Another season, another Jason Last video. He’s back again for the Complexgeometries Fall Winter 2010 – 2011 season.
image: complexgeometries.com
Latest Posts
Prada “Made in …” Project
Prada is collaborating with the best artisans from India, Scotland, Peru and Japan to produce a limited edition collection of items that will be available in 2011. They will be found in select Prada stores and are promising to be expensive.
the company continues to identify those specialized craftspeople that represent an unrivaled standard of excellence. Using Mario Prada’s time-honed strategy, Prada collaborates with these exquisite artisans to produce modern, innovative designs utilizing the traditional craftsmanship, materials, and manufacturing techniques of a specific region. In an unceasing quest for excellence, Prada continues to transcend geographical boundaries. Rather than restrictive, such “barriers†offer new ways to think and work. This approach has led naturally to the new “Made in …†project.
“PRADA Made in Scotlandâ€
A collection of traditional tartan wool kilts from the original UK workshops that utilize centuries-old manufacturing and weaving techniques.“PRADA Made in Indiaâ€
A collection of entirely handmade garments from the workshops that specialize in Chikan — the most ancient and refined type of Indian embroidery – and handmade, multicoloured ballerina flats, sandals and handbags that employ an equally sophisticated traditional weaving technique.“PRADA Made in Japanâ€
A collection of jeans produced by Dova, the world’s most sophisticated denim manufacturer. The “PRADA Made in Japan†jeans can be custom ordered in four different varieties of cloth and seven different washes, meaning that every article is one-of-a-kind.“PRADA Made in Peruâ€
A collection of alpaca wool knitwear using artisanal techniques from the most traditional workshops of the Peruvian “campesinosâ€.
images: nylonmag.com and courtesy of Prada
i want: Mimi Bucket Bag by Cha Cha Handbags
I first wrote about Cha Cha and Lori Chalmers on blogTO way back in 2007. I still have that bucket bag fetish and I like the ones that Lori creates. It’s called the Mimi Bucket Bag. I’m enjoying the purple animal print one a lot.
Lori creates each bag by hand and are available on the Cha Cha website.
images courtesy of Cha Cha
i want: Ketsby polished-leather studded ankle boots by Church’s
Ketsby polished-leather studded ankle boots by Church’s
I love, love, love these studded ankle boots. They are the perfect menswear inspired boot with the perfect amount of studding.
images: net-a-porter.com
i got: Darcel Disappoints – Fashion Week postcard set
I posted about the cute Darcel adventures at the Fashion Weeks. Craig Redman’s caricatures of fashion icons are so adorable that I had to own them. So I bought the Darcel Disappoints — Fashion Week postcard set. It’s so adorable.
To celebrate the fashion week insanity I’m releasing a few sets of the postcards I did with colette and Nowness for Fashion’s Night Out here in New York. They are a nice size (5 x 7) and there are 10 different cards, all for 15 bucks – nuts!
In order:
Anna Wintour
Suzy Menkes
Karl Lagerfeld
Tom Ford
John Galliano
Marc Jacobs
Tavi
Carine Roitfeld
Grace Coddington
Alber Elbaz
image: darceldisappoints.bigcartel.com
caricature
Happy 75th Josephson Opticians!
During the summer IÂ participated in an ad campaign for the 75th anniversary of Josephson Opticians. I said yes because I love this kind of thing and photoshoots are always lots of fun. So, I took a day off work in the summer and headed to Caitlin Cronenberg‘s studio. I’ve waited patiently for the November 2010 issue of Toronto Life to come out and it’s finally here. I can show off this fun ad to everyone.
This October marks the 75th anniversary of Josephson Opticians, a very special occasion for Dr. Josh Josephson, family, and friends. To commemorate the milestone Josephson will present a series of group portraits by noted photographer, Caitlin Cronenberg. The series highlights Toronto’s community of cultural mavens, icons, and longtime clients in a trio of photographs to be released over the next few months.(source)
Thanks to Brill Communications, Caitlin Cronenberg and Josh Josephson for allowing me to participate in your celebrations. It was a honour I’ll never forget.
Josephson Opticians 75th Outfit Breakdown – Alain Mikli sunglasses (nope I didn’t get to keep them), Complex Geometries Dress, Camilla Skoovgaard heels.
Green Works, part of the heel breaking in process
Sponsored
When I was approached to write this sponsored post on Clorox Green Works I was a bit relieved. I used some of their products regularly so I have previous exposure. Like millions of people across North America, I started to become more and more aware of the harmful ingredients in traditional cleaning products. Friends introduced me to alternative natural based ones and I haphazardly started to incorporate them into my home. The main problem with those options was access to stores that carried the products and the high cost associated with them. I would always try to buy the natural alternative but there were times when I couldn’t due to money or access issues so I would cheat. Over the past couple of years I’ve noticed more natural products on the shelves of my local Shopper’s Drug Mart. I’m excited about the easy access and lower price points.
I always break in new heels while cleaning
Clorox is the first major consumer products company to develop a line of natural cleaning products. They are moving into the market and this is a good thing for consumers. Their distribution and lower production costs make their natural cleaning products more accessible to regular consumers. More and more consumers want to make the change. Now the cost and access barriers are lifting. Ingredients come from items like coconuts, lemons and corn. Green Works products are at least 99% natural in that only 1% of the Ingredients are petroleum derived. They contain no phosphorus or bleach. Clorox defines natural products as derived from natural renewable resource, the material is biodegradable, 99% petrochemical free and not testing on animals (source). Green Works products do not disinfect but Clorox is looking into adding natural disinfecting options in the future.
The Sierra Club has endorsed the Green Works products which also give them more legitimacy in the natural health product market. You can find the Sierra Club logo on the bottle as well as the EPA’s Design for the Environment label. The Sierra Club chose to partner with Clorox because the company would be able to meet their goals of making affordable and effective green cleaning products easily available to the public at an affordable price. Partnering with one of the great but smaller companies wouldn’t be very effective at making the product available to millions of people because of the access and price barriers. Clorox takes natural cleaning products from a niche market into the mainstream. Green Works products are priced 30 – 50% less than other natural cleaning products available (source). Sierra Club also chose Clorox because they have a better than average environmental performance than other companies.
My 1st experience with Green Works was through a sample of laundry detergent. I was surprised it was Clorox. I went on to buy the bathroom cleaner and all-purpose cleaner for my home. They were very effective and worked just as well as the traditional alternatives. Clorox consumer research has shown that in lab controlled and blind testing Green Works is just as effective as traditional cleaners (source). To facilitate this post Green Works provided me with a package of cleaners including the all-purpose cleaner, natural dilutable cleaner, bathroom cleaner, glass & surface cleaner, dishwashing liquid and cleaning wipes. I’m happy to now be able to try a full range of products.
Green Works is found in the cleaning aisle of most major stores.
Disclosure: This a post about Green Works by Clorox. Clorox hired me to share my experience with their products.
LGFW SS11: Denis Gagnon
Denis Gagnon never disappoints. His spring summer 2011 collection wowed the audience on Friday. It begs the question, why is Denis still showing in Canada? I really think he could hit up a capital and I hope he does. The man needs to be a household name in the fashion industry worldwide. His work makes me weep that I’m not wealthy enough to own it all.
Stripes, chains, zippers and string were the major themes. Stripes can be hard to wear sometimes but Denis Gagnon strategically used angles to ensure the best possible silhouette. String is back from the previous season and thank god for that. Those looks have so much movement to them, it’s mesmerizing. All I can think about is dancing in them and how much fun it would be. It was a primarily black and white collection but there were dresses in green, blue, orange and silver. Ombre dipped string added a beautiful effect to dresses down the runway.
The models weren’t very strong and you could see their hesitation with the special made double platform heels. The models were a minor distraction most people including myself were staring at the clothing. The chain detail is so intricate and special. I wonder how much time is needed to create a piece like this. I saw a few pieces of the collection up close and personal at Holt Renfrew for the personal appearance. Amazing is the only way to describe it, absolutely amazing. I will have to play dress up in Holt’s come spring. Denis Gagnon is always part of that game for me.
The styling was perfect for the collection. I didn’t notice the facial piercings on some of the models until looking at the photos. It works for this urban tribal world Denis has created. Someone pointed out to the hair at Alexander Wang’s NYC show. At first glance I could see similarities. The model’s hair incorporates braids in this style and it just looks better. There isn’t any awful white paint. Denis created all the amazing handbags shown this season. I was drooling over all of them, especially the fringy ones. Denis does know how to design a handbag as seen with his Fullum & Holt collaboration a few years back. I suspect he had something to do with the jewellery too this season.
Sponsored Post – This is a series of posts on LG Fashion Week that are sponsored by Shick. Bloggers can explore the Chick Advisor Flickr feed and freely use LG Fashion Week photos provided by Shick and Chick Advisor on their blogs.
LGFW SS11: Thursday Blues
Thursday was the only day of LG Fashion Week I didn’t attend. I spend the day in New York City with some research and development folks from Intel. I was geeking out and loving it but that post will come later. There were a few collections I wanted to check out on Thursday but when NYC calls I tend to forget everything else. Most of the collections were during the day so I wouldn’t have seen them even if I was in the country.
The last Baby Steinberg show I saw was for Frugal Fashion Week at the Bata Shoe Museum. I’m amazed at how she takes reusable materials and creates clothing out them. For some reason there are no photos from Schick available for Baby Steinberg so check out the photos and videos on the LG Fashion Week site.
Klaxon Howl has a great collection of military clothing and it a favourite because of my love of military. I once bought a cute white sailor hat from the store. It’s one of those places that makes me wish I was a guy to take advantage of all the good stuff. I was a little disappointed the collection wasn’t heavily military influenced. The things that stood out for me the most were the women’s looks.
I really wanted to see the THOMAS show too. Their style aesthetic seems to ber much inline with my own. I liked the women’s looks but the men’s were so much more compelling. I’m loving the super slouchy pants.
Sponsored Post – This is a series of posts on LG Fashion Week that are sponsored by Shick. Bloggers can explore the Chick Advisor Flickr feed and freely use LG Fashion Week photos provided by Shick and Chick Advisor on their blogs.
LGFW SS11: Line Knitwear Spring Summer 2011
Line Knitwear is branching out and it’s not all about the knits anymore. This season brings separates and dresses in fabrics like leathers and silks. Typically Line Knitwear creates knit tops and leather jackets so I was surprised at this new development. Now I’m interested to see how John and Jennifer expand this already very successful company.
The knits this time around looked crocheted. Spring Summer 2011 is about sheer knits without a lot of bulk. Line is expecting the midriff to return and there were lots of cropped knit tops for that purpose. The knits were only a small part of the story this season. Line brought out some high-waisted, pleated pants, shorts and culottes in leather and suede. Cloud like prints on silk were used for relaxed, loose-fitting pants and jumpsuits. The palette consisted of muted colours and I was glad it wasn’t a total camel fest. Instead it was olive, orange and rose.
I wish more designers would leave line sheets on the seats for media and guests. It would have helped me to identify the materials used in the dresses that reminded me of 70s crocheted hanging planters. It was weird how those dresses brought back memories of family homes in the 70s. Some of my favourite pieces include the printed pants and jumpsuit. The loose-fitting leather pants and shorts are a nice change to the typical bodycon we see with leather. I wasn’t feeling the culotte versions though as they look great on models but I’m skeptical about real people. We are just too short to make it look good. I really liked a lot of the collection and can’t wait to see the lookbook.
Sponsored Post – This is a series of posts on LG Fashion Week that are sponsored by Shick. Bloggers can explore the Chick Advisor Flickr feed and freely use LG Fashion Week photos provided by Shick and Chick Advisor on their blogs.