Nike athletic shoes are always popular, and they are always introducing new shoes into their lineup. The top seven new men’s athletic shoes sold by Nike are:

1. AJF12 Premier men’s basketall shoe: A hybrid of their Air Jordan shoe design and the Air Force One shoe, it’s $160.

2. Nike Air Pegasus+ 25 men’s running shoe: This variation is part of Nike’s nod to the 25th anniversary of this classic running shoe, with light mesh and full-length Air Sole unit. It’s $85.

3. LeBron Zoom Solider II men’s basketball shoe: Another variation on the popular LeBron series, this has a full grain leather upper portion with perforated areas for breathability, and a new herringbone pattern. It’s $110.

4. Nike Air Max 360 III men’s running shoe: This is Nike’s fully personalizable shoe: you pick the colors, and select a symbol or your own ID. It’s $165 (pictured).

5. Nike Air Zoom SPARQ TR elite men’s training shoe: Described as the “ultimate training shoe” this has a breathable mesh upper and a Zoom Air unit in the heel. It is on sale for $62.99

6. Dwane Wade team signature United We Rise men’s basketball shoe: This one must be hot. It’s limited to one pair per customer and is excluded from all promotional discounts. It carries an Olympic theme with red, white and blue colors and a Beijing-inspired tattoo print. Cost: $110.

7. Nike Air Zoom Vapor V men’s tennis shoe: Nike’s solid tennis shoe styling, with four colors of trim, for $115.

In the world of fabulous handbags, there are two must-have sizes: diminutive clutchs and huge, almost-like-luggage, carry-everything-you-can think-of, I-think-I’ve-hurt-my-back really big bags. Let us focus on the latter. High-end designers have many beautiful, but expensive, offerings. For example, Bottega Veneta has a lovely leopard print jumbo bag for $5,500. At Net-a-Porter, Jimmy Choo’s patent shoulder bag is wonderful, and it’s $2,495. Tod’s has a buttery gray leather bag at eluxury for $1,675 (pictured). Coming in a tad cheaper is a snazzy Sergio Rossi patent leather duffle for $1,550. For some perspective, Ralph Lauren’s pretty alligator Ricky bag is $16,995. And for a little more perspective, you can snatch a coveted Hermes Birkin bag on eBay for $42,500. Back to reality. Michael Kors has a lovely deep red patent Astor tote for $348, Cole Haan’s light tan tote is on sale for $237 at Bluefly and there’s also a succulent Prada lambskin tote on sale for $1,608 (yes, it’s expensive, but it was $2,010). There is a buttery soft equestrian Juicy Couture shoulder bag ($395), and a precious Kate Spade satin (white or purple) bag at ebags for $150. Tignanello has a multi-pocketed shopper in many shades for $139. Jessica Simpson has some cute patent satchels at a mere $98. But our favorite big bag deal of the day is Simply Vera’s Vera Wang hobo at Kohl’s for $62 (pictured, left).

There comes a point in every presidential campaign when the candidates are closely scrutinized by a curious country with a single question: What does your necktie say about you? Barack Obama has said he doesn’t like neckties and is frequently seen without them, even when wearing a suit. When he does wear a tie it’s usually muted, a solid pale gray or blue, or one with slim stripes. John McCain is more necktie-friendly. He wears all manner of striped ties (albeit subdued) and sometimes opts for bright colors such as yellow or orange. Since we’re going to be seeing a lot of them, we’ve rounded up some nice ties that might give the candidates a few style points. Starting at the higher end, Armani Collezioni’s navy tie with thin light blue stripes is natty for $140. A more conventional striped tie from Charvet can be had in red and white stripes on a blue background ($185). Salvatore Ferragamo’s red, white and blue striped necktie is a little more striking, and if you’re rich, snap up the Stefani Ricci silk striped tie with a dominant red tone for $210 (pictured, left). A pair of ties that don’t scream American but would work for either candidate are the Armani delicate striped red tie, or Ermenegildo Zegna’s lovely Italian silk blue tie with tiny white dots. A little more down-to-earth, pricewise, is the Calvin Klein deep red “digi square” tie for $69.50 at Dillard’s, or the blue “microbead” striped tie, also $69.50. Also very striking and a lot less costly is Target’s Merona houndstooth blue tie for $20. Some serious but excessively patriotic ties include Krisar’s American flag tie for $10, a stars and stripes look from Sterling Apparel for $18 or Jos. A. Bank’s boldly striped tie on sale for $30. A tad wackier is the waving American flag tie at Wild Ties for $15, their tie festooned with presidential portraits for $35, and Zazzle’s ties dotted with the presidential seal. We even found an Obama tie for $17 on Wild Ties, but try as we might, we could not find a John McCain tie, although there are lots of nice apparel options from his website (like a snappy navy windbreaker). We did stumble upon a tie that might tickle a gung-ho GOPer (pictured, above), and for the racier Republican, there’s one decorated with a picture of a young Sarah Palin for $30.

There has been a pitched battle for Olympic gold going on 1,222 miles from Beijing this week, but it’s likely only aficionados or little girls have watched. The equestrian competition ended in Hong Kong with Germany coming out on top with three gold medals (the U.S. won two, including a gold). Anyone who watched the events marveled at the sheer strength, skill and hutzpah of horse and rider, but in case Michael Phelps and Nastia Liukin distracted you, there are lots of little girls who live and breathe horses. One person even attempts to decipher the riddle of why girls love horses on Yahoo!Answers. Now all these girls are going to need a horsey fix: If she’s around 6 to 8 years old, get her the “Fashion Angels” equestrian sketchbook ($15) from Toys’r'Us, or the Equestrian Challenge for PC for $20. If Barbie is her thing, the omnipresent doll has a complete equestrian outfit for $50 from etoys (if you want the horse and tack, that’s extra). There’s even a lovely book from the American Girls library, Girls and their Horses for $9. Mom, do you remember how much you loved horses? Maybe it was because of the classic movie National Velvet. Lest we forget that Jackie Kennedy made equestrian style chic, England’s Equestrianism.net maintains the standard. More recently, the O’Halloran Co. turned it into couture styling. (If you pay attention to fashion, you’ve noticed the riding boots that designers are churning out, such as Burberry’s $995 pair.) If the grown-ups have become enamored of dressage, this classy coffee table book shows you how to put the horsey into your home décor ($41). Finally, to make sure the holiday’s are just right, grab a Little Girl Riding Horse ornament from Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland for $6.

There’s a lot of grumbling out there about the Apple 3G iPhone that came out in July. It seems that calls are dropping, like rocks. They’re blaming it on a German-made chip in the phone, and Apple is promising a software fix will be on iTunes soon. On top of the irritation at lost connectivity, Apple has sold so many of them, they’re not so special any more. Everybody seems to have one. So now how do you elevate yourself above the masses? Pop a fascinating case or cover over it, of course. You can go the basic route with leather or silicone skins,  or get one in a snazzy color for $25. Since you were aiming for a high tech look, the Invisible Shield by Zagg ($25) is made of a thin polyurethane film created by the military for helicopter blades. Cases.com has lots to choose from, including a snappy red leather crocodile cover for $127 (pictured). Not content to wear your iPod on your arm, now you can slap your iPhone on as well, with a $30 sport armband from Belkin (or their Spiderman-ish micro-grip, which is coming soon). A Web site called iPhone3Gcases.net certainly has to have a lot to pick from, such as the colorful Golla Calla fabric cover for $20. Get snazzier with the iWood by Miniot, carved from a single piece of wood and monogrammed with your logo or a personal message, for about $125. And if you really want to flaunt your phone, get the monogrammed Louis Vuitton leather holder for $320 (but check back because they’re out of them online right now - we guess everybody wants one, just like you).

You may already know that Nike created the shoes for the U.S. Olympians (and also China’s Olympic team). A visit to the part of the Nike Web site about these shoes is a veritable encyclopedia/laboratory of custom shoe-making. They offer close-up views and detailed explanations of the design process for every sport’s footwear. Not just running and basketball, but field hockey, BMX, archery, wrestling, badminton, weightlifting and all 28 sports in the summer games.  They first show off their “flywire” technology, which uses cable to function as “synthetic tendons” that wrap around the foot. The development has reduced the shoe’s weight by 50 percent, they say.  A click over to their “lab” profiles the way every shoe was made for each sport. The Ballestra, for example, is for fencers. It has a traction pattern on a flat sole for balance, and extra foam because fencers put seven times their weight onto their front foot with every lunge.  The Grigorios for kayakers are sleek water shoes with split toes that are as close to being barefoot as possible. Equestrians wear the Ippeas, black boots modernized with zippers , lighter heels and a small titanium spur. You can even watch a video conversation with the designer of each shoe. But the best part is that you can buy some. Even if you don’t play badminton, you can check out the shoe and get a pair for $90, or grab a pair of the wildly patterned BMX shoes for $220 (pictured). You can’t buy the custom footwear for every sport, but there are plenty to pick from.