design

On my radar: Soshiotsuki



Soshiostuki ss26

Congratulations to Soshi Otsuki, who just won the LVMH Prize.

Since launching as a menswear brand, Soshiotsuki, in 2015, his “distorted elegance” (also the name of his AW25 collection) in the tradition of Armani, Cerruti and even Studio Nicholson, now includes a number of women’s pieces.

To be specific, that means taking western men’s tailoring and filtering it through a Japanese lens – cardigan-soft fabrics, gentle gathering and draping, voluminous tailored trousers, enveloping knits – and juxtaposing them through careful styling. (more…)



Old Stone Trade summer edition



Old Stone Trade kilt

Old Stone Trade’s celebration of handmade work from the American Northeast is tapping into my inner desire for all things slightly rustic and Bruce Weber “All-American Family Album”-flavoured.

In keeping with OST’s ethos of small batch, handmade offerings, there are Oxford cloth cotton button-downs (imagine how good these will look after a few month’s wear), a stunning waxed ‘anorak’ and a cute double-layered white tee reminiscent of my late-80s summer uniform. The khaki kilt may not seem obviously summer weather-appropriate but it’s crafted from a summer-weight deadstock Italian suiting – LOVE! (more…)



Quote of the day: Jean Touitou on Agnès b



Agnes b Snap cardigan

“I was playing my electric guitar in [Agnès b’s] studio above the store one evening. I remember seeing her come back from dinner, put a black round-neck sweatshirt on a desk, grab a pair of scissors and cut the piece right down the middle. Then, she took snap buttons and put them on the front. It became a worldwide hit.”
A.P.C’s Jean Touitou on the birth of the Agnès b snap cardigan in 1979, New York Times (more…)



The culture of fashion: Alex Michon, shy punk (Part 2)



Alex Michon

Did you enjoy yesterday’s post on Alex Michon and her punk style evolution? If so, there’s more. I asked her to unearth some photos for me and as well as the photos (apologies for the bad quality – they’re not scans, but hey, it’s punk innit), she emailed more commentary that I couldn’t resist adding.

So here is Part 2.

I hope you’ll find it as fascinating as I do. Alex was adamant she wanted photos that showed her as she really was – a ‘shy punk’ and not a poser. However, a lot of her photos do show her posing in her designs as a way of documenting the work. So I couldn’t really not include them – sorry Alex! (more…)