Month: February 2007

an i want and i got..

I’ve been feeling the ring love recently. I have a rather long history of not wearing rings. It all stems from high school when I lost one that was very important to me. Recently a good friend of mine bought we this wicked ring with a blue hummingbird on it. I loved it and of course I lost it. However, I haven’t given up and I recently picked up two costume jewelery rings. Refinery29 recently linked to Melissa Joy Manning whose jewelery is breathtaking and available in Toronto! She also runs a ethical business out of L.A. which makes these designs so much more sweet. Geology nerds are probably salivating over some of these designs.

Footloose – the future of heels

Footloose the adjustable heel. It’s a shoe that can be worn as a flat or a high heel. This picture of course is just the base and not what the final product will look like. Footloose- adjustable high heels by Marte den Hollander It’s often said that ‘everything has been thought of’. As a designer, I think the opposite is true. As soon as you take a closer look to the world, you notice all things can be improved. The high-heeled shoe is a classic example of a no pain, no gain product. Women wearing them take so much trouble for granted! I decided to challenge this compromise. Would it be possible to make a shoe having all advantages of high heels, just as well as the comfort of flats? I designed a shoe with a high heel, which can be changed into a shoe with a low heel. No more extra pairs of shoes in your bag, no more trouble driving a car or walking stairs, no more painful feet, no more knee and …

i want…

Miranda cuff by Whitelotus Design Edina Racz is a successful Toronto jewelery designer. She has been on my posting radar for a while, but it’s just been one of those things I haven’t gotten to yet. She helped me along by emailing me about her designs. I love the colours in this bracelet, perfect for the upcoming warm weather. Edina makes them in different colours using different materials. Semiprecious gemstones and metals, silver and Swarovski crystals are the ingredients of Whitelotus jewelery.

Better in theory

I love the new spring 2007 coats at Club Monaco. First they came in black and khaki with wide cropped sleeves. They look amazing on the mannequin. Then I spotted the slicker version. Grey patent, this would be a standout coat. Unfortunately, I realized that I couldn’t pull it off. I put this coat on and it looked like a big plastic bag wrapped around me. Sigh, no patent jackets for me. 🙁 The black one was okay, but looked much better on the mannequin.

What would a lower priced line do to Marc Jacobs?

I read an interesting article on the expansion of the Marc Jacobs empire, a lower priced line. In the article, Marc Jacobs for the Masses, Robert Duffy, Marc’s business partner, describes it “as an alternative to the mass-market promotional tool of designer and high-street collaborations, the line would be an inexpensive offering aimed at enhancing brand recognition.” I wonder about this, will this work or backfire? It will be very profitable in the short term, but how long will that last? Will it ruin Marc’s street cred? 🙂 Would they try to take on H&M? Could they take on H&M? So many questions. What do you people think?