Recently, BODEGA (Boston), mita-sneakers (Tokyo), Kasina (Seoul), along with Barcelona-base 24 Kilates were asked to re-think the classic trail runner, the New Balance ML581. For its concept, 24 Kilates tapped on a constant theme of Mediterranean lifestyle – good food and drinks. With Camino de Santiago, or Way of Saint James, a thousand year old religious pilgrimage to the tomb of Saint James in Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain, as the central inspiration, 24 Kilates partnered with regional gourmet specialist at Los Peperetes to prepare a pack perfect for such voyage. Including in the special edition set will be a pair of New Balance ML581 designed by 24 Kilates, to alleviate tired feet during this arduous journey. The pack will also include delicacies from the Galician region, such as coffee and herbal liqueurs, Pulpo en aceite de oliva (Octopus in olive oil), and Berberechos de Carril (Cockles in brine), just in case hunger sets in.

Uniquely curated, the 24 Kilates x Los Peperetes x New Balance ML581 pack will not only be enjoyed by sneaker heads but foodies as well. The collection will be available at 24 Kilates starting Saturday, January 7th, 2012.

24 Kilates
Carrer del Comerç, 29 | Map
08003 Barcelona, Spain
TEL #: 932-688-437

Release Date: January 7th, 2012 (Saturday)

Throwing a holiday party and want to make an impression on your guests? How about a 26-pound impression in gummy bear form? VAT19 introduces the Party Gummy Bear, a gargantuan confection measuring 17 inches tall and bursting with 32,000 calories. It dwarfs the previous gummy bear record holder — a paltry five-pounder — and features a hollowed out tummy, which you can use to hold drinks, snacks or candy (like more gummy bears). Hand-made in the U.S.A. and gluten-free, the Party Gummy holds a shelf-life of one year, so there’s plenty of time to finish him off. Orange and red cherry flavors are currently sold out at Vat19′s online store, but blue raspberry and green apple are yours for the taking. Click through to check out a Lonely Island-esque music video that pays tribute to the gummy candy you eat with a knife and fork.

Photo By csztova/flickr

Even after his untimely death, the fascination over Apple‘s Co-Founder Steve Jobs continues. With Sony Pictures finalizing the deal to adopt the best selling Jobs’ biography by Walter Isaacson for the silver screen, reports by UK’s Now Magazine stated actor George Clooney will take on the role of Steve Jobs. At this current conjuncture, no parties involved will make a statement about the report’s validity but is Clooney the right man for the role? via: Mashable

Stockholm-based WeSC earned a reputation early on as one of the more forward-thinking collectives in streetwear, with an emphasis on clean designs, fueled in no small part by the deep ranks of artists, creatives, and “WeActivists” the label supported and promoted. And in the years since it’s 1999 founding, the Swedish company has grown to keep pace with rapidly evolving Scandinavian fashion – the region has emerged as a surprisingly fertile ground for design-driven fashion. A case in point is the WeSC Aleister boot, which is now available for Winter 2011. Aesthetically, it riffs on the dual trends in mens winter footwear: hiking and workwear. But it’s no Red Wing ripoff with a few D-Ring eyelets thrown on; WeSC have brought things together nicely by using a subdued – yet vaguely formal – color palette, which is helped greatly by a full-grain leather upper. A unique touch comes from a heel counter, done in a complimentary leather tone. And it’s not all show; the Aleister boasts Italian construction and a solid Vibram sole – both of which are synonymous with quality boots. WeSC has only been doing footwear since 2010, but they’re off to a great start. The boot is available from Sneakersnstuff now; check out images after the jump – these might be the perfect reasonably-priced alternative to a Diemme.

The New Balance 574 is about as classic as a runner gets, but if you want to make it even more heritage, make it in the USA. Yesterday we got a preview of the Ronnie Fieg x New Balance 574 Made In USA, done especially for this Friday’s opening of a new KITH door in Manhattan; today we have a slew of gorgeous detail shots. Ronnie Fieg, of course, has all kinds of shoe design chops, but some of his best work is done re-imagining beloved footwear with new combinations of materials and colorways – and his NB 574 is a perfect case in point. As mentioned in our preview, these new 574′s come in high grade pigskin leather, feature a subtle KITH logo on the sockliner, and are limited to 36 pairs of each colorway – so Newbie heads, get hyped. And everyone else? These are two beautifully executed 574′s, in colors that you won’t get everyday – plus they come with an exclusive NB x KITH t-shirt. Check out the full gallery after the jump, and if you need a pair, head to 644 Broadway, this Friday at 10 am EST (or earlier!).

KITH NYC
644 Broadway | Map
(Entrance on Bleeck Street)
New York, NY 10012

Release Date: November 11th, 2011 (Friday) | 10 am EST

Italian footwear brand Diemme has been making premium quality outdoor boots since 1992. The company operates out of a factory in the small Italian town of Montebelluna, a region famous for its research and production facilities in technical outerwear and footwear. This means Diemme boots are typically locally sourced and crafted with superior materials and time-tested methods. For its Firenze boot, a new style for Fall 2011, the brand used Waxed Commander leather from the UK tannery Charles F. Stead & Co. Ltd. Durable and rugged, the leather is industry tested to ensure its waterproof properties. Other features include a lightweight, flexible Vibram Cristy sole and cow leather lining. Handmade in Italy, the boots are available now through Canada’s Haven.

HAVEN Flagship
10528 108 Street NW | Map
Edmonton, AB Canada

Growth is aplenty at START TODAY, the parent company of ZOZOTOWN online shopping network in Japan. After it announced language support for Chinese, Korean, and English speaking shoppers outside of Japan back in May, the company is pushing further into the untapped Chinese today with the launch of ZOZOTOWN on Tmall, a dedicated site for consumers in China.

Operated as a joint venture out of Hong Kong with Japanese investment giant Softbank, the new site is actually part of TAOBAO.COM, the consumer branch of Alibaba online retail group. Building upon the momentum, START TODAY will also open a dedicated site for South Korea in the coming days. No words if the popular shopping site will reach markets such as U.S. or Europe, though we’re keeping our fingers cross.

One trend seen at the 2011 SEMA auto show is tuners shying away from the gaudy chrome that was the blingy bread and butter of the custom auto scene for decades. Thankfully, toning things down has actually inspired aftermarket designers like Icon 4X4 to get a little more creative, and dig a littler further back, to deliver very modern and compelling concepts. At this year’s SEMA show – which has long been an exercise in American automotive excess – Icon has unveiled…a 1968 Bronco. What Icon has actually done is taken that classic off-road vehicle as inspiration, and from there, built a fully modern off road beast – with all off the cutting edge technology and comfort that a vehicle starting at $159,000 deserves. Icon powers the vehicle with a 412-horsepower variant on Ford’s latest 5-liter V-8, paired it with disc brakes a state-of-the-art suspension system, and fully upgraded corrosion-resistant materials throughout. Plenty of aftermarket shops can product an eat-anything vehicle, but the beauty of Icon’s Bronco is in the execution – to perfect the details, Icon had top-tier help: from Aston Martin (on the interior), Nike (for advanced 3-D modeling and design), Bell&Ross (for the instrument cluster), and LearJet (for the window visors). Quite a team, and quite an homage to a classic vehicle. Check out the full gallery after the jump. via: Autoblog.

Love him or hate him, 50 Cent will always remain to be a charismatic individual. In an attempt to help starvation in Africa, 50 Cent has established a new brand of energy drink called Street King. Each purchase of a shot helps to provide one meal for a child, in conjunction with the United Nations World Food Programme. The goal of this project is to raise one billion meals and 50 Cent is reaching out to the masses for support. In terms of the energy drink itself, there are two 100% natural flavors offered in Orange Mango and Grape. Find out more about the project on the Street King website and click after the jump to hear what 50 Cent has to say about children dying from hunger in Africa.

Appropriately named after one the 4 big cats, there is a significant amount of additions on the new Mac OS X Lion from Apple. To start with, there are more than 250 new features in the updated operating system. Borrowed heavily from its successful mobile operating system, the iOS, programmers at Apple revised the multitouch system with even more gestures recognitions. Another is application management, where system resources management appears to be seamless especially when multiple applications are on. The so-called Auto Save and Versions are just that – variations of the popular back-up application Time Machine, Auto Save keep track of changes made while Versions permit that user to return to that particular time. Those familiar with collaborative working environment would certain benefit from Mac OS X’s Air Drop, an option which sets up wireless files transfer between Macs automatically and seamlessly. Various improvements to make the already intuitive OS even better, the Mac OS X Lion is now available for download at Mac App Store with a price of $29.99 US.

Requirements:

• 4GB Free Space on Hard Drive
• 2GB of RAM
• Intel-based Mac with Core 2 Duo, i3, i5, i7, or Xeon Processor

Members of the Heineken100 should have gotten this nice little package already, in the box is a blacked out Heineken x New Era snapback featuring the beer makers bottle label blacked out. Some of you might remember the previous awesome package with t-shirt Freshness did with Heineken and Union for the 100 members. Well for those lucky enough to be a part of this exclusive club should continue to receive random and awesome packages the rest of the year, we just wonder what’s next…

The antics of Snoopy and Garfield are nothing but inconsequential when you compare those from Polly Bean, the lead character on Supermodels comic strip by Neil Kerber. Now, the lanky caricature is truly a “supermodel” as London-base Premiere Model Management signed Bean to its “special division”. Long been a favorite among fashionistas and celebrities, such Nicole Kidman, Phillip Treacy, Steven Spielberg, and the late Isabella Blow, Polly Bean, or rather her creator Neil Kerber brings a satirical account of the fashion world. With Premiere’s help, who managed the likes of Padma Lakshmi and Lucy Liu, Bean’s popularity will likely to grow, just not her waist line… via: Vogue UK