Might as well leave the congrats to a fashion designer and his “family”. Happy New Year! Take a butchers – if you’re bored.
Happy holidays from the Marc Jacobs family!
Monthly Archives
December 2011
Keep a close eye on NOHARM in 2012. We believe it could be the new up and coming brand for next year. Not many brands have the heart or the vision to bring ethics and fashion to the same table but NOHARM has been quietly setting things out in recent years and 2012 is possibly the year when everything comes together. Below is an advert taken from the industry leading fashion.net website. They sum it up nicely. Take a butchers:
Visit the official NOHARM site at noharm.com
While the rest of India’s apparel industry has been dealing with issues like excise duty, high raw material costs, decline in exports and low consumer buying sentiment throughout the year, denim players have been a cheerful lot. Unlike their peers, after witnessing a rise in their bottom lines during the second quarter of current fiscal, denim manufacturers in India are expecting a better year ahead. The good performance of these denim companies this year is attributed to a decline in cotton prices, better inventory management, and definitely a sharp decrease in China’s competitiveness.
While global economic woes continue to create a negative impact, surprisingly, the demand for denim is still emerging from Japan and the US apart from the growth within the domestic market. Perhaps what is working positively for Indian denim players is domestic cotton prices, the main raw material for denim fabric, which is comparatively lower than global prices. While both, India and China were considered cheaper denim destinations during the 2008-09 economic slowdown India gained an edge over its dragon competitor due to higher cotton prices in the international and Chinese markets. Major denim buyers like Wal-Mart and VF Corporation are now looking to India for their denim requirements.
In fact, Ahmedabad, the hub of denim manufacturers both in India and across the globe is now competing with Chinese manufacturers on their own turf – cheaper rates. Taking advantage of rupee depreciation, Indian denim producers are now providing more economical denim for Chinese people as the local denim is now costing them more.
In the past six months, rupee glided down by 20 per cent while Chinese currency Yuan appreciated 4 per cent against the US dollar. China, which imports cotton from India to weave their denim, is finding it costly to make jeans. Adding to their problems, labour charges have witnessed an increase. And while the domestic demand is witnessing a growth, high production and labour cost is forcing the nation to import economical denim from India for its own consumption.
Depreciating rupee could work in favour of Indian exporters but now they are more interested in focusing on their rival China instead of the US or Europe. India has the capacity of producing around 700 million metres of denim. Around 400 million metres is consumed in the domestic market while the rest is exported. With an increase in demand from China, the percentage ratio has definitely witnessed a change.
Going ahead, denim players in India are planning to explore new destinations such as Russia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Japan and other countries including China, instead of depending upon the US and EU markets, which don’t seem lucrative anymore. That is because consumers from these destinations are showing low buying sentiment due to economic slowdown.
No wonder, Indian denim giants like Arvind, are firming up denim capacity expansion plans. Guess, its India’s gain and China’s loss.
From our correspondent in Mumbai
Replay Jeans create the broken-in look of vintage denim without the need for sandblasting. Replay’s “Laser Wash” uses no water at all, but rather lasers to achieve its pre-distressed look. Moreover, Replay uses ozone washing machines that require less water than conventional denim tumblers.
The Dignan is part the stry above and part waterproof x-trainer. Rip-stop nylon jacket with fully breathable 3-D mesh upper underneath. Waterproof YKK zipper and bungee cord closure system placed on a x-trainer platform.
Toray Industries, Inc. (Head Office: Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan; President, CEO & COO: Akihiro Nikkaku, hereafter referred to as “Toray”) has succeeded in producing laboratory-scale samples of the world’s first fully renewable biobased PET fiber by using fully renewable biobased PET derived from biobased para-xylene from Gevo, Inc. (Head Office: Englewood, Colorado, U.S.A, CEO: Patrick R. Gruber, hereafter referred to as “Gevo”), a leading company in renewable chemicals and advanced biofuels.
Production of Biobased Polyethylene by Toray
Take a butchers at Stone Island’s latest styles. Here the first images of the Stone Island Spring Summer ‘012 collection.
Dustin Klein of Cadence and Mike West of 686 go over some of the key features of the new Rain Jacket & Pant kit built specifically for cycling.
COLOR is the comprehensive color code for Tom Sachs Studio. Worth a butchers…
Brunello Cucinelli – Convictions & Principles
Brunello Cucinelli is an Italian fashion designer. But he is not just that. He combines fashion and style with a philosophy of life. The motto on his website is “beauty is our salvation.”
Cucinelli, the son of a farmer, started selling brightly colored cashmere sweaters from his garage in Perugia, Italy. He has reinvested most of the profits from Cucinelli cashmere in restoring his wife’s hometown of Solomeo, where the company has its headquarters.
Vivienne Westwood predicts humanity is heading for the gas chamber.
Her extreme viewpoints on human rights, the financial crisis and the environment ended up being the focus of a Guardian profile from this weekend. She’s even reluctant to encourage people to buy her clothes.
On the inevitability of human extinction:
I will say something that sounds terrible. We’re all going into the gas chamber, and what I’m saying is that it’s not a bathroom. We’re going to be killed. The human race faces mass extinction.
On the contradiction between selling expensive clothes while fighting to save the planet from the harm that consumerism is supposedly doing to it:
‘My message is: choose well and buy less,’ she said then – as if to suggest you should buy one Westwood dress rather than filling Primark trolleys regularly.
‘I don’t feel comfortable defending my clothes. For 15 years I hated fashion.’ Why? ‘It’s not very intellectual, and I wanted to read, not make fashion. It was something I was good at; it wasn’t all of me.’
Hand crafted RMC Bandana Bears by RMC Martin Ksohoh. “something special for your special someone”. All handmade and fully functional with movable arms and legs. Special Anniversary Edition in 10 colours.
How to try to buy credibility using Facebook OR does having millions of Facebook fans actually degrade your credibility, originality, desirability and unique quality?
So here’s the latest story on the designer brands with most Facebook fans. Rounding out the top 10 in November were Burberry (9,808,722); Levi’s (9,371,541); Nike Football (9,112,968); Lacoste (6,742,187); DC Shoes (6,196,780); Puma (5,907,725); Gucci (5,644,529), and Dior (5,612,573). The only changes between October’s and November’s rankings was that Levi’s and Nike Football switched places.
Perhaps paradoxically Nike has made advance by losing some of the associated dowdiness and mindless “fan-culture” cultivated by the squares at Facebook. Maybe…?
Levi’s Tailor Shop on West 14th street. The video features Dyuna Morgan and Rolend Gumanas, two very talented tailors.
After global apparel brands stopped sourcing from Indian apparel exporters for engaging child labour, the industry has decided to adopt zero tolerance to child labour and cleanse the supply chain. Though the extensive auditing of the supply chain will add an additional cost of 5 per cent, but it will at least keep India off trade barriers owing to lack of compliance.
Apparel industry players would now make sure that labour contractors don’t engage child labour and get the supply chain of the suppliers audited so that the industry starts getting orders again. AEPC has designed a compliance programme ‘Disha’ (Driving Industry towards Sustainable Human Capital Advancement) that would be implemented on the $11 billion industry soon. Disha will be coordinated and monitored in liaison with the Ministry of Textile. Global apparel buyers like H&M, Adidas, Next were a part of the team that drafted the program guidelines of Disha.
Global giants like Primark, Gap, M&S have had problems with their Indian suppliers in the past when the latter faulted on compliance. The US imports 30 per cent of business from India.
As the Chinese government struggles to meet several of its own environmental targets to 2015, China’s textile industry could face a new ‘green tax’, which together with higher wages and a slump in exports, puts additional pressure on an industry that is already facing big challenges.
Luxury fashion house Louise Vuitton has announced that it is to support Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama’s exhibition next year in London. Kusama who is celebrating over 60 years as an artist is holding a retrospective at the Tate Modern London, from February 9-June 5.
Kusama’s art is often as experiential and features huge landscapes created using clouds, balls, polka dots, lights and mirrors. The exhibition will feature artworks in various media include sculpture, painting, installation and film, and will include Kusama’s iconic film Kusama’s Self-Obliteration from 1968.
To coincide with the artist’s retrospective the Louis Vuitton Bond Street Maison will also hold unseen Kusama work in its exhibition space. The luxury fashion brand has collaborated with other artists in the past, including John Stezaker, Tracey Emin and Grayson Perry.
Additionally, the French brand will be also support a programme of activity for young people at Tate surrounding the Kusama exhibition and connecting the Louis Vuitton Young Arts Project and the ReCreative website.
Need to demonstrate stylish pedal-power? Fear not, Gucci to the rescue! Take a butchers at the Gucci bike collection:
images courtesy of Gucci
Luxury label Gucci is collaborating with bicycle manufacturer, Bianchi on a range of bikes and accessories. The line, designed Gucci’s Creative Director Frida Giannini, features two bicycles in black or white with Gucci’s signature green-red-green stripe and a frame that features customised leather grips and a saddle with Gucci detailing.
The collaboration also features a series of accessories to complement the bicycles such as a helmet, gloves and a water bottle.
Giannini said, “Ever since Gucci’s founding, travelling in style has been at the heart of the House’s designs. The Bianchi by Gucci bicycles perfectly carry forward our codes of luxury while creating a new cosmopolitan aesthetic for those looking to turn heads while on the go.”
KTV caught up with Thom Browne at Fashion For Action to discuss his involvement with the charity Housing Works, his unique trousers, fashion 101 for men, and what he has coming up with his mens & womens collection, Moncler and Brooks Brothers. Take a look! Music by the Doppelgangaz.
Jawbone has joined forces with charity: water to help support their staff and operations — allowing them to continue the important work of bringing clean, safe drinking water to the billion people currently living without it.
$50 from each Limited Edition JAMBOX will go to support charity: water.
So Forever 21 pulls Kurt Cobain Flipper T-Shirt copy from the market following the outrage of Nirvana fans. Cobain’s own version was a simple T-shirt with the band’s name and Kurt’s depiction of Flipper using a Sharpie pen. Forever 21’s shirt was priced at $16.90 and is now removed from their site.
One here for the iPhone lovers. Take a butchers at this RMC Martin Ksohoh OP4 iPhone 4 Battery Case. Special Edition. For further information email info@rays-net.jp
Directed by Nick Griffiths, “TITLE.” is a portrait of Dudley O’Shaughnessy: raised in east London, Dudley has boxed since the age of nine at the West Ham Boys Club, with his father acting as trainer.
Now 20, his passion for boxing takes him to within arms reach of his Olympic 2012 dream. Away from boxing Dudley embarks on a modelling career including fronting the Stone Island Autumn/Winter ’010 campaign and appearing in lookbooks and video installation pieces for the brand.