N O V E L T Y / Charlie May aw13

Every season, my buddy Charlie completely blows me away with her new collections, collaborations and campaigns. But now she has really, really outdone herself. Behold some of the campaign images of her current autumn winter collection. Just today she launched her very own online shop( << click,click,click guys!) where you can get these pieces. Hurray for Charlie! So proud of her!

images by: Nicole Maria Winkler

N O V E L T Y / Mykro Magazine is Back

Do you remember Mykromag? Pioneer as the first true androgynous fashion magazine exclusively in black and white (2009). Founded by Sonny Groo who has had an incredible eye for what is now and has always managed to bring the most interesting features; Formicetti, Iris van Herpen, Guillame Henri, JW Anderson to name a few and also projects like a printed a set of books in collaboration with Rad Hourani.(If you’ve been reading my blog long enough you might remember that I also used to be a regular contributor to the Mykromag blog).

But the Black and white pages of Mykro (minus the mag) are back. With a small team based in Amsterdam they've made it happen after a two year break. It somewhat reminds me of interview magazine in the way that it shows a very personal and human side of the fashion industry. The 12 interviews in this issue include 91 year old Eileen Ford founder of Ford models, Tumblr 's Fashion evangelist (that's right, this is an official title) Valentine Uhovski, Esteban Cortezar and the iconic miss Daphne Guinness.

Mykro is a quarterly publication,
available at Colette, Paris and
Athenaeum, Amsterdam
Next issue will be launched during the first week of October.

N O V E L T Y / Finding the relevance of couture at Maison Martin Margiela

Haute Couture always felt like something very distant to me. Something that I'd only occasionally see presented on a dead plastic mannequin in a fashion exposition at a museum. Something that's only made for a small elite club from another era. Something that's so exclusive that it seems like it's taking place in a parallel universe to which we will never have access to. Though the reason why I love fashion so much is because it is so close to the body that it almost becomes a part of it, an extension of yourself, something that everyone must participates in and from which there is no escape. Haute Couture felt so untouchable and far away that I always regarded it more as art than as fashion. Basically I felt excluded and left out from it, not having a spare 10 grand to spend on a dress, not being a celebrity in need of a red carpet outfit and not having access to the intimate shows to see the garments in movement.

Attending the Maison Martin Margiela show forced me to think more about wether Haute Couture is still relevant in 2013. Yes we already know that it is about the detailing, the craftsmanship, the exclusivity, blablabla. But you never get to experience that by just seeing the collections through images, it just never comes through unless you see it in real life, in movement. I tell you, it is impressive.

I found how important Haute Couture can be for a house right now for many other reasons than selling clothes or having celebs wear garments (let's hope that Kanye never wears a Margiela mask again, to ironically, use it for its opposite purpose: getting attention instead of being anonymous). In The case of Maison Martin Margiela, who only have had couture collections for 3 seasons, it is a way to gain more freedom. Complete conceptual freedom, the design team gets to do whatever they want without thinking about sales or wearability. It's like going back to the core of the house. I have been told that some ideas that are too unwearable and get left out of the ready to wear lines are saved for the Couture shows. It is about showing what the maison is all about, what it is capable of, what techniques it can apply.

And as expected, Maison Martin Margiela broke all the rules of Haute Couture and send some worn down jeans down the runway. These were my favorite looks, paired with oversized collars and masks made out of large marble beads on bare skin. So simple yet so extravagant. Then there was the deconstructed and reconstructed vintage and antique garments; a 1950s prom dress, an Art Nouveau curtain and even some beadings from the Napoleon-era. Recuperating these vintage and antique pieces was such a respectful way to treat clothes, almost like an homage, making old clothes relevant again for the future. It could even be a statement from MMM connected to the relevance haute couture itself.

N O V E L T Y / Menswear, Neil Barrett ss14

I've almost grown to love menswear more than womenswear. Perhaps because menswear is somewhat more restricted, the silhouettes don't change every season as radically as they can in womenswear and it is focussed more on appreciating details, fabrics and tailoring. 'Trends' are much more subtle and individual pieces often much more classical.

I'm a huge fan of Neil Barrett's vision of spring summer 2014. Inspiration for the collection included the modernist work of Charles and Ray Eames, particularly the shape of the iconic curvy Eames chair. But also 1990s lumberjack plaid shirts, the red/black white/black kind. Barrett magnified the plaid pattern creating a larger, simplified block pattern. The last suited the Nirvana songs to which the boys walked down the runway so well. Besides the graphic prints, the garments were kept as clean as possible, all buttons, fasteners, zippers were hidden and jackets were held together with magnetic closures.

Although these clothes are literally the future and it'll be a year until we see them on the streets, it could have also been last years or next years collection. Like the Eames chair, designed more than 50 years ago but still fresh and modern as ever, I can't imagine this ever going out of style.

Images by Luca Campari
for Dazed Digital

R E P O R T / ArtEZ Beauty Shots

Never have I seen a person look this good in red lipstick as this beautiful androgynous creature that came down the runway at the ArtEZ show. Though after the show was finished, he took off the pvc suit he was showcasing but left on the matte red lipstick. Then when going for a backstage peek, one of Barbara Langendijk's models (more on her soon!) caught my eye with her thick black shiny hair in two ponytails, one clipped down with a minimalistic silver barrette.

N O V E L T Y / Harim Jung, Mini Interview

Photography, Dominik Tarabanski
Set Design, Zu Sb
Fashion Design, Harim Jung
Makeup, Francisca Saavedra
Hairstyle, Takayoshi Tsukisawa

Yesterday I stumbled upon these gorgeous images made by Polish photographer Dominik Tarabanski.
But what struck me the most were the designs by Parsons student Harim Jung. Specially the techniques she used to build her clothes is incredibly exciting: the technical way she deconstructed the
garments and worked with the patterns, layering them , leaving them loose from the rest of the garment and then applying beautiful luxe finishings like a metal gold strip.
It even reminded me a bit of the dress with layered patterns from Hussein Chalayan.
Harim has been selected as one of the 14 Parsons student for the Empowering Imagination competition, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for her!


/Update
Managed to contact Harim Jung (thank you anonymous for leaving a link to her website!) and she was so kind to answer a few questions:

/Can you please tell me a bit about the fabrics and materials that you used?
My inspiration first started from my high school uniform so I wanted the fabrics to carry the essence of it. The navy pieces were mainly wool fabrics, where as the white pieces were mainly cotton resembling the white shirt of the uniform. The brass is an additional element that comes from my experience back in high school where we couldn't wear any accessories due to the school's policy, so I designed the brass to accessorize the clothes rather than the body.

/What are your plans after graduation?
I would love to continue with my own work at the same time I am open to experiencing any opportunities that come in my way!

/In the style.com interview you mentioned that you'd like keep your garments accessible, how do you do that, do you keep functionality in mind a lot when designing?
Because the entire process of my thesis was very experimental, I didn't want to make clothes that people had a hard time wearing. The collection was about sharing my story, my memories, yet providing an experience for the wearer to create their own and interpret the pieces in their own way. I also focused on creating pieces for anyone to wear and have access to. Ultimately the goal was to to find a happy medium between the creativity and the accessibility

R E P O R T / J. JS Lee aw13

This London fashion week post is deliberately 3 months late.
At the time every single inch of digital fashion space was saturated by fashion week related images.
This was just to good to let it get lost in that sea of runway snapshots. Jackie JS Lee was my favorite show in London.

According to the papers on the benches on of the show, this was going to be a collection inspired by the African continent.
But as soon as the models came out it was clear that Jackie stepped far away from all the cliches involving african inspired fashion.
Instead she focussed on applying traditional african weaving techniques on her minimalist designs. Combining thick, robust loop knits with delicate fabrics
and incorporating bits of fluffy wool on top of the loafers and sandal-loafers. The show closed with four enormous box jackets in the thickest imaginable wool, too beautiful to capture well on camera.
I was lucky enough to get to meet the lovely Jackie herself and hear her explain about her urge to travel, and the way these trips inspire her.

N O V E L T Y / Topshop Unique aw 13, Backstage

The concrete tanks of the Tate modern in London were invaded by racks of clothing, rows of make up tables and it was swarming with the world's top models.(=Cara and Xiao!)
In between it all I was trying to make my way through and shoot some snapshots of the frocks and the girls.
This year Unique is yet again killing it with their coats and jackets. My favorite was that heavy oversized white, partly shearling leather one from look 27.
I would gladly go through winter wrapped in that delicious jacket.
But what most impressed me was the enormous amount of different kinds of techniques and fabrics applied in this collection, and how they all blended together so well.
From high tech fabrics, colored long sheepskin, patent leather, heavy matte black chains on the handbags, silks, prints, patches, etc.
Fingers crossed that in the manufacturing process they will stay as close as possible to these wonderful high quality samples we've seen on the runway.

N O V E L T Y / Low Classic SS13

More love for Low Classic. Their latest collection is about love letters and is now available at their online store, not that it matters though, because I can't read Korean and am guessing that they don't ship to Europe. But still, these images, the smart and minimal pieces, the styling, the love declarations cut out of leather skirts. If I'm ever in Seoul, the Low Classic store will be my very first thing to go to. Funnily I ordered a pair of very similar sandals a few days ago from Ebay.

N O V E L T Y / Menswear AW13 Favorites So far

1,2: Lee Roach, images via ArtWednesday and WWD
Absolutely love how basic this collection looks at first sight, but after studying it for a few minutes and looking beyond that amazing sharply cut white jacket, I discovered lots of subtle details and even some embellishment.

3: Richard Nicoll, image via WWD
A favorite because this is something that Justin Timberlake would have worn during his N*sync epoch.

4: Neil Barrett, unknown (please, if you know the proper credits let me know)
Fluffy, off white layers of pilled wool. There were only two looks in the entire collection in which Barrett used this material that almost makes you wonder if it is worn or used, I'm in love with this fabric.

N O V E L T Y / Eugénie

Behold the wonderful look book displaying the very first collection of New Zealand based label Eugénie. A Map covered with insulating material on the inside with several booklets and images attached.
I love the elements from the construction industry in the collection like the prints of insulating foam and wood, the oversized jackets that remind of some sort of work wear and the tool-case in the model's hand.

I was absolutely thrilled to hear that Love Aesthetics had in some way been useful the founder and head designer Liz Wilson. She wrote me that my hardware store jewelry sparked an idea of her own. Yes the hardware store is definitely the place to be! (By the way, that silver foil tape I used to put those images up on my wall is also from the hardware store's insulating department)

N O V E L T Y / Vogue 1998, Blanc Absolu

'Blanc Absolu'
Vogue Paris April 1998,
Photography: Mario Testino
Eva Herzigova styled by Carine Roitfeld

This is so beautiful I want to cry.
Thank you, people on the fashion spot for putting this stuff on the internet.

N O V E L T Y / Jacquemus ss/13

Today I stumbled upon the young, French label Jacquemus. Everything about it is so easy, so natural, so honest and so pure. Head designer and founder Simon Porte Jacquemus is only 21 years old. His collections are made up of simple ideas, often one fabric on an entire look. flipping Clicking through his lookbooks feels more like going through the personal photo album of a parisian girl in the early noughties. Simon, you've got a new fan.

N O V E L T Y / aw12 Mugler

for Twelv Magazine
photo: Jens Langkjaer
styling: Sohei Yoshida
clothes: aw12 Mugler
girls: Alys Hale, Gaby Loader, Hannah Cottam
YES. Such images makes me so happy.

N O V E L T Y / As Minimal As It Gets

Clear cuffs: DIY

'As little design as possible' Dieter Rams would definitely approve of this little piece of printing. There, on a high table in a Stockholm boutique, in between colorful magazine covers and accessories was this high pile of white squared papers. It was not clear at all what these papers were for, no brand name in sight, no images, just the words 'caring for wool' in a tiny typewriter font. The papers looked like they just came out of your own household printer and were stapled together. It could not get any more modest and than this. The (lack of) graphic design, the ultimate simplicity, to the point of this leaflet consisting of nothing more than some dry information, made it stand out, it made it so incredibly interesting that it made you want to pick it up to explore its purpose and content. Though some might see this as boring, I think that minimizing the visuals and graphics so much, taking simplicity so far is a bold and radical decision. I like it and it worked!

In case you too are now wondering who made this; it is a guide for taking care of wool garments, made by Tangent Garment care. You can also read the full guide online here.

N O V E L T Y / Osklen ss13

here's something interesting for you:
Osklen was founded in 1986, when a group of Brazilian snowboarding enthusiasts decided to climb the Aconcagua, the Americas' highest mountain. At the time, it was hard to find athletic clothing in Brazil that was suitable for extremely cold environments. Responding to this need, Oskar Metsavaht, a sports medicine specialist and one of the mountain climbers, created the Storm Tech System, a fabric permeable to transpiration and protective against cold, and designed a range of snow jackets. The climbing was broadcast on TV, and the clothes became famous. Later, in 1989, Metsavaht founded the Osklen brand and opened its first store. Though the company started out selling cold-weather clothing in, Rio de Janeiro, a warm-weather environment, in a few years, it expanded the product line into a 'lifestyle' fashion line that includes laid-back, surf-inspired aesthetics and an environmental focus.

Doesn't this collection make so much sense after reading this piece of history of the brand? Oh and how inspiring is it that Oskar Metsavaht has had no fashion or design education at all, yet has such a clear vision on clothes?

N O V E L T Y / Marques Almeida SS13

pictures taken by me and runway images courtesy of firstview.com

When I got to Sommerset House on that sunny Sunday morning and saw how empty the place was, it hit me that it was only 9.30 instead of 10.30 and I had forgotten to put my clock an hour back when arriving in London. The silver lining though was that I got to talk to all the designers who were not too busy at this hour. Highlight was meeting Marta Marques and Paulo Almeida, who were both chilling at a table besides their collection that they showed the previous day.

What I saw was a Nineties / early noughties feel, lot's of heavily frayed denim and raw unsewn edges. But much less of the extremely destroyed, trashed denim as seen in previous collections. It was a bit less grunge and a bit more -dare I say- girly. Ok, girly in the sense of: it would have been perfect for the sisters of my friends anno 1998, the ones that had a ring through their nose, a messy bedroom with piles of clothes and platform shoes on the floor and an ashtray next to the window.

N O V E L T Y / Paris ss13 - Favorites Collage

images: style.com

Whatever. While making this post I let go of taking into account; which collections are necessarily technically or conceptually the best or most original, who is following trends and who is most renewing. This time I'll just stick to the superficial criteria of; what would I want to wear right now. Some of the most beautiful garments fell off the list though(the put-this-on-my-body-on-any-random-morning-list); like the long gowns with sheer gloves at Maison Margiela, I would consider getting married just to have an excuse to purchase one of them. It was so uncomplicated and fun to make this little collage/personal mood board; I can almost hear my scissors and smell the glue even though I made it with photoshop. The result is surprisingly not much new for me; white, bombers, metal detailing, neck cuffs, transparency, low chignons and basics. Which is totally reassuring; fashion really seems to be slowing down and the collection of clothes I have built for myself is still very relevant.

fave hair and make up:
Givenchy's low chignon + middle parting
Margiela's messy hair and make up + diamond nose clips

fave footwear:
Celine's furry footwear
Givenchy's clear sandals with metal industrial looking heel

fave garments:
Giambattista Valli leather bomber
Maison Martin Margiela sheer suit, straight fitted leather dress with front slit
Givenchy layered loose suits, metal details and flap-skirts
Stella McCartney's minimal sheer bomber

N O V E L T Y / LFW SS13 Charlie May

The wine cellars of the Stafford hotel were packed with bloggers, online press and some buyers last Sunday in London Soho. Charlie May turned this old underground space with its rounded walls of white painted bricks into the setting of her very first runway show. All rows were completely full and along the sides of the entire cellar people were standing and even getting down on the floor to get a few good snapshots. I really liked this intimate event where we all got the chance to actually see the clothes from up close as opposed to the massive fashion shows where your sight gets blocked by the first rowers holding their i-pads in the air.
When the models finally stepped out of a narrow dark passage we saw that Charlie delivered exactly what has become signature to her brand; sharp shapes in soft flowing material, a killer biker jacket, tan leather details and golden zippers. YUM.

Charlie May is available at Bengt

N O V E L T Y / Alexander Wang ss13

images: courtesy of style.com

NYFW kept me up last night 'till 3 am. Though I love everyone's tweets about who they are having lunch with and what the editors and bloggers(I was in Pajama's if you cared to know) are wearing to the shows; I sacrificed a good night sleep for the clothes on the runway. When Alexander Wang's models appeared on my computer screen I had to gasp for air every time. It couldn't been more on spot. He literally torn apart basics and sportswear items like a leather baseball jacket and put them back together with invisible fishline making it appear as floating panels around the body. And even his little niece was wearing a floating leather dress.