Shopping & Style

September 17
BY RIMA SUQI
PHOTOS BY ERIC PIASECKI

Seeking Hide
This season there are so many jackets to choose from: the biker kind, the equestrian kind, or the David Soul-in-his-Starsky and Hutch-days kind, as interpreted by J.Crew. They call this an antique leather field coat; we call it cool. It's lined in cotton moleskin and has leather buttons, plus a very groovy back belt. Put it on and you'll be transported to 1975. In two shades: antique brown and cognac, shown here ($375).
J.Crew
Multiple locations

Previous Best Bets
Tuesday
A hands-free kitchen gadget
Monday
Panties with attitude
Friday
Not your grandma's shower cap
Thursday
MoMA's chirpy doormat
more>>


Buggin' Out
Look like a bug — see like a bug! Not only will these crazy glasses make your little angel (6 and up, please) resemble a menacing praying mantis, their small prismatic lenses actually let him see like one. The lenses flip forward for critter vision, then back for clear. And who knows — real bugs might be scared of your child-size insect and vamoose ($12).
Big Fun Toys
636 Hudson St., at Horatio St.
212-414-4138


Lip Service
 Does the world really need more lip gloss? Before we saw Anna Sui's Ring Rouge, our answer might have been a resounding "no." But this bold, black plastic cocktail ring is alluring all on its own, and even more so when you realize the top flips up to reveal a pot of lip gloss. Available in twelve shades ($12).
Henri Bendel
712 Fifth Ave., at 56th St., 212-247-1100
Anna Sui
113 Greene St., between Prince and Spring Sts., 212-941-8406

 

Cash Cow
 Architect Alice Park has a secret: She's got a shoe and bag "problem," and dreams of designing both. But she's starting small — with deceptively simple leather wallets. "I noticed that a lot of my male friends don't carry a standard wallet," she said. "Just a wad of cards and bills with a rubber band around it." Her slot wallet, which looks like a piece of origami, is a stylish alternative that's also extremely functional. It holds bills without bulging (though users may have to downsize the number of cards they carry). Available in two styles and fifteen colors ($65).
Auto
805 Washington St., between Horatio and Gansevoort Sts., 212-229-2292
 Roslyn
276 Columbus Ave., at 73rd St., 212-496-5050
 Bird
430 Seventh Ave., between 14th and 15th Sts., Park Slope, 718-768-4940

 
Mod Squad
 James Elkind seriously scored on his last trip to Scandinavia. The booty: a large stash of never-worn jewelry from the late sixties and early seventies that he is now selling at his store, Lost City Arts. There are rings, tie clips, pendants, and bracelets; all are sterling silver, some with opals or tiger's eyes. Prices range from $45 to $125. Ring ($45) and bracelet ($110) shown here.
Lost City Arts
18 Cooper Sq., at 5th St.
212-375-0500
www.lostcityarts.com


Photos: Antonis Achilleos.