www.55dsl.com

Check out the hot new Spring/Summer 08 line by 55 DSL. Created in 1994 as an experimental spin-off from Diesel, 55 DSL rapidly established its own exuberant identity. Over the years it has sponsored the likes of surfer Joel Tudor, skaters Tony Hawk and Steve Berra and snowboarder Lukas Huffman. In a way, the company has a pact with its consumers. Customers provide loyalty, and 55DSL provides cutting edge fashion that help them enjoy their lives to the fullest…

We Love Colors Tights by Cool Hunting

by Ami Kealoha

by Sheena Sood

While New York fashion designers Proenza Schouler and are adding brilliant spring-like colors to their Fall/Winter 2008 collections with sherbet colored tights and printed stockings on the runways this week, why not slip on a pair of bright leggings courtesy of We Love Colors? The quality tights are opaque and are now made from 80 Denier Nylon/Lycra MicroFiber for a thicker, softer feel. The best part though, is that the tights are available in 45 different solid colors; choose from hues such as pastel mint, olive green, neon pink, lavender, or rubine (a kind of burgundy).

Fresh patterns like stripes, zig-zags, and polka dots are also available in the same 45 hues. Those who aren’t afraid of an intense color statement can try the unique “Splash Color” tights (pictured), which have a vibrant tie-dyed-splashed-paint effect.

We Love Colors offers plus-sized tights, knee and thigh-highs, fishnets, gloves, mini-dresses, leotards, and styles for men and children as well. All products are available online or by phone. Solid tights are $12.50 and splash-colored cost $16 to get us through the rest of winter with flying colors.

This entry was originally posted on 08 February 2008

http://www.coolhunting.com/archives/2008/02/we_love_colors.php

Miss Sixty Fall 2008 @ New York Fashion Week via Denimology

The Miss Sixty catwalk show at New York Fashion Week scored pretty high on the celeb-o-meter with a front row made up of Chloe Sevigny, Ashley Olsen and Milla Jovovich. They got to see a range of denim including skinny, wide leg, high-waisted and denim shorts.

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Blessed & Cursed Denim via Denimology

Blessed & Cursed is a German premium denim label that I have just been tipped off about. Their website doesn’t offer much in the way of info about the company, but the religious themed press photos are interesting.

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Black To Black Denim via Denimology
This year denim has appeared in every colour of the rainbow, but one shade that has been absent is black, which maybe to do with it’s gothy/heavy metal type associations. Anyway I think that it’s time the black denim was rehabilitated back into society. As the candid street-style photos (courtesy of Jeanswear) show, it is possible to wear black denim and not look like a moody teenager.

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via FashionTrendsetter

I hope this collection comes to Chicago - does anyone know if it will?

The unique ‘Roberto Cavalli at H&M’ collection made by the Italian fashion legend in collaboration with H&M was presented to the international press at a gloriously glamorous gala event in Rome’s Salone delle Fontane. Roberto Cavalli made grande entrée on a red carpet catwalk with a trail of models wearing his luxurious party collection. Stars from the music- and movie business, as well as fashionistas came to celebrate with the designer in Italian rock’n roll style.

‘Roberto Cavalli is one of my personal favourites. His clothes are sexy, and he is always on the edge and changes before other designers. I think the collaboration with H&M is great because now all women can wear his designs’, says Halle Berry.The Roberto Cavalli party was staged like a gigantic VIP lounge where, among others, Sharon Stone and Halle Berry were spotted in the crowd. The ambience was heated up with the noise of a helicopter and cars, paparazzi flashes and the appearance of the Italian fashion legend together with his wife Eva, followed by models wearing the ‘Roberto Cavalli at H&M’ collection, sweeping down to the end of the red carpet catwalk where he contently declared:

‘This party for the launch of the Roberto Cavalli at H&M collection ishm-cavalli-campaign-01.jpg truly amazing! The atmosphere is electrifying, glamorous and full of positive and young energy. It’s a magical night that I will never forget’, says Roberto Cavalli.

‘I think the collaboration with H&M is a great idea. The clothes look great and the ads are beautiful. Roberto Cavalli is a wonderful designer who knows how to make both chic and sexy’, says Sharon Stone.

Models Erin Wasson and Jessica Stam showed Roberto Cavalli’s famous animal print dresses made of silk chiffon, a fabulous red carpet dress made of pleated gold lame, a mini sheath with sequins and pearls and shapely tuxedo style jackets and trousers. Nicolas Malleville showed the men’s range with sharply cut suits and tuxedo separates, worn as a suit or with jeans, T-shirts and shirts de luxe.

‘The collection is built around a selection of Roberto Cavalli’s favourite pieces throughout the years, of which many are made to wear on the red carpet. But Cavalli’s fashion is not only about the red carpet but foremost about a positive and optimistic attitude. It’s about enjoying the good things in life with large dose of fashion glamour’, says H&M’s head of design Margareta van den Bosch.

For more information please visit H&M at www.hm.com

Rockers NYC x Bay Icon Bloodfire Denim via Denimology

US clothing label Rockers NYC and Swedish denim brand Bay Icon have collaborated to produce these limited edition jeans made from 16oz selvedge black denim which come complete with a pair of suspenders and a bandana. (Source: HighSnobiety.com)

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Cody Hudson for GoodShape Design

by Tim Yu, 26 October 2007

Multimedia artist Cody Hudson is the first to take part in the GoodShape Design artist series run. The limited edition series consists of silk screened 18×24 prints made on heavy stock acid-free paper and t-shirts printed on the trusted American Apparel tee.

GoodShape founder and designer Wayne Pate isn’t going for a high-level concept here, he’s simply including artists that he finds inspiring personally. Rather than capitalize on current fads or who’s popular at the moment, we appreciate how the collection is a more honest curation of timeless and fun design.

The next artist on deck is Tyler Askew of Rude Movements. Wayne comments, “besides Tyler I have a few people in mind but I will keep that under my hat for now.” We’ll just have to keep checking back.

The prints go for $50 and are limited to an edition of 50 and the t-shirts cost $30. Pick up both at the GoodShape Online Shop.

Fashion Bullies Attack — In Middle School

As More Designers Target Kids,
Label-Consciousness Grows;
The Snarky ‘Nice Clothes’

By VANESSA O’CONNELL
October 25, 2007; Page D1

Aryana McPike, a sixth-grader from Springfield, Ill., has a closet full of designer clothes from Dolce & Gabbana, Juicy Couture, True Religion and Seven For All Mankind. But her wardrobe, carefully selected by a fashion-conscious mother, hasn’t won her friends at school.

Kids in her class recently instructed her that she was wearing the wrong brands. She should wear Apple Bottoms jeans by the rapper Nelly, they told her, and designer sneakers, such as Air Force 1 by Nike. She came home complaining to her mother that “all the girls want to know if I will ever come to school without being so dressed up.”

Sixth-grader Aryana McPike with her mother, Ava, whose idea of fashion differs from that of Aryana’s classmates.

Teen and adolescent girls have long used fashion as a social weapon. In 1944, Eleanor Estes wrote “The Hundred Dresses,” a book about a Polish girl who is made fun of for wearing the same shabby dress to school each day. The film “Mean Girls” in 2004 focused on fashion-conscious cliques among high-school teens. But today, guidance counselors and psychologists say, fashion bullying is reaching a new level of intensity as more designers launch collections targeted at kids.

As a result, an increasing number of school and community programs focused on girl-on-girl bullying are addressing peer pressure and the sizable role clothing plays in girls’ identity. In Pennsylvania, California, Maryland and several other states, for instance, community groups and some schools have started Club or Camp Ophelia, a pair of programs developed by Penn State professor and author Cheryl Dellasega that teach girls relationship skills. A “Bully Quiz” the girls take asks, “Have you stopped being friends with someone because she wore clothes you didn’t like?”

Designer offerings for kids include Missoni.

Dorothy Espelage, a professor of educational psychology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, who has studied teenage behavior for 14 years, says she has seen an increase in “bullying related to clothes.” She attributes that to the proliferation of designer brands and the display of labels in ads. In the more than 20 states where she has studied teens, she has been surprised by how kids revere those they perceive to have the best clothes. Having access to designer clothing affords some kids “the opportunity to become popular — and that protects you and gives you social power and leverage over others,” she says.

Over the past three years, numerous designers have targeted the lucrative children’s and teens’ markets. Little Marc, the kids’ clothing label by New York designer Marc Jacobs, expanded its line this winter and dropped its price, making it more accessible to a greater number of shoppers. The French luxury label Chloé, Milan-based Missoni and Italian designer Alberta Ferretti are launching new kids’ labels for spring or summer next year. Other designer kids’ lines include Dolce & Gabbana, Armani and Burberry, while Michael Kors, Coach, Dooney & Bourke and Dior have been targeting teens or kids with accessories.

Retailers, too, have rushed to cash in, opening offshoots of their boutiques specifically for children. Cantaloup and Scoop, which sell designer clothing for women in New York, now have Cantaloup Kids and Scoop Kids boutiques that carry a similar selection of designers for their customers’ daughters and sons.

The greater focus on fashion in teen magazines and on TV has increased girls’ awareness of designer labels. “The market has become more sophisticated,” says Fiona Coleman, children’s trends editor for WGSN, a fashion-consulting service. Kids today follow not only what celebrities wear, but also what their children wear, she says. Brooklyn Beckham, the son of soccer star David Beckham, was photographed wearing Junior Dolce & Gabbana in magazines as a toddler, propelling the brand into the limelight. Madonna’s daughter Lourdes Leon, who has her own stylist, has appeared in magazines wearing Juicy Couture tracksuits.

French luxury label Chloé

School guidance counselor Angie Dooley sees the love of labels at Lawrence Junior High School in Fairfield, Maine, where some girls wear the same few brand-name items they own again and again. “They don’t want anyone to know that’s all they have,” Ms. Dooley says.

In one study, more than one-third of middle-school students responded “yes” when asked whether they are bullied because of the clothes they wear. Susan M. Swearer, associate professor of school psychology at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, surveyed a total of more than 1,000 students at five Midwestern middle schools from 1999 to 2004, with about 56% of the sample female. While the prevalence of fashion bullies was greater in wealthy cities and towns, where more designer clothing is available, she found the problem is significant in poorer communities, too.

Teens and adolescents are expected to wear not just any designer brands but the “right” ones. “The better brands you wear, the more popular you are,” says Becky Gilker, a 13-year-old eighth-grader from Sherwood Park in the Canadian province of Alberta. “If you don’t wear those things you get criticized.” In many schools, the most expensive designer goods, such as those by Chanel or Louis Vuitton, have the highest social ranking among girls. But popular teen brands such as American Eagle, Abercrombie & Fitch and Aeropostale are also important. Miss Gilker says Hollister and Roxy are big logos at her school.

But even the wrong color can bring put-downs, Miss Gilker notes. When she wears pink, she says, “I get the snarky ‘Nice clothes!’ when people walk by in the halls.” Her mom, Karin Gilker, who is 44, says she has tried to explain to her daughter that she should ignore such comments and wear what she likes. She also has tried explaining that “pink looks wonderful on her — she’s a blonde — and she looks really good in it.”

Several new programs are trying to help parents, teachers and girls cope with bullying. In Maine, a nonprofit called Hardy Girls Healthy Women has developed a curriculum that has caught on at a number of junior high schools and is being adopted in after-school programs in Florida, Ohio, New York and other states. The program encourages young girls to build coalitions and gets them to look more closely at the messages they get from the media, including those about fashion and clothing.

In June, a national conference on “Relational Aggression, Mean Girls and Other Forms of Bullying” in Las Vegas drew more than 800 teachers, educators and counselors. Many of the sessions focused on the role the media plays in putting social pressure on girls regarding fashion and appearance.

Seven For All Mankind is expanding its kids’ line.

Susan Bowman, vice president of Developmental Resources, a Chapin, S.C., educational consulting firm that put on the conference, told the audience that for many girls, the answer to the question “What do I wear?” seems to define who they are. In 2005, Developmental Resources began holding a series of “Mean Girls” workshops for educators around the country. The workshops, she says, explore why fashion is such an important part of a girl’s identity, and how that, in turn, “creates even more social pressure on the ‘have nots.’ ”

Some psychologists believe that fashion bullying is happening at younger and younger ages. Megan Flynn, director of children’s services at Westchester Jewish Community Services, says she has recently begun using an anti-bullying program with girls in the fifth and sixth grades, as well as with older students. The program, she says, provides “a process where they can take a closer look at the messages they get” in the media.

Aryana’s mom, Ava McPike, feels it is important that Aryana not be pressured to conform to the dressed-down standard at her school. She believes that generally other people favor those who “look good — the cute kids,” says Ms. McPike, who drives to Neiman Marcus in St. Louis, Mo., with her daughter to help pick out clothes. But Ms. McPike does give in every now and then. She recently bought two Ralph Lauren dresses, in pink and green, and her daughter rejected them, because, her mom suspects, they wouldn’t pass muster with her classmates.

Write to Vanessa O’Connell at vanessa.o’connell@wsj.com

Interesting article in the times today on the current state of the fashion industry.

From left, Alexander McQueen; Yves Saint Laurent; Balenciaga; and Maison Martin Margiela.

October 18, 2007

The Coming of the X-Frocks

By CATHY HORYN

THE fashion shows have ended, editors are returning to life without room service and you’re wondering what you’re going to wear today. Hydrangea prints the size of, well, a hydrangea are very far from your thoughts. You have to start basting the Thanksgiving turkey — now. You have no time to consider a Richard Prince joke bag. Isn’t he at the Guggenheim? Who is Alber Elbaz? Who is Dries van Noten? You have exactly 68 shopping days until Christmas.

Faced with the task of selling billions of dollars’ worth of clothing and accessories, the fashion industry has to work very hard to get your attention. You might decide to buy a flat-screen television instead of a $7,000 Alexander McQueen sequined dress that shows a portrait by Steven Meisel beaded in gold or a pair of Marc Jacobs shoes that are supposed to look a size too small. A wired populace demands wild ideas.

In a sense, the front-rank designers, stars like Karl Lagerfeld and Nicolas Ghesquiere of Balenciaga, have to row for the rest of the industry. Mr. Lagerfeld may not be the first designer to think of turning an epaulet down on a jacket sleeve, but that he did it for Chanel, and in denim, is enough for the copy kings. Mr. Ghesquiere’s flower ensembles violate every rule about wearing prints: too loud, too big, too much like Aunt Peg’s Florida room.

But if no rule is broken, how would we know it’s fashion?

The spring collections in New York and Europe produced an amazing variety of trends: bold floral prints, intense color, jackets with peaked or rounded shoulders, transparency, and play clothes like jumpsuits and smock dresses with casual blazers.

What links all these ideas, though, is a taste for an extreme point of view. Even the jumpsuits are done in extreme shapes, particularly those by Stella McCartney and the English label Preen; Yves Saint Laurent makes a version in sweatshirt fleece.

Last spring, designers soaked their collections with bright color; now the palette looks violently bright, with livid pinks, siren yellows and deep, airline shades of blue. At Jil Sander, the designer Raf Simons treated color as a conceptual project, using two or three shades in combination to heighten the feeling of being drenched in color. Used on layers of tulle or gossamer silk, the effect also helped him mute qualms about transparency.

Mr. Ghesquiere’s jubilant prints of roses and peonies astonished even the fashion pros, perhaps because, in spite of their romantic associations, the prints seemed to spring from a hard nature. They have muscle, just as the curving lines of the Balenciaga outfits are clear and precise. By contrast, the sweet prints of Junya Watanabe seem normal to us , while the blown-up flowers of Mr. van Noten, Carolina Herrera and 6267, a relatively new label from Milan, look right.

As David Wolfe, the creative director of the Doneger Group, which advises the industry on trends, said, “If they’re not done in an extreme shape, they’re going to look like old prints.” Think of it another way: If you think your dress decisions no longer clearly indicate good taste or bad taste, you’re right. You and Aunt Peg finally have something in common, even if you don’t know what.

Much of fashion, like contemporary art and music, is addicted to extreme ideas, to an energy that doesn’t feel particularly intellectual. It just is, like the action of a pornographic movie. Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons tried to suggest the confusion of culture, while Mr. Jacobs, it seemed to me, wanted to suggest the experience of contemporary fashion — specifically, the two-way-mirror effect of the runway, where you are the watcher and the watched, at once in the picture and outside it.

It becomes much harder, then, to see a logic and charm in the classical dresses at Bottega Veneta and Fendi, with their Grace Kelly lines, or in the cool austerity at Saint Laurent, where many of the shapes — the day skirts, the jewel-tone silk dresses and cotton blouses — subtly employed asymmetry. As Mr. Wolfe pointed out, with a laugh, such designs “are too directional for people to wear.” They’re not noisy enough.

So for now, fashion is in an insistent, suprapersonal mode. The most obvious expression of this is in the tailoring of jackets. For spring, shoulders extend away from the body, either up or out. The difference is significant enough that it seems as if the wearer is asserting herself beyond her physical space.

At Balenciaga, shoulders of tops rise into stiff peaks or explode into fuzzy pompoms of fabric. The Belgian modernist Martin Margiela takes his high, sharp blades of last season — a popular look on the Paris streets — and extends them even farther from the natural shoulder line. Chanel’s epaulets have the same effect.

Of course, one message is, “I’m important — coming through!” But tailoring has found an audience among young people, men and women alike, and many of the new spring shapes — the soft blazers at Stella McCartney, the vests at Proenza Schouler, the flouncy styles at John Galliano — are meant to convey a younger attitude. As Stephanie Solomon, the fashion director at Bloomingdale’s, said: “It’s a new signature that defines youth. It’s not the same old look from the old guard.”

Clothes in transparent fabrics, often in layers with undergarments exposed, received a lot of play during collections, beginning with Mr. Jacobs’s stripped-down evening gowns and Narciso Rodriguez’s more subtle veiling of black chiffon over simple lavender silk dresses. The most artful statement came from Mr. Simons, who opened the Jil Sander show with an outfit covered in a cocoon of silk tulle.

Yet apart from a few cries from retail executives (“too many nipples”), there was little objection to transparency. “Veiling might be a better word than transparency,” said Michael Fink, the fashion director of Saks Fifth Avenue, noting that the effect was, for the most part, just that — an illusion of bareness. “Very little was vulgar,” he said.

Nonetheless, the trend means you’ll see even more frank displays of lingerie next summer; this being fashion, one trend begets another. Mr. Wolfe suggests that television shows like “Mad Men” might be behind the erotic interest in bras and so forth. “Sex is certainly not a new game,” Mr. Wolfe said. “But it always seems to work.”

Finally, if you’re not completely riveted to someone’s bra straps or dodging her shoulder pads, you might give a glance to her footwear. Shoes have become extreme statements in their own, dominating handbags. Much of the radical design is concentrated on the heels, with Surrealist collapsing heels at Marc Jacobs, Art Nouveau-inspired flowers at Prada, and metal fretwork at Fendi.

Sweden’s Nudie Jeans Co produce the best denim this side of Japan. So it is fitting that they have decided to open their second flagship store (and the first outside of Sweden) in Harajuku, Tokyo. Apparently the location was chosen because it embodies the same values as Nudie, namely “passion, anti-fashion and design”.

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Meltin Pot - Redux Organic Denim via Denimology

Meltin Pot have a new organic collection hitting the shops called Redux. Each pair of the limited edition jeans are dyed and washed with natural products such as wood, coal, jam, earth and yoghurt. The style of the jeans is inspired by the workwear of the 1930s and also apparently the Bauhaus artistic movement.

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I just posted 4-5 of my favorite fashion shows on my new myspace page

 http://www.myspace.com/ambushuuu

Check them out…

Most of these shows are Alexander McQueen (if not all of them) and I’m trying to figure out who produced these shows.  I found there website 2-3 years ago but can’t seem to find it now…If anyone can be of help that would be awesome…

btw:  This is the page I will be continuing to update as I transition to Chicago…So be sure to add me…Thank you!

The Mr. Jones “Accurate” Watch

Coolhunting, Sep 27, 2007 21:24:30

Speaking of memento moris and clever watches, Mr Jones’ “Accurate” watch makes the inherent implication of a timepiece obvious. In fact, all of the limited edition models in his line are comments on the daily conundrums of life.

Last time I featured Mr. Jones Watches, he had an exhibition-only series of prototype electronic watches developed to explore new cultural expressions, technologies of timekeeping and how they relate to contemporary life. “Each one was the embodiment of a social critique or observation.”

With a perfect sense of black humor, cultural irony and dry wit, Crispin Jones, the man behind the Mister, described his concepts as “work which lives in the intersection between Fine Art and Design—broadly this area is known as Critical Design—using the language and tools of design to articulate a critical perspective.”

You may have already seen “The Decider,” with markings on the face alternately reading “yes” and “no,” but I was taken with the macabre nature of the Accurate. Evolved from his original Summissus watch, the Accurate similarly fosters humility in the wearer by featuring a mirrored dial to reflect the viewer along with a semi-subtle reminder of your inevitable mortal time-frame. The hour and minute discs spell out “Remember” and “You Will Die.”

His latest series has now taken this concept to consumption. Now featuring analog watches with rotating discs, each style of Mr. Jones Watches will be produced in a limited numbered series of 100. (£80 each or approximately $160) Don’t lose any more time, they’re close to selling out!

And just released this week, a series of videos by filmmaker Steve Ounanian brings the concepts to life. See them on my blog, as well as a couple other models from the series.

Artysm Sweats

Even as a fashion statement, sweat suits are best reserved for the gym but these Jack’Art versions by French brand Artysm are undeniably fresh. Made in Paris and 100% cotton, the harlequin-like diamond pattern lends a touch of European flair. With all-over woven construction and contrasting stitching, they ooze original style while prioritizing comfort.

My favorites are the sweatpants, as I’m always looking for a way to feel like I’m in bed all day on Sundays but still be able to leave the house. I’ve even been kinda wishing it were a little colder out so I’d have an excuse to wear them.

Different colors and varieties of the sweats, including v-necks, crews and hoodies, are available starting at €205 at Le Bouclard or Styleserver.

David Beckham in PRPS Jeans… again

http://www.denimology.co.uk

Victoria Beckham may never wear the same outfit twice but David Beckham is a creature of habit. You can be pretty sure that if he is photographed wearing a pair of jeans they are usually PRPS, as these photos of the couple arriving at Nobu in Malibu demonstrate.

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Paris Hilton Dollhouse Jeans

Paris Hilton is another one of the celebs pimping a clothing line featuring a range of jeans at the Magic Fashion Trade Show this week.

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Kate Moss Copies J Brand Jeans

Here’s a first look at the new jeans from Kate Moss’ Autumn/Winter Collection for TopShop. First impressions are that these are a great looking pair of wide-leg flared jeans. On closer inspection however they do seem to bear more than a passing resemblance to the J Brand Lovestory Jeans (see below) that the model/designer has been seen wearing recently.

Denim Designer Of The Year Nominations

The LA Fashion Awards have announced the nominations for the Supima Denim Designer of the Year Award.

• 7 For All Mankind, Tim Kaeding, creative director
• Goldsign, Adriano Goldschmied, founder & designer
• J Brand, Jeff Rudes and Susie Crippen, co-founders
• Oligo Tissew, Kristopher Enuke & Amy Enuke, co-owners
• Paige Premium Denim, Paige Adams-Geller, owner & designer

In case anyone is interested, if I was on the panel my vote would go for J Brand.

WOW! Funky site for Ravijour which is a Japanese brand that makes sexy lingerie, full screen impact.

Aerogel

Aug 23, 2007 22:18:27 GMT

You might have seen the Aerogel in some newspapers and online already but we felt the need to add our two cents because of its truly world-changing potential. The porous substance is composed of dehydrogenated silicon dioxide filled with gas. Described as “frozen smoke” or the “ultimate sponge,” it’s the most lightweight and least dense solid on earth. A miracle material of sorts, it can withstand explosions, insulate against extreme temperatures and filter pollutants. NASA introduced it several years ago, but only recently has it been applied to commercial products.

Hugo Boss created a line of winter jackets out of the material but was pulled because they received complaints that it was too hot. The same complaints surfaced for some mountaineering boots developed for a climb up Mount Everest. Even Dunlop, a racket sports company, is currently incorporating the material into their tennis and squash rackets to deliver more power and strength.

Green, strong, light, protective and relatively easy to make, scientists need only to figure out how to better regulate temperatures when used. Otherwise, expect to see it incorporated into winter jackets, space suits, military fatigues and the like soon.

via Times Online

Porn in Fashion advertising

And so the barriers just keep disintegrating. Here’s a couple of creative videos: The first is for fashion label Shai at Sexpacking. Amazingly they hired porn stars (Oksana d’Harcourt, Sébastien Barrio, Titoff, Gamal Simon, Sophie Moon and Zafira) to sell their clothes through an interactive site with videos you can download. As far as “porn” goes, it’s VERY well shot!!! The 2nd features super porn star Jenna Jameson promoting Adidas Adicolor

Details.com has an article about the fatal denim crime that men of a certain age are often guilty of - the Dad Jean (the male equivalent to the Mom Jean ). These are sky blue, slightly-high waisted, tapered leg jeans (see above) which should be avoided at all costs.

I would agree with this …Original Post: Denim Trend For 2008 - Grungy Denim

Here is my prediction for 2008 - grungy denim. Your jeans are going to need to look like you dunked them in a bucket full of bleach to give them a patchy high-contrast fade. Just like the wannabe punks at my school used to do back in the early 80s. The grungy denim photos shown here come from the Cheap Monday Spring/Summer 2008 Collection.

Here is the Fall/Winter Pepe Jeans campaign featuring Sienna Miller. According to a spokeperson from Pepe “The goal is to create a feeling of a ‘pop world’ that reminds the viewer of Andy Warhol while maintaining a fresh and modern look“. (Source: RedCarpetFashionAwards) New Pepe Jeans Ad Campaign With Sienna Miller

Kameraflage

Taking advantage of the fact that digital cameras see a broader spectrum of light (i.e they see more colors) than human eyes Kameraflage takes digital photography to a new level. Engineering text or designs in these invisible colors into objects creates displays that are invisible to the naked eye yet can be seen when imaged with a digital camera. Potential applications include everything from clothing to billboards, and even movies.

via conor.info who’s design is featured here.

Nike Vintage Tees

Last week Nike dropped six t-shirts with vintage graphics from the ’70s exclusively at Urban Outfitters. Going hand in hand with the recent release of Nike’s “Classic Kicks” (aka the Cortez, Daybreak, Waffle Racer, Oregon Waffle and the LD-1000), the shirts have retro sayings from the era, like “ Hot Waffles to Go,” “ Have a Nike Day” (with a smiley face) and the ever popular, “ Just Do It.” Available for a limited time in limited numbers, they’re $32 a piece. Now it’s possible to relive your ’70s experience or—if you were born after the age of Aquarius—try it for the first time.

Workspace Co-operative 115

Creatives are known for occupying inspiring workspaces, however what happens when it’s time to adopt the coveted freelancing lifestyle? Working from home sometimes doesn’t cut it, no matter how tricked out your work area is.

Since 2002 Workspace Co-operative 115 in London has housed 16 artists and designers, working both autonomously and cooperatively. The open and minimalist design is conducive to cooperating and sharing ideas. In fact, many scientific research labs have followed suit to promote more collaboration between scientists. An open, co-working space like 115 is the ideal solution for freelancers; a home away from home packed with other like-minded independents ready to collaborate and share the working love.

Two Berlin Boutiques: Lil*Shop and Wood Wood

Comme des Garçons opened their first of their “Guerilla” stores in 2004 in Berlin. It was supposed to stay open for one year, but how can you put an end to such a good thing? So the women who ran the Guerilla store opened Lil*Shop, which carries vintage Comme des Garçons, as well as special Nike products like Nike Vintage Running shoes. It’s a nice place to shop.

Wood Wood has two stores in Copenhagen where they’re based and one in Berlin. The store carries 40% Wood Wood, their clothing with crisp graphic prints for the whole family: men, women and kids. They also carry Bernhard Willheim, Kim Jones, sparkly Uslu Airlines make-up and just for the summer they have some special paint-splattered pieces by Oliver Rodriguez (see below left). Also, you can pick up fun magazines like Arkitip and Purple, the AKA series of graffiti books, Span of Sunset toys and skateboards.

Comme des Garçons Lil*Shop
Brunnenstrasse 184
Berlin-Mitte
tel. +49 (30) 280 45 338

Wood Wood Berlin
Rochstrasse 4 GMBH
10178 Berlin
tel. +49 (0)302 804 7877

The Dark Side

Colab makes sure it’s always 105 in the shade. By Micki Bloom

Original Post: Emma Hope

I’ve been wearing a pair of Emma Hope’s luxurious signature sneakers since last year, loving what I saw as a neat twist on the Smith aesthetic. Only after a bit of digging did I discover that she previously designed for Paul Smith anyway. With an elongated, yet low-profile shape, the shoes are taken to the next level by the materials used. Calf, pony and python come in eye-catching colors and prints like leopard skin and silver, easily trumping the much-vaunted Lanvin sneakers that have recently caused much over-excitement. Available at Hope’s London stores or online.

Girls With Shoehorns is an advertising capaign for Zu shoes, trying way too hard in our opinion, decide for yourself.

The Couture Jewelry Award and Sale is a unique event, created to foster dynamic design in the art of jewelry, offering an award to honor the recipient along with a sale and show of forty selected artists who will exhibit in Manhattan on New York’s Upper East Side. (Like they would have it anywhere else!)

The Couture Awards™ was established in 2006 as a council to promote, market and award individual talent in the field of jewelry design. The recipient of the Gold medal, an annual award given to only the most outstanding talent, carries with it the prestige of acknowledgement from collectors, museum curators and the highest caliber clientele.

The Andreasen Jewelry Design Award that is given out is for the purpose of awarding couture, or “one of a kind,” jewelry designers in the time honored tradition of museum quality jewelry. The purpose of this award is to foster and promote talent within the arena of American jewelry design using precious materials and gems.

Deadline is July 30th.  To enter, click here.

One recent afternoon, as I combed the racks at American Apparel, I realized that I owned a substantial portion of the collection—in 1981, at the age of 11. I was a committed jock: Even when I wasn’t headed to gymnastics or tennis lessons, I favored athletic-inspired fashions. I also grew up in New Jersey. A typical childhood outfit for me is easily approximated with items from the rapidly expanding chain store. For example: the Interlock Running Short in kelly green and white ($22); Unisex Calf-High Tube Socks, also in kelly green and white ($8); the Sheer Jersey Shoulder Tie Tube Top in pastel rainbow and white ($14, reduced from $28); the California Fleece Track Jacket in navy and white (Men’s Department, $44); and the Flex Terry Headband ($6)—Bjorn Borg was my hero and locker poster boy.

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Tretorn may not pack the brand punch that Nike does in the States, but to tennis aficionados in Europe, this Swedish athletic company is practically a national treasure. Founded in 1891, the company established itself worldwide with their signature sneakers and tennis balls. As a part of an ongoing collaboration, Swedish designers Acne Jeans have released a new spin on one of Tretorn’s most timeless designs. “Tretorn is a strong part of our upbringing and our legacy as Swedish designers,” says Jonny Johansson, creative director of Acne Jeans. “This is why we feel so honored to be working with them on this project. Conceptually we have a very similar approach to design, and feel that clean lines and authenticity are of absolute importance in everything that we produce.”  (Full Story)

Q&A: Seth Godin Says ‘Know When To Bail

I just read this book the Dip and it’s great - it’s a short read too!

Inspired by homemade publications, this limited-edition series of New Balance 1400s, called “Fanzine,” is designed by NB’s European team. It’s the third and latest collection from their Super Team 33 (ST33) line, named for the 33 artisans who hand make the shoes in Skowhegan, Maine.

A print evoking black-and-white photocopies that limns the socklining (and also shows through a translucent sole) features text that translates “DIY” into several languages. The three colorways, red, blue and white, are an homage to popular paper stocks used in making zines and the vamp and midsole are a reference to the look of heavily inked dots made by old typewriters. Somehow all the elements come together nicely and the shoe has the raw simplicity of the fanzine aesthetic.

To see the previous season of ST33s as well as a complete listing of the 33 shops where they will be sold starting 20 July 2007, go here. For more images go here.

If you’ve ever felt the need to know what every single one of your chums is doing at every hour of every day, then count yourself lucky. They may now volunteer to surveil themselves for your amusement and edification, all thanks to an emerging breed of mobile messaging services with names like Jaiku, Twitter and Dodgeball. continue reading

Our favorite shoe designers to watch. By Erin Wylie

With Louboutin’s candy-apple red soles becoming as ubiquitous as Paris Hilton sightings, and Pierre Hardy’s coutourtorous designs as wearable as a Jeff Koons sculpture, you know it’s time to look further for an elegantly accessible shoe. Lesser-known labels that still pack the same distinctive punch continue to be a rare breed, however, these six inspiring collections are putting their best feet forward (literally).

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