When the concept for the inspiring fragrance innovator Commodity came up, the goal was to offer something new, or in a sense bringing back the traditional personalized, reminiscent of the French and English aristocracy, way of finding your personal fragrance, rather then smelling like everybody else. After a year of preparation a Kickstarter campaign was started in April 2013 and with a final backing that far exceeded the goal that was set a new exciting company was born. Over a year now, Commodity has online been offering premium scents without the usual markup, nicely tailored to your style and preferences, delivered all the way to your door, leaving that sincere mark that was intended on a rather generic industry, dominated by big luxury brands and marketing instead of intrinsic products. [ Continue reading ]
In 2012 Rapha initiated this inspiring factory visit to Italian knitting company Manifattura Italiana Tessuti Indemagliabili or in short Miti shot by the talented English photographer Gavin Karl Campbell. Miti has been an innovator in the knitting industry since its foundation in 1931 and is located in the Northern Italian town of Urgnano, not far from Bergamo. The first and foremost innovation made by the company was the nationwide introduction of wrap knitting techniques, which allows for the construction of durable and stretchy fabrics, introduced by founder Vincenzo Polli through his fascination with the technology and his decision to acquire the German-made machines which would carry it out; establishing Italy’s premier fabric mill. Today the raw fabric is milled six hours away in Hungary, near the border with Slovenia, close enough to monitor total consistency in the highest possible quality after which processing, dyeing and finishing takes place in Urgnano by this major supplier for almost all the cycling brands. [ Continue reading ]
We love this amazing collaboration between Alexander Wang and Australian Haydenshapes to outfit the latest Soho flagship store's Cage installation. The project features five marble print surfboards, exclusively created by the leading Australian surfboard brand Haydenshapes for this installation. The insanely beautiful marble boards, being also a typical element within Wang’s aesthetic, are suspended from the cage wall, while a monolithic, large black wave sculpted from black sand looms occupies the other area of the space. We just can't keep our eyes of the tremendous boards and their graphic patterns, photographs of unique marble slabs developed by Haydenshapes founder Hayden Cox and Wang himself, which were digitally printed onto silk, then onto the award winning 'Hypto Krypto' boards; to create one of a kind visual art pieces of exquisite beauty. [ Continue reading ]
Tipped by the good people of OPENHOUSE Magazine we recently found out about the new triennial magazine named Alphabet Family Journal, published in Sydney, Australia. The magazine explores the heart and soul of what it means to make a home together, giving an unfiltered snapshot of modern families, in all its guises. It is a magazine that celebrates the beauty of the everyday: from the loud chaos, to the quiet times, and all the unscripted moments in-between that merge to form a memory, a home and a family. It is this approach combined with a beautiful aesthetic that sets Alphabet Family Journal apart from a lot of other publications, truly adding something to the printed world. [ Continue reading ]
The 'Water – Colour' project by artist Katherine May was an impressive and beautiful textile installation that aimed to raise awareness of water consumption in the production and use of textiles. A sensory environment was designed around the dye process to reconnect the spectator physically to water through a direct experience of handling water in a dye vat. Every year the textile industry uses in excess of 370 billion litres of water. Fibre crops like cotton require significant artificial irrigation after which the water isn't fit for consumption or agricultural use anymore. Furthermore, the coloring of textile diverts water into mills, expelling toxic waste into local water supplies. These are the macro issues of a global industry, however the micro habits of laundering textiles is now known to use more water than growing fibre, processing yarn, and all other phases of a textile’s life-cycle, which was beautifully condensed by May into this aesthetic project making one actively reflect on society's harmful habits. [ Continue reading ]
We are highly fascinated by the story of Pietà, a fashion label born in a prison of Lima, Peru. At the start of the project only one prison of Lima was involved, but at this point it successfully developed to two other prisons, two male-only and one female-only prison. Each Pietà collection is entirely produced in these prisons without any external help. Even the lookbooks are shot with models who have nowhere to go but inside the prison walls. Next to producing appealing collections, Pietà also allows inmates, often left to their own devices, to independently generate an income and develop their skills allowing for a faster rehabilitation. Every single Pietà piece is created in the fashioning, knitting, and leather workshops of the different prisons where the prisoners produce the garments, which are signed by the craftsman, making one wonder about what story lays behind every single piece. [ Continue reading ]
We really like the first publication by Independent publishing house Zioxla named 'Strange Plants'. The book is a celebration of plants in contemporary art featuring the work of 25 artists: from oozing paintings of rotting cacti to eerie, mesmeric photos of the leafy kudzu vine, and discusses the role plants play in the artists’ personal lives. For the book, editor Zio Baritaux brought together eight artists whose work focuses on the natural world: Erik Parker, Helene Schmitz, Paul Wackers, Lee Kwang-Ho, Taylor McKimens, David Axelbank, Stephen Eichhorn and Aiyana Udesen. In-depth interviews and articles are presented alongside images that showcase the instinctive and unique ways plants are represented in the artists’ works. [ Continue reading ]