anthonymcgrath405 / 16/07/2013

Daniel Wellington – A man who leaves a good impression

Strange story, but there often tend to be the best ones. Filip Tysander, the man behind the brand, was on a trip half way around the world, when he met the intriguing gentleman, who had the inspiring ability to be gentlemanly but still relaxed and unpretentious. He had an impeccable style, and loved to wear his Rolex on old weathered Nato straps. His name? Well, Daniel Wellington, of course. What’s a Nato strip I hear you cry ? Well, essentially, Nato straps originate from the British navy, where divers would use the strong nylon straps over their wet suits. Even though they were originally made to avoid rust, we love the look and versatility of them.

Back to story, do keep up, a strong friendship emerged between the two travellers and Tysander was inspired not only by this man’s many great life stories but also by his class and timeless style of fashion. As we now know, he was so inspired that he decided to name his line of watches after him.

Wellington’s style of mixing, particular when it came to his watches, leaves such as impression on Tysander that he wanted to incorporate the idea into a line of watches. However, he felt it important to make the watch thin and elegant – he wanted a clean design, without too many features, that would look good with the different patterns and colours of the classic Nato straps.

Slowly but surely, a beautiful watch emerged. Slimline, refined and perfectly round.

anthonymcgrath405 / 26/06/2013

Nothing more, nothing less, Just William

Just William
is a new British brand with a discerning eye for the
details, that creates exceptional products for travel and
work, for an astute customer. The “younger brother” to the older
more established luxury brand, William & Son, who wished
to engage with a younger, more urban clientele. The brand
comprises a carefully selected leather collection of 11 styles in
an array of colours, including a 48 hour bag, document case and
wallet, and focuses on quality, refreshed seasonally but not
trend-led. Timeless elegance is fundamental to the core branded
range, demonstrating craftsmanship and an eye for detail, texture
and pattern. Each leather product is carefully crafted in a small
family workshop, using skills passed down from generation to
generation. The collection uses 100% vegetable-tanned leather from
the rolling hills of southern Spain, Italian palladium brushed
nickel hardware and “the Rolls Royce of zippers” – Riri of
Switzerland. Vegetable-tanned leather is tanned using tannin and
other ingredients found in vegetable matter, such as tree bark
prepared in bark mills, and other natural sources. To compliment
the collection, they have gathered together a select range of
accessories in cashmere, silk and wool, including scarves, pocket
squares and bow ties to finish any look.

anthonymcgrath405 / 25/06/2013

Pearly King – A proper Cockney knees up, well not really.

Please don’t expect this brand to be all mother of pearl buttons and Cockney East End inspired, nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to Pearly King. They strived to create a timeless, masculine collection by delving in to a time where true icons rode motorcycle and braved the wilderness! Pearly King have become students of these old school pioneers, recreating pieces that embody their rebellious, carefree lifestyle.

Creating a wardrobe that will instil a brooding sense of confidence in any man, featuring luxurious leathers, robust tweed jackets and t-shirts that have survived a life time. The look is very wearable, easy but with an air of rustic elegance. Garments that have survived the rough trials of time to become heirlooms.

For Summer 2013 Pearly King have focused on two main influences, Rockabilly culture and class and style of the Riviera. The fusion of these two contrasting looks has resulted in a collection that offers a rebellious yet refined look, featuring vintage inspired work wear fabrics drenched in sun bleached Riviera hues.

The brand have delved into a rich archive of 1950’s drag car racing culture and old pictures of The Rolling Stones in Cannes. This has yielded a range that embodies a mentality that is all about high rolled sleeves on printed chambray shirts and sun bleached – super soft vintage jerseys matched with jeans whose only wash has come from diving off the side of a luxury yacht, you know the look, think Mick and the boys of yesteryear having fun on their holidays.

Pearly King Summer 2013

anthonymcgrath405 / 11/06/2013

Another One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest – Cuckoos Nest

Manchester’s Northern Quarter is fast being a hot bed, or even Nest, one might say, for creative, non conformist clothing brands, over the years this area has been a great breeding ground for Music and clubs throughout the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and into the 90’s. The Northern Quarter has seen Dry Bar, Afflecks Palace, The Happy Mondays, The Hollies, New Order, Herman’s Hermits, The Smiths, The Band on the Wall etc. But in more recent times we’ve seen an influx of clothing brands and shops into the area, the all powerful Oi Polloi, boohoo.com, Elvis Jesus and the latest being Cuckoos Nest all calling it home.

The latter brand, Cuckoos Nest was first established in 2009 under the premiss of creating easy-to-wear pieces with a unique and unconventional style aimed at trend hungry men, with an appreciation for street wear and the sensibility for avant grade graphic design and print making.

Their surroundings give them a unique perspective and as they reappraise objects and images prevalent in British life, providing a new take on streetwear and fashion focused garments. Graphic design lies at the heart of Cuckoos Nest, with a desire to defy convention and push boundaries. Their surrealist reimagining of classic images gives the guys the ability to interpret the consciousness of many subcultures and genres, as is seen in their Summer 13 collections which gives a real tropical summer vibe, even if the our own Summer 13 don’t ever get off the ground.

Cuckoos Nest Summer 2013

anthonymcgrath405 / 05/06/2013

I’ve got Wood Wood – Another super cool brand from Denmark, Wood Wood

What do they put in the water over in Copenhagen, for a population of just over 1.2million, the residents of the Danish capital are incredibly creative when it comes to their clothing brands. Today’s Post is on Wood Wood, a brand founded in 2002 by a trio of designers, Karl Oskar Olsen, Lotte Bank Nielsen and Brian Jensen, who wanted to collaborate with one another on a small range of classic pieces with a quirky twist. The type of clothing that they would like to wear themselves and carve out a unique niche with their playful graphics, ahhh that old chestnut. Since then it had grown and grown into a complete collection that successfully manages to mix elements of street wear but without losing any of its high end aspiration. Their individual approach to style has gained the Wood Wood trio, friends and fans in high places with collaborations in recent years with the likes of Nike, Barbour, Eastpak and Adidas, not bad, hey.

Their most recent collaboration sees them work with the Little Sun project on a limited edition tee. The Little Sun Project is a non profit organisation started by artist Olafur Eliasson and engineer Frederik Ottesen, that aims is to provide trade in off-grid communities, which addresses the need for light in a sustainable way.

For Summer 2013 their collection has looked to the “Summers of Love”, for inspiration, the first Summer being 1967 San Francisco, where the Peace, Love and Understanding of the Hippie Movement were the order of the day and the second being the great Summer of 89 where Acid House and Rave Culture ruled supreme. Both were significant movements which dealt with the confrontation and liberation from existing social systems and both were driven by positive and engaging energy.

So with this collection Wood Wood hope to bring about a third Summer of Love, pulling in elements from both past Summers to offer a distinct range.