Spring seems to be the trigger for brands to go collab crazy again (not that many need an excuse). This week sees some very international eyewear, some very creative workwear and a quirky high-fashion-meets-beer mash-up. Elsewhere, the luxury sector does its bit to help the preservation of priceless art. Read on to see what caught our eye in the past few days.
JW Anderson dropped a collectioncelebrating Irish heritage with Guinness
With his new role as creative director for Dior, Jonathan Anderson moves in fancy circles. However, he seems not to have forgotten his Irish roots and student days if his latest mini collection for his eponymous label is anything to go by. This month saw the release of a collaboration with Guinness that celebrates the heavy black stout in a witty and rather stylish manner. Sweaters are inspired by pub carpets (minus the sticky beer stains), shorts are fashioned from beer towels, and even brewery workers get a look in with denim overalls printed with the famous Guinness harp logo. However, unsurprisingly, the prices are way out of reach of your average beer drinker’s budget, so maybe this round is on someone else?
Jil Sander and Oliver Peoples LaunchedDebut Eyewear Collaboration
Jil Sander is a brand that prides itself on an immaculately made, sharp aesthetic that appeals to a well-heeled urban client, so it makes sense that, when it came to eyewear, they would team up with high-end optical producers Oliver Peoples. The result is sleek and refined and very VERY international: think German precision and Californian cool with frames made in Japan and lenses crafted in Italy. Just to drive home the jet set vibe, the collection images were shot in Hamburg by renowned Swiss photographer Walter Pfeiffer. Luckily, the frames live up to the air miles with acetate sunnies in soft shades of pink and butterscotch and more angular shapes in titanium.
Dickies Workwear got Warped & Twisted by Undercover
Too often, a collaboration is just a recolouring of an existing style with a joint effort label (and fair enough, that can be enough), but it’s nice to see some real design effort being put in too. Such is the case when Undercover worked with US workwear brand Dickies, resulting in the recently launched Twisted Dickies collection. Pockets are mis-matched, seams wiggle down the side of long shorts, inner labels appear on the surface, and, most strikingly, zips snake down the front of classic Eisenhower jackets. Available now from the likes of Dover Street Market, they are the kind of clothes that don’t shout but do make you look twice.
LOEWE Designed New Workwear forArt Conservation at the Prado
Loewe may be in new hands when it comes to the design department, but it shows no signs of moving away from its strong connection with craft and art. Following a visit by creative directors Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez to Madrid’s Prado Museum, the brand has created the new lab coats worn by the artisans working in its restoration department. Mixing good looks with highly specialised requirements – non-reflective fabric to prevent light hitting painted surfaces, special pockets to house specific brushes and tools – the uniforms are provided for the extremely skilled workers as they work on masterpieces by Velázquez, Goya and Bosch (and will still look very stylish if they happen to keep them on for dinner after hours…)
What the Shoes…
We are not quite holding our breath, but it seems that maybe… whisper it… the trend for hideous shoes is slowly abating: our in-boxes are no longer filled daily with press releases about lumpy horrors and for this we are grateful. But they haven’t disappeared completely. Witness the launch of Timberland’s slip-on boot – a hybrid that no one ever needs – where the front of the brand’s classic has been given a sling back, creating a Frankenclog. We cannot imagine any circumstances where this might work. On safer ground is the collab between Ronnie Fleg and Clarks Originals with a bunch of loafers in different leathers. Nothing ground-breaking here, but they are stylish, wearable and a damned good price.
