Soar for Autumn

Tim Soar for AW10.

Now, I rarely wear an outfit of pieces from one designer but I had to make an exception after falling head over heels for Tim Soar's AW10 collection back in February. After a successful number of seasons of no-holds-barred modernism Soar opted to look back in order to look forward with his 'Greatest Hits' collection. Throughout, Soar manages to eloquently condense the last one hundred and fifty years of menswear, picking out key pieces and exploring the shifts in the social constructs of masculinity as he goes. Soar developed a mood board that ran chronologically from mid-victorian times through to the late 70s. It then became easy to pick out themes to explore. Some of the themes were detail focused, some were all about fabric others were about cut and construction. The real focus is all about making each piece desirable in its own right.

A closer look at the cashmere mix waffle knit and the silk shirt.

For his 'Greatest Hits', Soar wanted to produce a collection that was warm and familiar, one that would have many overlapping memories and echoes from the past. The result is a collection fit for any modern day gentleman. Timeless elegance. When we unpicked the seams of his the collection back in March, I had to physically restrain myself from purchasing the entire line but succumbed to ordering a trio of key piece; the cashmere mix scooped neck waffle knit, long silk shirt and a pair of black trousers. Having enjoyed and experimented with these items for just over a month, I thought that it was about time that I shared them with you...

The Tim Soar outfit. Silk shirt, waffle knit and trousers all by Tim Soar. 

Socks from Uniqlo and shoes by Mr. Hare.

The length and fluidity of the silk dress shirt has to take centre stage whenever it is worn. Of course, it can be a little too much on its own but the fluidity of the piece works so well when worn the super soft waffle knit. I love the playfulness of this combination and decided to accentuate it by cuffing my trousers a little higher.

Silk shirt, waffle knit and trousers all by Tim Soar.

For me, the key piece of the entire collection was the long silk shirt and I was fortunate enough to hear how this piece embodies the aesthetic of the collection from the designer himself. About a month into the design process Soar looked through his own clothing archive and pulled out two exquisite hand made 70s silk dress shirts that had been kicking around for some time. They where very long and fluid, but quite precise at the same time. Upon this discovery the designer was able to see this connection between the Victorian/Edwardian aesthetic and classy Parisian feeling mid-70s menswear. As soon as he made that connection, it all fell into place. Until now, I had nothing like this in my wardrobe and  will no doubt have great fun experimenting with the fluidity of the item.

Here's to celebrating Soar's Greatest Hits.

Isabeli Fontana interview part 2

Isabeli Fontana interview part 1

Isabeli Fontana

Name : Isabeli Fontana
Born : July 4, 1983
Country : born in Curitiba, Brazil
Lives : New York City, USA


Isabeli Fontana is one of the newest stars in the world of fashion. She is a Brazilian supermodel, who was born in Curitiba, in the Paraná region of Brazil, on July 4, 1983 as Isabeli Bergossi Fontana. Isabeli has got two brothers: Heric and Harrison.

As a child Isabeli Fontana wanted to be a model and her career as a model began in the year 1996, when she at a age of 13 participated in the Elite Model Look Contest in São Paulo where she was a finalist. A year later Isabeli moved to Milan, Italy and started developing her modeling career and gaining plenty of model experience.

Isabeli Fontana has achieved much success and recognition as a supermodel and her talent in modeling was seen immediately, as she is the youngest model ever to be in the Victoria's Secret lingerie catalogue. She was just 16 years old, even though Victoria's Secret does not usually hire models younger than 21. Isabeli Fontana was also modeling for world famous fashion designers, such as Versace, Chanel, Ralph Lauren, Valentino, D&G and had photo shoots with the biggest fashion magazines worldwide, including Vogue, Elle, Cosmopolitan, and Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in years 2002 and 2003.

Isabeli Fontana also has an interest in pursuing a career as an actress.

Fontana is in a relationship with the male model Alvaro Jacomossi and the couple have a baby called Zion.


Isabeli Fontana height: 175 cm
Isabeli Fontana breasts: 86 cm
Isabeli Fontana waist size: 59 cm
Isabeli Fontana hips: 86 cm

Emerging trend... Strong facial hair looks...

Andrea Furci, tattoo artist from Sicily. See his work:  >>>

18 Carat Gold Jewelry - Necklaces & Rings by Mariella Di Gregorio

Mariella Di Gregorio creates a jewelry with some thing we all through away like broken porcelain pieces. Besides she uses her creativity and some precious metals to produce a fabulous unique jewelry, that includes beautiful gold necklaces, rings and bracelets. These jewelry pieces have an eye catching and mesmerizing attraction. This is either 18 carat gold jewelry or gold coated silver ranging between 300 $ to 700$. 

Spitalfields Market, LDN

A little Facehunting... LFW

Magazines in the Spotlight: Encens

Regular readers may have noticed that it has been quite some time since our last 'Magazine In The Spotlight' post but this is not want of trying. I have been frequently and somewhat furiously finger flicking my way through the racks at newsagents and bookstores far and wide before leaving empty handed. Of course, I have encountered the usual suspects but for one reason or another these have failed to truly excite me and therefore warrant a post. I relayed my woes during a recent shopping jaunt at b Store and thankfully proprietor Matthew Murphy stepped in and offered the name of a title that had previously been unknown to me, Encens. His enthusiasm for the title was infectious. As I left the store with my purchases I instantly began my search of Soho for the publication which came to fruition at the ever reliable Compton News. Since finding it I have struggled to put it down which is no easy task given the weight of this style beast. 

Encens number twenty six stands apart from previous issues as it signals their departure from the bi-annual format. Now published once yearly, the publication has taken on several properties which would classify it closer to a book. Firstly, the thickness and hardcover bound, its qualities as an object are just as powerful as the visual stories inside. During his Fashion Pioneers talk with Imran Ahmed, Jefferson Hack highlighted the growing importance of specialisation and what visionary science fiction author and futurist William Gibson terms mooks: “a hybrid of a book and a magazine where stories can be told in depth with beautiful photography.” Encens is undoubtedly more 'mook' than magazine. It is an exploration of the two editors, Samuel Drira and Sybille Walter, aesthetics and something of a manifesto against disposable fashion. Stylist Drira and photographer Walter share a passion for the drape and fall of clothing, a subtle tailoring and a softness of finish and form. Throughout this weighty hardback, there is an incessant delivery of their vision as opposed to a summation of the trends or season based investigations that we have come to expect from style magazines. This vision is contained is shared within everything from an interview with Yves Saint Laurent taken from Vogue in November 1983 to a celebration of the menswear design talent of Damir Doma and Kris Van Assche. Despite the temptation to scan every single page for you, I've decided to pick out a few highlights. Let the images inspire...

Moving back and forth from the present to the past, the editorials and features have a timeless quality. Fashion magazines tend to constantly strive forward. Even though the latest collections may have been influenced by styles or characters from yesteryear, these influences tend to be ignored. Magazines are blinkered to the past. Encens however, takes a fond gaze at the aesthetics of the past which still should have clout today. The publications stands for an independent and long terms approach. Neither Dirra nor Walter are obsessed with clothes of the moment. For them, the best fashion has three common denominators - simplicity and style but also a sense of timelessness, the capacity to either be or become a classic. In one feature they celebrate Kris Van Assche and Damir Doma, declaring their designs to be menswear at its best. A fluid silhouette, void of the typical restriction of menswear, stripped of the 'for men only' labels. Both have a desire to render the ready made boxes of menswear, sharing ideals of versatility and a nomadic existence. The following quote from Per Spook in another feature echoes these ideal...

"One of my golden rules is to be at ease in a garment. Men hate feeling confined. Likewise, discretion, rather than disguise. A man's wardrobe must have its own personality, yet not be recognisable. I have always preferred the classicism of a great simplicity, natural materials, cuts that are worn loose, and since my clothes do not have linings, they remain light and supple." Per Spook.

Encens' relevance exists in the very fact that it is not grounded in any sort of fast fashion, instead quite the opposite. Although seasonality is expected in fashion, I respect and admire anyone who turns against those implemented measures of time. I heartily recommend that you add this publication to your reading list, consider it pleasurable homework.

Cherry picking fashion...

Close Up And Private In Motion

As you should all know by now, Close Up and Private is an on going project by artist Sergei Sviatchenko which looks to capture the spirit of modern style, as seen through the subtle shades of the individual. We have long been admirers and love the project celebrates classic details alongside contemporary looks through a unique form of photographic documentary. The real beauty of menswear is in the details and this series celebrates them daily. Last night, Sviatchenko dropped us an email to notify us of the latest development in this inspiring series. A film collaboration with media artist Noriko Okaku that brings his body of work to life, Close Up And Private In Motion. 

The two artists met in Denmark over the summer. Okaku came to Viberg in Denmark, where Sviatchenko lives, to take part in the Artist in Residence programme at The Animation Workshop. When they met it soon became apparent that they shared a common fascination for the beauty of collage and the discussion naturally switched to a collaborative focus. The resulting Close Up and Private in Motion manages to bring Sviatchenko's distinctive and much loved still image collage work to life. The film wonderfully channels the projects quirky sense of sartorial fun.

CLOSE UP AND PRIVATE IN MOTION from Noriko Okaku on Vimeo.

What I love about this film and the project itself, is that they both clearly prescribe to the belief that dressing each morning should not be a chore or a bore. It reminds us all to have a little fun each morning while putting in a little extra thought in to each outfit. This season, when mornings are are a little grey and dull, rather than hit the snooze button and hide under the duvet in a depressed state, why not leap out of bed and take inspiration from your wardrobe. With this in mind, I'd like to finish with a quote from another great subscriber to this belief, Patrick Grant...

"I think men have lost sight of how much fun it is to be well dressed. It’s actually really fun to spend a little bit of time every morning putting your clothes on, picking tie, picking a handkerchief, choosing a shirt from your wardrobe, picking a jacket and a pair of trousers and putting it all together and feeling great in your wardrobe. It’s really a lovely thing to do each day." 

Patrick Grant speaking to SwipeLife.

All Westwood, LDN

I always like to visit the Blogs of the commenter’s of this blog and recently I have seen a strong trend emerging promoting the benefits of all the new styles of Wellies.

Years ago wellies were seen in black or khaki green and if you were lucky navy or red but never with a heel. But with today’s fashion taking a leap we now have wellies in all colors, patterns, styles and textures to suit all fashion followers. Wellies have hit the web and the high street with a twist. They are now styled with a wedge!

Wellies are now seen on the catwalk from Burberry to D&G who showcased cork wedge wellies in their collection! With the UK’s wet climate and the snow of last winter Wellies are somewhat of a necessity and I’m looking for a pair for as fantastic investment to walk baby Arthur and Louie (the dog) on our local common.

If you have a link to a great pair that would make a fashion statement this winter, please tell us in the comments!

VivaLaDiva helped provide a lot of the information for this post and I would like to thank them for their assistance...

Dolce & Gabbana Menswear Fall 2010

  "Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana said they were inspired by "Baaria," a big-budget, sentimental sweep through 20th century Sicily -- also Dolce's birthplace -- taking in fascism, war, communism and the Mafia. They presented a mainly black, white and grey line, sending out models wearing knits over trousers that narrowed at the bottom, against a screen backdrop showing scenes of "Baaria." Vests were tucked into black washed-out jeans or long-john type trousers and shorts. White shirts were sleek and tucked into jeans or black trousers. They accessorized the look with black caps and boots."

That's a somewhat dry description of what turned out to be a collection of luxurious pieces with a sensual, masculine, classically Sicilian feel; an ode to sartorialism and the love of well made, classic clothing.

 In addition, it was rather beautifully staged, as men walked out quickly, in groups and presented themselves, as if at a union meeting or political rally. It's not always easy to stage menswear shows without making the models look like a bunch of preening peacocks, so any time someone figures out a way to present the clothes while at the same time making the models look, shall we say, traditionally masculine, we tend to appreciate it. And it helps sell the hell out of clothes. God knows it worked on us.

Do those two queens know how to cast a menswear show or what?

Gorgeous clothes on gorgeous men. Amen. We'll take two of each.

Source : projectrungay.com