Textile Design
Ever since we laid eyes on Brook&Lyn’s bewitching “Deflected” collection, we were taken by the brand’s unexpected and original approach to jewelry design. Combining natural materials with bold shapes, their work gracefully walks the line between delicate and strong, such that we see our own femininity reflected in its construct.
As Sandy comes creeping towards us, threatening to shut down NYC for the better half of the week and – oh the horror – seriously screwing with every child’s Trick-or-Treating plans, I, as a responsible mother, am checking my list twice for our household hurricane preparedness. Candles? Check. Batteries? Check. Chocolate? Check. As worried as I am for those who will surely be impacted by the brunt of the storm, I can’t help but get a wee bit gleeful as I consider the possibility of a week cuddled up at home with my kid. And, beyond chocolate and good books, cosy socks are a must.
Artist-gone-fashion-designer David Saunders started his fashion career as an attempt to spiff up his fashion-party ensembles. From there, he quickly became known for his hand-painted geometric tees and apprenticeships, collaborations (Fred Perry, House of Holland), and a label (David David) quickly ensued. Although he did offer a few seasons worth of separates and sportswear, the David David line is now concentrating on what the designer loves most: tees (and an accessory here and there). You can snag your very own pop art piece from his shop. We particularly love these stripes and polka-dots…
If space is the next frontier in fashion, British designer Markus Lupfer is leading the way. He married his London roots with galaxies beyond, showing mod-style A-line dresses (reminiscent of swinging ’60s London Town) in shimmering fabrics. The look was confident – clean tailoring and classic shapes – but not without subtle handiwork that required closer inspection. Lupfer is known for his sequined embroidery skills and he decorated the arms of sweaters, fronts of mini dresses and sheer silk blouses.
Here in NYC, the summer already seems like a distant memory – but there’s always the chance of a final freakish weekend of Indian summer weather. So here’s a bit of swim-ready style to keep in reserve for our return to the beach or that rooftop pool. London Fashion Week was certainly bursting at the seams with colorful, exuberant patterns, and the collaboration between swimwear/lingerie designer Auria (Diana Auria Harris) and illustrator Margot Bowman was a standout favorite for the Lo’s List gang.
Imagine the cuts and artistry of today’s Balenciaga blended with a cheeky approach to print and color. That’s Louise Amstrup. The Danish-born, London-based designer just showed her best – and dare we say most imaginative – collection to date for her eponymous line. Known for striking, offbeat ready-to-wear, Amstrup advanced her work with absurdly cool anthropomorphic prints. Bathing beauties with chameleon heads and swan centaurs graced superbly constructed separates.
Thursday, as preparations for Fashion’s Night Out were underway, I had the rare opportunity (sleeping baby!) to do a little window shopping in the city; more specifically, at Marimekko’s 5th Avenue flagship store. My love for the brand runs deep and far back, to these quintessential Pikku Bo Boo children’s sheets that I’m sure many of us had. Then there was my 1967 Marimekko prom dress (more on that here) which I will be pulling out of the closet for Marimekko’s very first New York Fashion Week show on Monday… Now, looking around the house, I need more than the digits I have to count the Marimekko that has found its way into my life. It’s a good fit: the Finnish brand is an explosion of glowing colors and painterly textiles, channeled into clothing (and beyond) that need not follow seasonal trends of color ways and cuts. Each fresh collection has me counting my pennies and coming back for more: something that I cannot say for many other labels making their way into my closet.
No, skinny ties and bow ties are not played out, thank you very much. Not when you’re wearing one of Gene Meyer’s original silk woven designs, anyway. The brand’s ties appeal to today’s nattily dressed men, but infuse Mediterranean colors and geometric patterns that call to mind, say, Capri in the 1960s. Which makes sense, considering all Gene Meyer’s ties have been made in Italy since the company began manufacturing over 20 years ago.
Ah the endless possibilities that a gorgeous bolt of fabric holds. And the gleeful vibe from these prints by artist Naomi Ito for her textile line entitled Nani Iro make you want to scamper right over to the sewing machine and get started!
Don’t get me wrong – I love the biting severity of winter, the layers of gray, the way the city looks a century younger when it’s covered in two feet of fresh snow. But here and there, throughout these colder months, my mind does wander to scorching hot days at the beach, watermelon, and skipping around outside in a t-shirt and shorts.
I’ve always been a lover of quilts – watching my mother create exquisite ones as a child, starting my own collection once I moved to New York City and discovered the East Village Flea and the wonders of eBay, standing awestruck before each Gee’s Bend quilt during the Guggenheim exhibition a few years back…
The history of this company is almost as wonderful as the products they make. Located behind a little church in the French town of Tarn, the Guille family factory has existed for nearly 150 years, and has been churning out socks for about 80 of those…
I’m a big advocate of cloth over paper products, if only that it nurtures yet another one of my collections: dish towels. So, like our inaugural Lo’s List post on the little Japanese cloth squares called Furoshiki (commonly used for gift-wrapping), their textile-sibling, the Tenugui (手拭い), is a shot to the heart…
Looks we live for: black, white and red (together). Stripes. Aztec prints. Capes and clunky boots. Party dresses cinched tight at the waist with a thick black leather belt. So we have to wonder… was Alice Temperley reading our diary (or maybe website) when she concocted her latest fall/winter collection?!
‘Tis the season for scarves and right now we’re all wrapped up in Swash. Founded by Central Saint Martins grads Sarah Swash and Toshio Yamanaka, this brand has all the whimsy and escape of Hermès but at a more down-to-earth pricepoint…
