Snapped at the fashion shows

Who is this man?

He works with Paris Vogue and Vogue Hommes International, an [entry-level] editor. He really thought about what he was gonna wear. I didn't always love it, but I appreciated the conviction with which he was doing it. He was able to stand out by putting it all together in a different way. (Scott Schuman)

Now, which accessory do you think he wears best? His clutch, coat, or hair? His color combinations are spot on.

Right picture shot by Facehunter

Fetiche

At the time when this blog was not fully devoted to menswear, I posted something entitled The armor of Daphne Guinness. And I quote: She has had made metal pieces for her fingers, hands, and an entire arm based on the armory of the Middle Ages. She has been seen several times wearing thick leather or metal belts that hug her trim figure like old girdles.

Maybe she felt safe with her accouterment, maybe it was her self-expression or defence.

Gilet de smoking en coton granulé et satin, Tom Ford; pantalon de smoking en drap de laine, De Fursac; masque en métal et bracelet de force en cuir et métal, Phylea

'Fetiche', Vogues Hommes International Paris, Printemps-été 2008

Of course, these implements can also serve to mask or change one's identity, to morph it into something else.

Masque museliére en cuir et métal, Rex; veste de smoking et chemise en popeline de coton, Lanvin

To reverse our internal defences and wear them as our armor.

Harnais cage en cuir et métal, Rex; chemise de smoking en popeline de coton, Yves Saint Laurent; veste en laine, Ralph Lauren; pantalon de smoking en drap de laine, De Fursca; bras articulé en métal, Phylea

To totally become somebody else: this has been an obsession since the very first Metamorphosis.

Tour de cou en métal, Phylea

The urge to remove what is human - to make it artficial or render it for an android - this fascination has been explored in many science fiction novels and films.

Veste col châle et pantalon de smoking en drap de laine, Hermès; chemise de smoking en popeline de coton, plastron plissé, Brooks Brothers; ceinture de smoking en soie plissée, Balenciaga par Nicolas Ghesquière; masque bondage en cuir et métal, Rex; fleur en satin, La Droguerie

But many times, like in Frankenstein, the inorganic gives free reign to the bestial.

Gilet de smoking en soie, Maison Martin Margiela; manchette en toile à beurre, Ann Demeulemeester; haut-de-forme en feutre, Lanvin; masque heaume en métal, Phylea

The best we can settle for is a temporary heightening of sensations and emotions in the short event that we pretend to be inhuman.

Veste et pantalon de smoking en satin, Dolce & Gabbana; chemise en popeline de coton, Roberto Cavalli; masque et tour de cou en métal, Phylea

Par Hedi Slimane, Réalisation: Carine Roitfeld

This post is part of a set in reply to a query by Nihaal Faizal from India on the topic of his sketches and on science fiction

From brooch to coat fastener

Swedish fashion editor Gustav Broström reuses his enlarged safety pin brooch to close his coat.

Both shot by Scott Schuman. You can see the development in the style of photos from The Sartorialist. The bottom one was taken in August 2008 and the top one just recently.

The colorful Hamish Bowles

The delightful editor-at-large of Vogue US appears in the tenth issue of Fantastic Man.


Ms. ANNA WINTOUR, BOWLES's current boss, first spotted him around that time, during London Fashion Week. BOWLES was working for HARPERS & QUEEN, twirling about in a "CHANEL-esque cardigan jacket and skirt-like trousers" by JASPER CONRAN, accessorised with a 1955 CHANEL bag and an HERMÈS scarf knotted with piratical flourish at the side of the head. "She called me in for an interview, but clearly thought the better of it," BOWLES says. He did, however, eventually land a job at VOGUE and moved to New York, wardrobe in tow.




Mr. HAMISH BOWLES, the English-born, New York-based European Editor of American VOGUE, has a crystal-clear recollection of his earliest fashion moment: a tantrum, mercilessly delivered at age five. His mother had taken him and his sister to a store called JOHN BARNES to buy a couple of hooded velour jackets with marsupial-like front pouches. His was navy blue with a white stripe, his sister's pink with a white stripe. "I lay down on the store floor, letting out a primal scream, thumping fists and feet until I got the pink one," BOWLES says.

Photography by Juergen Teller, Text excerpts by Armand Limnander




It seems Mr. Bowles belongs to a lost world, but it is evident that his sartorial choices are informed by a very modern take on color, patterns, and combinations.




He is a Sartorialist superstar on Scott Schuman's blog — what with the way he combines old and new, and always with a personal flair and flourish that are uniquely his. You cannot even begin to dissect his outfits into separate pieces. It is the man that binds them.




And I should also say his relatively new movie star moustache.






I leave it to you to learn from the master.






If it seems that his ensembles are boring and not at all engaging, look twice and even thrice.




A cuff link may surprise you.




A camouflaged tie.




Or even something as unobtrusive as tortoise shell glasses.




Watch out for the patterns. And I don't mean on notebooks.

























Images from Fantastic Man, The Sartorialist, Monochrome Magazine, and a whole lot of other sites that I will certainly credit as soon as I remember, or as soon as someone informs me — whichever comes earlier

Color lessons from Vanessa Jackman

This is Duncan Campbell, editor of Acne Paper. Plenty of little things to note from his outfit that make it casually stylish, but what gets to me the most is the black piping of his jacket, which subtly pulls everything together. The reason why his ensemble is low-key is because the colors — navy, teal, and purple — are closely related, are all bound by blue.

Of course, his gold wristwatch and signet ring become the icing.



Besides the obvious fact that Joe Jackson's outfit is built around the color of his eyes, it is the buttoned collar of his polo shirt that introduces subtlety.



This club collar, on the other hand, is barely there, and may have otherwise have been a Mandarin collar. But Vanessa is right: the highlight of this picture is his hair. None better to go with his schoolboy's attire, and which, not coincidentally, is a color complement of blue.



You could probably notice these Pippi Longstocking socks coming to you from the next block, but what fascinates me more are the shape of his shoes ad his two-tone shirt.



The collar and the patent-toe Lanvin sneakers are the perfect muted partners.



Though on an actor as seriously-looking as Joe Jackson, I would have wished brown leather shoes. Doubling the white cancels the charming effect of his polo shirt.



You may think that there is nothing subtle about Carlos Rivera's "costume", but he has been quite successful in taming his pink floral shirt with his matching jacket and spectacles. Not to mention with the violet, black, and blue pattern of his pocket square.

Jo-Ann Furniss steps down as Arena Homme Plus EIC and creative director

Think this is the first time I've seen Jo-Ann, unlike most other magazine editors who are always in the papers, in the style pages, and on the blogs. Too bad most other people will also only get to see what she looks like after she's left Arena Homme Plus.




Scanned covers of the seven remaining AH+ issues with me (I think others are missing, while some were damaged in the flood). This one inspired by John Galliano's Fall 2007 collection.




Models-of-the-moment Cole Mohr and Luke Worrall, wearing skirts.




A model supposedly as Dorian Gray; more like Prada's take on the Amish.




Helmut Newton as photographed by Bruce Weber.




Ummm…




Brit bands cover a Brit mag.




And Jo-Ann's last issue. Exit with a bang.