Fashion
New York Compressed: A 6 Hr Food & Fashion Tour
Earlier this week, I had a whirlwind 6 hours in New York city. I took the train into Grand Central and then walked (ok, ran) a solid 5 miles amongst the sun, crowds, farmers’ markets and freshly pressed Autumn collections. I stopped for lunch in Korea town, browsed Mario Batali’s food wonderland at Eataly, tried on perfumes and necklaces at ABC carpet, bought some vegetables in Union Square, and then headed to Soho for my customary stops at the IF Boutique, Morgane le Fay, Loopy Mango, Isabel Marant, Rag & Bone, Barbara Bui and Shoe....
read moreZelda Kaplan: a brilliant star & unparalleled inspiration
Zelda Kaplan, a brilliant 95-year-old New York socialite, died last month after collapsing in her customary front row seat at Fashion Week; the story of her exit was true to the story of the rest of her life: she was a dramatic fixture and self-invented character who always surrounded by friends, art and beauty. Although New York fashion lovers have long been aware of Zelda’s colorful presence throughout the city, I think that many people in the rest of the country / world didn’t become aware of her until news broke of...
read moreDavid Bailey Discusses Lady Gaga
I just came across this mini story by famed British fashion photographer David Bailey. Apparently, he recently canceled a photo session with Lady Gaga because, as he explains to the Telegraph, “there were too many rumours about her storming out and being silly. And I can’t be bothered. If she can sing, why wear funny clothes? Ella Fitzgerald never wore funny clothes.” In Lady Gaga’s defense, I am a fan of her unapologetic outlandishness so far as it sends the message that it’s socially acceptable (even...
read moreDIY: Wrapped Tribal Necklaces
Marra Hoffman, SS2012 (image from ecouterre) Since seeing Mara Hoffman‘s SS2012 collection, featuring the incredible hand-crafted jewelry by Holst & Lee, I’ve been obsessed by this modern take on African friendship necklaces (essentially, a rope necklace with hundreds of little thread-knots around it that form a block of color). Unfortunately, the necklaces from Holst & Lee are a bit out of my price range (approx $500 each), but I’ve found two articles that show how you can make your own version. I started...
read moreForget Everything You Know About Paper
Ana Hagopian is a jeweler who modifies paper to create volume, and nature-inspired shapes. Despite the physical fragility of these pieces, they are dynamic, avant garde and provocative. Ana remarks on this contrast in the bio on her site: “My source of inspiration is nature and its infinite creations, its limitless colours, its surprising textures. paper is contradictory, provocative and humble because it is ephemeral. using it as a material has its roots in the philosophy of arte povera, which restores the value of the idea,...
read moreBragia: Hand Dying, Silken Origami and Rock & Roll Styling
Bragia (Milan) designers Alessandra Torella and Santo Costanzo say that for their Spring 2011 collection, they were most inspired by Japanese landscapes, colors and decorations. Showing origami tops, kimono-inspired wraps, and nature-inspired color gradients, the line is feminine, refined and even a bit fierce looking— a very difficult combination to pull off successfully. Their clothes are pretty difficult to find in the US. Fortunately, Farfetch.com, Yoox.com and Luisaviaroma.com carry a small selection of this fabulous label. Here...
read moreIxos: Spring/Summer 2012 Collection
I don’t know much about Ixos, other than that their shoe showroom (and design studios) are based out of Milan, their footwear is nearly impossible to find in the US, and is absolutely gorgeous. Every season, they craft magnificent footwear out of quality naturally-dyed leathers, and I basically fawn over them for about six months (searching daily for them on Ebay) until they release another spectacular lineup. For years, Head Start Shoes (in Philadelphia) has owned the US distribution rights for Ixos, which means that they’re...
read moreBurberry Prorsum Fall / Winter 2012
The Latin word “prorsum,” meaning “forwards,” was first added to the Burberry Equestrian Knight Logo in 1901. It’s an apt name for the brand’s most luxurious runway line, which under Christopher Bailey’s keen direction, consistently lives up to it’s definition— nodding to legendary tartans while showing consistently modern, punk opulence. Stylesequel quotes Bailey as saying “I’m a very down-to-earth designer in the sense that I love that mix of really classic, traditional, historical design with real fashion.” In 2001,...
read moreAshish: Fall / Winter Runway Review
Meet Ashul, the androgynous 35-yr-old who was conceived in a marijuana den by a former disco queen and one of the Loadies/grassy-knoll occupants from the movie Clueless. She is a happy anti-establishmentarian with an IQ of 180— an intelligence she’s gained throughout schooling across 3 continents and 4 decades. During this time, she’s built quite the fashion archives, which she likes to flaunt all at once, hence the wonky layering. The pictures above were taken at a show in which 37 models, styled in Ashul’s...
read moreA Few Questions for Jonathan Saunders…
Here’s a great mini interview with British designer and 2011 British Fashion Council Fashion nominee Jonathan Saunders. What’s the inspiration behind your first pre-fall line? I usually work with a lot of color and pattern and textures and that’s kind of always been at the core of what we do in the collection. [For] Pre-fall, the silhouettes are quite feminine and soft so it’s kind of like early sixties, which feels good after spring being very bright colors – this is a good move forward. The prints are...
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