This trip to Vegas was a little different for me than usual. Without going into all the gory details…I was sick with tonsillitis, which caused me to miss a majority of the tradeshows (and my cousin’s wedding in Maine Labor Day weekend). Now that I’m back in New York and feeling a million times better, here are some of the highlights from the only shows I was able to attend: MRket, MAGIC and POOL.

Joseph Abboud Sportswear

Like many vendors, JA sportswear is trying to “balance prices across the board:” wovens and pants, which used to range from $98 to $148, are now all $98 retail; Knit polos are also $98 and silk/cotton blend T-shirts are $78. This brand, known for neutrals, is introducing more color and patterned wovens. I loved these shawl collar sweaters for $168 retail.

Shirt by Shirt

Hayati Banastey of Shirt by Shirt says the spring collection is all about color and fun. New product is shipped monthly at wholesale prices from $39 to $59 with a 2.5 to 2.7 MU.

Harbour International

This more contemporary leather/nylon vest caught my eye at $350 retail.

English Laundry

Over at MAGIC, I stopped by the English Laundry booth to see what Christopher Wicks has planned for spring. His Jimi Hendrix collection (inspired by things Hendrix wore and designed in collaboration with his sister) looked great, especially this velvet jacket. Music, especially rock and roll is a major inspiration for all of English Laundry’s licensees and the Fender line had very cool bleached/distressed patched polo shirts for $79 retail.

Triple 5 Soul

It was fun to stop by the Triple 5 booth and run into my former boss, Ben Velez (I was an intern in the company’s public relations department). Triple 5 is going back to its utilitarian roots, but putting a modern spin on things. Velez says they’re approaching it as an ‘organic experiment’ and doing things like mixing the old school silhouette with newer fabrics like chambray. Pictured is their take on an updated cargo pant for $84 retail.

Cash Crop Clothing

Another “organic’ experiment was at POOL from Cash Crop Clothing, a company who prides itself on using sustainable materials. This ‘leather’ jacket is made of 4 recycled 2 liter soda bottles and retails for $175.

Revel Industries

One of my last stops was to see Chris Gorog from Revel Industries. He’s introducing a line of sandwashed crew neck sweatshirts inspired by the HBO hit Flight of the Conchords at $17 wholesale for $38 retail.