Will Chalker says Happy New Year @ J. Crew

Everybody remember Will's face popping up during J. Crew's holiday campaign shot in the Italian Alps and released this past November?


It'd been a while since he shot for the label prior to that. So, I must say, it's nice to see his face again, fresh haircut in tow, for the January 2012 catalog. He's truly one of my favorite models. And a real perennial.

Shamelessly shot on my iPhone while gawking in the Taoyuan International Airport, Taiwan, this past summer:


P.S.: Loooove Clarins, btw...Will, or no Will...

P.P.S: Interestingly enough, I've yet to see this product -- the Ab Firming Body Toning Gel -- sell on Clarins' U.S. site or its counters at any of the major department stores...it's still obtainable here in the states if you look elsewhere for it, but it makes me wonder about the actual effectiveness of the product itself.

non-iPhone images courtesy of J. Crew

GAP 1969 Premium Jeans Ad Campaign, Spring 2010

The ad series for Gap's 1969 Premium Jeans picks up from where it left off last fall. The company has brought back Noah Mills and Will Chalker, both of whom I adore. Seriously, does life get any better looking than the both of them? Instead of taking on brooding serious expressions, the shots this time are more candid, but equally as attractive. I found the above shot online, and also couldn't help but snap a couple shots of the Mall of America storefront.

Looks like Chanel Iman gets double exposure standing alongside both studs...lucky...


With the latest online website update, Sean O'Pry joins the cast as well...what a gorgeous man himself...bravo.

image source

Hotdish & Bars <3's Andrew Cooper

There’s just no other way around it. Andrew Cooper is a very beautiful man. I’ve seen this British face since men.style.com began their runway coverage…Dolce & Gabbana (and of course, D&G) and Dsquared2 come to mind. The thing about Mr. Cooper, though, is that his all around good-looks aren’t necessarily distinctive and unique (NOT a diss!)…in my book, that’s called playing it safe…and so I’ve never really made a mental note to pay attention, nor have I done the, “Oh I’ve seen that face before” as I’ve paged through magazine ads. That is, until he landed one of the spots for this fall’s Gap 1969 Premium Jeans campaign.

Here, his likeness shoved into the back of the Gap @ Mall of America changing stalls…perhaps this store is done selling the Easy fit style? Shame.

image per New York Model Management

A bit of snooping revealed he’s the face I loved to oggle so much in last year’s Ralph Lauren eyewear ads! I think what fascinates me the most about this shot is that the scholarly glasses, clean-shaven face, well-coiffed do, and RL duds make for a dramatically different effect from his scruffy testosterone-laden portrayals…I think it’s so cool how glasses and stylistic direction can change a person’s face...

images from men.style.com: Dsquared2 Spring 2005 (left), Dolce & Gabbana Fall 2005(right)

And apparently, he’s good friends with Will Chalker! Green with envy here…and wishing I were Julia Stegner in this 2004 shoot for i-D magazine.

images from i-D Magazine

GAP 1969 Premium Jeans Ad Campaign

I gave up on the Gap a long time ago. Perhaps it's because boring became de rigeur once their then-CEO Mickey Drexler decided to market the company as the McDonald's of tees, jeans, khakis, and other basics. Or perhaps I just grew up and set my stakes higher.

However, one thing about the Gap that I've never lost respect for is their advertising/marketing machine, rich in creativity and history, and which I won't delve into here save only to say that their current 1969 Premium Jeans campaign does NOT dissapoint. With the clout to garner and dispatch an army of established models in the industry, the Gap even has me taking a second look at their current jeans.

Walking into one of my local stores last week, I found Will Chalker, one of my all-time favorite models (to me, he gives off the perfect mix of masculine but style-conscious) portrayed life-size against the wall. I could have stood there forever just looking/gawking.

At the Mall of America, he's even harder to miss (out of my way girls, you're ruining my view!).

Other notables among the male models include (with their respective fits) Andrew Cooper (Easy), Sasha Knezevic (Loose), Andres Velencoso Segura (Standard), and Noah Mills (Authentic):

Over at womens, the list is just as impressive...I love that they were all familiar names to me: Anja Rubik (Always Skinny), Maryna Linchuk (Sexy Boot), Isabeli Fontana (Curvy), Du Juan (Perfect Boot), Arlenis Sosa (Long & Lean), and Freja Beha Erichsen (Real Straight).

These girls are just gorgeous. End of story. But most impressive to me, is the fact that Carmen Kass is included in the roster! She sports The Boyfriend based on other images I've seen, it's a shame she didn't get a slot on the life-size "hall of fame" display at the Mall of America. Carmen was the first model I ever became enamoured with...waaay back in middle school...