It’s official: Kempt favorites Shipley & Halmos have just moved out of the “young upstart” phase, and into the “industry darling” phase.

On May 20th, the ex-Trovata duo will bring home the National Arts Club’s Young Designer Award, the label’s first award since launching in January. The label specializes in trim-fitting suits and summery shorts—just now coming into season—but extra touches like Oxford-cloth boxers give the line a playful edge. More recent obsessions have included black gingham and bowties.

A few of our favorite pics from the S&H kids»

We’ve had our eye on b store ever since this summer’s capsule show (and since we found our favorite trench coat), so we’re happy that their Spring ’09 line is finally captured on film.

Apparently they’re bigger fans of gingham than we thought (although everyone loves a picnic) and their collars are only getting smaller, which should be interesting down the road. Our only complaint here is the gladiator-style footwear featured in all four pictures. It was bad enough when this invaded the women’s runways; surely we can keep it off manlier feet.

See the rest of the line»

Gingham is already a summer staple, but there are always a few new ways to do it. This Black Dollars Double Check is one of the best. The outer check is the kind of madras-flavored pattern that makes summer clothes worthwhile, but the gingham lining is the real treasure here. Look close and you’ll see it through the larger check, creating the kind of double-patterning Tom Ford is so into these days.

See detail shots after the jump»

The summer hat is a pretty rare bird, but not because it isn’t useful. We always prefer a light derby to sunscreen, especially if there’s gingham involved.

Comme Des Garcon’s try at the summer hat is the best we’ve seen so far. And if you’ve got any picnics coming up in the next few months, we’d definitely consider it.

You might even match the tablecloth.

There are a lot of different opinions as to the perfect summer shirt—a bleach-white t-shirt is perennially strong candidate, for instance—but for our money, it’s hard to do better than gingham.

This gauzy Tim Hamilton version is just about perfect. The large-check pattern keeps things from getting too businesslike, and enhances the general picnic mood. We’d check to make sure you won’t clash with your picnic blanket…but otherwise we’d say you’re pretty much set for the next four months.

We could stand a short-sleeved version too, but you can always roll them up in an emergency.

Gingham always gets pretty popular around this time of year, but there’s more to the style than just button-ups.

This Moschino jacket is a louder cousin to the standard seersucker version, but fortune favors the bold and sporting a few outer checks has a few benefits of its own. Naturally, you’ll want a more subdued shirt underneath it all—and possibly accessorize it with a mint julep or two—but then you should be ready to hit the racetrack.

Adding a touch of formality in warmer weather can be a tough thing, but we suggest the following uniform for your next buttoned-up barbecue: shirtsleeves and an invaluable item called the summer tie.

This particular item just landed on 3sixteen’s online shop (via HypeBeast), but you can find similar items at any number of preppy-minded shops. A bit of citrus-tinged gingham against a white shirt can work wonders—especially if there’s a bit of sunshine in the mix. Just try to keep it away from the barbecue sauce.

via Getty

The music industry circuit has always been a bit more dandy-friendly than the black-tie Oscars, so it’s only right that there was a lot of style on display at last night’s Grammys. Fortunately, was enough to distract us through the music and awards-giving sections of the broadcast.

The standout for us was one Usher Raymond, who sported this light gray three-piece, with surprisingly hipster friendly piping. And, of course, we can never get enough large-check gingham.

There’s a Tony Manero vibe to the whole piece which matched the occasion just about perfectly. At just about every point in the broadcast, he looked like he was ready to bust out a moonwalk…which, if you happen to be a pop star, is a pretty good look.