whodini
Conan OOOOOOO"BRIEN!
- Joined
- Jul 16, 2006
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- 17,950
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First off, this is more of a brief recap than anything else. We're saving the good stuff in case we need more material/product shots for future Q&A's with designers. I took down the list of labels that people were interested in and tried to accommodate as many as I could, however, a few brands were left out either because of time issues, the fact that they simply did not show (Our Legacy, for example), or my general indifference, no offense. On Tuesday morning I went over to the MGM Skylofts to visit KZO, Nice Collective, Martin (a NiCo diffusion line), and Wings + Horns. If you haven't heard or visited the Skylofts, by the way, then you have not experienced the Vegas luxury lifestyle, or so the room's morning butler told me as he scoured the bar cabinet for a decent rocks glass in which to pour my morning cocktail. But I digress.
There was a clear Southwest theme running through the KZO collection while leaning at times towards softer pastels. I felt that they really focused on the strength of their fabrics; it is a shame that the weight and hand of the garments aren't translated well through photos. The designs were more subtle (see 3/4 sleeve shirt and selvage detail on linen shirt) than the strong military aesthetic used in seasons past. This was probably the most original collection I saw for spring in a trade show sea of chambray shirts and boat shoes.
With Nice Collective I would have liked more time but as I skimmed through it felt like I had seen most of the pieces before from other seasons. I'll reserve judgment as only about 60-70% of the actual line was represented. What is new is that Esquivel is making a grey calf leather boot for them; I'm a bit iffy on the crepe sole but the leather was amazing.
Aside from the perennial favorites there were actually a few stand-outs like the waterproof chambray rain jacket and the shorts/pants; I think I might try to pick up the bomber. The crew was pretty happy with their collab with Quoddy. CAPSULE
Nothing really "wowed" me save for the chambray tuxedo shirt; the hand and slub were remarkable.
I wasn't terribly familiar with the line outside of a few photos online but they were definitely a brand that needed to be seen in person to be believed. Their knits were nothing short of amazing. The blue cardigan, for example, was not just a random concept but rather an ingenious design in which the label's town, Herning, was actually spelled out in the pattern. SNS has been passed down through several generations just like the machine used to create the ribbing in along the neck of the wool underwear shirt. Roden Grey's Rob Lo could only use expletives and sexually-laced euphemisms to describe his excitement over SNS and I could only agree. It wasn't so much that it was ground-breaking as much as it was impressive to see that level of work and attention to detail done today.
This was their first season selling outside their store. Their line was solid as always but I couldn't help but think how it would look (or sell for that matter) in a store aesthetically different from their own. Outside of their online store, their B&M store is really what makes it for me as Reid does a great job at selling the lifestyle as well as the clothes.
OC put together a pretty colorful collection this season. I'm not sure what the inspiration was behind it all as it felt like a general mishmash of styles but that isn't a knock to the individual pieces themselves. The black tech jacket looked intriguing.
I enjoyed OC's take on the classic brand. OC has a particularly quirky aesthetic but admittedly this collaboration worked for me. It's definitely not for everyone and I'd argue that one would want one or two articles as signature pieces in their collection rather than filling their entire closet; the rain jacket is a good example of such a piece. A few of their shirts were also offered in the same pattern as their outerwear as pictured above.
For those of you looking for "interesting" outerwear then definitely take a look at MB999. I found these pieces a bit more accessible than what was offered for SS09 (check out Oak's collection.) While they do offer shirts with distressed collars and drapey t-shirts in the vein of Ann D I think their leathers are where their strength lies.
More of the same from NDG. If you're into a higher-end military aesthetic then you know them well. Of note, perhaps I was only seeing samples but none of the jeans offered were selvage although the denim was still better than average.
Something for the denimheads... TripleWorks is the new offspring of Iron Heart. I'll have to look up the line sheet but from what I remember prices were reasonable (in the 2's). They offered a variety of weights, raw/one wash, and even had a "permanent dyed" series for those who never want their jeans to fade. The washes were pretty damn incredible although they aren't offered in the mens' cuts just yet.
You'll be happy to know that Left Field has a full collection this ss10 on top of their increasingly-popular jeans. Everything is made in the USA. I have a feeling we'll be seeing more of them on the forum pretty soon.
As the story goes, this collection is inspired by the death of John Dillinger; every piece is styled after what bystanders at the time would have been wearing and every piece has a bit of red incorporated into it to go back to the story that people dipped articles of clothing in Dillinger's blood so as to have a piece of him and history. The collection is made in Colorado with the exception of the shirts which are made in New York. It should be interesting to see how this brand matures as it already looks like the West's answer to Billy Reid.
This kids from NYC are fairly under-represented here on the forum and abroad in general. A few places have picked up their black jeans this season, an overdye and a raw, like Confederacy LA but their leather jackets are where they shine.
Odyn Vovk (o-din vah-fk) is a line probably unfamiliar to most on here but I doubt that will be for very much longer. Designer Austin Sherbanenko acknowledges head-to-toe his looks aren't for everyone but that most could easily incorporate at least one piece of his into their wardrobe. He also admits that while he might have his critics on other fashion forums, he could "give a **** as long as [he] can stand behind the quality of every garment of the collection;" considering the construction and materials used (like riri zippers), it'd be hard to argue with that. As he is based here in LA I'll be stopping by his office soon to take more (read: better) photos of his collection.
More of the same from YMC. While I didn't see anything that I absolutely had to have it was hard to find fault with their pieces. Overall I thought it was one of the most well-rounded, albeit conservative, offerings from top to bottom at the show. WEDNESDAY:
Not much to say about the work from the brothers Parton as the photos speak for themselves. The new tag shown on the jeans above is a new effort to trace back the article of clothing to the place in which it is manufactured. Take a look at the material of the henley.
Ken Chow of Krane is back this season with new additions to the line to make your pocketbook weep. On top of making his first-ever leather jacket he is also introducing a shirt line. Time to start pinching those pennies.
Eric Glennie: the man, the myth, the legend.
NAU does a fair bit of juggling. While focusing on bridging fashion and function they are also adamant about the quality and sourcing of their fabrics of which most comes recycled. Their new bags, made of recycled materials and use waterproof fabric, are good examples of the work NAU continues to do. I'm looking forward to visiting their offices in Portland, OR to give you guys a better sense of the brand.
This is more a teaser than anything else but in the future I'll be doing a write-up on KC's new Black Series and some of their new offerings such as their raw black 90-day Tour jeans. There's quite a bit for the SFer this season.
