WINNA: Scrawl On That Stationery

And the lucky dogs who'll be scribbling their chicken-scratch on Christine Cover's tremendous stationery are:

• From Twitter: @ChrisFidz. Get at us, brother!
• From Facebook: Daniel Garber, check yo' messages.
• From the comments: Dillon, we hope your cousin enjoys the card. Whiskey and sea turtles are really the only things worth talking about anyway. Email us your address, and we'll have it sent out post haste!

For those of you who didn't win, check out Christine's Etsy store. Easy gift idea, y'know? Don't say we never did nothin' for ya!

Until next time, friends.

GIVEAWAY: "Another Half Eaten Sandwich"

You're doing well, right? Great. Things are getting about to get a little better.

We love you and we want you to have rad things.
More importantly, we want you to be able to give rad things.

You know, to your friends, family, lovers and lovers that your friends, family and lovers don't know about yet.

We partnered up with our friend Christine Cover to do just that.

A bit about her: Christine is a friend of ours from way back in undergrad who doodles and draws the quirky things that pop up in her brain. We spent many nights on her porch, bugging her and her roommates for home cooked meals. We picked up the booze; they cooked the meals. Most nights began with the preface of "I swear, we'll do homework! I have a test tomorrow." Yet, homework usually took the backseat. Long talks and banter took precedence as we presided over the the shenanigans on Wilson Street. Glory days, guys. #COLLEGE.

She's a talented singer and songwriter, lovable friend, crafty artist and painter and the list goes on. When's she's not doodling, she's traveling and singing. (See also: gypsy.) Currently, Christine is making cards under the moniker "Another Half-Eaten Sandwich" and pursuing an MFA in Art Education at the University of Missouri in her hometown.

Clockwise: "Ties of the Week," "Penny Loafers," "Fancy shirt," "Moped," "Bow Tie" and "Flask Me Anything!" postcards.

No explanation necessary. However, be warned that Dawson's Creek is rabbit hole that is endless and inevitable.

Top-to-bottom, left-to-right: "Girl & Boy," "Blazer," "Whiskey," "Winter Wear," and "Tetris Pizza" postcards.

INSTRUCTIONS ON THE GIVEAWAY:

• Simply tell us which one is your favorite and who you'd send it to. 
• We'll pick three winners: one from Twitter, one from Facebook and one from the comments in this post. Pick your preferred poison.
• Contest closes on Friday at 11:59:59 p.m. We'll announce it after the weekend is over on Monday.

We get to you know you better a bit through these giveaways, as do the other readers. Big, happy family for the holidays, you know? Cool. We think so, too. 

(Conversely, you could visit her Etsy site and buy 'em up before the giveaway ends. I dare you.) If you're not one of the winners: $2.50 for a little diddy to send to a friend via snail mail? That's a pint of beer during Happy Hour....in a college town at least. Have at it!

GIVEAWAY: Coach + The Sartorialist Tote

UPDATE: Don't forget to "like" the Coach Men's Facebook page! Extra props for tweeting at @Coach and @TheMidwestyle, too.

These giveaways just keep coming, eh? And there are even more on the way.

A household name for decades, Coach wanted to reward you guys, our readers, with a new bag as midterms end, new jobs begin and the seasons change. We leapt at the chance, of course. Earlier this year, Coach teamed up with The Sartorialist, who did his usual good work photographing stylish urbanites carrying Coach's latest Legacy Series collection. Have a look:

The Bleecker Legacy Utility Tote, photo by the Sartorialist for Coach

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

• What you'll get: The tote pictured above.
• Contest starts: Now, October 18, 2012.
• Contest closes: Sunday, October 21, 2012 — at 11:59:59 p.m.
• Announce winner: Monday, October 22, 2012

HOW TO ENTER:

• Answer this: "Why you need to ditch your current bag and update to this beauty?"
• Like the Coach Men's Facebook page and us, of course!

We've been fans of Coach for quite some time, and we know firsthand just how well their product holds up over time. Here's Jeff's recently acquired Coach backpack:

And Seth's Legacy Field Bag has become an instant favorite:

Hell, it only gets better as the leather ages and softens, as you can see from the vintage Coach finds we've stumbled across. What are you waiting for? Let's hear it!

GIVEAWAY: Win A Custom Suit From Indochino

Hey, you. Yeah, you.

We've got some news. Indochino is coming to Chicago to throw its Traveling Tailor pop-up. And they want you there.

We're betting you've heard the name by now. But if you haven't, Indochino is an online company that makes custom suits based on your personal measurements. The result is a garment that fits like a glove. The process works pretty smoothly, but purists have scoffed about the fact that you don't go in for measurements or fittings. We get that—if you measure incorrectly, alterations (or worse) can be a pain in the ass.

It turns out that Indochino gets this, too. So, they're coming to town to take all the guesswork out of the equation. If you've held off because of unfamiliarity with how to measure, or just plain apprehension, this is your chance to get a closer look.

Here's how this will work: The Indochino team is setting up shop in Union Station's Great Hall from August 14 to 20. There, they'll take your measurements and walk you through a suite of customizations from lapels to lining to monograms.

The Vital Info:

When: Tuesday, August 14 to Monday, August 20. (8 a.m. to 8 p.m.)

Where: The Great Hall at Chicago's Union Station (210 S Canal St)

How: Walk-ins are welcome, but they're also offering a free suit utility kit when you purchase a suit after an appointment.
So: Book an appointment here.

We've been fascinated by the world of online custom suits for a while now, and we're just getting our feet wet. We tried a similar company ourselves, and we were blown away by the results. It certainly sold us on the gospel of custom clothing. Our friend Zach went the Indochino route for his wedding. And we gotta say: He looked like a million bucks.

But now, we'd like to hear what your experience is like—and you've got the chance to show us.

Here's the perk for you: We're hooking up one of you lucky dogs with a free suit from Indochino's "Essentials" collection. That's a $379 value. There are just a couple of rules.

• You've obviously gotta be able to get yourself to Chicago sometime between August 14 and 20.
• Tell us why you need this suit and how you're going to put it to good use. Do this by tweeting your answer to us @themidwestyle with the hashtags #SuitUpCHI and #MWSgiveaway (so we can get a bird's-eye  view of the entries.) It's important that we can get a hold of you so we can set you up with an appointment.
• One entry per person. We'll pick a random winner and get you outfitted.
• Contest ends on Sunday (August 12) at 11:59 p.m.

It also can't hurt to do some liking on Facebook (Midwestyle; Indochino) and some following on Twitter (@themidwestyle; @indochino). Good luck!

BOW TIE GIVEAWAY from AnnaRuna

We've been rocking bow ties lately to add some personality and character to our looks. (Hell, we've been doing that with accessories, bags, tie bars and other quirky pieces, too.) Something subtle or something with a statement—that's the key to finishing off an outfit. A bow tie is one such touch. Our Midwestern lady friend understands this and wants to help fellow gents (or ladies).

Shirting by Apolis Activism, cardigan by J.Crew and madras bow tie by AnnaRuna.

Her name is Anna, and she's going to be a senior at Mizzou this coming fall. She and Cam and I grew up cannon-balling at the Willow Farms swimming pool, eating copious amounts of salsa deckside at the Hastings house and shooting off fireworks in the suburbs in front of the Flemings curbside detonation zone each Fourth of July. She's talented, sweet, tall/Icelandic and Midwestern. (Did we mention beautiful? If not, beautiful.) She makes bow ties and neck ties. She's not an East Campus dweller (yet) but she's a frequent dance party fiend at the 516 boys' house.

So here's the situation: We want to give you one of Anna's bow ties from her Etsy shop: AnnaRuna. Here's how you can snag something fancy for your neck...

Simply:

1. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and/or Tumblr if haven't already. Don't forget to tell us which one(s) you chose.
2. Tell us who in your life needs a bow tie and why. If it's you, that's cool. If it's your brother, great. If you're a lady and want to rock some camo steeze with your chambray button down and floral skirt, that's cool too, Cary.

We'll pick randomly, (but really whichever one is the wittiest and makes us laugh the most). The giveaway will close on FRIDAY at 5 p.m. We'll announce the winner on Saturday via Twitter and a small blog post. Sounds simple, I know.

Pick one, any one. We'll send it to you.