CLOTHES MAKE THE MAN

anthonymcgrath405 / 13/04/2016

Elemental in their fragrance – Ted Baker’s travel Tonic Trio

As our thoughts turn to the notion of packing our bags and journeying on a jet plane to some sunnier climb, leaving our troubles and woes behind for a week or two. Any globetrotter, worth his salt, knows, that maintaining impeccable style whilst travelling is of the utmost importance.

And maintaining this demeanour whilst travelling is equally imperative. For this very reason Ted Baker have conjured up three new travel sized tonics. Available in gold, silver or copper. Each Travel Tonic is slim line and portable, making for a rare and refined addition to any travel collection.

Created to compliment the essence of a man’s jet-set lifestyle, these distinguished Travel Tonics are inspired by three treasured metals. Fusing style with substance, each sophisticated fragrance ensures you always spark a reaction, wherever in the world you may find yourself.

Getting their names from their periodical table reference, firstly we have, Au, Gold in colour and The last word in masculinity, this immaculate and enduring fragrance is crafted for the modern day man who believes the devil is in the detail.

Notes of bergamot and clove deepen to a dazzling heart of jasmine and a base of musk and vanilla. Meticulously blended and supremely invigorating, Au is a mark of distinction for any collection.

Then we have Ag, Silver, of course, A signature scent for those who like to make an entrance, Ag ensures a lasting impression.

Melting from notes of bergamot and violet leaf to an earthy heart of leather and warm cedarwood, this dramatic and distinctive scent captures the essence of refinement. And last but by no means in third place is Cu, standing for Copper. This dynamic and striking scent suits the discerning gent with an eye for style and a taste for sophistication.

A unique fragrance that’s at once smooth and spicy, Cu captures the attention with a rich blend of zingy grapefruit and smoky pepper, contrasted with base notes of patchouli. Ideal for traveling over night or longer.

anthonymcgrath405 / 08/04/2016

Grenfell, the Sleeping Beauty of Heritage Brands

Grenfell, the heritage luxury brand, was founded in 1923 by the Haythornthwaite family in Lancashire and began as a ‘wonder-fabric’, a cotton gaberdine cloth, developed specifically to meet the outerwear needs of explorer and missionary doctor, Sir Wilfred Grenfell who’s pioneering pushed for a fabric to suit extreme form and function, he agreed to lend the fine cloth his name. Over the following decades Grenfell was worn by British Royalty, racing car drivers, adventurers and aviatrixes, outdoorsmen, sportsmen and style icons such as Cary Grant.

This season, we saw the launch of the inaugural Grenfell Bluebird collection, inspirated by the pioneer of both land and sea speed Records, Sir Malcolm Campbell. It comprises of 12 pieces inspired by original items created using Grenfell cloth worn by the ‘King of Speed’, as Campbell was known; a gentleman and racer who was not only celebrated for his records on land and water but also admired for his sartorial style and natural ease in front of the camera.

This collection takes its cue from the ‘20s and ‘30s and will unfold over future seasons to recognise the contribution made by Malcolm and Donald Campbell to both speed and style across their careers.

The collection comprises; the Bluebird record suit, a car coat, long bomber, Field jacket, double breasted blazer, the Farringdon – a lean contemporary mac, Harrington and gilet. All pieces are available in three colours; Pendine Sand, Bluebird Blue and Navy.

Additional to this, the leading and innovative re and e-tailer Oi-Polloi, have been such fans of the heraldic work of Grenfell, and in particular their ‘Golfer’ jacket they have just started to stock this lil beauty. In their inimitable way, the lads from Oi-Polloi put it, “We’ve been big fans of their classic Golfer Jacket for years, and it’s safe to say we’re pretty pleased to have finally nabbed them.”

anthonymcgrath405 / 07/04/2016

Nordic workwear – Norse Projects S/S16 Collection

Editor – Keanu Adorable

Danish creative studio, Norse Projects, work at the intersection of art, design and function. Intrinsically rooted in Scandinavia with aesthetics of Danish design, inspired by nature and natural surroundings, Norse Projects advocates simplicity and a minimal approach to design that is timeless in nature and aesthetic.

This season the Copenhagen based brand have created a lookbook entitled ‘Moments’ which showcases the apparel in motion, highlighting the cuts, patterns and textures of their new pieces.

The collection keeps in line with its Nordic tradition with its design whilst taking inspiration from military environments along with a focus on different sub-species of flora, accompanied with a purist approach along with progressive ideals through the use of aerial lines, soft textures, and subtle details. These are emphasised through the use of lightweight twills, over-dyed weaves and durable nylon ripstop, all aiming to advance the idea of light active wear.

Notable pieces in the release include a Mackintosh jacket in lightweight Japanese nylon, mid-layer jackets with Primaloft wadding and vertical quilting, rainwear jackets with heat-welded seams, and lightweight sweatshirts with an all-over rib structure. Also a workwear –inspired heine twill jacket, constructed from a mid weight cotton twill. The collection is available for purchase on the brands website.

Check out the Lookbook on the slideshow below.

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anthonymcgrath405 / 05/04/2016

Standalone on his own two feet – BoohooMAN.com

Boohoo.com is a retail phenomenon, if you are part of the current MTV generation, as a brand you can’t help to know who they are. However, if you are not of this certain clique and you think Zoella is a cartoon Dinosaur and Alfie Deyes is a character in Eastenders, this brand may mean little or nothing to you, just yet !

Since its humble start in 2007 it has catered for the needs of girls up and down the country wanting something to wear out on a weekend night out. But this wasn’t enough and the brains behind this simple e-commerce concept had much bigger and brighter plans. Mahmud Kamani and Carol Kane, Joint Chief Exceutives of the brand, saw a gap in the market for highly affordable, trend driven pieces and boy did they go for it.

Now shipping to over 100 countries, in 2013 they launched BoohooMAN to sit along its sister range to cater for a male demographic. However, last week saw boohooMAN introduce a dedicated standalone site, catering exclusively to a menswear customer. Focusing on clothing, footwear and accessories, like its sister site there will be an emphasis on newness, with new styles dropping every week. The website offers a new shopping experience, featuring dedicated content for the male consumer and targeting that trend led; price conscious consumer or as Richard Clark – Marketing Director at the brand put it,

“We had observed a shift in menswear buying habits, as men begin to embrace fashion trends, but as the market continues to evolve it felt like a natural progression to introduce a dedicated site for boohooman.com. The core of our business has always been to provide the seasons latest looks, whilst still delivering incredible value, but now we have the opportunity to tailor the offer and the content we serve up to the menswear customer, making their shopping experience more personalised and engaging.”

So to kick off this all new offering, a collection compromising of four key trends is up for your delectation. Updating a classic spring trend, NAUTICAL incorporates darker maritime influences, with indigo denim echoing ocean depths, and graphics focusing around sea life creatures. Denim also takes the lead in UTILITY referencing a relaxed Mediterranean approach to menswear. Linen is paired with varying jean washes, with a nod to the Rivera in the form of double breasted jackets lay-ered over denim shirts with open toe sandals. MOD is a trend of two sides, focusing on the sharp styling of the late 1970’s whilst also touching on retro sportswear. Bold colours and structured shapes are reworked to give classic shapes an updated look for 2016. URBAN SPORTS uses sport shapes with a motocross theme throughout.

anthonymcgrath405 / 04/04/2016

Hairstyles for Summer 2016

Today a true hair Aficionado gives us his take on the forthcoming season’s hair styles to be sporting, so if your thinking of a change or just updating your current follicle do, please pay attention. Luke Dolan, Ambassador for premium grooming range, Uppercut Deluxe, is a master of traditional barbering and lives the BarberLife scene. Luke started a hairdressing apprenticeship aged 17, preferring the more subtle environment of a barber shop he moved over to barbering shortly after and hasn’t looked back. He now has over 19 years experience. Luke loves more traditional cuts and his favourite would be a ‘crisp, clean pomp’.

Dolan works in collaboration with Uppercut Deluxe from his North London salon. Inspired by the timeless style of the 1950s barbershop and its spiritual founder, Willy Uppercut OShea, Uppercut Deluxe is a modern, yet traditional approach to mens grooming. An Australian born brand proudly made with only the finest ingredients, Uppercut Deluxe delivers a core straight talking range of quality grooming products for men.

For this post Luke gives us his top 4 looks for theSummer. Starting with;

Style 1
The Disconnected Pomp
This has been around for a couple of years and has now evolved into a fade on the sides but the top left more textured. Square layers through the top that are heavily texturised when dry. I would use the Uppercut Matt clay for this one.

Style 2
The Taper
The taper has been around since the world was formed but has made a resurgence this year because a good taper down to skin can make a good haircut look out of this world. Considering you are only working with a small section of the hair on the sides and back it can take just as long as a fade or anything else to acheive. If a jobs worth doing then its worth doing well! With this style I recommend using some of the awesome Uppercut Deluxe Monster Hold. Does what it says on the tin.

Style 3
The Reimagined Crop
Technically this is just a French crop with a slightly longer top. However, getting the right look for your hair can be problematic. There needs to be a slight disconnect as the fade needs to go quite high to give that nice square and masculine look, but you need the top to be long enough to show off the texture but have a blunt fringe. For my version I styled it with the Uppercut Deluxe featherweight.

Style 4
Drop Fade
Drop Fade with heavy texture and a crisp line. This cut has really caught fire this year when Ryan Cullen from Northern Ireland put this cut on his Instagram and the masses have been asking for it since. I style mine up with the Uppercut Deluxe Matt Clay. Working it in to dry hair and tease out the texture with a comb.

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