CLOTHES MAKE THE MAN

The subject of today’s post has a little more than a touch of class. A classic, as the old adage tells us, never goes out of style. Like a perfectly tailored suit, Green Irish Tweed has been and continues to be worn by confident men at the peak of their field.

Evoking the lush greenery of the Emerald Isle: cut grass, spring meadows, summer wild flowers and herbs warmed by a gentle sea breeze. Tweed suggests Creed’s equestrian tailoring roots, country squires and their estates, shooting parties and hip flasks.

Creed, was founded by James Henry Creed in 1760. The House of Creed soon drew the attention of Royalty throughout Europe, even a certain Queen Victoria appointed Creed as the official supplier to the Royal household. The House of Creed has created fragrances for the discerning for over 260 years. Over the centuries, the Creed family has produced over 200 perfumes all testifying to a unique creative spirit that has been passed, together with a keen inherited nose, from father to son through seven generations. Still today Olivier Creed, oversees the House of Creed as President and insists on using natural ingredients rather then synthetic ones. Green Irish Tweed is a blend of floral and woody ingredients that infuses, Violet leaves, Florentine Iris, Sandalwood & Ambergris to create this unique, fresh, masculine and natural aroma which cited Carrie Grant, Robbie Williams & Prince Charles as fans.

The scent was launched in 1985 and the fragrance was created by perfumers Olivier Creed and Pierre Bourdon. Bourdon is the nose who worked on this classic cologne. Before he began his career in perfumery, he received a degree in political science. And other iconic fragrances Bourdon devised include Kouros by Yves Saint Laurent, CoolWater by Davidoff and Sun by Jil Sander.

Designed and manufactured in Los Angeles, California Hand-Selected, locally sourced fabrics, using a Cut and Sew process allowing each item to have a tailored-fit and with a Muted colour palette allowing mixing and matching of  items.

Open Legacy founders, Jordan and Micah, met in 2014 fresh out of college. Neither had plans of starting an athletic wear brand or business, nor did they have fashion degrees or manufacturing experience, what could possibly go wrong ?

However, their interest in fashion and sports culture was immediately a topic that bonded them. Throughout the next year they would have numerous conversations about how they struggled to find athletic wear that they felt matched their style. Whether it be the fit or the aesthetics, the market seemed to lack items that were minimalistic in design while using quality fabrics that would keep them comfortable throughout a full workout.

Because of this, Open Legacy was founded out of a desire to create the items they felt they were lacking. Since then, they’ve utilised every opportunity possible to study the ins and outs of what it takes to design and manufacture a clothing item, start to finish.

Los Angeles’ fashion district became their second home as they began spending each day trying to find everything from pattern makers to fabrics. Initially, a goal was set to source and sample everything domestically. The samples would then be sent overseas where they could replicate all aspects of what had been done locally. Eventually, through meeting likeminded, passionate individual like themselves they transfer their production back home and make the decision that they would make as the concept of “Made in Los Angeles” a priority for them and the brand.

With a focus on simplicity and functionality, their first collection is minimalistic in design, while providing a tailored- fit. Working off of a muted colour palette, the worry of clashing colours, patterns, or conflicting styles are eliminated. Because of this, the consumer is able to mix and match whichever pieces they have available to create a well-paired look. To coincide with the aesthetics of the line, each item is constructed using hand selected fabrics and has been custom designed to ensure functionality for a wide range of activities.

Hero pieces include the Harbor Top which is designed with functionality and comfort in mind. Constructed of Polyester/ Spandex mesh, its breathability combats heat and residual sweat.

Then we have the 7” Mercer short is constructed of 4-way stretch fabric and features a 1” side slit, allowing for complete range of motion.

Lastly, the Hayden’s tight fit restricts any unwanted movement while giving you flexibility for full range of motion.

For over 115 years, Mens grooming brand Gillette has delivered precision shaving to over 750 million men around the world. From shaving and body grooming, to skin care and sweat protection, Gillette offers a wide variety of products including razors, shave gel (gels, foams and creams), skin care, after shaves, antiperspirants, deodorants and body wash.

Recently the brand announced the launch of King C. Gillette, a new brand which promises to give men with facial hair the ultimate at-home grooming experience, no matter what their facial style is. Inspired by over a century of innovation and grooming experience and bearing the name of their founder King Camp Gillette, no word on a lie, the grooming facial haircare range will bring al of their expertise to life, with a complete collection of tools and facial hair care products that are crafted to help men perfect their unique look and enhance their personal grooming ritual.

The King C. Gillette tools, accessories and facial hair care products – which include the iconic double-edged safety razor that was pioneered back in 1901 by King C. Gillette, and in a first for the brand, specific beard-care products – promise to support men with facial hair to look, feel and act their best every day by giving them the best tools of the trade to master their personal at-home grooming regime.

Gary Coombe, CEO, Gillette commented “We’re excited to announce the launch of the King C. Gillette range – the first complete line up of products & tools designed for men with facial hair. Our founder King C. Gillette revolutionized the male grooming experience more than a century ago, and so it is fitting that this new brand bears his name. All men have their own grooming styles and at home rituals which are personal to them, and so we’ve put all our years of shaving experience together with the very best razor, hair and skin care technologies to create this full range of tools, accessories and care products to meet all the grooming needs of all men. It’s the one-stop shop for grooming that men have been looking for.”

King C. Gillette revolutionised the male grooming experience with the development of the safety razor in 1901, an innovation which made the ritual of at home daily grooming a mainstay for men across the world.

The range – can be categorised into three sections; shave & edge, trim and care, will feature:

Shave & Edge:

• Double Edge Safety Razor and blade refills – an icon of style for precise edges

• Neck Razor – designed for sensitive skin to shave neck and cheeks

• Shave and Edging Razor – with 5 premium blades and precision trimmer for edging

• Transparent Shave Gel – designed for easy styling, infused with white tea

Trim:

• Beard Trimmer – cordless with 3 interchangeable combs, for all beard styles

Care:

• Beard & Face Wash (350ml) – refreshing cleanser infused with coconut water

• Soft Beard Balm (100ml) – conditioning balm with cocoa butter

• Beard Oil (30ml) – with argan oil to soften facial hair

King C. Gillette is launching in store at SuperDrug in the UK and online at SuperDrug.com and kingcgillette.co.uk

We all get stuck in a rut from time to time, but it’s only when we get a glimpse at a better ‘us’ that we truly realise what we’ve been missing.

Do you feel stuck? Have you stopped trying to better yourself?

Maybe asked yourself if these factors affect you :

1. Nothing to look forward to – if you have nothing to look forward to in your day, apart from sleeping and eating, then you’re stuck. Give yourself goals again, and see how your life improves.

2. Endless, unfulfilling chores – even though you’re getting through your to do list, it doesn’t feel like you’re getting anything done. This could be because the things you’re focusing your energy on just aren’t meaningful to you! Time to rethink your purpose.

3. The days blur together – if you wake up not knowing if it’s a Tuesday or a weekend, you’re not living your best life. Challenge yourself more and create a more stimulating structure.

4. You want to make changes, but don’t know where to start – if you have dreams of starting a new hobby or learning a new skill but keep putting it off, that’s a red flag. You don’t have to know everything before you start. In fact, it’s sometimes better if you don’t.

5. You’re too comfortable – perhaps the number one sign that you’ve stopped trying to better yourself is that you’re comfortable. You know you’d be happier if you made a change, but it feels safer to stay the same and mope about it. Don’t fall into this trap.

If you’ve answered YES to one or more of these statement maybe look at training or re-training with a company like SAVVYWISE.

With professionally curated courses in everything from business skills and education to HR and management, SavvyWise are on a mission to teach new skills and help people progress in their careers or personal lives – no matter their age, education levels, or social background.

Each course has been developed by an industry expert, ensuring the highest standards have been met. The courses are also flexible, available throughout the year and delivered anywhere, anytime by way of SavvyWise’s mySW app.

SavvyWise’s training is engaging, effective and dynamic thanks to their experienced team who are gifted in training and delivering quality programmes. Their vision is to find and nurture talented individuals; supporting their development through quality teaching and providing opportunities for career advancement.

At the moment we are hearing a lot about, sustainability and ethical consumerism. Brand talking about how sustainable they are and in the circular economy. Which is great and hopefully they all do follow through on their ambitious claims. One brand who are putting their Green money where their mouth is, is Riley Studio.

Riley Studio is a contemporary fashion brand creating gender neutral wardrobe staples that are kind on the planet.  By creating through eco-innovation, they are on a mission to move the industry towards a circular future with products that are durable, genderless, versatile, seasonless and most importantly sustainable.

In line with their mission of creating products for life, Riley Studio has launched a Lifetime Guarantee for all their products; at the end of a products lifespan, Riley Studio has committed to taking back and repurposing the product back into the system, supporting closed loop technologies and a circular economy.

Advancing their aim of reducing textile waste within the fashion industry and tackling the critical issues of overproduction and overconsumption, their latest gender-neutral and eco-innovative collection is designed for life, not just a season.  Available to buy online and launching exclusively in Selfridges, the fourth collection will drop eight new sophisticated styles, elevating their existing range with timeless designs. Launching their first shirts, jackets and shorts, the new Collection 04 remains in keeping with Riley Studio’s minimalist style, with the focus on celebrating the individual, and encouraging a sharing economy between partners, friends and family.
Collection 4 takes inspiration from the Mediterranean summer sun, with new hues including Ochre and Orange alongside the more subdued Navys and Greys to keep the collection timeless and wearable.   Unable to do a proper photoshoot, Riley Studio took inspiration from Vogue Italia and engaged a fashion illustrator, Jessica Bird, to bring their mood boards too life. These illustrations will play a key part in their marketing collateral and allowed Riley Studio to put the money saved towards the Emergency Design Network to buy materials for scrubs. Committed to reducing their carbon footprint and bringing production back to the UK, Riley Studio is working with a new manufacturer for all their wovens, Tower Garments, based in London who have played a key role in the production of PPE.

Continuing their mission to work towards a circular economy, and utilising closed loop technologies, their ethos of ‘We Create From Waste’ remains at the core of their collection. Each style is specially crafted from pre and post-consumer waste materials, reducing their impact on the environment, and rediverting waste that would otherwise be sent to landfill. Every element of the collection has been sourced sustainably, with recycled YKK zips, organic elastic, and milk casein buttons crafted from milk protein.Collection 04 sees a new partnership with Olmetex, a luxurious organic cotton mill based in Como Italy known as a leader in the industry producing innovative technical fabrics. The collection also includes pieces from eco-innovative leaders, Recover® Yarn and recot²®to continue their positive impact. To date, through their use of recot ® alone (recycled & organic cotton) they have saved over 1,315,000 litres of water.

Riley Studio is leading the way in radical transparency in the industry, recently launching a ‘Traceability’ section on every product; naming each supplier in the supply chain.