19/04/2013

Coachella; The Heart of Boho Chic

The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is held annually in Indio, part of the California Desert. It features many music genres, including rock, indie, hip-hop and electronic vibes. The festival also includes visual arts including sculpture and installation art. Alongside the great music, Coachella is an event where some of the best dressed style icons hang out at all-night parties or by the pool dressed in Boho-chic style, and everyone is trying to out-do each other with the hippest style statements. With one weekend down, there is still this weekend for the festival goers to appear in their ultimate festival outfit.


Effortless style is what it’s all about, looking amazing but without looking like you have tried too hard. Think back to Kate Moss at Glastonbury when she waded through the mud in a pair of hunter boots teamed with a cut off sweater dress and studded belt; the hunter boot craze started. Other style icons since have included Alexa Chung, Agyness Deyn and Kate Bosworth. As well as these more obvious famous faces, the rest of the general festival goers make a pretty good job at looking ultra cool and manage to create some rather unique style statements.


Festivals such as Coachella are a gold pot for the design industry as this is where many new trends emerge. Bloggers, designers, stylists and fashion editors are all keen to grab the hottest trends storming from the festivals. You’ll be sure to see some of these looks following shortly after in fashion stores and magazines.

Tamsin Cook – Images from LA Times and Whomwhatwear (Guy Lowndes) 
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18/04/2013

Baylage, Ombré & Multi-tones: Colour Up!

When we wrote about this trend last year we reflected over its many ways of repetition and how large fashion houses kept on reinventing the trend in new manners. Therefore, when approaching the subject of hair trends again, it came as no surprise that roots, multi-tones and colour blushing were on the agenda again. Or should we say still?


Ombré or baylage, whatever you prefer to call the look, it’s definitely here to stay. Shimmering blondes leave their roots dark and even if carefully made by a hairdresser, it creates that careless look that doesn’t require much attention to make you look dashing on the streets. For an even more subtle feeling, the salons work with what they call colour blushing, which leaves you with a more undone and hazy look.

The Blogazine spoke with Leyla Dölen, the Technical Director at Toni&Guy in Stockholm to dig into the hairstyle trends this year. “You got it right with the baylage and colour blushing, it’s still trending. Colour blushing really is like adding a bit of blush to your hair!”. Leyla mentions colours as magnolia and jasmine in contrast with honeysuckle and pink champagne as new tones to the trend. “Colour definitely is this season’s ‘must-have’. Let it be baylage or multi-toned, but put colour on it. We are seeing expensively styled blondes, but also more distinct colour placements that draw inspiration from the graphic prints of Peter Pilotto and Alexander McQueen.”

For the ones who don’t want to go blonde or crazy coloured, Leila mentions high-shining brunettes and shimmering reds in earthy tones as an option. “We are mixing deep colours like horse-chestnut, honey, apricot dahlia, hazelnut and amber to still keep that multi-toned feeling.”

Whichever look one chooses to go for, with so many directions, interpretations and colours – can you go wrong?


Lisa Olsson Hjerpe – Special thanks to Toni&Guy 
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16/04/2013

From the Skies, Roads and Catwalks

From the Skies, Roads and Catwalks

“The weekend comes, my cycle hums, ready to race to you”, sang Pratt & McClain. It was a hit that defined an era, and a refrain that no one will ever forget, timeless Happy Days. In the hustle and bustle of seasonal trends, some garments, protagonists of the contemporary costume history, hardly lose their place of honor. Leather jacket is one of these.

Its invention is attributed to Manfred von Richthofen, the heroic German aviator known as the Red Baron. The first flying jacket was born during the first big war. But even if the inspiration came originally from the sky, it was truly the road that gave the jacket the imprint we know.


In the late 20s in America, a leather craftsman named Irving Schott decided to shorten the body of the flying jacket and to equip it with a zipper – three to be precise – and a belt: perfect for darting on a motorcycle. Its name, Perfecto, such as Schott’s favorite cigars. From the 40s the basic black jacket was acclaimed by sex symbols, the Hollywood stars: Marlon Brando, who wears it in the cult movie The Wild One, and James Dean. In the common imagination the leather jacket started to be associated to the idea of strong and unconventional masculinity.

With the years of protests and Flower Power, the leather jacket was properly placed in a wardrobe, but at the end of the 70s the musical Grease, set in a 50s American high school, dusted off the memory of this item.


The first who adopted the leather jacket as a uniform of irreverence were the musicians. Freddie Mercury, Robert Plant, Ramones and Sex Pistols, whose leader, Malcolm McLaren, with his superlative girlfriend, opened a store that became the symbol of fetish-oriented punk fashion in London. The shop was named Sex in the King’s Road and that girl was Vivienne Westwood.

The trend of leather jacket became a global phenomenon. In New York, Andy Warhol let his artist friends customize a jacket with decorations, symbols, designs and unique embroideries. Michael Jackson chose it for Thriller, while Madonna matched it on a stunning evening dress to accompany her husband Sean Penn at the premiere of his latest film. It appeared on red carpets as well as on catwalks. Mugler, Versace and Anna Sui reinvented the mythic item with studs, sequins and big zipper pullers.

But as always, history is made of twists and turns, and during the 90s the jacket came out the flow, fashion was looking elsewhere, to the Japanese minimalism and the squared aesthetics. But after the style recess at the change of the millennium, it returns on the spotlight. Shortened, studded, metallic, in crocodile leather. A revisitation of the 80s style. Certainly, if at the beginning leather jacket was in itself a symbol of independence and social freedom for body and mind, now it has become a wardrobe topic, which has retained only the superior layer of the mask of a rebel, only a hint of the true spirit icon.

Antonio Moscogiuri

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11/04/2013

Olympia Le-Tan – Quirky Intellectualism

During the last seasons, Olympia Le-Tan’s eponymous label and goofy pret-à-porter presentations have become a compulsory go-to during fashion weeks. If Ronnie Spector doesn’t turn up out of the blue singing ”Be My Baby”, the soundtrack from Sound of Music echoes through halls of Le Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature in Paris. Or perhaps the models will perform a Betty Pagesque striptease, you never know.

But prêt-a-porter aside, Le-Tan started out back in 2009 as an accessory designer. Since then, she has brought back the minaudière from its conservative right wing grave, and given it a spiffy intellectual twist. Clutches in the shape of book covers, accompanied by a respectful price tag. All of the pieces are hand sewn, numbered and limited to 16.

French cosmetic powerhouse Lancôme saw commercial potential in her work and launched a collaboration with the designer back in February: a clutch filled with various make up goodies. Though, looking at the price, we can maybe retract that commercial statement and position the result higher. The other week, the school girl theme was taken yet another step further when it was announced that Le-Tan had teamed up with Maison Kitsuné: a wool felt “K” badge in wide array of colors for those who strive to complete the boarding school look.



There’s also a more pop cultural element to her work: totes that fit the 7” records, for those who still happen to carry them around. “Ever since I did the book-clutch I have been hearing the question, ‘when are you doing a record cover clutch?’. The 7″ is my little history of black music, from jazz and blues to the girl groups of Phil Spector‘s wall of sound – my favorite genre.”

In April, a Nick Lowe’s “I love the sound of breaking glass” will be up for grabs through her online site. Why does it feel like we’re in for a round of quirky lunch boxes come fall?

Petter Köhler 
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11/04/2013

Punk: Chaos to Couture at MET

Punk: Chaos to Couture at MET

Every year the Costume Institute of New York organizes a big exhibition at MET, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, paying tribute to important names and/or movements belong to the past and the present of the fashion field. This year is the turn of Punk, arisen during 70s, strongly influencing fashion up until today.


The exhibition Punk: Chaos to Couture will juxtapose original vintage garments from punk era, and the various designers’ interpretations through time, divided into seven different rooms, classified by various themes. The first one will be dedicated to GBCB, a famous club in New York, with a significant emphasis on the famous singer, Richard Hell who was credited by Malcolm McLaren as inspirational for Sex Pistols. There will also be a section about Seditionaries, the London shop created by McLaren himself, together with his peer Vivienne Westwood; the couple that definitely helped the development of punk in terms of fashion. The third space will present all those designers that have contributed through ages in extending the visual language of this culture; Hussein Chalayan, Rodarte, Karl Lagerfeld and Rei Kawakubo to mention but a few.


The probably most interesting aspect of this combination, punk and fashion, is the fact that the punk culture itself, born as rebellious and aggressive, detests every form of authority, with no exceptions. It all started up as a protest against society, wearing, literally, all stuff one could find around, not following specific rules to be identified: random, often self-made clothes in a careless way to express their awkwardness. As an opposite, haute couture and Prêt-à-Porter follow the principles of made-to measure. Two parallel line, apparently very far from each other.

The exhibition Punk: Chaos to Couture will be open from May 9 until August 14. So, if you’re planning to be in New York for holidays this may be a place worth visiting. Get your hands also on the book about the entire concept by Andrew Bolton, the organizer and curator of MET’s Costume Institute.

Francesca Crippa

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08/04/2013

50s Fashion Comeback; Glamour or Rebellious Youth?

50s Fashion Comeback; Glamour or Rebellious Youth?

Sometimes it seems like every possible decade influences fashion trends, at times we may wonder when a trend comes back in, when did it leave in the first place, or did it just merge with another trend to create a new silhouette and style? 50s fashion influences are back on the scene, so how do they fit into the current trends – the 90s look, the grunge rock look and the clean functional sports trends, which are predominant on the streets and catwalks right now – this time around?


Contrary to these more masculine and androgynous looks there is a rebellious notion and a need for a more feminine and glamorous come back, after all, the 50s was a time when the female form was emphasized and complimented with the cuts and silhouettes of that time. The hour glass silhouette introduced by Dior, known as the New Look, was a reaction to the years of hardship and suffering following the two world wars where clothing was functional and basic. Women were ushered back to the kitchen and family life, and their clothing was to represent femininity and the perfect family home.

Around this era, although it originated from the late 1940s, there was the rebellious youth culture which was emerging from the conformist Britain and America. Rock and Roll music gained popularity as did the youth films of this time and Teddy Boys, Rockers and the Beat generation were born.


Interestingly now, you see the influences of both of these contrasting looks emerging into the trends; retro styling, print mixes such as animal print, polka dots and gingham checks, fitted and flared silhouettes and college style baseball jackets and biker jackets are all 50s inspired trends worn either in a glamorous feminine way or with an edgy and youthful twist.

Perhaps it’s a notion which reflects our fears and aspirations of present times due to the economic struggle and worries of tough times ahead; we look towards a time when a new prosperity was dawning, hoping that this may represent our own hopes and dreams for the future.

Tamsin Cook 

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05/04/2013

Daft Punk – Beyond the Music

Daft Punk – Beyond the Music

Daft Punk – everybody recognizes their huge influence in the electronic music scene, everybody knows they are about to release their fourth album “Random Access Memories” next May. But, do you ever question how their image has changed through time?

If you look at the very debut of their career they were unmasked, angry and pretty rock/grunge. It was 1993, and their aesthetic was a clash of music styles as well as of youth subculture-way of dressing. Then, in the mid to late nineties, came “the incognito”, and masks often popped up on their faces: whether they were Halloween masks or just post-produced blurred effect. Furthermore their infamous videos (Da funk, Fresh, Around the world) were full of costumes and grotesque masks.

As Martin Margiela teaches us: avoiding physical identification is a way to let your creative talk first, but also a way to feed the imaginary around your mysterious identity. The duo learnt the lesson fast, and during this period (the so called Homework album era) their style became clearer and much more minimal: they usually performed, still unmasked, but with military or working uniforms, or baseball varsity jackets.

Indeed it was just a matter of time: Daft Punk’s robot helmets made their first appearance with the album “Discovery” (1999). They were geometrical, minimal with rough shape, made by the LED FX Company, featuring a screen surface displaying texts, images and music patterns. This retro futuristic outfit was completed by metallic finger gloves. Without a doubt this proto/robotic look is somehow connected to the love they both share for the futuristic world created by manga/anime artists (as Leiji Matsumoto, who collaborated later with them for the movie “Interstella 5555″).


Looking back to it, what was eye-catching and peculiar, is the contrast between the technological helmets and the clothes they used to wear: Thomas Bangalter normally showed himself in a colorful shirt and a blue or grey casual suit without a tie, or with a classic B/W and a bow tie; Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, instead, often appeared in a very formal white vintage shirt with ruffles and a very informal double-breasted red leather trench on it, or once again, in a classic suit. This “casual/chic vs technologic” approach to the outfits slowly disappeared for the previously popular overalls/uniforms and later for full leather outfits; meanwhile the helmets started to have more designed, softer lines.

The small adjustments to the outfits became mature and visually very effective with the release of “Human After All” (2004) and their movie Electroma (2006). Very minimal helmets and fitted black (sometimes white) leather outfits; biker trousers were combined to a zipped rock perfecto, studded in the back with the band’s name. Rock and electro were the main influences on the album, and the outfits together with their attitude clearly reflected it. For their promotional “Alive” tour (2007) they asked Janet Hansen, the chief of Enlightened Design, an high technologic costume design company, to create two leather outfits with special LEDs glowing in the dark underling of their costume, as well as on their pyramidal stage setting. It was just like a visual premonition: in 2010 they produced the soundtrack and did a cameo in “Tron Legacy” movie.

Recently, after composing soundtracks for movies and short films (Irreversible, The void, First point), Thomas Bangalter put himself again behind the camera and created a promotional fashion film for the LA brand Co, starring his charming wife Elodie Bouchez; 03.31 seconds of visually sharp and clean material, with an emotive twist. After an interesting 3D editorial for the magazine Dazed & Confused (in 2010), wearing classic evening suit, the last effort of the French duo is a 15-minute edit of the blues legend Junior Kimbrough’s songs for the 2013 S/S YSL collection of their friend Hedi Slimane. Apparently the more the time passes by, the more Daft Punk get close to the fashion world. What they’ll come up next, we’ll see upon the new release in May!

Nicolò Parisi

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04/04/2013

Soul and Soles

Soul and Soles

Both brits, both famous for their soles and both sharing a part of their history with one each other: the shoe brands Solovair and Dr. Martens stands on common ground, yet, the perception of the brands are often diverse. Dr. Martens are worldwide known, even among non-wearers, while Solovair have kept their secret a bit more of a riddle. This is a story about two footwear brands hailing from a factory on the English countryside in Northamptonshire.

British, historical and qualitative leather are attributes you could apply to them both, but thereafter the perceptions part ways: despite their more sophisticated models, Dr. Martens has since long been seen as the rebels of the industry – the British working class hero using every crayon in the box. Solovair on the other hand brings the thoughts to leather manufacturing, British gentlemen and a traditional England. Comparing the two names as brands gives Dr. Martens a huge advantage in amount of time: over 50 years compared to Solovair’s barely 20. Though, if we take a step back and glance at the history we can understand where the touch of England comes from. In 1881, Northamptonshire Productive Society, more known as NPS, was founded as a co-operative in the little village of Wollaston and has ever since produced shoes. It is also here, in the late 1950’s, that the two brands originally met. The first pair of Dr. Martens boots was manufactured by NPS and for the 35 upcoming years the air-cushioned soles and British boot was going to be hand-made under the license “Dr. Martens by Solovair”.


When the two brands parted ways in 1995, Solovair stayed within the walls of NPS and formed a brand on its own while Dr. Martens conquered the world, and the world media. With famous brand ambassadors and collaborations, such as the name and face of Agyness Deyn, Dr. Martens has kept up the name as the loveable rebel, whereas Solovair have worked on the fellows. For example, one of their latest collaboration with brands happened with the menswear brand President’s, not yet released to the public, featuring British and Italian heritage and style, always coherent with the signature “sole of air”.

Whether you prefer asphalted streets or cobblestoned alleys, these two brands brings you more than a sole to walk on, but a soul and a history. Boot up!


Lisa Olsson Hjerpe

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04/04/2013

Sneakerstory

Sneakerstory

Most of the fashion images from last year to the day on street-style websites portrait sneakers; comfortable, fashionable and contemporary. What else? If you’re thinking about the trend, placing it to the 90s, you are only partially right. It really seems like a sport breeze – if you even can associate the modern day sneakers to sports anymore – is still blowing. But what about the first sneakers ever?

The very first rubber-soled shoes have been created in the late 19th century in US. Their were called plimsolls, and funny enough, there was no difference between the right or left foot shoe. A company from Connecticut was the first to claim the license for a new manufacturing process called vulcanization, discovered by the owner, Charles Goodyear. The process consists of using heat to melt rubber to fabric for a more permanent bond.


Around 1892 the first canvas sneakers were born, called Keds, being produced by U.S. Rubber Company. In twenty years Keds became very common, and they got the name sneaker from Henry Nelson McKinney, an advertising agent. They were so quiet that a person wearing them could sneak on someone. In 1917 Marquis Converse produced the first pair of shoes created specifically for basketball, the Converse All-Stars. Chuck Taylor, an Indiana hoops star, became their testimonial and made them definitely the best-selling basketball shoes of all time.

1924 was the time when sneakers became international. A man from Germany, named Adolf “Adi” Dassler, made a collection of shoes under a brand called Adidas, and after ten years his brother Rudolf started up another brand, Puma.

The long love affair between youth culture and sneakers started during the 50s, mainly thanks to the star of Rebel Without a Cause, James Dean who inspired a whole generation with his style. At the beginning of the 80s Sean Penn in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, helped Vans to achieve greater success wearing the famous slip-on model. The peak of all the sneaker history happened in 1984, when Michael Jordan signed a contract with Nike: does Air Jordan sound familiar to you?

And here we are, the 90s arrived and you have witnessed yourself how crucial it was to get a pair of sneakers back then, almost like it still is nowadays.

Francesca Crippa 

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28/03/2013

Minimalism at the Very Beginning

Minimalism at the Very Beginning

They say fashion is the mirror of the society, and if you have a fast look at the last fashion shows, you can easily understand that we are completely into an austerity mood, which is synonym for simple, strict and minimal. Minimalism got its chance to come back one more time on the main catwalks, and become again the way to dress up. Or down.

Majority of people have probably heard about big names such as Pierre Cardin, Jil Sander, Calvin Klein, Donna Karan and many others, but minimalism in fashion started its influence already a lot before these talents. Even if the term was coined around 1960, the real birth of the concept happened at the beginning of last century, before the World War I.

Talking about ancient Greek influences, many are used to indicate Madame Vionnet as the pioneer, although it was Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo, a versatile Spanish-Italian talent, to be the very first one who took inspirations from statues and hieroglyphs. Initially, he became popular for “Knossos” a certain model of scarves he created for a ballet. They were not minimalist as we intend the concept today, but their significance lies in representing an important step in terms of versatility and reuse of clothing.

In 1920, while Coco Chanel was creating her revolutionary comfortable clothes for women, Poiret was declining with his exotic way and the World War I was bringing Europe down, Fortuny launched Delphos dress. It was very simple in its own shape, composed of two panels of thin silk, cut out flat in a manner of kimono. Fortuny was the first to practice the all-important cultural fusion he got from sources taken up some decades later by Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto.

Through 1930s sober fashion made roots also overseas, thanks to fashion designers such as Claire McCardell, Vera Maxwell and Clare Potter who created leisurewear for working class. On one side there were Europeans, who sought to simplify the 20s female look and on the other, Americans, who tried to simplify the whole life of women. The probably most iconic example of this was Claire McCardell’s collection based on six garments, totally interchangeable, with the aim of giving women a complete and practical wardrobe.

In the XX century minimalism has been crucial in the field of fashion, adopting different ways for expressing itself. There is no specific sentence that can define minimalist approach in fashion; you can basically recognize it by the construction in which every single garment element is part of, an abolition of superfluous and functional characteristics. Less being more.

Francesca Crippa 

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