Katie Grand's LOVE In at Dover Street Market

Katie Grand launched her new mag LOVE with a temporary bedroom corner space at London's Dover Street Market on Valentine's Day and just in time for London Fashion Week.

The collaborative fest of hip designers and their latest products made especially for Valentine's Day to celebrate Grand's new LOVE Magazine (apparently it was nearly called Sex, according to her Ponystep interview today), is cosy affair down in the basement with the walls covered in a scrapbook collage of pages from the new glossy c/o friend and fellow collaborator Katie Hillier.

For the Love In, Grand chose a few of her favourite designers: Stella McCartney created limited edition underwear for each day of the week, customised handbags and belts by Chloe, delicate Prada underwear, sharp graphic heart tees by Luella, Burberry house check silk underwear sets featuring LOVE on the behind, smooth Loewe nappa leather cushions featuring ‘I Loewe you’ embossed in gold, happy shiny hair accessories by Katie Hillier, House of Holland Tees featuring Henry Holland’s take on Beth Ditto especially for Valentine’s Day, Giles for Swarovski duvet and pillow case sets, boxed sets of China mugs featuring exclusive graphics by Pam Hogg, 100% silk Gazard dresses by Victoria Beckham, Gap Tees featuring the cover of LOVE’s first issue, and irresistible silk satin embellished shirts and dresses by Dolce & Gabanna.




After DSM sold out of its 30 preview copies over the weekend, LOVE hits stands tomorrow. In the meantime here's the scrapbook version.

Popping up for fashion week NY-LON

It's fashion week season again so that means some great pop-up retail action in New York and London.

Target launched its about-to-drop Alexander McQueen McQ for Go International collection over the weekend with a frenzied McQ Market preview. Fashionistas in the Hudson Square temporary space grabbed what they could before the rest of the US could get their hands on it. If only Target could come to London...

And in another big retail partnership on 23 February Uniqlo will open a dedicated menswear shop at London's Selfridges on Oxford Street. The new area is housed within the contemporary menswear collections and will showcase an edited range of Uniqlo's top end menswear offer including the new tailoring range alongside the Japanese retailer's cashmere sweaters and colourful hoodies. A brand new Japanese Denim range will also launch in the space - collaboration with Japanese denim manufacturer Kaihara.

London based footwear desginer Tracey Neulsis celebrating 10 years of quirky shoes with a pop-up shop and exhibition called Tracey Neuls Past Present Future in Exhibition Road right next to the tents for fashion week. Open for three weeks only we are promised shoes from past present and future set in Neuls' signature design rich surroundings of shoes displayed on vertiginous towers made from hundreds of reclaimed vintage drawer units.

Mother of Pearl at Start is more of a "guerilla" store than a pop-up according to boutique owner Brix Smith who says the sports-luxe collection is taking over the Shoreditch shop (well mostly) for three weeks. Conceived by Maia Hirst, Mother of Pearl features modern dresses in luxury and technical fabrics that easily transcend from day to eveningwear. Hirst has even installed a motorcross bike to emphasize the sportswear inspired, luxe lifestyle pieces.

Nike 1948 is going from being a pop-up (launched last August in time for the Olympics) in Shoreditch to a permanent space to showcase the sportswear giant's sportswear and fashion collections. Opening (again) on 18 February.

And like other magazine-inspired pop ups that I posted about last Dec, let's not forget Katie Grand's Love in at Dover Street Market - a collaborative fest of hip designers and their latest products for Valentine's Day to celebrate Grand's new LOVE Magazine - in-store for fashion week / as long as stock lasts / whenever Katie wants her bed back - whichever is sooner.

Liberty's spring 09 relaunch: a retail renaissance

I had a good nose around London's favourite and oldest department store yesterday after Liberty unveiled its new look on Valentine's Day.

The revamp features an innovative and more curated layout with a series of themed rooms to showcase different collections, as part of the luxury department store’s “Retail Renaissance” strategy.

The changes to the store structure will be in sympathy with the period quality of the building. The famous wood panelling taken from two former Royal Navy ships remains, of course, but the designers are ensuring that plentiful light is drawn from the glass above the central atrium and uncluttered store design. The store colour palette will be a cool bone and all the fixtures shades of metallic anthracite. The emphasis of the new Liberty will be on the best edited and focused fashion, accessories and homewares collections from around the world.

At the forefront of the changes in-store is creative consultant Yasmin Sewel. The ex-Browns buyer has spearheaded the store’s transformation, focusing on women’s and men’s fashion and accessories, and a layout re-think.

Kicking off she has dedicated a large part of the ground floor accessories area to a new Bazaar gifting department. “We’re introducing a fast-paced Bazaar on the ground floor,” explains Sewell. “It’s a reminder of the store’s origins, when buyers would scour the world to bring back unusual, rare and precious items. Customers will find a wide and eclectic range of items, many of which will be limited edition and always changing.” This room takes its visual inspiration from a traditional bazaar; tables with intricate wooden mosaic inlay display the must-have items for that week. These range from Baptiste Viry grosgrain ribbon buckle cuffs to Nymphenburg porcelain heart shaped key rings, Carlos Falchi patchwork hobo bags, Muhlbauer nautical flat caps and 20s inspired turbans to quilted Indian picnic blankets and guides to every city in the world.

Just next door the jewellery room has changed to become a dedicated scarf showcase - with the most extensive offer in London where established brands like Fendi, Givenchy, Pucci, Liberty of London and Dries Van Noten will sit alongside exclusive lines from Josh Goot, David Szeto and Wolf & Descourtis. We love the head turning array of turban styled mannequin displays and zebra prints on the walls.

On the next two floors covering contemporary and international women's designer collections you can see Sewell's hand having the most effect.

On the first floor in the International Room, Sewell’s focus has been on brand mix. Sophisticated collections from established brands hang next to a younger generation of designers. Christopher Kane sits next to Balmain, Jil Sander and Calvin Klein sit with Josh Goot and Ohne Titel and Antonio Berardi with Alexander McQueen. Sewell says it's this clarity of offer that women are looking for when they shop as well as an element of discovery. "They want to mix ‘killer pieces’ by established and burgeoning designers." Edited collections from all the designers in this room are arranged so that standout, show-stopping pieces are merchandised with a comprehensive selection of items to wear them with. The seated army of mannequins display Sewell's must have seasonal pieces - basking in the central atrium light from above.

Moving through to the central atrium is the Avant Garde room. A black matte floor provides the perfect backdrop to Liberty anchor brands such as Rick Owens, Martin Margiela, Acne and Dries Van Noten who will have their own distinct corners - more immersion into designer spaces like this please!




The Essentials and Contemporary rooms on the second floor have anthracite rails running through them and octagonal mirrored fitting rooms forming
free-standing pods that flood light into the space. Tableaus of mannequins form clusters throughout these rooms breaking down how to wear seasonal trends.

In Essentials Acne provides a chino bar, denim comes from brands such as Current/Elliott and there's a comprehensive mix of t-shirts, cashmere jumpers and trench coats from brands such as Splendid, American Vintage, Aquascutum and APC.

Contemporary sees archetypal Liberty brands such Vivienne Westwood, Vanessa Bruno, Future Classics and Luella sit alongside new editions such as Australian Tina Kalivas and the Cacharel 50th anniversary collection consisting of archive pieces reworked in their original Liberty prints.

And don't miss a comprehensive footwear floor with one of the best designer offerings around - Marni, Alaia, Chloe and Rupert Sanderson next to Miu Miu, Givenchy and Prada.



Liberty's VIP concierge service has also shifted up a gear with a revamp of the private shopping area now called the Style Service suite - members can book in to shop the entire department store's offer in privacy and with expert style advice from the Liberty team of experts.

Check out my Picasa album photo file for a visual walk through here:

Liberty spring 09 relaunch

SLVR for spring

I've just seen the new adidas SLVR line launching in stores this month - and it's got me thinking about a whole new fitness wardrobe for spring.

Following the German sports brands other successful sub-brand launches such as Y3 and the Stella McCartney collaboration, SLVR sits just underneath in terms of price point and serves a more mass market fashion-led sports lifestyle customer. Think Uniqlo meets Gap with a sports mindset.

The range includes non-branded (very important that, not a trefoil in sight) menswear, womenswear and accessories, and the look is fluid, easy and very everyday wearable. Great colours too.

Chris Barbour, head of global digital marketing for adidas sport style division described it: "Kicking off the first season with the mantra ‘Simply Perfect’, the range shows a timeless and considered design; one that conveys a minimalist character, yet is fresh and progressive."

The first retail store is set to open in New York during Fashion Week, with stores in Paris, Los Angeles and Miami to follow. It's ecommerce only for the UK at www.adidas.com/slvr. Meanwhile I thought I'd share not one but two youthful and energetic pieces of communication: look book and viral film - view here on vimeo.

Shot by renowned photographer Mark Segal and art directed by Pietsch Lim, the SLVR promo film brings the new concept to life through strong black and white visuals and a sound track by Say Hi to Your Mom.

Winterizing

Taking a good look at the footwear on offer at Bread & butter in Barcelona last week there was a real trend for the perennial hunting, shooting, fishing looks of the season. I loved all the wools and texturized fabrications. Hell stick in some sheepskin as an inner lining and you're all set for winter. My favourite was the Woorich and Converse collaboration - a work boot for the Chuck Taylor that says lumberjack boot. The sales rep described the range as a result of Converse wanting to "winterize" its key products.

Captions top to bottom: DMs, Tretorn, Schmoove, Converse

Paris menswear: new life at old houses

From fusty and musty to shiny and new this AW09 Paris menswear season is all about who's breathing new life into the old French houses and the Germans and Brits are in on the act too.

This season's Paris men's fashion week kicked off with visiting German "house" label Hugo by Hugo Boss and now designed by Beligan designer Bruno Pieters - who is charged with making Hugo cool again. He looks set to be on course with a dark brooding colour palette of mostly black and white (set against the signature Hugo red runway) mixed with monotone graphic and optical print pieces. Very Germanic and very post-modern for a new take on the oft-referenced Kraftwerk look of the early 80s.

Meanwhile their efforts for womenswear have proved hotter than last season's it bag, so why not try the same for menswear? It's time for a roll-call of some of the most talented designers in Paris to expand their remits this season - as Antonio Marras at Kenzo, Riccardo Tisci at Givenchy and Nicholas Decarnin at Balmain all take over the men's creative direction of their respective houses for AW 09.

At Kenzo, Marras took his troop of young men off to Russia for a journey of military influences through the ages. With the usual visual feast of inspirations as his set Marras projected scenes of industrial unrest onto giant video screens along the runway with cartoonish communist imagery and landmarks such as St Basils along the way. But it was the way Marras expertly enveloped his models in layers of pastel military tones or delicate Japanese embroidery on outerwear producing a lightness of touch for such a heavy subject. Marras is very much at home for Kenzo.

And at Givenchy, Tisci took over from the obscure "design team" initially for last season and looks to be getting into his well known gothic, romantic stride, as with his women's offer. Focusing on fetishistic leatherwear and layering of textures, such as shine over matt, chains next to skin, cobweb knits or sexy lacing and thick wool cabans it looks as if Tisci has also found his comfort zone for the house.

Decarnin at Balmain was a quiet, exclusive (off-schedule) affair for a handful of buyers and press only. Still riding on the success of a widely acclaimed womenswear collection this spring, Decarnin delivered much of the same roughed up outerwear and denim mix for an expensive take on the 80s look last worn by boy band Bros.

Meanwhile Stuart Vevers at Loewe is following two seasons of hit womenswear collections with a new approach to menswear for the Spanish leather house. His is a quiet luxe approach to gentlemanly dressing using what he describes as a "louche" feel inspired by French actor Alain Delon.

While we're on the subject of another guest fashion designer perfectly at home in Paris, another newbie on the schedule is Jean Paul Knott for the house of Cerruti now in his second season. This winter Knott has focused on developing contrasting textures, a house palette of blues and more relaxed silhouettes - easy dressing for older men?

All eyes were on Brit designer Kim Jones for his debut at British menswear establishment Dunhill. He didn't disappoint with his approach to new traditionalism: "It was about taking the DNA of Dunhill and turning it into now - the leather, the white shirt, the Dunhill blazer." Strong points were the flat front tailoring, blazers and graphic panel knits - effortless charisma stuff. And he has years of fun to look forward to unearthing all those art deco vintage trinkets and leatherware items.

And it was about time someone got around to reviving one of the fustiest French houses of them all. Façonnable has been more popular in the US than France for years but not in a good way. New creative chief Eric Wright is an industry veteran having worked for Lagerfeld and Cavalli for years. His unisex vision for the house has luxury and comfort at its core and he has not lost sight of his mainstay WASP customer with plenty of shrug-on blazers, comfy cords and cosy cashmere knits. Describing one of his favourite pieces as a "preppy wool tuxedo" for "when you forget you're wearing something" Wright looks sure to breathe new life in fusty old Faconnable.





Lamentable news is that the rumour mill is cranking up again for Dior Homme designer Kris van Assche who's show for the house was in keeping with his new steady creative vision - all plays on volume and the Belgian's twist on relaxed tailoring options. How long will he last? The odds don't look good, especially when you find out that LVMH boss Bernard Arnault is bankrolling Gareth Pugh's first dedicated menswear show in Paris and you compare his gothic, slimline and edgy signature style with that of the much lauded ex-Dior Homme designer Hedi Slimane. Actions speak louder than words on this subject.

It's worth remembering the success stories of past menswear appointments still going strong at Parisian houses. Marc Jacobs can do no wrong for Louis Vuitton - especially with this season's take on "the travelling wardrobe of an African king"; Véronique Nichanian at Hermès who wanted to add some sexiness and energy to the menswear collection she has been overseeing for 20 years; the formidable rise of Lucas Ossendrijver at Lanvin with this winter's move into relaxed military looks and the exclusive domain that Nicolas Ghesquière at Balenciaga rules.

I like the way The Fashionisto describes this winter's collection: "Unlike Raf Simons, designer Nicolas Ghesquière realizes that a necessity for the upcoming season is wearable pieces that will have a long life."(pictures from Hypebeast via WWD)

Old or new there's a wealth of talent keeping menswear interesting for this winter season.

Captions top to bottom: Hugo by Hugo Boss, Kenzo, Givenchy, Loewe, Cerutti, Dunhill, Façonnable, Dior Homme, Gareth Pugh, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Lanvin, Balenciaga