Surface To Air comes to New York
Posted: September 9, 2011 Filed under: autumn/winter, easy style, fashion and art, New York, retail | Tags: fashion, Federico Masotto, Jérémie Rozan, Kid Cudi, Leigh Lezark, Mr Rager, Surface To Air 2 Comments »On Wednesday night French brand Surface To Air opened their first stand-alone store in the US. I went to check out the space and, as a fan of the brand since my days at Browns, to ogle the autumn collection.
Accessories display at Surface To Air's New York store
The store was designed by architect Federico Masotto and reflects Surface To Air’s aesthetic by using materials such as marble, concrete, wood and slate. To the left, the menswear section is outfitted in black marble, while the women’s area down the right of the shop features a whitewashed brick wall. A huge slab of concrete in the middle serves as a display for accessories (there’s also a jewellery display hidden in the back) and modern seating furniture completes the look. The overall design is the perfect mixture between gritty and sleek and works very well within its New York setting.
Kid Cudi in Jérémie Rozan's video 'Mr. Rager'
Next door a video directed by Surface To Air founder Jérémie Rozan featuring Kid Cudi and the S2AxKid Cudi leather jackets played. The rapper and actor fights a gang wearing his jackets to his song ‘Mr. Rager’. To be perfectly honest, I still have no idea what was going on in that video apart from the collaboration being promoted. Visually, the short film is very interesting and beautifully shot. My personal feeling, however, was that it was a bit style over substance. But do you know what Kid Cudi looks like? Exactly. That’s why I’m really not complaining at all.
What I'd like to borrow from the boys
Wishlist item #1: red leggings
Wishlist item #2: red wedge booties
Lastly, the autumn collection. As always on this blog, I’ll ignore the menswear for the most part. This is because as a stylist I rarely do menswear which results in me not knowing enough to comment. There also may or may not be a discrepancy in interest between the two. To put it in the proverbial nutshell: I WANT IT ALL! Pretty much. Just like previous collections this one consists of pieces that are basic and a bit tough at the same time. There’s not much print, which I personally like, but lots of texture otherwise. Red is not a colour I wear that much (mentally going through my closet, no, nope, not a single piece) but I desperately fell in love with red leggings with leather appliqué and a pair of red wedge booties. I also found their hammered silk dresses lovely, as well as a beige coat that I didn’t manage to photograph well enough to post, unfortunately.
Surface To Air boots: Yes, please!
Surface To Air shoe designed by Leigh Lezark
Time to get ready for Bloggers’ Night Out now! It’s still a bit unreal that apparently I’m a blogger now. When exactly did that happen?
Don’t forget to check out the new Surface To Air store at 27 Mercer Street, New York!
Katherine Hooker – Taking the Show on the Road
Posted: August 23, 2011 Filed under: classics re-imagined, London, retail, trends | Tags: British heritage, fashion, Katherine Hooker, New York, trunk show 1 Comment »
Winter Cape coat, soft olive green cashmere and merino twill with faint ochre and burgundy overcheck
In less than two weeks, British designer Katherine Hooker will start touring the US with her autumn trunk show! This year’s tour kicks off in Wyoming before moving on to California and Illinois and finally reaching the East Coast with sales in New York on September 14th, 15th and 16th (the tour continues after that).
Katherine offers a unique mix of tailoring and a sense of British heritage with unexpected details and more exotic influences acquired through a childhood spent in Cyprus and Africa. Her pieces are perfect for autumn’s heritage trend. On first glance, they may seem rather traditional but it soon becomes obvious that an unexpected material or an unusually cut collar make these coats and jackets far more interesting and versatile.
Left: Clifford coat, two tone sage and olive Shetland felt, Right: Scooter jacket, sky blue and taupe herringbone Harris Tweed
Here’s the full schedule of the Katherine Hooker US trunk show (at press time):
AUGUST 31st, SEPTEMBER 1st & 2nd
Goodie 2 Shoes, 81 Kings Highway, Jackson, WY 83001
10am – 5pm
SEPTEMBER 6th & 7th
The London Hotel, 1020 N. San Vicente BoulevardWest Hollywood, CA 90069
Tuesday: 4 – 8pm & Wednesday: 10am – 8pm
SEPTEMBER 8th
The Gebert Gallery, 1345 Abbot Kinney Boulevard, Venice, CA 90291
11am – 7pm
SEPTEMBER 9th & 10th
At the home of Sonia McArdle, 1511 North Astor Place, Chicago, IL 60610
Friday: 4 – 8pm & Saturday: 10am – 4pm
SEPTEMBER 14th & 15th
Peter Elliot Women, 1071 Madison Avenue (at 81st St), New York, NY 10028
10am – 6pm
SEPTEMBER 16th
The Loews-Regency Hotel, 540 Park Avenue (at 61st St), New York, NY 10065
9am – 8pm
SEPTEMBER 18th
At the home of Leslie Adam, 55 Pinckney Street, Boston, MA 02114
Time TBD
WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 26th
San Francisco, CA
Santa Barbara, CA
Locations TBD
OCTOBER 13th
At the home of Julie Clemente, 6908 Benjamin Street, McLean, VA 22101
4 – 8pm
OCTOBER 14th & 15th
At the home of Martha Richardson, 2241 48th Street NW, Washington, DC 20007
Time TBD
OCTOBER 17th
Philadelphia, PA
Location TBD
OCTOBER 19th & 20th
Dallas, TX
Location TBD
For more information on Katherine Hooker, an up-to-date version of her trunk show schedule, and stockists, please visit katherinehooker.com.
Mary Portas: reshaping the retail landscape
Posted: August 19, 2011 Filed under: bags, easy style, London, retail, shopping the highstreet | Tags: Cinnamon Creative, Clarks, fashion, House of Frasier, Karen Cinnamon, Mary & House of Frasier, Mary Portas, Radley, Whistles 5 Comments »Mary Portas’ new shop at House of Fraser opened yesterday, in the department store’s Oxford Street flagship. The aim is to cover a market that is both obvious and badly served: the over 40s. Inspired by her own frustration with how women of that age group are treated by the industry – they pretty much become invisible – Mary took matters into her own hands. Expect a mix of clothes designed by Mary herself, edits from her favourite High Street brands like Whistles and a handful of collaborations with brands like Clarks and Radley. And it’s the Radley collaboration that has caught my eye.
Compton: a slouchy tassled hobo
Holloway: an easy to carry cross body saddle bag
Gracefield: a boxy grab or shoulder grab
Shopper: a contemporary and functional tote
Mary worked with the British brand on a limited edition handbag collection that comprises four ranges: Compton is a rather trendy tassled hobo, Holloway an easy to carry cross body saddle bag, Gracefield is a boxy classic, and Shopper is a functional tote. Every bag is made of beautiful leather and sports exceptional detailing such as heavy stitching, bombardier piping, oversized zip pulls, and hand woven tassel fringing. Some models are available in goes-with-everything black but I love the more colourful ones. Orange is obviously a colour of strategic importance in this case but I think it will be great to brighten up any outfit, too. There’s also plenty of middleground with brown, blue, teal and cream. The range truely offers something for everyone.
The line is available at ‘Mary & House of Fraser’ on Oxford Street, www.radley.co.uk and the microsite www.houseoffraser.co.uk/MaryPortas. The later happens to be designed by my friend Karen Cinnamon of Cinnamon Creative. She is a very talented graphic designer and branding expert who has worked with New Look, Marks & Spencer, organic clothing line Saf, London Fashion Weekend and many more. With all that retail & fashion experience she was definitely a great choice and I love the final product.
Better late than never: Karl Lagerfeld for Macy’s
Posted: August 16, 2011 Filed under: retail, style icons, trends | Tags: Chanel, fashion, Karl Lagerfeld, Macy's, Mad Men, tweed 2 Comments »This probably comes a bit late… I went to the launch of Karl Lagerfeld’s collection for Macy’s almost two weeks ago and images have been all over the internet ever since. Sadly, the Kaiser himself was not in attendance but the PR company kindly took steps to make his presence felt:
I'm not here!
I liked that the collection featured typical Karl-isms like tweed, high collars and monochromatic colour schemes. That’s exactly what I would want from a Lagerfeld diffusion line. The prints he designed are gorgeous, too. People have asked me about the quality of the clothes and I think it’s pretty good. Obviously, not the most expensive materials were used but dresses are fully lined and seams appeared straight and sturdy. The tweed looked particularly good and the leather pieces were surprisingly nice to the touch.
Seams and pleats
The collection will hit stores on August 31st and prices will range from $50 (for a t-shirt) to $170.
Karl-isms: a short suit that many people at the launch seemed to love, a very classic shift dress and shorts - all in tweed
The dresses: a girl version of Karl's signature stand-up collar, pretty prints were applied to dresses and blouses, a simple shift dress for this season's Mad Men trend
Set your reminders and log on to macys.com on the 31st!
Summer Sales – BROWNS Edit
Posted: June 24, 2011 Filed under: emerging designers, London, retail, shoes, summer sale | Tags: Alexander Wang, Bionda Castana, Browns, Christopher Kane, David Koma, fashion, Future Collectables, Maison Martin Margiela, Mark Davis, Osman Yousefzada, Sonia Rykiel Leave a comment »
BIONDA CASTANA Tia suede heels was £425 now £210, OSMAN YOUSEFZADA Crystal bib dress was £1,070 now £535, MARK DAVIS Jane Bakelite bangle with orange topaz was £705 now £420, CHRISTOPHER KANE shoes with gems was £1,525 now £765
Save the best for last, right? When it come to Browns, I may be biased. I interned there and it really is fantastic what the relatively small team achieves. Compared to their competitors, they seem more adventurous to me, both, in terms of the brands that they buy and the individual pieces they choose from those collections. Granted, they have a whole shop (Focus) dedicated to young designers which probably accounts for their high representation on the website. But still, Browns likes to take risks and nurture up-and-coming talent.
DAVID KOMA one shouldered dress was £1,160 now £700, ALEXANDER WANG Addison platform boot was £665 now £335, FUTURE COLLECTABLES Sonia Rykiel Knitted dress with lips was £890 now £180, MAISON MARTIN MARGIELA leather and suede hi-tops £380 now £225
See? Amazing, right. I won’t go much into detail but I will say that those Margiela hi-tops and the Osman Yousefzada dress are very high on my personal wishlist.
It’s a wrap! This is my last post on the summer 2011 sales. Pretty sure some of you thought this would go on forever.
Future Collectables Sonia Rykiel dress
Maison Martin Margiela hi-tops
Summer Sales – MATCHES Edit
Posted: June 24, 2011 Filed under: accessories, retail, shoes, summer sale | Tags: Acne, Balenciaga, Erdem, fashion, Matches, Tabitha Simmons Leave a comment »
ACNE suede wedge ankle boots were £430 now £258, BALENCIAGA crepe volume trousers were £575 now £287, ERDEM Alula long skirt was £665 now £399, TABITHA SIMMONS linen silk stripe sandals were £705 now £493
Ah, and we’ve crawled our way up to high end boutiques! Let’s not waste our time and cash on basics here, let’s go for the fancy stuff. Matches is another case of excellent accessories for me. Especially the shoe selection is impressive this season. But shoes are a good sales choice anyway. We all know of the transformative powers they hold over an outfit and they don’t usually go out of style too quickly. Which means you’ll wear them over and over again. The first one is by Acne and is exactly what you would expect from them. They made a wedge cool again, didn’t they? I like the attached suspenders on the Balenciaga trouser. It’s menswear inspired but unmistakably cut for a woman. I’ve been going on about Erdem for ages now. And as I happen to be into long skirts at the moment, this piece is a match made in heaven. It will look effortlessly chic with a simple jumper and hair pulled back. Stylist turned designer Tabitha Simmons makes some of the most ravishing shoes out there. They are very distinct looking and always very feminine. Check out her work if you haven’t already.
Summer Sales – SANDRO Edit
Posted: June 24, 2011 Filed under: accessories, bags, easy style, retail, shoes, summer sale | Tags: Abstrait, Accordeon, Arbi, fashion, Regne, Sandro Paris Leave a comment »
Arbi boots were €395 now €276.5, Règne dress was €175 now €122.5, Accordéon belt was €95 now €76, Abstrait bag was €195 now €136.5
Running back to the other end of the spectrum, let’s have a look what French label Sandro has to offer. Here it seems to be all about accessories for me. I love the neutrals which are very current and every piece has interesting detailing.
Summer Sales – ALL SAINTS Edit
Posted: June 24, 2011 Filed under: retail, rock 'n' roll, shoes, shopping the highstreet, summer sale | Tags: Agena, All Saints, Bell, fashion, Kei, Theta Leave a comment »
Agena dress was £65 now £45.50, Bell maxi skirt was £45 now £22.50, Theta heel was £165 now £115.50, Kei dress was £165 now £82.50
A few more updates from me before you run out tomorrow morning to battle it out with the masses. What would I do without All Saints? They just make my little black heart sing. As you might have gathered, I love dark, edgy stuff but I don’t want to look like a teenage goth from Camden High Street either. All Saints fulfills all this. There’s always a fair amount of draping and black and grey and boots and deconstruction. All for a reasonable price. I love that even when they do colour, they work with tones I can get behind because they are so muted. This time I won’t get into why I like each individual piece that I’ve picked. They all just represent what I like about the brand and generally go very well with my personal aesthetics. That’s all 
Summer Sales – WHISTLES Edit
Posted: June 23, 2011 Filed under: retail, shoes, shopping the highstreet, summer sale | Tags: Adelsha, fashion, Fregene, Gaby, Olivier Theyskens, Rick Owens, Roxanne, See by Chloe, Whistles Leave a comment »
Adelsha military jumper was £85 now £45, Roxanne peplum frill skirt was £125 now £60, Gaby plain rayon jumper was £80 now £40, See by Chloe Fregene open toe was £290 now £190
Right, to cap the day off, let’s see what tickles my fancy at Whistles:
I have yet to meet a military inspired piece of clothing I don’t like and this jumper is no exception. I love the slim cut and the subtle button detail. Perfect for a slightly chilly summer night or indeed a cloudy day. The peplum skirt seems to foreshadow what I think will be another trend for early 2012. Alexander McQueen just showed a collection chock-full of peplum skrits (although theirs are much longer) which should be enough to kick off variations on the theme. The Gaby jumper seems very light and a lovely cover-up for slightly cooler temperatures. The shoes. Hm. I seem to have missed something. Since when does Whistles stock See by Chloe? They’re great. The perfect level of chunkiness. The ankle strap is unusual and interesting. Kind of reminiscent of Rick Owens. I think they’d be nice with Olivier Theyskens’ slouchy trousers and cropped tops.
***Please be patient with those links. Whistles is great, their website is fun but it’s also quite hard to work with.***
Summer Sales – REISS Edit
Posted: June 23, 2011 Filed under: bags, retail, shopping the highstreet, summer sale | Tags: Duke, fashion, Gabby, Python, Reiss 1 Comment »
GABBY over size silk top was £95 now £47, DUKE canvas shoulder bag was £149 now £89, PYTHON mesh tank was £89 now £53
I’m on a roll, people! Churning out posts like nobody’s business. Reiss is another firm favourite of mine and it was almost Zara-difficult to edit down what’s on offer. But ultimately, I ended up loving the following:
The cream and black Gabby top looks light and loose enough to wear in the heat. I’m in New York now where the temperature has dictated what I can and cannot wear for weeks now. It will look laid-back yet put together with denim cut-offs, a straw fedora and gladiator sandals. The canvas bag in the middle of the picture is structured yet looks light and summery. The pink top I’d team up with nude tones to jazz up an otherwise monochromatic outfit which is a major trend this summer.
