With news that fashion brand, Mayle, is closing down after Resort/Holiday 09, we think a spread is due. Perhaps you've only loved the Mayle aesthetic from afar, perhaps you've indulged in every smart frock and pair of trousers from previous seasons, or perhaps the brand hasn't meant much to you until now. Either way, we have a feeling these last deliveries will mean much more to many of us. To think, just last week we wrote up an immaterial about a shearling caplet that is part of the Fall 08 collection. Little did we know it would be one of Mayle's last quirky offers. If anything, this should stand as an example of how difficult is is to run a fashion business in general, and how the contemporary companies in particular, often get thrown the wolves if they don't peddle their clothing properly and act as total slaves to the buyers (who have peddle on their own accord). It's not easy, especially in our current economic climate, to endure the season-less demands of the contemporary shopper. Jane Mayle, in her conversation with WWD, referenced perfumery and home goods as being her next endeavor so we're sure we haven't seen the last of that magpie/indie girl aesthetic. That said, it's still the end of a clothing line beloved by many young burgeoning chicsters. Below, our spread of Mayle from Spring 08 (all on sale) and Fall 08 (just delivered). If you shop only for the sake of archiving, we won't blame you.

Our obsession with talking to people about Built by Wendy has become pathological. It's not the brand, specifically, it's more the conceptual vantage point we've been mulling over. It started a few weekends back when, on our way to Opening Ceremony, we stopped in the store, to which we had never been. We perused the racks, it was more expensive than we remembered. Three hundred dollars for a cotton bomber or a cotton poplin dress? Curious. Well, we can say for sure that what you have there is a firmly placed contemporary price point but what makes the defining tricky is when you look at the clothing quality and the basic premise on which the company was first built. Built by Wendy always cost just a little bit less than contemporary which was its essential draw. The point was "Hey check out these clothes that look kind of like they're from A.P.C. but cost a little bit less. They look homespun which means, if you really wanted to, you could make them yourself." Now, really, Built by Wendy is not able to put 'cost effective' on its resume. So, can the clothing hold its own? Well, sure. It's just not very much fun is all. We don't blame anyone, we know it's hard to make money as a designer and finance a business in this economy, we just miss the old days when it felt like Wendy was building those frocks so that we didn't have to spend three hundred dollars on them.

Sometimes being half-dressed is just as attractive as wearing the perfectly put together ensemble. That said, the Conference Of Birds Spring 09 show conjured the dressed-up business man who had just gotten himself into a little bit of after-hours mischief. Untied neckties and bow ties, sweats and pajama bottoms mixed with blazers and trouser shorts, gave this collection a cool perspective on the modern state of dress. This is a style we see in New York quite often. Many fashion forward young men in New York who buy clothing at a contemporary price point are in creative professions or are otherwise self-employed. For this particular group of men (and it is a large group), there is no uniform for them to adhere to and though they enjoy suiting just as much as the next gentleman, they don't part with their sneakers and t-shirts and jeans. So we see a lot of this, style-wise in New York (and we'd venture to say, America) but it's especially neat to see designers playing off those trends. Conference of Birds is designed by Andrew Holden who is known for mixing American workwear with British tailoring. This is his second collection and, we have to say, it seems he's onto something.

Everything was light and easy at the Obakki Spring 09 Fashion Show. The show was part of the contemporary community's attempt at reviving men's fashion week in New York. No matter who sponsors this, if it all works out, we hope that men's fashion week will be known just as 'Pier 92'--it just sounds so cool.

Anywho, the Canadian brand Obakki, headed by designer Treana Peake, is all about super refined pieces that are clean and easy. Everything from Spring 09 looked light as air and mix and matchable. The palate was diverse but most of the shades were toned down to their most muted versions (punctuated by the occasional jolt of color). Our favorite looks were, for women, a pair of smart grey trousers and lab-like overcoat, and for men, a classic blue shirt, buttoned up all the way, paired with dusty blue trousers, rolled up at the bottom. It's the kind of smart, type-A clothing that makes you want to gut your wardrobe and give your desk a Muji makeover. A welcomed aesthetic, if you ask us.

We here at Coutorture harbor a certain degree of incredulity towards the contemporary market in fashion. The Barney's Co-Op price point designers, they of the $450 dress, the $150 shirt, and the $250 skirt, give us price to value ratio nightmares. You are paying for design "elements," the joy of shopping slightly under the radar, and the small time expenses of limited run sourcing. Very rarely do contemporary price points actually dove tail with better quality than your larger run, better type stores in the J.Crew realm. Unless, of course you, you skip out on the Americans and go Italian.

Your very downtown editors visited Michele Negri's uptown Madison Avenue boutique (1015 Madison at 78th) yesterday. Michele Negri, a former model, and his wife Patrizia Beltrami started the Michele Negri line in 1988 with the opening of their first boutique on via Roma in Florence, Italy. A decidedly Italian line, they have built a clothing brand that adheres to strict guidelines of fine Italian tailoring.

The entire Michele Negri collection is designed and produced in Italy. The women’s line is made in Florence and the men’s collection is produced in Naples. All fabrics and textiles that are used to make the collection are exclusively made for the Michele Negri lines. The house is recognized for its “made to fit” services where both male and female clients have the option of customizing designs and fabrics to their satisfaction.

Even if conservative tailoring and fine textiles do not appeal to you, Michele Negri may just catch your fancy. As a family business, Michele Negri has also grown to include his children, Gian Luigi and Alessandra as brand managers. Their influence is being credited with giving the collections a more active, youth oriented feel. Which means if you do go in for "design elements" a la Co-Op you can enjoy all the fashionable foibles of the contemporary market (and its price point) but without any of the lackluster textiles or tailoring. Its like getting your cake and eating it too!