For The Boys: A Shingle Thing

   

    With the label's recent retail inauguration on London's favorite sartorial street, it was all Savile Row hyper-tailored tradition at McQueen this season. That is, tradition with all of the witty twists one has come to expect from Burton. Crisp button shirts boasted exaggerated collars, ancestral pinstripes were given a new lease with cleverly concocted panelling, and a fantastic stained-glass jacquard almost mocked formalities, lending culture to the creation of a bold statement print. Not to mention the presence of some rather unsettling plastic 'killers' masks'..

    True, the collection may not have been as gasp-inducing as say, J.W. Anderson's audacious micro-mini shifts, but it held true to the Alexander aesthetic: impeccable tailoring with a hint of dextrous darkness. 

    Which brings us to the perfection of the cinematic gothic glamour of the styling. Lensed back stage by Another's Alina Negoita, we get a good ogle of hair maven Guido Palau's neo-shingle and the magnetic noir of this season's maquillage... 

    

       








































...of which, along with the boudoir-to-business layering of suit jacket over house robe, I am hoping, but perhaps not truly anticipating to see adopted on the street in the fall to come.

A Cure For Your Case

 

    Hold yer huff all ye Garfields out there, and rise up from your weekend-end woes; this Monday was a delight. Not only did it see the debut of London Collection's second season of menswear, but delectation aplenty from New York's fashion finest Pre-Fall presentations. So much goodness, the afflictions of a long and brackish day of work are all but forgotten. So be healed and behold some of today's gems... 

    According to Philo, it was "Dressing up in a romantic, traditional way," at CELINE, but I would beg to differ on that last bit. No qualms here though, because in any case it was a dime of a collection. The deliciously easy slack of a wide-legged trouser, the crisply tailored volume play of a pant-suit, the reinvented resurgence of a familiar peplum, and capacious textured coats...worth a thousand Monday wake-up calls. 

 

    Signature exaggerations of proportion and volume were reflections of the cumbersomely padded look of Swedish winter wares at ACNE STUDIOS. Taking inspiration from portraits of renowned Swedish artist August Strindberg, and then (true to Acne form) generally amplifying, the collection saw voluminous A-line silhouettes, the return of the vast bell sleeve, and a rather fantastic Dalmatian type printed ensemble. 

      Finishing up with the boys (because what better way to send you off to your Monday night slumbers), I bestow upon your eyeballs the wonders of MAN's CRAIG GREEN. His carpentry skills may have been a little more, shall we say, haphazard than in his house frame-working days at Saint Martins', but his collection was without a doubt the standout the show. Deriving a utilitarian aesthetic from blue-collar workwear and labour uniforms (see tough-looking fabrics, fraying knits, and boxy silhouettes), Green worked in elements of novelty through hyper-crinkle fabric and glimmer panels on shirt-fronts. Derangements of painted wooden slats shrouded faces and completed the fantastically honed deftness for DIY that the fashion crowd has come to know and love of this up-and-comer. Here's an enthusiastic YEA! for the notion that next season sees a fully eponymous Craig Green showing...

    Alas, I must end here...having your faith in the most hated day of the week restored is tiring business. More and more runway pleasures coming your way and getting you through the rest of the work week though as the Pre-Fall and Fall presentations sashay on.

Happy Monday to you!

LAURENCE airline

    It's always exciting to see a new creative talent on the rise, but what of an entire culture? At the beginning of the month, ARISE magazine once again played host to leagues of Nigerian Fashion Week style scouts for a celebration of African derived talents. In its second year, ARISE Fashion Week displayed designers from within and without the continent who found inspiration in African culture. Many a delightfully patterned catwalk was to be seen, but a personal favorite was Cote d'Ivoire couturier Laurence Chauvin Buthaud of Laurence Airline...

    Working with Ivory Coast craftsmen and women for the fabrication of his garments, Laurence is striving to prove that "fashion and cultures can successfully collaborate to create possibilities for the future." And what a future it shall be. In the creation of these street style gems, Buthaud is building a base for an economy in a community that has been struggling with violence and political unrest for a decade. Currently, the designer is working on plans for a learning space where youth will be taught fashion skills such as sewing and knitting. 

 And so, you go Laurence Airlines, you look fly, and you help pull a community out of the economic pits. I believe what we have here is a win-win kind of deal...

NYFW: Timo Weiland

    The "adventure and exoticism of the post-punk era New York City" met 90s grunge at Timo Weiland, setting forth long layers, plaids, and velvet. A recent partnership with Saga Furs saw to lush fox and raccoon pelt accents on jackets...

    Particularly in love with the layering of sweater over gowns, a certain floor dusting vest, and the boys in their two-toned button-ups. Ain't they cute!

Full collection/review on style.com

NYFW: Band of Outsiders

    

    New York Fashion Week is in full swing, and wearability seems to have been a central theme for most shows thus far. Which, although can leave our appetites for the daring and fantastic a bit wanting, it nonetheless has provided us with some great pieces to look forward to for the autumn/winter season to come.

    So, why not start with a laid-back favorite? Taking us from the rolling plains of the American Southwest, and down to Mexico, Scott Sternberg of Band of Outsiders presented wholesome must-haves that appealed to the inner nomadic rancher. For the boys; rustic quilted jackets, ticking, Oaxacan-inspired iconography, and some pretty stellar dust-kicking boots. Pour les filles; micro floral prints, prairie-sweeping frocks, luscious fur elements, and a stunning jumpsuit pleasantly reminiscent of a onesie thermal sleeper... 

     Hasta Luego for now friends. Stay tuned for more NYFW delights!

Full collection and review on style.com