Tag: fashion

IN BETWEEN SEASONS

Do fall, resort, spring or winter collections still matter in a day and age where global warming and climate changes are upon us? It’s April and the sun is shining but the wind is cold and the air feels harsh.
It could be the perfect day for a road trip around town; preferably in a car without a roof and grand speakers. On our bodies we wear, indeed, a fall/ winter collection. Shaun Samson’s handsome boys would most definitely fit the picture. Sitting on the hood of the cabrio, they would be honking at the ladies while rollin’ some weed.

Samson, a British- trained menswear designer, was born and raised in San Diego, California. Growing up between surfers, skaters and Mexican gang members, the inspiration for his last collection is home- based. In an interview Samson tells about the fashion statements and hair styles back then: “everyone was wearing black corduroy house slippers being worn with socks – even Birkenstocks! (…) It was really popular to have a shaved head with long fringe that you could comb back. You were even cooler if you had a tail, because that took a while to grow. I knew these Asian girls who bleached their hair and wore blue contacts, you know, to accentuate an Asian’s naturally blonde hair and blue eyes, ha.”

With the wind being below spring temperature but the sun trying to warm our faces, Samson proposes the perfect outfit for a day in between seasons. It contains lots of layers that can be adjusted and see through tops that could be worn with or without a buttoned up blouse. An absolute must though, is the bad boy face. Samson’s soundtrack- Masta Ace’s ‘Born to Roll’- could help getting you in just the right mood.

THE FUTURE OF FASHION BLOGGING

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to join the Firestarters Talkshow by Vodafone. One of the main questions we discussed was: Are fashion bloggers more powerful then certain big editors and journalists?

The current phenomenon fashion bloggers shouldn’t be something new to most people, but in case you haven’t heard of any, try googling the top notch: Bryan ‘Bryanboy’ Yambao, Diane ‘A Shaded View On Fashion’ Pernet, Pelayo ‘KateLovesMe’ Diaz, Scott ‘The Satorialist’ Schuman, Susanna ‘Stylebubble’ Lau, Tavi ‘StyleRookie’ Gevinson, Tommy ‘Jak&Jil’ Ton.

I have to add, blogging has been going on for years. When I look back at my own timeline of online posting and writing I remember a daily diary with added photos starting in 2000 through the website CU2, followed by PP2G, Myspace and eventually Blogspot in 2007. But what is it that turned online writing into the term blogging and eventually in a full-time job for some?

Take for example Bryanboy, the in Manila born blogger, who not only has a Louis Vuitton bag named after him, he is also living of the weekly posts – flying from one event to the other while sharing the inside information and sponsored brands with anyone online. Or how about Tommy Ton, the Canadian blogger who went from shooting people on the streets to shooting campaigns for clients such as Lane Crawford and becoming a contributing photographer to titels such as Vogue.

Maybe the most remarkable one is the young Tavi Gevinson, who was discovered at the age of 13 and recently modelled the cover of the 90th anniversary issue of the french L’Officiel. Question remaining: When did the big fashion bloggers became the new IT-celebrities?

The big editors and journalists are not in line when it comes down to the current hype, Purple Magazine’s editor Olivier Zahm mentioned to ‘hate them all’, meaning the front row sitting bloggers. While other editors such as Anna Wintour and Anna Dello Russo have both been a big support to the young talents. But what would someone like Cathy Horyn think? And most interesting, how much more influential and powerful are they really?

With Tumblr and Twitter being the new hype it appears that we choose quick and easy images and text over well written and photographed stories. We are in need of the latest information in the quickest way possible, choosing to read and see it from someone posting it first, instead of it being posted by one of the best.

So what after blogging? What if certain editors will be replaced by several bloggers? Or if some bloggers are asked to fill in a couple of pages a month the same way they once did for their blog? What will be the future, the blogger or the journalist? Or is the blogger perhaps the new journalist? Answers and opinions can be sent my way.

NOTE: Of course our own country has some well-known bloggers as well, don’t forget to visit afterDRK by Sabrina Meijer and CommeDesLeroi by Leroy Aznan.

EP!C MOONWALK

Moon Spoon Saloon could be best described as <3 0MFGL0L EP!C <3 + <3. Or, to put it differently: it’s the fashion brand of a digital hipster generation. For those who do not immediately understand what is meant by this term, check out this Tumblr, this Tumblr or this Tumblr. After Facebook and Twitter, where the persona and/ or branding of a specific person stands at the forefront, an anonymous Tumblr seems to be the next best thing for those at the frontiers of contemporary culture. The current trend on Tumblr can be described as spiritual atmospheres mixed with hysterical bright colored futuristic GIF animations. And that is exactly how Moon Spoons fashion looks like. Most noticeable are the fully printed and hysterically high, spacy, platform shoes. They are featured on Moon Spoons own Tumblr/ website in between inspiration images, past or present collections and videos of art performances. However there is loads to discover, it’s a not a very consumer friendly page. It means that whoever wants to know what exactly is the brands design and where it is for sale, should go find that out on their own. In a time where news and information are available instantly, it might be an inspiring challenge. It proves that how ‘t0tally rad’ or ‘ep!c crazy’ Moon Spoons platforms may look like on the surface, they sure walk to the exact beat of the zeitgeist.

Angelic versus Raw: Ilja Visser combines the best of both worlds

I’m sure you’ve heard about her by now: she’s not one to miss in the Dutch fashion industry. Ilja Visser has managed to keep up with the hectic world of big names and designers, turning her creations into lovely must haves for each and every budget.
This week, she presented us with not one, but two amazing fashion shows, all bringing together her beautiful vision of clothing. Her Couture AW11/12 collection, named Pluche, was dedicated to the world of politicians and formalities. Presenting daily routines in a whole new dimension, we wouldn’t mind having the huge black dress of crazy fur wrapped around our shoulders. Her Ready to Fish collection, called Desolation, was based on the movie Paris, Texas, making it look angelic, sweet and tough at the same time.
It makes me gain faith in fashion when it comes to a time where it’s quite hard to stay original. Besides: how cool is it that one woman managed to create this empire all by herself? I’d say it’s pretty darn cool.

FILM IS THE FUTURE

Gareth Pugh is one of the most fascinating creative minds at the moment. Glamcult and Mr. Pugh have one thing in common; we both think fashion film is the medium of today. Fashion film is still exciting in a way that fashion photography often isn’t these days.

Since Gareth’s first collection at London Fashion Week in 2005, his shows still draw standing ovations as he continues to blur the lines between high fashion and art. His vision was the antidote to the pared-down aesthetic of the previous decade.

Nowadays Gareth Pugh is also known for his breathtaking innovative fashion films, in collaboration with filmmaker Ruth Hogben. The films are translations of what is going on in the designer’s head; they allow you to get deeper into his inner world. The films are remarkably iconic and scream Gareth Pugh. They take each collection to a mysterious world of rectangular folded designs and body movement where climactic sounds touch your soul; it’s an explosive innovation to fashion films.

Finding needles in a haystack

written by Kalinka Hählen

It seems I’m much more inspired when travelling abroad. Once there, my eyes are drawn to the most wonderful clothes and brands, things that I can never get a hold of in Amsterdam.

I stock up on denim by MiH Jeans, the denim brand by Chloe Lonsdale, daughter of Tony Lonsdale, who was better known as ‘Blue Jean King’ and founded the famous British shop Jean Machine in the seventies, and of Chekkie Maskell, a then famous denim model. The brand is a reincarnation of Made in Heaven, a denimbrand that was founded in 1969 by Lonsdale’s Godfather and which was popular by the likes of Farrah Fawcett and Jane Birkin. MiH designs covetable jeans in a range of great fits and finishes: big thumbs up for the gamine The Breathless and classic cool The Boston. Dutch model Marloes Horst fronts the s/s 11 campaign.

While these jeans are a perfect stepping stone, I take it up a notch with the quirky and cool designs by Karen Walker, a New Zealand designer. Walker has been around for almost a decade, but remains relatively underground. She never fails to include a marl grey sweater and T-shirt with some remarkable graphics in her collections, which give her mostly loose fitting, cute, colourful and slightly retro designs a tough and offbeat edge.

The design ethos over at Casely-Hayford is inspiring as well. This menswear label is definitely not for the faint of heart – thanks to it’s remarkable prints and strong shapes – but manages to remain utterly stylish nonetheless.

Upon return I search for retailers in the Netherlands who carry those brands, hungry for more. Sometimes I do find the needles in the haystack. Turns out one need not travel abroad to get inspired. One needs to search better.

The ‘Must-Have’ Fashion Blog

As I write this piece on my iPad, I can’t help but think how Internet has changed the way we perceive and interact with fashion and the trends that follow. When I started blogging a few years back, the hottest fashion blog out there was The Satorialist, by Scott Schuman. It was a place where he shared the inspirations of the street with us, directly on our computers. As the years passed, it seemed every girl out there felt they could do the same, but with one twist. Instead of inspiring, they took pictures of themselves, telling us that what they were wearing was the must have item of the that season. Not only did they share their fashion musts, but also had to tell us every high-class party they attended.

What’s made this possible? The Internet, and the ever-evolving devices that facilitate this. As you can tell I am not really a big fan of blogs that don’t really have substance and tell a story, but as these sites grow in popularity, gaining front row seats a the worlds best fashion shows, it can’t be ignored that fashion has less become about the craftsmanship put into each piece, but about the superficial ‘One-day Trend.’

I even catch myself becoming a victim of this, but hope that one day we again celebrate the detail put into a piece of clothing, instead of celebrating its appearance on the next ‘Sex and the City.’

LA MAISON CHAMPS-ELYSEES BY MAISON MARTIN MARGIELA

‘Fashion’s invisible man’ Martin Margiela – known for his timeless designs with identity – leads a complete refurbishment of the property and re-design on the former Sofitel hotel.

The concept of La Maison was to develop a place to get away and have some rest and privacy.

The goal is clear; give guests the experience of having a luxurious city home. Margiela’s distinctive style will be clearly recognizable in the whole interior. With his signature as theme, he turns the building into a minimalistic white world where everything meets in perfect balance.

La Maison Champs-Elysées is located in a quiet place between the Avenue des Champs-Élysées and the River Seine. The hotel features 57 rooms, 6 suites and 5 junior suites and will open its doors towards the end of spring 2011.

APPLAUD FOR FASHIONS’ CREATIVE COLLABORATIONS

For years, we have all been dreaming of English chain stores like Topshop. Now our dream has come true. Topshop has set up a joint venture with SPMRKT, the Amsterdam concept store, with one branch on Rozengracht and another in the south of Amsterdam at Cornelus Schuytstraat.

Finally we are mixing cheap but super hip clothing with brands like Alexander Wang, Martin Magiela and Acne.

In times of “sustainism”, the credo is do more with less; creativity rules. So we mix our own wardrobes with new designer pieces or wear Prada shoes with Topshop dresses. Make your own creation by mixing cheap, vintage and expensive pieces.

At last, a store is going to give us a creative choice from different ingredients in terms of style and price. In fact, this is a big step for a chain store like Topshop and a very important signal to the retail world. Customers have been mixing all kind of styles for years, but this is the first time a shop like SPMRKT is combining expensive designer brands with hip young fashions.
Bravo! It makes me smile and gives me confidence that creativity will remain important in the retail world, indeed will be an imperative for survival.