#1156 NZ Fashion Festival - not a bad way to spend $45

Derya Parlak working it in Juliette Hogan at the New Zealand Fashion Festival

New Zealand Fashion Week's sister event - the consumer-targeted New Zealand Fashion Festival - took place for the first time on Tuesday this week. A press release was sent out about six hours prior to the show to say that tickets had sold out online, and that the inner city venue would be packed out with 1200 guests. I'm not sure how many eventually showed up, but the place was pretty damn full. And not just with paying customers. Among the crowd was a smattering of fashion media and celebrities, including New Zealand's current number one album holder, Hollie Smith.

I enjoyed myself. Due to the fact that people had actually paid to be there, the whole event had an excited buzz that often alludes the jaded fashion pack's response to a typical show. It was also a much more relaxed affair - I counted at least eight attendees who chose to walk across the catwalk while the show was going, often in the path of oncoming models. To be honest, I fail to understand why anybody would do that in any type of show - it's not like you'd walk in front of a singer on stage at a concert - but it made for some good laughs and a much needed break during some of the slower moments.

If I have one criticism, it would be that the show was a bit lengthy. I don't have a very long attention span at the best of times, but 90-odd minutes is ages for anybody to sit still. But that said, I accept that I'm not the target market for the event. I'm used to a 15 minute show. The ladies I spoke with who had paid to be there all seemed to have loved it, and all thought I was pulling their leg when I told them that a normal show very rarely breaks 20 minutes.

Next year I'd like to see the menswear and womenswear shows separated, though this could cause problems at the box office - I wonder how many New Zealand men would be brave enough to pay to see a show full of male models? Or perhaps there could be three or four shorter shows with like-minded designers (Zambesi with Nom*D and Jimmy D; or Stolen Girlfriends Club with Huffer, Lonely Hearts and twentysevennames) as opposed to the one group show.

Oh, and bring Ricardo Sumich back to do the seating. That guy knows how to fill a front row with seconds to spare like nobody else on the planet. And he certainly would have spotted Hollie Smith standing behind the back row and ushered her through to a much-deserved seated spot.

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#1155 New Servilles campaign - a who's who of NZ's modelling stars

Photo: Tony Drayton

New Zealand doesn't have supermodels. Not yet anyway. But we do have several boys and girls who work pretty consistently well overseas, like Zippora Seven, Georgia Fowler, Nicole Clulee and Jasper Seven. Good for the models, but bad for the New Zealand clients, because it's a rare day when they're all in town at the same time. But Servilles got lucky, nabbing all of the above plus Jasper Seven's girlfriend, Dempsey Stewart (an Australian) for their Winter 2010 hair campaign It's Hip To Be Square. With the geek-chic theme and spectacles, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was an eyewear campaign, but presumably relaxed, care-free, tousled hair is the look du jour for Servilles. Regardless, it's not a bad looking commercial campaign - I can definitely imagine it on billboards around town, we'll wait to see where it goes.

Shoot credits below.

Creative Direction: Andy Pickering @ Pilot
Photographer: Tony Drayton
Stylist: Karen Inderbitzen-Waller
Hair: Paul Huege de Serville
Models: Georgia Fowler @ Clyne, Nicole Clulee @ Red-11, Zippora, Jasper & Dempsey @ 62.

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#1154 Crane Brothers reveals dramatic expansion plans

Photo: Karen Inderbitzen Waller

Last night at the Crane Brothers High Street store, Murray Crane launched Black Sheep, his first ever ready to wear collection, and revealed the company's future growth plans in a letter personally addressed to each guest. It included a quick note about the new print campaign and a commitment to "develop new channels and opportunities to promote the brand" (translation: advertise in several titles); formally introduced Glenn Yungnickel as Assistant Designer and Robert Niwa as Creative Director; and spoke of an intake of staff - five across the company this year alone, with two extra interns coming from AUT's design school programme - the two interns they took last year have become full time Crane workers.

Crane Brothers' Wellington store is getting a face lift and expansion - it will double in size this year. According to the letter, "The store has been open for just over a year and has experienced better than forecasted growth."

Internationally, designers tend to be more open about their downfalls (like Thom Browne who admitted last year that he'd been on the brink of bankruptcy), but locally our designers are loathe to reveal any less than favourable company results. Murray Crane addressed the good and bad in the letter, saying, "Crane Brothers experienced minimal growth in 2009". This was followed by a note that the company is "entering into a recapitalisation process... and are forecasting significant growth in 2010 and beyond."

But possibly the most exciting news for the brand - and for lovers of (very) high end menswear - Crane Brothers will begin producing a signature made to measure collection out of Europe in August, using the same factories as Lanvin, Gucci and Kilgour. No doubt the price point on this collection will be significantly higher than what most New Zealand men are used to paying for their made to measure suits, but it will be the closest thing to Savile Row that we've ever had.

All exciting news, but the bit that really stood out to me was Murray Crane's acknowledgment of Glenn Yungnickel as Assistant Designer. Most fashion houses have the face of the brand - Miuccia Prada, Tom Ford, Stefano Pilati - and everyone else is hidden in the bowels. Fantastic to see young talent being both nurtured and publicly applauded.

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#1153 The definition of frustration

The following is not a joke. It is an actual email conversation between a friend and his client that occurred yesterday afternoon.

My friend: Image attached as per your specifications. Thanks.

Client: Can the image be bigger please? Thanks.

My friend: Please see attached. I've increased the size to 600px wide. Thanks.

Client: Can you make it bigger please? The whole image please.

My friend: I did make it bigger. It's 600 pixels wide (as opposed to the 450 it was before) - how large do you want it to be? I'd recommend not making it too big or the file size will be too big - unless that's okay?

Client: I just think the wording is hard to read…. The image is just a little too small. Can you please just make it bigger?

My friend: Please see attached. Once again, the image is bigger. Have you tried opening it in an image viewer rather than just viewing it in the body of your email? I'd recommend doing that to view the actual size. I think there's a distinct possibility that we're having a Mac - PC issue which means it's not at 100% size in your email.

Client: It's still small. I just don’t understand why we cant make the image bigger?????? And I don't think it's a PC issue because I clicked on the email twice and nothing happened.

My friend: Okay, please see attached, again, and now this one is 750px wide. Is it bigger than the last one I sent you? Just to clarify, are you 100% sure you want it to be this big?

Client: Yes that's much better.

My friend: (No response)

Client: Now if I copy and paste it into an email, the image is too big.

My friend: (No response)

Client: Can you make it smaller? Look at it in the email. It's way too big!

My friend: (Sigh)

Oh my frustration.

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#1152 Remix gets a makeover

New Zealand's magazine market is well and truly over saturated. I once heard a statistic that we have more magazines per capita than any other country in the world. When it comes to fashion, that statistic must be about a billion times more extreme. I've just counted 10 full-sized fashion magazines in New Zealand off the top of my head, and I'm sure there are more. 10 fashion magazines in a country of four million people whose biggest interest is rugby. It doesn't quite compute. Needless to say, it's a crazy competitive market fighting for those advertising dollars - you've gotta stay ahead of the pack. So kudos to Remix for taking it upon themselves to rev up the look and feel of the magazine, starting with a brand new masthead, page size and design which will be released in a new issue on the 25th of March.

I've never been an avid reader of Remix. I'm not much of a music fan - particularly so when it comes to the electronic/techno/house genres - and the fashion has never really been to my tastes. I'm about the fussiest guy in the world when it comes to editorials and fashion stories, and Remix always seems to me to have more a fast-fashion, trend-based look than what I'm interested in.

That said, I'm very interested to see what they do in the new issue, and 310 pages is a massive book. According to the press release, there are 100 pages of fashion shoots. No doubt there'll be something in it for everybody. I'll blog it as soon as it comes out.

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#1151 Classic American menswear

Steve McQueen - Photos: GQ

GQ has just posted an homage to the 50 most stylish leading men of the past 50 years. If a stylish Englishman is made in the fussy details, his American counterpart is made in the lack thereof. The nonchalance, the classic pieces, the relaxed look. Take Steve McQueen, for instance, above. White tee shirt, cream pants. It's not about the amount of shirt cuff showing, or the perfect dimple in a tie, it's about looking incredible in the simplest outfit you can imagine. Likewise with Paul Newman below, in a v-neck sweater, rolled up cords and sneakers, Jean-Michel Basquiat in a cropped duffel coat and baggy pants or my all time favourite shot of JFK standing on his yacht in a crewneck sweater and beige pants (those last two were taken from a different GQ best dressed list). I'm feeling like it's time to move on from skinny pants and done-up top buttons and into this kind of stuff - though it might take me a while to transition. And, like I always say, if you're looking for the perfect go-to outfit, nothing beats a white tee shirt and blue jeans. It's the American way.

Paul Newman

Jean-Michel Basquiat

John F Kennedy

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#1150 Karl Lagerfeld's not going anywhere

Once again, the rumours surrounding Karl Lagerfeld's impending departure from the house of Chanel were incorrect. Chanel sent out the following statement this morning: "Please note that Karl Lagerfeld is the Creative Designer of CHANEL and has a long-term contract with the company. Replacing him is not an issue." So to answer all my own questions, I guess Alber Elbaz will be staying where he is, as will Lucas Ossendrijver at Lanvin menswear. Baptiste Giabiconi has nothing to worry about, Karl Lagerfeld will keep on doin' what he's keepin' on doin' and hopefully - hopefully - Hedi Slimane will show up somewhere. Until then, this storm in a teacup started by Jak and Jil's Tommy Ton can be solved by watching style.com's recent Paris videos, according to Tommy Ton. I just did, and didn't notice anything at all. Anybody else??

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#1149 The Department Store is the best in the world - so says Monocle

With Karen Walker outside The Department Store

The Department Store is awesome. I've been saying so since it first opened. In fact, my exact words were:

"What better way to while away an afternoon than a trip to The Department Store. Clothing - check. Knick knacks, furniture, books, art - check. Did I mention the salon? The real peppermint tea? The particularly attractive staff? I'm already petitioning for a second, south o' the bridge location."

Well now I can say I told you so, and boo the haters who commented that it wouldn't work, that it would fail, that it was a dumb idea... Because Monocle Magazine, the global arbiters of cool when it comes to luxury, travel and shopping, have come out and called it the number one new store in the world, praising its 'vernacular’ of celebrating local talent. And those guys know what they're talking about. They devote their entire lives to roaming the globe seeking out the best of everything. And they're bloody good at what they do - people who know say they're people who know.

Here's the thing. In my opinion, New Zealanders are very cautious people. We judge first, and ask questions later. It takes us a while to warm up to things. And we generally don't like anything until it's been validated by somebody or something bigger than us. You see it time and time again - New Zealanders being shunned by their own until they go out into the world and make something of themselves. Then they'll come back and be heaped with praise. Or the opposite happening, where a non-New Zealander will come here and suddenly be seen as the global expert on something... just because they're from London or New York or Sydney.

I must admit that when I heard about The Department Store's award, I shook my head in disbelief and thought to myself, 'Surely there must be a better store somewhere else.' But that's just the cultural cringing New Zealander in me rearing its ugly head. I've travelled a lot in the last year and I can honestly say that I haven't been into a cooler store. Not in New York, not in London, not in Paris or Milan or Los Angeles.

So congratulations to Karen Walker, the Black Box guys and Stephen Marr - plus the other pop up stores within The Department Store - for creating a retail location that really does hold up on the world stage.

What they say is true - a shore store's a shore thing.

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#1148 Alber Elbaz rumoured to be replacing Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel

Photo: Grazia

There's nothing I like better than a good scoop, and this one looks like it's going to be the biggest fashion scoop in absolutely ages. Rumours are currently circulating that Alber Elbaz will leave Lanvin to replace Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel. Where did they originate? On Twitter, but not in so many words. On March the 9th, a cryptic Tweet was sent out by Jak and Jil's Tommy Ton, saying, "I received some news tonight that is going to SHAKE the fashion world in the next two days. CRAZY!!!!" That was six days ago, but so far, no earth-shaking news has been revealed.

Grazia is floating the Alber Elbaz-for-Chanel rumour, but at this stage it's still just a rumour and we're all sitting around, twiddling our thumbs, waiting for some kind of announcement to be made.

But here's what I want to know:

If Alber Elbaz does go to Chanel, who will replace him at Lanvin? What will become of Lucas Ossendrijver and Lanvin menswear? Will Alber take him to Chanel to finally do a proper Chanel Homme collection? Will Baptiste Giabiconi fade into obscurity? Will Karl Lagerfeld retire completely from fashion? Will he keep photographing? Will Hedi Slimane pop up somewhere? Did Anna Wintour broker the deal? So many questions, so little time.

Just remember, I asked them here first.

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#1147 Corduroy suits are my new obsession

Wes Anderson... a vision in tan corduroy

It's been a while since I had a proper obsession. Last year I had the maroon suit and the uniform dressing. Those were true obsessions. Wake up, thinking about maroon suits and uniform dressing. Go to sleep, thinking about maroon suits and uniform dresssing. Talk to my Mum on the phone... about maroon suits and uniform dressing. This year though, while I've gotten quite into those blazers that button all the way up and everything forest green, nothing's come along and slapped me in the face, knocked me off my feet and taken control of my mind. Until now. It's official. Corduroy suits are my new obsession.

Opening Ceremony

It all started last Wednesday when I walked into Crane Brothers to check on the status of a pair of pants. The pants were AWOL, but the news was delivered to me by staffer Chris Vovan, who, on that day, was wearing a navy corduroy suit. It had all the aspects of a normal suit - jet pockets on the jacket and pants, two buttons, narrow lapels, working buttons on the sleeves, side vents - but it was a casual suit. Casual and English and professorial and old worldly. The pants were rolled up above a pair of tan desert boots. It was the kind of suit you could imagine wearing while sitting in a stately library, smoking a pipe and reading 19th century first editions.

Opening Ceremony

I have a bit of history with corduroy - as an eight year old I had a pair of particularly tight brown corduroy pants with patch pockets on the front and back that, as I remember, matched a pair my Dad owned. I hated those pants, and made the mistake of wearing them to mufti day at primary school one time. Predictably, I spent the whole day feeling appalled at my choice of trousers, and when it came time for assembly, I just about passed out with the fear that I would be called upon as the recipient of a certificate, and have to walk onstage in front of the entire school. I needn't have worried - certificates weren't typically given out to naughty boys who spent most of the day jumping up and down on other students' desks.


In January 2009, I was rummaging through a second hand shop in Paris when I came across a beautiful navy corduroy blazer (pictured above). It was 35 euros, it fit me like it was tailor-made, and I bought it and wore it just about every day for the next nine months. I still have it and love it, but it's been a bit too hot recently to dust it off. But it's not a suit. And I need a suit. Imagine a full wardrobe of corduroy suits - tan, navy, forest green, maroon... The possibilities are endless.

The lesson here is simple: buy corduroy, look like this guy.

If you're in New Zealand, I'd recommend purchasing corduroy suits from the following retailers:

Crane Brothers - Two piece made to measure suits in Holland and Sherry cotton corduroy from $1695.
Working Style - Two piece made to measure suits in Larus Miani cotton corduroy from $1490. Two piece Dormeuil cotton/cashmere corduroy suits from $4200.
Wunderkammer - Comme des Garcons corduroy blazers from $1400, Ann Demeulemeester corduroy blazers from $2200. Bespoke corduroy suits from $3000.

Photos: The Sartorialist, GQ

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