Madonna On Your Face

Questionable phrase to introduce this post but not totally misleading... The first summer rays of 2010 have been teasing their way through my window this week and so i thought it was time to bring you the latest from the world of designer sunglasses.

The big news is that trend-setter Madonna is putting her commerical weight (and tiny name tag) behind a new Dolce & Gabbana range that will go on sale this May – giving you a handy new option should there be a special birthday coming up.

The collection incorporates a distinctive letter ‘M’ (that will be for Madonna) on the arm and will retail for around £120. It’s the first co-branding venture Madge and the designer range have embarked on to date.

Look out for the advertising images for the MDGs that have been shot by Steven Klein in ‘fim noir’ style and starring – you guessed it – pop star and businesswoman, Madonna. Now all we need is for the sun to come out again...

http://www.dolcegabbana.com/

Gentry Quick Fix - Fred Perry x Raleigh Bike

Fred Perry will soon be opening their new online store as part of Zozotown.jp.  To celebrate the launch, they have gotten together with Raleigh to produce a limited edition bike. It comes in a classic English racing green colorway and a Brooks leather saddle. 

The bike drops along with the new online store on March 30th.

http://zozo.jp

YMC Navajo Style Knitwear

Navajo, or Dine as they call themselves, is the largest tribe of North American Indians, and by the looks of things they must have a inspiring style icon amongst them somewhere which has been aptly spotted by the clever design collective over at YMC.

The British brand have taken a classic Navajo style chunky knit cardigan  and added a YMC twist to ensure no criminal over-kill in design has been committed - my personal favorite knitwear piece for 2010 so far!

Available from  http://www.glassboutique.co.uk

Great Moustache!

Gentry quick-whip for all you tea and coffee lovers  - If you’ve been too tentative to join the recent moustache renaissance, the 15 great soup strainers on this mug could provide the necessary inspiration!


Priced at £6.99, www.lazyboneuk.com

Emboss-bag!

In an era when we are inundated with more and more “stuff”, it can be hard to remember what exactly each bag, compartment, pouch and case we own is actually for, turning the original concept of the accessory – convenience – on its head. 

Natalia Brilli’s new leather range, in which the proposed contents of her items are pressed into the façade of each bag, may well be the answer to this very modern dilemma. 

http://www.nataliabrilli.fr

Making A Spectacle

A new discovery has come upon us by the name of Orgreen, a spectacle brand from Copenhagen. There’s a lot to like about it, chief among which is that it’s a design-driven company that’s as interested in the quality of manufacture as it is in styling. 

To this end the shapes, colours and mix of materials leave one in no doubt about the dedication of the three founders, who include the eponymous Henrik Orgreen, to pushing forward with a wearable but contemporary aesthetic. This, however, is balanced by the fact that equal importance is placed on the quality of manufacture.

That’s why the frames are made by hand in Japan from materials that include acetate and titanium, which makes them surprisingly comfortable and light to wear. Production of the frames involves 100 separate operations, over the course of about six months. That makes it even more gruelling than the process of choosing a pair of frames from Orgreen’s vast range.

Style featured; Chill 29, Priced at £280 - available from The Eye Company: 020 7434 0988


http://www.orgreen.dk

Fred Perry Celebrates 100 Years

In celebration of the now 100-year-old quintessentially British brand, Oki Ni has launched a Fred Perry archive – an extensive personal collection of Fred Perry clothing and related memorabilia including a signed piece from the very first collaboration with Paul Weller, a Sixties inspired COMME des GARCONS track top and a 1964 edition of The Sunday Times, iconic for Mods the world over. 

http://www.oki-ni.com

MENSWEAR DAY London Fashion Week // Reviews

There’s a restless spirit at Number One Savile Row judging by the magpie tendencies of Gieves designer Frederik Willems. Rather than settle for a recognisably British look the collection had an international feel, with influences ranging from ultra-modern RAF Simons-style short duo-tone jackets to Fifties Havana in the form of elaborate printed silk shirts.


Eye-catching wine-coloured suits, with strong shoulders, were as close as Gieves & Hawkes got to classic tailoring. The standout pieces were a dandyish cream-coloured double-breasted over coat and a pair of low slung pleated leather trousers that were a major declaration that Gieves’ needn’t be constrained by its Savile Row origins.




http://www.gievesandhawkes.com

MENSWEAR DAY London Fashion Week // Reviews

TIM SOAR

The menswear designer showcased a collection that showed just how to execute signature luxury finishing, more  likely to been seen at the likes of Lanvin in Paris than on the runways of London's dedicated menswear day.

Tim Soar marked his confident design territory with a condensed yet perfectly concise 14 look collection entitled "Reassembly Of Past Things - Handsome", the starting point of which being a late Victorian dinner suit twisted  with Tim Soars personal 70s style, reminding us of what gentlemanly dressing used to be like way back when, and just how it should be in 2010. The collection was a well thought-out mix of boxy wool jackets - one of which displaying vintage-esq leather cuffs - over-wash blue denim becoming almost acid white, electric blue and salt and pepper knitwear, a secret sports jacket creeping into the show helping maintain the Tim Soar sports-lux DNA we have come to love.

Standout pieces included the sheer silk shirting, optioned in a crew-neck finish and with bib-front (a new must for AW10). No Tim Soar collection would be complete without a touch of leather seen lightly applied as applique to the knitwear. The colour palette was relatively sombre in black, camel, greys and vintage cream with the play on texture and fabric being the defining detail of Mr Soars continually impecaable collection.

http://www.soar-london.com

MENSWEAR DAY London Fashion Week // Reviews

Carolyn Massey

Inspired by ‘a body of military patterns sourced from an anonymous donor’ Massey takes military to the next level for AW10, including elbow patches and epaulettes on fine rib knits, military inspired jackets with round brass buttons and sturdy utility pockets.  Delicate hand-drawn prints were introduced for the first time, on shirts, whilst smudgy stripes in grey appeared on casual t-shirts.

It was the colour palette that was the surprising highlight, eschewing military khaki and the traditional red/navy/gold connotations the reference usually bring to mind, Massey instead opted for light putty shades, including pinks and nudes, which were tempered with shades of grey and matt black, creating an almost nostalgic, vintage feel to some of the pieces. Boxy leather tunics were worn over knits of the finest gauge, textured squares with a delicate sheen were the perfect complement to the luxury  fabric. The almost sparkly knit appeared again on an all in one grey jumpsuit, a garment certainly not designed for the faint-hearted. 

Layers were fastened with sharply shiny brooches, which recalled medals and badges, designed by Hannah Martin, whilst a collaboration with Tabio (the Japanese sock specialist) saw large fishnet socks worn under slim cropped trousers.  This attention to detail further distanced the collection from its grounding in military, but Massey’s skill allowed her to subtly recall traditional motifs, but in a fresh and contemporary way.

http://www.carolynmassey.com/

http://www.fashion156.com