We continue our look at bicycle design with this beauty from Faraday Bicycles, a new company dedicated to revolutionary bicycle innovation and design. The Faraday Porteur is an electric bicycle that is inspired by the classic European delivery bikes of the 1940s and 1950s but has been updated with state-of-the-art components and construction techniques.
The Runwell Di2 Bicycle from Shinola is proudly made in the USA. It begins its life at the legendary Waterford Precision Cycles factory in Wisconsin and is later hand-assembled in Detroit. A good-looking commuter bike, the design improves on the company's earlier offerings with the addition of more technology. Built on a lugged steel frame and fork, the Runwell Di2 has a classic silhouette and offers smooth riding and excellent handling. Features include Shimano's electronic shifting, Alfine hydraulic brakes, a handlebar-mounted LED control panel, internal cable routing, an aluminium front rack, black alloy fenders and front and rear lights.
The bike sports a minimalist black-and-white design and is built to order only. The Runwell Di2 Bicycle starts shipping this month.
The bike sports a minimalist black-and-white design and is built to order only. The Runwell Di2 Bicycle starts shipping this month.
We were never all that impressed with Chris Burch’s line C. Wonder and now his daughters Pookie and Louisa have decided to take up the fashion mantle with the launch of their own label earlier this month.
Called Trademark, the clothes are simpler and more modern than their father's designs. The inaugural collection is inspired by classic sportswear designs as well as American artists Annie and Josef Albers and Donald Judd. In addition to ready-to-wear clothing, the bridge line will sell jewellery, shoes, handbags and accessories. Trademark is currently exclusively available for purchase online but there are plans to introduce its first brick-and-mortar store this spring in New York's Soho neighbourhood.
Called Trademark, the clothes are simpler and more modern than their father's designs. The inaugural collection is inspired by classic sportswear designs as well as American artists Annie and Josef Albers and Donald Judd. In addition to ready-to-wear clothing, the bridge line will sell jewellery, shoes, handbags and accessories. Trademark is currently exclusively available for purchase online but there are plans to introduce its first brick-and-mortar store this spring in New York's Soho neighbourhood.
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| Image | Alessandro Lucioni/Imaxtree |
Using colourful Ankara fabrics to beautiful effect, Stella Jean showcased one of her strengths - pattern mixing - and sent beautifully tailored shift dresses and coats down the runway. Opening with floor length knit coats, high necklines and pussy bows, many of the outfits had exaggerated, sloping shoulders and rounded silhouettes, but these were offset by nipped in, belted waists. Skirts alternated between narrow, pencil shapes and structured, almost hoop-like silhouettes.
Just the thing to fire up your OCD is this reinterpretation of the classic Windsor chair by designer Norman Kelley. Kelley, who successfully set out to disrupt the notion of “correctness”, was inspired by a vintage photograph of a Windsor chair with a defective spindle and adapted designs from expert craftsman John Kassay’s drawings of 18th and 19th century chairs.
Each of the seven Wrong Chairs is unique and fully-functional. Elements of the original design including the saddle-shaped seat and pole-lathed, round-tenoned construction remain, but these deconstructed versions have been skewed slightly to create odd new shapes and strange new configurations. Some chairs appear to have been cut apart and re-assembled backwards or upside-down, with pieces of the chair backs adding to the leg height instead, or uncapped poles rising from the seat like spikes. Others have new elements added, like an additional chair seat that serves as an ergonomic desktop.
Wrong Chairs were exhibited at the Volume Gallery in Chicago in November of last year. Each of the seven Wrong Chairs is unique and fully-functional. Elements of the original design including the saddle-shaped seat and pole-lathed, round-tenoned construction remain, but these deconstructed versions have been skewed slightly to create odd new shapes and strange new configurations. Some chairs appear to have been cut apart and re-assembled backwards or upside-down, with pieces of the chair backs adding to the leg height instead, or uncapped poles rising from the seat like spikes. Others have new elements added, like an additional chair seat that serves as an ergonomic desktop.
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| Image | Daniele Oberrauch |
Milan is heavily focused on the bejewelled and this mod, fun and sexy collection from DSquared2 was no exception with (in addition to the clothes) the models sporting wrist and hand jewellery and embellished sunglasses. DSquared2 extended their obsession to the jewel-toned colours which also featured on the runway.
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| Image | Imaxtree/Daniele Oberrauch |
The animal trend we highlighted yesterday at Antonio Marras shows no sign of abating, with Dolce + Gabbana featuring woodland creatures on many of their outfits. From owls to squirrels to foxes, it looked like the world of fairy tales and make-believe had been mined by the designing duo to create this stunning collection for AW2014 which is luxurious and filled with symbolism. There is a definite sector of the market which will be drawn towards the head coverings, long gloves and conservatively cut gowns however the final looks which came charging down the runway were glorious in their opulence and were reminiscent of knights on crusade, so there is a bit of a dichotomy as to what the designers are intending to convey and to whom they are hoping to appeal.
Between the hooded furs and the embellishment Dolce + Gabbana gave us a very ostentatious display of wealth.
Inspired by the underwater landscape, these sculptural screens by Bermudian glass artist Laura Smith mimic the regeneration of coral on manmade forms such as disused oil platforms, bottles and plastic buoys. While Smith uses the aquatic backdrop as a starting point for her Submerged Atolls collection, her focus is on the manner in which the living coral grows on these foreign bodies and gives the inanimate objects life.
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| Image | Alessandro Lucioni/Imaxtree |
Roll necks and mock turtlenecks are in full force at Gabriel Colangelo which also featured the requisite touches of fur this time on breastplates and long, sleeveless vests. With a largely muted pallet of grey, black and white, Colangelo's conservatively cut skirts, dresses and shorts featured asymmetrical, overlapping geometric layers in this sleekly modern collection.
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| Image | Imaxtree/Daniele Oberrauch |
We like consistency in a collection, which isn't to say we need to see 30 identikit outfits coming down the runway, but it's always pleasing when a designer has an idea which you can see woven throughout the collection. In the case of Antonio Marras, the unifier was the wolf which (with all the fur we've been seeing on the runways, is fairly fitting) turned up in photorealistic prints on dresses and coats as well as a heavily-embellished silhouette on tops and dresses. The pieces had geometric, asymmetrical layers and pleating. Marras has also cleverly interpreted and incorporated the bomber jacket trend. Another element tying the entire collection together of course was colour.
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| Image: Daniele Oberrauch |
What can you say when the first look in a collection features a model holding a mini replica of the designer? Lagerfeld's take on sportswear is not short on luxury. With bomber jackets made of fur, mesh tops and inserts, the muted tone of the clothes was offset by orchid corsages.
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| Image: Young & Battaglia |
Small but with a big impact is the King Edison Pendant Lamp by Young & Battaglia which consists of a miniature brass chandelier suspended inside a hand blown clear glass light bulb which is hung from a braided silken cable. The King Edison is perfect for hanging individually or in clusters for maximum effect.
This sleek, minimalist watch is the result of a new technology developed by Swatch. The Swatch Sistem51 Watch is the Swiss company's first automatic watch and houses an innovative self-winding movement which is visible through the back of its hermetically sealed plastic case. The watch is made up of only 51 parts over five separate modules and has a 90-hour power reserve. The Swatch Sistem51 comes in blue, red, white and black.
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| Image: Matteo Volta/Imaxtree |
With at least half of Burberry's collection looking as though it should be worn in the summer, it's quite nice to see an autumn/winter collection that actually looks like it could be worn at that time of year. In a Peter Pilotto collection, pattern mis-matching and blocking are to be expected, but this collection of simple, streamlined dresses and coats still managed to feel fresh, lively and interesting. We liked the Alpine mountain scenes found on some dresses, parkas and skirts. The constant element throughout? Banding around the waist.
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| Image: Alessandro Lucioni/ Imaxtree |
There was definitely a bohemian vibe at the Burberry Prorsum show where deconstructed trench coats, hand-painted bags, floaty coat dresses and layered scarves in muted colours and patterned fabrics came sailing down the runway. The few men who walked the show in looks which had already been seen at the men's collections the previous month, were louche in string vests, updated trenches and silk scarves. There were some great colour and pattern combinations and more blanket dressing. The very attractive and highly commercial collection could possibly be one of the strongest from Christopher Bailey.
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| Image via The Cut |
The one thing the London shows are proving to us, is that the designers across the Atlantic are not afraid of colour for autumn/winter 2014. Ashish's collection put a spin on the urban, sporty trend by mixing it with a princess theme - complete with tiaras. The result was a surreal, sporty collection in which the designer played with texture, shape and material like the stacked, platform trainers and track pants which lit up like a runway. The pink colour that was so prominent this winter was reprised throughout the collection. Common materials such as denim and cotton were elevated with lace and glitter and embellished with flounces. Shapes continue to be oversized and voluminous.
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| Image via The Cut |
In something of a departure from her iconic mirrored, photorealistic prints, Mary Katrantzou has produced this stunningly beautiful line of dresses and separates which are embellished with appliqués of street signs, heraldry, flags and masonry symbols. The looks still bisect the body and the asymmetry in the shorter skirts and several of the sequinned and draped dresses is unsubtle, with many appearing to be two different outfits melded together.
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| Image: Alessandro Lucioni/Imaxtree |
Moving across the Atlantic to London, the micro trend of hand imagery which popped up at Opening Ceremony's and Karen Walker's New York shows, turns up in this beautiful collection by Holly Fulton. With pretty Wedgwood blues and taupes grounding the line, the ladylike dresses featured art deco-esque images and patterns.
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Image: Daniele Oberrauch
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The female form was modestly covered in many of the shows last week and Marc Jacobs' collection (sheer panels or not) with its longer lengths and trouser-and-skirt combinations was no different. Based around a palette of cream, ivory and grey and with an ethereal, cloud-like effect, the clothes included relaxed ski pants and loose-fitting tunics, sequinned tanks with multi-layered hemlines.
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| Image: Andrea Andriani/Imaxtree |
Pretty, no-frills, no fuss clothes from Boss by Hugo Boss. The first collection designed by Jason Wu who had just a few days previously shown his eponymous label, featured the midi length skirt that has been prevalent on the runway, the tailored collection featured some gorgeous coats and suiting.
The makers of The Kraken rum have collaborated with stunt PR campaigner Miss Cakehead to create a unique spin on the St Valentine's Day tradition (which is probably closer to the origin of the holiday than we see today), namely a pop-up florist that will only sell black roses and small bottles of The Kraken rum as tokens of affection. As there are no black flowers in nature, the effect will be created by placing dark red roses in vases filled with a Kraken’s ink instead of water. The ink will be transported up the flower's stem and to turn the petals black, while all other parts will remain green. For dramatic effect some of the flowers will also be turned black using special floristry dyes and will be paired with Calendula Lily Eclips and Queen of the Night Tulips, both of which are dark purple in colour by appear virtually black to the human eye.
The installation will be located at Think Ink florist off Carnaby Street in central London. The money raised from the venture will go towards charity Project Redsand which was established to protect the Redsand Towers off the Kent coast.
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| Image: Imaxtree/Alessandro Lucioni |
Here comes the revolution. There was a distinctly different feel at the Marc by Marc Jacobs show and part of the reason behind that could be due to the new creative team behind the line: Katie Hillier and Luella Bartley. With an interesting mix of sportswear and anime, the designers showed huge bows over mock turtlenecks and chunky platform sneakers as well as full, pleated skirts and oversized sweaters.
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Image: Alessandro Lucioni/Imaxtree
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There are certain designers who, when you see their name on a collection, you immediately want to play Spot the Award Show Gown and Carolina Herrera is the queen of this game. Her dress- and skirt-centric collection which only featured a few trousers thrown in for variety, was the epitome of her usual understated elegance, and of course we can expect to see several of her dresses on the red carpet over the next few weeks.
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| Image: ANDREA ADRIANI/Imaxtree |
We like the idea rather than the execution of Karen Walker's clothes. Best known for her eyewear and sunglasses, Walker's clothes are usually interesting but in our experience her fit model and our body type just don't match. Apart from this discrepancy, we are often impressed by her clothing collections and the looks she sent down the runway for AW2014 were no exception.
Once again, there were oversized silhouettes, and this time boxy suiting giving way to more relaxed sweaters and dresses which were covered with statuary and Ancient Greek imagery. We particularly liked the floral pieces including a voluminous coat and dress.
Once again, there were oversized silhouettes, and this time boxy suiting giving way to more relaxed sweaters and dresses which were covered with statuary and Ancient Greek imagery. We particularly liked the floral pieces including a voluminous coat and dress.
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| Image via The Cut |
We are trying to wrap our heads as much as possible around both the hemline asymmetry and overall volume that appears to be pervasive on the runway for AW2014. Opening Ceremony have shown and executed both trends fairly well. With lots of layers and wooly knits, an attempt has been made to balance the bulk on the upper part of the body by revealing lots of leg. Our favourite looks? The origami pleated "fingerprint" dresses that came out in the middle of the show.
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