making them a pretty nice pair of side zip boots. Most men will appreciate the rugged appeal of these heavy-duty boots, but also enjoy the waterproof functionality that lets you run though anything without worry.

These city boots are really made for the urban warrior - they can handle a beating during any winter storm, making them a pretty ideal choice for cold and snowy winters or stormy and wet springs.

Timberland Zippered Walking Boots ($125+)

With their patented Smart Comfort System, these zippered men’s boots by Timberland are made for walking. Fortunately, they’re also made for style. This is a waterproof boot (they guarantee it) designed to take you from an afternoon hiking in the mountains right to the chalet restaurant. The design is simple, rustic and casual, but cool enough for a night out.

City Boots by Gucci ($560)

These boots are the one of the best for urban indulgence. The ankle boot style and soft, butter-colored leather blend very well together for an overall luxurious shoe. The one drawback? At almost $600 a pair, you may to be too scared to wear these beauties outside the house. If so, invest in a pair of galoshes.

For side zip boots, men should look for boots that not only look good, but also fit well right off the bat. Unlike leather shoes, boots are less likely to stretch out, particularly around the ankles - which means finding the right perfect is crucial.

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I’m often amazed to see the how grand and bizarre the fashion industry has become. For some reason it’s difficult for me to fathom people and their utter love for clothing.

Don’t get me wrong. I do appreciate good clothes. And no matter what they say about individuality, I would rather have you looking like 90 percent of the population (read: neat and presentable) rather than see you in cut-off jeans and a bizarre top. But to spend one grand on a trench coat, which an editor says is a classic, that’s entirely so much.

It cannot be denied, however, that fashion design school is a magnet not only for people who have made dressing up a lifelong vocation, but also for students who are dazzled by the beautiful clothes. Countless of high school fashion graduates line up in colleges offering fashion design and merchandising to get a shot at entering this charmed world. It also doesn’t hurt that world-renowned designers live in the most exclusive addresses, hobnob with celebrities, not to mention earn tons and tons of money doing the thing they love the most.

When I asked my teenage daughter what field she wanted to pursue, she started rambling on about fashion design and merchandising. Hmm, big surprise! What teenage girl isn’t interested in the fashion world? As far as I can tell, they all go gaga over clothing, shoes, and accessories. Anyway, she began taking a high school course in fashion design and merchandising her senior year. Unfortunately she hated it. Now she is a bit torn regarding her future plans. She still dreams of a job in the fashion industry, but is naturally worried about whether or not she’ll like it. I told her to give fashion design and merchandising another shot when she heads off to college next year. And no one said she had to delve into this particular aspect of the fashion world. There are a few choices out there.

[spin]As what these shows portray, remaining in this industry is tough. You need to work hard and compete with a lot of people, but if you are willing to sweat it out then there’s a good chance of you making it. A good education is also a very big plus.|It’s definitely not all glitz and glam in the beginning, but I’m sure any successful fashion designer can tell you that. You have to be willing to work hard and vie with the many. The best place to start is a highly recommended fashion design school.[/spin}

You can learn more about the fashion industry and fashion design school

Russian Fashion Week (RFW) has recently become number one fashion event in Russian Federation as well as in the Eastern Europe.

The past four seasons have established it as a regular entry in the world fashion calendar next to national fashion weeks in Paris, Milan, London, New York. Russian Fashion Week which is held in Moscow twice per year, in April and October, covers all of the former Soviet Union, the so-called Russian-speaking territory. The RFW basics are Russian designers, but every season sees the best designers from former Soviet republics: Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Moldova, Lithuania, etc. Every season, the RFW Organizing Committee studies over 100 entries but chooses only the best collections for the RFW runways.

RFW has already got and still developing cooperation with a number of international fashion weeks world over. Among them there are fashion weeks in Italy, China Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, Portugal, Mexico, Greece, India, Check Republic, Brasil, Norway, etc. At this stage RFW organizational committee is globalizing and diversifying its achievements on Russian market and at the same time co-producing Fashion Weeks in St. Petersburg and other Russia cities and former USSR capitals.

Russian Fashion Week has joint ventures with the world’s largest fashion institutions. These collaborations result in national designer days during RFW’s annual events. In the fall of 2004, “British Day” was held, featuring Matthew Williamson, Sophia Kokosalaki, Jenny Packhamand other top English designers. In Spring 2005, Russian Fashion Week invited Spanish designers Konrad Muhr, Alma Aguilar, Devota& Lomba, Isabel de Pedro, Armand Basi and Agatha Ruiz de la Prada. In Autumn 2005, in October, the RFW hosted the Italian Day supported by Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana. Italian Day has featured top designers like Romeo Gigli, Guerriero, Exte’, La Perla, and Polliniby RifatOzbek. RFW spring-summer 2007 season International Day was dedicated to the US. American Designers Baby Phat, Laundry by Shelli Segal and Rebecca Taylor presented their summer 2007 collections in the frames of American Day on RFW. Russian Fashion Week International Cooperation will lead to more International Days of such countries as China, New Zeland, Canada, Greece and etc.

This year (March 30 - April 6) 58 designers from all over the world presented Autumn/Winter 08/09 collections on RFW venue at World Trade Center. First to open the week was Valentin Yudashkin who is one of the most known Russian names in fashion, and there is a reason for that. He was one of the first to adopt the western values and build a successful business in early 1990th. Since then, with the rise of democracy and opening of the commerce channels, many new Russian names make it to the global market. Among them Tatyana Parfionova, Denis Simachev, Maxim Chernizov, Elena Souprun, Sergey Teplov, Viva Vox, Konstantin Gayday, Chistova&Endourova, Vika Gazinskaya, Masha Kravtzova, Elena Goletchz, Elena Makashova, Leonid Alexeev, Masha Sharoeva, Olga Brovkina, Elena Vorrea and many others.

Next Russian fashion week presenting Spring/Summer 2009 collections will take place 28 Oct - 3 Nov 2008 (dates might vary)at World Trade Center Moscow.