Cherish the Day. No21 Pre-Fall’16

December 23, 2015August 5, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

It’s again all about Alessandro Dell’AcQua – however, this time we are talking about the designer’s home-label, N21. After the festive pre-fall collection which he delivered at Rochas just a few days ago, the Italian designer took an interesting twist at N21, refreshing his house codes and bringing new motifs – like the kitty-kat prints and embroideries on knitted, chunky sweaters and mini-bags. Also, the current European weather, which is definitely not about a white Christmas, makes this collection look and feel perfect for the moment – long coats with strips of velvet, silk dresses in military hues, series of light, masculine shirts with lace sleeves and the flawless, parachute maxi dresses in red and green are the total highlights of the season. Also, the shearling jacket with delicate embroidery had a moment. Just like the bow-top, which is an exaggerated symbol of N21, the collection is full of toned, yet cheerful clothes. And surely, Alessandro and his studio have a reason to celebrate – 2016 will start with an opening the first European flagship store in the heart of Milan, and later on, the brand will set a launch of the childwear line. The optimistic attitude is visible in both, the pre-fall 2016 look-book and the designer’s Instagram feed!

Jacquemus’ Dadaism

November 3, 2015November 10, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Simon Porte Jacquemus is one of the most daring designers in Paris. His collection trigger controversy, even though they reminisce childish, naive and even primitive way of being. The brand’s recent autumn-winter collection is deeply rooted in the period of dadaism – the shirts are printed with surreal, black hands, while voluminous trousers and skirts have those red, plastic circles through which stripes of textiles overlap. Take note of the abstract crop-tops – even though they look like pieces of a fancy, 60’s rug, they are made of wool patches, made fully in France (just like the rest of the pieces sold by Jacquemus). For the full effect of the very arty and avant-garde femme Simon creates this season, there are those paper masks – nobody is sure how practical are they, but surely they will update every possible look you think of this autumn.

The full AW15 look-book on jacquemus.com

Patio Situation

August 21, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

For Concept 21‘s Instagram (@concept21store, check it out!), I took a few photographs of Ania from Piece of Cake – an adorable cafe with delicious coffee by The Barn and great cheese-cakes, baked every morning by the owners. This time, we styled the new arrivals for Pre-Fall 2015 by No21. The runway mohair sweater and mini-skirt with a bow look beautiful together… just like the quiet patio which is on the back of this lovely place. With brick walls, wild ivy and vintage stools from local flea markets, this patio is a go-to for an ultimate tune-out during the warm days.

#TBT: Haider Ackermann’s SS11

August 13, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Spring / summer 2011 for men by Haider Ackermann.The designer titled his show “A Carte Blanche Named Opium”, and the elegantly spare book (he called it a “carnet de voyage”) that was distributed before his Spring presentation in Florence during Pitti Uomo Fashion Week promised an appropriately dark, sensual head trip. Men in embellished jackets and upholstery trousers, women in their languidly draped palazzo pants and layered silk tanks. One of my all-time favourite by Ackermann.

Dance. Rachel Comey Resort’16

July 13, 2015July 13, 2015 | Design & Culture by Ed

Dance! Use your body language! Resort 2016 by the New York-based favourite, Rachel Comey, is a blast. The looks were documented through a dance performance from the Robbins Child company – women who love dancing simply showed the clothes they wore through movement. While listening to various music on their headphones, the dancers looked more than refreshing in colours of curcuma, lemon and red chilli… Comey said that she’d been looking at shots from Kingston, Jamaica circa the 1970s as a way of exploring a loose “street style” theme, and though her homage was indirect, the collection’s prints and colors made the reference clear. With a cool 70’s twist, these dresses are definitely the ones you want to try out at Saturday night dance-club.