Brooklyn We Go Hard (BWGH) have just opened their first pop-up in the Cité de la Mode et du Design. The store will be open until September, giving us plenty of time to get across The Channel. Launched in 2010 by two Parisian friends, the brand is their reaction to exploring the urban culture of the world. As well as a menswear line BWGH also stands for a collective of young photographers, cultural events and a bi-annual magazine.
Below are images from their latest campaigns…
One trend that makes me very happy this spring is the hologram movement. I love how mesmerizing the finish can be, and so when designers such as Jonathan Saunders, Prada and Raf Simmons showcased their holographic creations, I got a little giddy. Making its way from the catwalk to the high street, the trend will see us through summer and I intend to try and momentarily startle passers-by - with my super-reflective shoes of course – as I lay in the sun. When it finally returns, that is.
This first one is for the boys…
RAF SIMONS WHITE & BLUE LEATHER HOLOGRAPHIC SPACE SNEAKERS, Ssense, £534.78
KTZ shiny cropped top, Farfetch, £80.33
SOMEWHERE NOWHERE SMALL HOLOGRAM CLUTCH, BENGTFashion, £41
JONATHAN SAUNDERS Aaron metallic bomber jacket, Net-A-Porter, £850
CROSSOVER SLING BACK HOLOGRAM SANDAL, Zara, £59.99
Unif Cake Dress, Unif Clothing, £58.40
Marina Guergova is the designer of silk-focused brand Marina London. Having scored high points from the fashion blogosphere, Marina and her designs are pushing forward and looking into a bright future. Each season Marina creates investment pieces and wardrobe classics in silk – a material sometimes forgotten. Having sensed a gap in the market, Marina London brings the world of silk and contemporary fashion together.
Can you tell me a little about your background?
I am Bulgarian born and bred until the age of nine when I came to study in UK and have stayed here ever since. After school I studied at Kingston University and then did my BA (Hons) course at Central Saint Martins.
How did the course at CSM set you up for a career in fashion?
I did the Fashion Design with Marketing course and we were more encouraged to think about creating a ‘brand’. Towards the middle and end of my course I just got excited about the meaning of fashion. Yes it can be expressive and wild, but it’s also utilitarian and pragmatic. I love this kind of fashion – the ‘I’m getting stuff done’ kind of vibe. But I guess the obvious answer is: I can say that I graduated from there.
Why did you choose to specialise in silk? What is it you love about the material?
I love silk for so many reasons. I feel like it has resurrected in the last few years. I am into simple/sporty shapes and silhouettes and silk is one of those fabrics that should be let to drape and just hang there with minimum fuss, minimum seams. Slip it on and off. It’s tactile and the main kind of silk that I use is heavy, sand-washed Crepe de chine, which has such a satisfying weight to it; it’s like butter. I wanted to be a specialist in this fabric and that’s how it started. It love it because it’s a noble fabric; it’s romantic.
When it comes to design, what inspires you?
I love the 70’s in a big way. High waisted pants, billowy tops, long hair. I feel like that decade runs through my veins everyday. That’s my nostalgic inspiration and on the other end I am inspired mainly by street style. It’s the practical part of me that loves following what happens on the streets. What are real people wearing? How is that changing? Who is ahead of the curve on the street? Street style is not always trend driven, which is why I love it. I’m not into trends. They are annoying and totally over-rated. No, I don’t want to look like a leopard or a Mongolian child for 4 weeks this season – I’m fine. Really.
Having previously worked for Alexander McQueen, Proenza Schouler and David Szeto, when did you realise you wanted to start on your own?
I realised a year and a half after graduating. I can get lost in my brain sometimes and I come up with all sorts of things and I do get excited in my own way. I love mulling over ideas and then doing tons of ‘surfing’ online, I love that you can surf online. Internet waves are easy. I just slowly began getting momentum for this idea and I followed through.
You create wardrobe staples, but what is yours? What piece couldn’t you live without?
Good question. I guess I love my ‘Man Repeller’ jumpsuit a lot. It’s mega simple, but it really hits the spot for me. Never have I ever found a good jumpsuit. And what I mean by that is that I have never found one that I don’t have to mortgage my life for. Mine is £500 and it’s a killer. Apart from that I love high waisted pants, I love a great shirt buttoned all the way up. And the wedge sneaker is one of those things that I shouldn’t admit to, but I love wearing them. I really do.
What can we expect for AW13?
AW13 is taking silk back to it’s romantic roots, colour-wise. Expect jewel colours (deep teal and fig) with a few of my staple styles as well as a few new shapes as always with subtle sports-luxe references.
How would you like to see the brand grow?
I would love to see the brand in Harvey Nichols and Net-a-Porter.com. It would do so well there. I would love to start selling to even more international markets such as Japan and Asia in general, as well as grow further within the European market. I would love for it to reach it’s full potential as a specialist brand. To be known for making silks that people can afford at a quality that is as good as any mainstream design house, which would otherwise charge you twice as much.
Designer duo, Agi & Sam, are no strangers to London Collections: Men. They will be showcasing their 7th collection in June, but now they are about to leave their mark on the high street. Their collection for Topman was inspired by East London’s interpretation on the olympics last year. Keeping the duo’s humour and utilising their trademark prints, the collaboration has a range of 20 pieces from teal and yellow summer suits, to shirts and shorts. The collection also features two football kits for their fictional team The Owls. I’m not into football, like at all, but I would most definitely wear these football shirts. I support fashion, not sport.
In stores and online on May 16th.
Seeing the latest Avenue 32 accessory editorial got me thinking a lot about man’s so-called best friend, especially since they seem to be having a modelling moment. Avenue 32 are following behind brands such as Acne and publications such as The Telegraph, who last month carried out an international fashion shoot with Noodle the dog as their muse. Even the blogosphere agrees that dogs make great fashion models. Take the successful tumblr blog, Menswear Dog, as an example.
I have only been close to three furry companions in my lifetime, and I have to say that only one truly loves me unconditionally. So that rumour about dogs being loyal, not so true in the end. My Chihuahua friend in New York City remembers me every time I visit, but then gets bored of my company after a while. The King Charles Cavalier that grew up surrounded by my teenage parties, well you can expect that he’s a little loopy. And then there’s the pug. So cute that I almost want to have a little photoshoot of my own. When my friend comes back from work, she’ll probably find her little baby surrounded by endless chiffon, silk and feathers. And maybe I’ll even paint her little paw nails. Only maybe.
So to prevent myself from torturing an innocent pug, I’ve been looking for the most stylish canines on the net. My vote goes to the William Wegman for Acne Weimaraners.
Now that spring has finally turned up I have started dreaming of summer. Typical, I know. To me British summer time means rain, and the occasional festival. Appropriate bags tend to be of the shoulder variety, as they are easier to keep an eye on than the other hands-free bag the backpack. They allow you dance, skip and be merry, all while knowing your valuables are safe at your hip. But these accessories are not the kind to go dancing in fields. And you wouldn’t want to take them because they might see things a Chanel 2.5 (for example) should never see.
Nina Peter Neon Orange Python Box Bag Avenue 32 £300
Fleet Ilya Diamond Handbag Darkroom £575
Sophie Hulme Khaki Mini Envelope Bag Glassworks Studios £275
REBECCA MINKOFF Skylar Mini Bag Farfetch £216.15
Dries Van Noten Skinny Strap Handbag LN-CC £594
To celebrate our favourite spring/summer 2013 fashion trends we decided to make a little fashion film. The first video produced by NOA and it certainly won’t be the last. #Trending was directed by ST.AG and features Holly Barker, Hannah Palmer and Naomi Loverage as models with ViLLAGE – Wanna Tell You (Henry Krinkle Remix) as the soundtrack.
Instead of creating for one brand or designer, we pulled pieces from our current wardrobes, making a moving-image version of our daily outfits. #Trending features garments from Urban Outfitters, Topshop, Opening Ceremony, Ragged Priest, Moxham, EA Burns, Dr Martens, Zara, American Apparel, & Other Stories and House of Holland to name but a few.
Can you take a guess at which SS13 trends we’re celebrating?
The beauty about fashion film is that they can be so diverse. If the films concept matches with the designers vision, then you get an interesting visual interpretation and a new way of showing the collection. Street wear label Hood by Air has collaborated with creative director Matthew Williams and stylist Tom Guinness, to celebrate Shayne Oliver’s Spring/Summer 2013 menswear collection.
The fashion film, Hood By Air, shows the collection worn by three models each holding what I believe to be a semi-automatic gun, showing that fashion can be ‘hard’ and of course the film is set to an exclusive dark and bassy soundtrack by A$AP Rocky. Fitting, as high fashion for men has never been so ‘hood’.
BENGT is an online fashion destination set out to provide you with fresh, emerging talent. Founded in 2009 it was born out of an undying passion for individuality, which is the area of fashion I find most intriguing, so I am very excited to announce that I am their latest Guest Blogger. READ my first post here.
To accompany the post ST.AG shot the photography, in which I am wearing an Opening Ceremony skirt, & Other Stories neon crop jumper, EA Burns pendent necklace, Brian Lichtenberg beanie and StylistPick platform Chelsea boots.
Thinking back to a simpler time, back when playing British Bull Dog in the playground was the highlight of my day, I remember seeing my fellow 7/8-year-old classmates wearing Jellies with their ickle summer dresses. I didn’t really understand it then, and now I have to admit, I still don’t.
I’ve got to give Mother some credit here. She didn’t always understand my fashion choices as a teen, looking back, I sometimes don’t either, but during those innocent years she definitely tried to hone in my style and she had a strong reaction to Jellies. “No, they’re tacky,” were the words she used as I picked up a pair of black rubber heels, in the Debenhams children department I might add, which if bought would have been my first pair of heels. Thanks for the heads-up mum, I was caving into pre-teen pressure, thinking I needed to be wearing the same material on my feet as my friends, but the next day as we all lined up to be let into class I saw that my 7-year-old nemeses was wearing a pair of clear yet sparkly Jellies, that had a tiny little fish in the heel. This could have been my first reaction to animal cruelty, or just the fact that if she had them, I certainly didn’t want them but after that day I never asked for Jellies again. I must add that the little fish in the heel of her shoe was fake, but I didn’t know that then.
Flash-forward to Spring/Summer 2013 and their back. Jellies, not little fish heeled shoes. And this is due to the 90′s nostalgia that has been making its way onto the catwalk and high-street for a couple of years now. I loved it when grunge came back, the beanies, the backpacks, even the dungarees, but I am having quite a strange aversion to these little jellied shoes. Yes, I do agree they look very cute when worn with ankle socks and frilly dresses. But on 8 year olds. Not grown women. I can understand the fun element – I also understand that they are becoming quite a little trend, but this is one I’m going to have to say no to.
JuJu Jellies are the creators of the British Jelly Shoe and have been manufacturing them for over 25 years. Even if I don’t find them aesthetically pleasing, that’s pretty good going. One brand that have created leather sandals with only a little wibble-wobble are Acne. Their SS13 shoe collection features over seven pairs of shoes with glittery rubber heels – these I’d certainly like to slip my size 3′s into.
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