Editor’s Picks: Lumix Camera, Hybrid Range Rover and Roasted Coffee Beans
From a polo shirt to salute Earth Day to a coffee table book of the best whiskey cocktails, this is what we want this week...
Take a look outside. The air seems fresher, the sky clearer and the planet healthier. Lockdown may be a drag, but the world is undoubtedly benefitting from man taking a couple of months off. It was a sentiment shared by those celebrating the 50th annual Earth Day earlier this week — and a silver lining we’re honouring with this week’s Editor’s Picks.
From Ralph Lauren’s fashionable nod to the environment to Range Rover’s new eco-minded plug-in hybrid, we’ve rounded up the gold standard of green products. So, whether you want recycled sneakers, naturally blended grooming products or sustainably sourced coffee, this is the list for you…
Keep it clean: Heath Hair + Body Wash
Self-care is key during self-isolation. And Heath, a British-based grooming brand, is keeping things simple for us. This handsome, green-bottled body wash doubles up as a shampoo — and is formulated using only natural ingredients. Among them, caffeine, the wonder stimulant we’ve been adding to our bathroom cabinet in energising, reinvigorating force.
Righteous collar: Polo Ralph Lauren Earth Polo
Designed with Mother Nature in mind, Ralph Lauren’s timely Earth Polo is crafted from an innovative fabric made entirely from plastic bottles and dyed using a waterless process. The main draw, however, is that the American fashion house has pledged to remove 170 million plastic bottles from landfill by 2025. Of course, the fact that it looks this good is just secondary…
Electrifying: Range Rover Evoque Plug-In Hybrid
The legendary British carmaker’s new Evoque was already quite eco-friendly — we learnt that last year when we took one on an eco-odyssey around Greece. But this new plug-in hybrid option shifts things up a gear again. It may still chiefly thump along with a 1.5-litre three-cylinder engine but, this time around the block, the Evoque has a commendable, impressive 41-mile all-electric range.
Throwing shade: Pacifico Optical Buckler Sunglasses
If you fancy wearing your green a little subtler than Ralph Lauren’s polo — but still want to show your eco-support during the week of Earth Day — look no further than through the bottle green lenses of Pacifico Optical’s Buckler sunglasses. Designed in Bondi Beach and named after the headland, these frames are hand-polished and feature intricate rivet detailing.
Kick it: Uniform Standard Series 1 Sneakers
This week, we took a look at the best white trainers for men. In doing so, we discovered the eco-extent to which Uniform Standard cares for the environment. These Series 1 sneakers, for example, feature a cupsole crafted from 70% recycled rubber, an insole made from 100% recycled cellulose and a 100% recycled, leather-covered footbed. Even the shoebox is recycled.
Give it some beans: Drive Coffee Le Mans Blend
All of the environmental benefits of lockdown may be nice, but we’re missing motorsport. Thankfully, the innovative caffeine wizards over at Drive Coffee are helping us get our fix. These beans, the Le Mans edition, are inspired by the legendary GT40s that dominated Le Mans — tough, practical, refined and hardy enough to endure the toughest of days. Pour us a cup.
Lead the charge: Oakywood Walnut Triple Charging Dock
It’s not often that fashion and function truly, equally come together. Which is why, when we saw Oakywood’s beautifully crafted Walnut Triple Charging Dock, we decided immediately to stock it in the Gentleman’s Journal Shop. Hewn from a chunk of rugged dark wood, this angular piece of kit can charge your iPhone, your Airpods and your Apple Watch all at the same time. Your one-stop-desktop-dock.
No sweat: Oliver Spencer Teal Green House Sweater
Like Steve McQueen, the king of sweatshirts, we’ve been taking our lockdown wardrobe inspiration from these simple, soft cotton pullovers. Our favourite? Well, since we’re feeling green this week, how about Oliver Spencer’s new House Sweat Harris in teal green? With a soft fleece organic cotton construction and gently ribbed cuffs, it’s your self-isolation uniform sorted.
Sharpen up: Blenheim Forge Funayuki Knife
How’re those kitchen skills progressing during lockdown? Sharpened up those knife skills yet? If the answer is a blunt, resounding ‘no’, then you’re probably just using the wrong equipment. Good thing we’ve found the right equipment, then — in the stainless-clad, forged-finish, micro-bevelled form of Blenheim Forge’s Funayuki kitchen knife.
On camera: Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX80
If you’re spending every passing minute of every passing day fantasising about the adventures to come, then put away your atlas. Charting courses you can’t currently take will do nothing to cheer you up. Instead, stoke your wanderlust in a productive way. Snap up a snapper, and hone your photography skills so you can capture every globe-trotting, jet-setting memory once lockdown is lifted. Our choice? A vintage-style, leather-trimmed Lumix from Panasonic.
In the mix: Whiskey Cocktails by Assouline
What’s cooler than a whiskey cocktail? Perhaps knowing how to make a whiskey cocktail. Or even owning a hardback, ring-bound book of whiskey cocktail recipes, with arty how-to photos shot against the backdrop of New York bars? Definitely the latter. And this, a voguish volume sprung from the brilliant mind of award-winning professional mixologist Brian Van Flandern, is just that. Get shaking, stirring and sipping.
Want more of the best gear money can buy? Check out last week’s Editor’s Picks…
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