Spotted: The Forever In Fashion V-neck

I've lost count of how many white, black or grey v-neck t-shirts i possess, i'm obsessed with them, season after season they are sure winners when putting together an outfit that will look casual but not ordinary casual ;) The t is so versatile, you can dress it up with a jacket, which is how i often wear mine, or dress it down as we can see the guy in the pic, by the Sartorialist.

Timeless Breguet Tourbillon Platine vers 1993

French auction house 'Artcurial' is having a "fine jewellery & watches" auction on 21st july 2010. If you have anything between 30 000 & 50 000 EUR then you might wanna consider acquiring this stunning vintage piece, Breguet Tourbillon Platine vers 1993!

Dolce & Gabbana Spring/Summer 2011

Europe is in a frenzy at the moment, what with Milan & Paris Fashion Week taking place - most of the mainstream fashion power houses showed last week and the week before. Form Dolce & Gabbana they were celebrating their 20 years of doing Men's fashion - I quite liked the summery wrinkled whites/off-whites.

Item du jour….lust worthy awesome kicks

I’ve been looking for a pair of sneakers for a while now, and I tend to love them bootied. Recently I came across this pair and I’m just in love, I haven’t quite loved a kick as much as I love these, come pay day I’m gonna be hitching myself with a pair– I expect some sod to not like them, I think they are very specific you either like them or hate them –besides the fact that they are boots, like my favourite converse Chuck Taylors, the highlight for me is the washed out dove-grey leather as well as the checked (or tartan to some) section at the back, all tied together with two grey buckles – these shoes are an outfit all on their own. I spotted these at ZOOM (V&A Waterfront) for R899; I must have them.

Spotted: In Cape Town...Straw Fedoras

Some might not understand the purpose of this post, but i felt the need to post it because people don't wear straw hats anymore, partly because its not 2008 anymore and also because lately every member of the masses believes they can pull them off, which is not always the case. When i saw this guy some weeks back I really liked his fedora, straw as it was, mainly because it was very well accessorised, it didnt look like a standard fedora with a black or navy shash, on this one, the sash had been used as an interesting and beautiful motif, which i quite liked. So although I'm over fedoras, if it looks interesting and has more detail than something you'll find at Woolworths = thumbs up. Insert: Victoria Beckham has a collection of fedoras that even though its 2 years past the trend I'd still love to own, my favorite being the white Vintage YSL with the zip.

Item 'du jour'....Hermès Bag

Hermès, the French luxury fashion house whose name has become unanimous with un compromised premium quality is better known for their silk scarves that cannot be rivaled as well as their female hand bag collection, especially the Birkin, after Jane Birkin, popularized by Victoria Beckham. But what most don’t realize is that Hermès has a huge male bags and luggage offering – Hermès conducts auctions often of their vintage designs or second hand items and that’s where I came across this bag, this is bag is the perfect size for a guy, who is a lil bit more into timeless classic designs with an edge, the red colour is very daring while the design appears functional and basic, being Hermès we can only imagine what superior leather has been used, oh to love a bag, to wish it was more affordable.

Spotted: FUCK FIFA....

We spotted this trendy guy Woodstock, Cape Town, at the Neighborgoods Market as well, wearing this not so cryptic word-play T, with FICK FUFA & FACK FIFU for FUCK FIFA on it, it was a very cool t-shirt and very appropriate regarding the FIFA 2010 World Cup, the very first in the African continent is being held here in South Africa, so it was an interesting message or display of perception about the organizers of the tournament, which I figured would make for a good talking point. The t-shirt was designed by (name removed, leave comment or mail poster for details of designer & distributer of shirt). Anyway, today marks the official first day of the 2010 World Cup games; kicked off by South Africa, as tradition for the host country, versus Mexico, which we hope will not completely annihilate us. I need to get hold of Jasper soon because I need that t-shirt for a friend who I know will love it based on his experience with his dealings with FIFA. We will be featuring more on this subject later, but for now I’m curious to know whether everyone else loves or hates FIFA.

Spotted: Wayfarered Retro Trio

We spotted these guys at the Old Biscuit Mill in Woodstock, I was taken and inspired by their combined look; this is one of those instances where the sum of parts IS in fact greater than the parts individually. Had they been by themselves, they would have looked good and cool, but combined, they look just fantastic, without even trying. Individually they have very different styles that one wouldn’t expect there to be any cohesion in their overall look, but there was; you had to be there to see it, I guess a lot of it had to do with the fact that though different the looks were, the eras referenced were very similar, e.g. Wayfarers all round, check shirts & plimsolls for the guys. The way this trio drifted around the market sipping on cocktails before noon:-P, with their retro looks married effortlessly with their cavalier attitude it was a sight to be seen. At first Dennis & I thought they’d be unapproachable but they turned out surprisingly forthcoming & agreeable. We will post individual shots of the same photo so you’ll be able to see more of their personalities from their stances and facial expressions.

spotted: stylish strawberry girl

When I saw that pleasant young south african woman here I just said spontanously: "Look at that sweet strawberry over there!"

Even though the outfit looks a bit conceptional she still comes across spontanous and fresh so as if she were in a rush when she dressed up. The red ballerinas combined with the chanel inspired vintage bag and the parisian beret are a cute selection of fashionable items that go well together.

As a huge friend of oversize cardigans I was always affected by outfits that make me doubt whether the combination is actually put together accidently or on purpose. Outfits of this type remind me of a painter who leaves his studio for a spontanous shopping-tour and throughs his work coat over and simply uses it as a jacket. People like that prefer to wear rather what they love instead of what works, which conveys authenticity and that fact illustrates a completely new fashion statement. And while we are on the subject: Check out my favorite new discovery, a very funny sitcom called "accidently on purpose". Seth showed it to me a few months ago and I love our evenings when we would just chill and laugh our asses of about the funny situations that Jenna Elfmann and her young lover goes through: www.cbs.com/primetime/accidently_on_purpose/

Spotted: Edgy Effervescence in Woodstock

The minute I saw her, I was instantly drawn to her interpretation of a hoodie as you can see it's got a twisted diagonal button design, and the collar is very interesting, it’s got a sort of built in scarf, which is pretty cool cuz Balenciaga did jackets similar to that way back in 2007. The 2nd thing I noticed was how utterly amazing her pale grey leather jacket was, it had no lapels, but was accentuated with stitch detail diverging from the neck – swoon. Until this Swede looking blonde Dennis and I hadn’t quite managed to find someone who embodied what I like to call ‘High Street Shabby’, which is basically a look that is ultra trendy, whilst being incredibly individualistic & very blasé all at the same time, like she just threw it on and came out amazing, no one else could pull of this entire look as effortlessly as she did. In this pic, her effervescent smile tells a story about her personality.

The Royal Loafers

Hand made shoes?
The first attributes we think of when we hear "hand made shoes" is that they are unaffordable, maybe old-fashioned and way too exclusive. But no! Cape Town shoe designer Ninon Louw designs hand work which is suprisingly fair priced, well manufactured and timeless.
After one has choosen a model one has the choice between a wide range of colours in different tones and can even choose if the shoes should be in suede, leather or even both(see picture). In fact you can create your own hand made shoe without any extra costs involved. I think that's fantastic and and makes NINON unique in Cape Town. I already ordered the loafers from the picture and I can't wait for her to call me and tell me that I can pick them up. The leather is absolutly soft and the royal touch reminds me of a moody young prince. Those loafers are simply elegant, comfortable and stylish. I havn't fallen in love with a pair of shoes like that for quiet a while and some of you might think that I am exaggerating right now. Maybe I am. But for me personally those pair of suede and leather loafers are magical slippers! Aladin would wear those slippers on his magic carpet. The feeling of a naked foot in a soft suede loafer reminds a little bit of arabic camel leather slippers.

This is just an introduction of NINON as you can look forward to hear more about this talented woman from us pretty soon. Check for more information: http://www.ninonsdesigns.blogspot.com/
Ninon Louw presents a selection of her unique shoe collection every saturday at "The Old Biscuit Mill" in Woodstock. Check it out, its worth it, especially if you are a big shoe fan like me.

Spotted: delicate and graceful

When this young fairylike girl waltzed trough the old biscuit mill this morning, she gave the impression that she was unapproachable and a little bit of a sweet alien.

When I toke a closer look I saw a touch of sanctity.

At the first moment she appeared to me like one of those female celebrities that appear to be so fragile when they are on the run from the paparazzi and scurry into a big black hummer to hide themselfs like a delicate creature. All the more it was suprising how bubbly she was when I talked to her.

Seth and I really liked the combination of the white silk dress and the visible layers of lace-trimmed petticoat. The brown buckskin boots with fringes spiced the outfit up. We also like the combination of the tiny black leather westcoad with the black Givenchy bag which she carried elegantly around her arm.

Spotted: Florence, Italy

The Sartorialist, a blogger and fashion photographer for GQ has this website where he takes photoes of people in the street that he feels inspired by, in terms of their fashion sense or how they've styled their outfits, I check the blog daily...the looks range from fantastic, stunning, dreamy to quirky and downright awful. This pic was posted a while ago, and I think everything about this look just works - for someone who often doesnt like light or stone washed denim, this lad, shot in Florence, shows us how to wear light jeans the Italian way - he looks awesome! Highlights for me: The pocket kerchief, the stripped shirt, and the perfectly fitted jacket, the shoulder peek a but and the cuffs are angled, the jeans i'm not mad about, they are stone washed, never been a fan, but makes them work! Click on image to see the detail better.

Wayfarers: Most Popular Vintage Style

One style enjoying a pronounced renaissance right now is the Ray Ban ‘Wayfarer’, which dates from 1952 when their design was a revolutionary break from the metal eyewear of the past. If you’re looking for the sunglasses Audrey Hepburn wore in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, look no further – they were Wayfarers in a tortiseshell pattern. Though they were originally marketed to pilots, they were popularized by Kim Novak and Marilyn Monroe, and went on to enjoy favour with countless celebrities through the 1960’s and 1970’s. In the 1980’s, Tom Cruise re-popularized them in the movie ‘Risky Business’.If you’re looking for ‘Buddy Holly’ glasses, those are also the Wayfarer style, but in black with clear lenses, worn as regular eyeglasses instead of sunglasses. Since late 2009 these style has been repopularized, in Cape Town alone, every reasonably conscious indivual seems to possess at least one pair of Wayfarers, they also come in a wide variety of seriously funky colours. I believe in classics so my pair is a simple black one.

Stolen Emporio Armani Classic EA0433 Watch

OK so there's this awesome blog i read often called 00o00, and the blogger was talking about a what defines a great shopping experience, and the basis of the article was based on his experience with various stores when he was searching for a new battery for his Emporio Armani watch - now here's the lightful part, the said watch is the exact same watch I had got in Paris when i was there for xmas in 2007. But sadly mine got stolen after only 3 wears. And i had meant to replace it but over the years, I started to forget, until when i saw this post, it made me realise that as simple and somewhat non-special this watch might look to some, to me it was the definition of what i had been looking for for years as a simple, chic and timeless cocktail watch to wear with a tux or a nice suit and bow tie, and cuz I don't attend events like that all the time, with jeans!!! So now I'm busy considering buying the watch again, but a part of me thinks I can obviously find newer and better watches out there, but a lil' boy inside me says, 'buy it and wear it everyday to make up for all this time you've missed it' - I only have two watches at the moment, this would be a 3rd, but both my current ones have leather straps...should i be looking to diversify and get a metal buckle? I have one brown one and one with red straps - more on them later...for now I need to know if anyone thinks i should buy this Armani watch.