Design

Does fashion maketh woman?



Ooh, hands up who loves an interactive debate? Me too! Here’s a corker for you, Intelligence Squared is hosting a bit of a ding-dong about the nature of fashion. Those fighting in favour (yay!) are fashion designer Britt Lintner, Paula Reed (style director, Grazia) and Madelaine Levy (editor-in-chief, Bon magazine). Those against it are psychotherapist Susie Orbach, design expert Stephen Bayley and artist Grayson Perry. Peter York will be chairing.

To attend it costs £25 (or half price for students). But you can also watch online for £2.99, and interact via Twitter, Facebook etc.
The date: 17th June, the time: 6-8.30pm, the place: Methodist Central Hall, Westminster.

UPDATE: Here is the link to the highlights video…

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He’s back! Shawn Stussy returns with S/Double Studio




After many years under the radar, having sold his hugely influential Stussy brand, Shawn Stussy is back with a new venture. All the hot boys in my social circle had a Stussy-logo’ed something-or-other in their possession back in the early 90s. Stussy crossed all the subculture borders of its time from surfer dudes, to grunge kids to punks to the hip hop crowd. Everyone wanted to be in the international ‘Stussy tribes’.

Now those early-90s boys have grown up, they still have an eye for a well-cut tee but maybe don’t want the jazzy graphics. S/Double Studio is Shawn Stussy’s new baby which comprises an online shop, Shawn’s blog and a ‘coming soon’ gallery. It all feels decidedly small-scale, personal and non-corporate. Can Shawn Stussy do it a second time?

[International Stussy Tribe pic: RockPopFashion.com]

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Levi’s gets its groove back




Last week I blogged about the heritage of Dr Martens. This week, the heritage baton gets passed to Levi’s. I was treated to a pre-opening store tour of the refurbed Regent Street flagship a couple of weeks ago and the main message seems to be… Levi’s is keepin’ it real.

From its industrial factory-replica refit to its new name for its denim experts – ‘drapers’ and ‘artisans’, Levi’s has realised that its customers respect its roots and is capitalising on that. OK, the ‘artisans’ moniker is a wee bit pretentious but I’m prepared to let that go. For a while, Levi’s was guilty of trying too hard to compete with the Diesels of this world but – guess what? – Levi’s isn’t about ‘sexy’, it’s about utilitarianism and authenticity. Thankfully, it is now properly embracing its workwear heritage and amen to that. A particular highlight of the flagship store (along with the visible warehouse dedicated to 501s) is a 90-something-year-old pair of Levi’s on display in the basement. Unearthed from a mine in the Mojave Desert, I ask you, how many other denim brands can boast one of these?

When I previewed the SS10 collection six months ago, I was overjoyed to see so many old favourites. Hello classic denim jacket sans faux-faded patches! Hello western plaid shirt! Hello straight-out-of-CBGBs leather biker jacket! The Guardian recently reported that Levi’s will never be cool again but I disagree. Acne may be popular with fashionistas and Uniqlo with the downtown hipster set but Levi’s has its incredible heritage and that makes it relevant again (BTW, ‘relevance’, like ‘heritage’ is a key word being bandied about right now). Its latest campaign is also a bit of a looker. As a lifelong supporter I may be biased, but I think Levi’s is ready to have it’s moment once more.

Levi’s SS10






Industrial storage
The 501s-only warehouse visible from the shop floor

Unisex fitting rooms and utilitarian seating
THOSE 100-year-old jeans

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A day at Dr Martens



Dr Martens factory
Heritage is the watchword of the moment, so how timely that Dr Martens should invite me on a trip to their super-dooper factory last week. The British workwear boot company celebrates its 50th anniversary this year and has, ooh, millions of projects on the go to celebrate. On arrival at the HQ in Northamptonshire, our first stop was the showroom (more…)

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