22 November, 2015

THE DRG STYLE INDEX: TIFFANY X DOVER STREET MARKET, SEPHORA, JAEGER, SMYTHSON, FENDI

Here’s the latest weekly DRG STYLE INDEX ranking, a round-up of the brands currently buzzing on my radar…

1. WANNA BUY A TIFFANY PARTY HAT?
Tiffany X Dover Street Market
Who knew that Rei Kawakubo was such a big Tiffany fan? According to her husband (and Comme des Garcons CEO) Adrian Joffe, she always drags him into a Tiffany store if they’re passing by, hence the latest – albeit unlikely – Dover Street Market collab. Just launched in London (and Tokyo and New York), the Dover Street Market X Tiffany collaboration features products from the Tiffany archive updated with a 2015 tweak. Think 70s cufflinks converted into earrings, a sterling silver party hat, or an agate and gold bracelet from 1975 reimagined in gold and rosewood. The visual merchandising is lovely, nodding to the vignettes created by VM whizz Gene Moore for Tiffany’s famous windows back in the day.

2. SEPHORA’S ‘TEACH, INSPIRE, PLAY’ WORKSHOPS
sephora launches Teach, Inspire, Play conceptb tore stations to San Francisco store
Loving the sound of Sephora’s TIP workshops. ‘Teach, Inspire, Play’ is the mantra that Sephora is aiming to roll out in its stores, with group workshops that let customers try out makeup looks in a central workstation, aided by iPad, USB ports, and WiFi. It’s all part of the experiential bricks and mortar story that’s playing out in retail right now. As Calvin McDonald, CEO of Sephora Americas, told WWD; “When a client comes in and experiences Teach, Inspire, Play, she’s going to experience it on her own, she’s going to experience it through cast members, and she’s going to experience it through technology, and that’s where we really see our differentiator being and how we’re going to continue to innovate.” Bustle has the story here…

3. AGI & SAM X JAEGER

When Agi & Sam’s PR sent me over the pics of the Agi & Sam X Jaeger knitwear collab I had to double check that they were the right ones. The collaboration is a capsule knitwear line spun from Gostwyck yarn (I Googled it, it’s a luxurious, sustainable wool). I love the simple colour blocking ad graphic colour palette – definitely one for women to steal too. And the price point is not bad at £225. Buy it HERE and in Jaeger stores…

4. SMYTHSON’S CHRISTMAS IN WONDERLAND

Is anyone else getting fabulous Isabella Blow vibes from Smythson’s eccentric new Quentin Jones Christmas film? ‘Wonderland’ is a celebration of the childlike novelty of Christmas, and Jones is the perfect person to conjure up its playful spirit with her stop-motion collage filmwork. Check it out above and HERE. (P.S: In other news, you can also buy Quentin Jones X Smythson Christmas cards HERE.)

5. FENDI SAYS ‘STRAP YOU’
FENDI STRAP YOU bag strap
File under accessories for your accessories. Fendi is getting rather good at creating cute little doodads to accompany your handbag. To one-up the furry Fendi bag bugs it has just launched its ‘Strap You‘ accessory, which is essentially, a bag strap. But a reversible one, that gives you different colours/skins on each side, ‘and it can also be monogrammed’, so I’m informed. Not really an essential, but it’s quite a fun concept, no? (And I do really want a python one…)