// MY FIRST POLYVORE SET - HENRIK VIBSKOV //

A total time killer? Oh heck yes! Does it make you feel like you are an Editor at a fashion magazine? Fer shur!

Welcome to Polyvore - Make collages on your computer of things you want but can't afford! I finally signed up and created an account on this ever so buzzed about website to end up spending almost 2-3 hours on it one lonely Sunday night. I'm still trying to "get" it but it seems you can create these collages and images to be not only shared among the Polyvore community but to be shared on your own blog too. This is probably why I've heard only other fellow bloggers and online fashion contributors mentioning this site before!

I was thrilled to see a wide array of great designer and boutique collections on Polyvore. For example, Henrik Vibskov items were on the site and I was super excited about it. So excited that I took a stab at making my first "set." It took me at least an hour to figure out how to work the website and what kind of edit tricks one can do with the little thumbnails to be placed on the interactive canvas. Overall, I had fun making it and will likely come back to the site to make another one. I actually already have an idea for another "set" or "collection" (still not quite sure what the difference is) - a pictorial wish-list of satchel handbags (my current bag situation is quite awful).

But not only is there just an "arts 'n crafts" side to it - there is a commerce component where you can purchase items used in your "sets" and "collections." Would you be tempted enough to purchase an item after staring at it for over 30 minutes while you tweak and fix an image that will make you feel like the next Andy Warhol for about 5 minutes until reality seeps in that you are flat broke?

No? Yes? Maybe? I'll go with maybe for now...I mean it is the holiday season right now - tons of mass encouragement to spend, spend, spend every dime for the sake of it!

Well, I'm going to keep on visiting Polyvore and exploring the site - but only when my wallet is hidden away somewhere to prevent me from purchasing anything!

// OBSESSION: "SLEEPLESS" BY LO-FI-FNK //

LO-FI-FNK – "Sleepless" from LO-FI-FNK on Vimeo.

Another recent obsession of mine also coming from Sweden is the band LO-FI-FNK and their video for the single "Sleepless." My good friend DJ Zak Broman (Hong Kong/Boston) recently shared this video with me, and ever since then I've been listening to this song almost ten times a day.

The video was directed by the duo Tomas Carlsten & Simon Svéd. From the minimal research I've done, they are both (or were both) two students from Beckmans School of Design - an elite fashion school in Sweden.

This song is my official holiday jam of 2010 - enjoy!

// Chloë on YouTube //

Over the last year, an actor by the name of Drew Droege has been writing and performing in these obscurely-referenced YouTube videos that spoof the uber-chic actress and fashion designer, Chloë Sevigny.

Drew stars in the videos, that are all clearly shot in front of a blue/green screen with even more obscurer images, as the one and only Ms. Chloë Sevigny.

The specific references that are made to actual brands, labels, designers, boutiques, meals, and people are really a key player in these short films.  What it says about the real Chloë herself - well I will let you interpret that as you will.

Below are some of my favorite "Chloë" videos:

Summer


Hallowe'en


Preamble

// OBSESSION: MONKI //

 

All photos courtesy of Monki

 

Last year in October, while on a trip to Copenhagen to visit family, I had spent a day shopping and walking around the city center, trying to check out the latest Scandinavian fashions. There was one particular concept store I had managed to stumble into that totally blew me away - MONKI.

My first impression of the store made me think I was transported back to England in 1968. Did I step into famed swinging sixties store Granny Takes A trip on King Road, London; or did Sid & Marty Krofft (creators of groovy TV shows H.R. Pufnstuf and The Bugaloos) go into interior design, and I just didn't know about it?

The more I wandered around the shop with sheer amazement in my eyes, the more I got to analyze the small details of the interior set up and the products that were organized all over the place. Then I realized - I had entered into my own personal retail heaven. A store that could combine the aesthetics from my two favorite decades where my own style is heavily influenced from - a mix of sharp, geometric contrasts and clean lines of the 60s, as well as the over-sized, boldly structured garments of the 80s. Somehow Monki has managed to take inspiration from these two decades yet spin them with a fun, youthful, and modern twist that will surely appeal to ladies who like to make a statement without being over the top.

Even though Monki was started in Sweden, a lot of the inspiration for their clothes come from the streets of Toyko - and you know what, it works! It's not gawdy, nor tacky stuff here - it's smart, colorful clothes that have an underlying chicness and sophistication. It should also be noted that Monki is the little sister of Weekday (home to hip denim label Cheap Monday), another great concept store based out of Sweden.
If you don't happen to live in Sweden or Denmark, you can also find Monki stores in Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Finland, and Hong Kong. There are no plans for Monki to open up in the United States for next year, but you never know... Fingers crossed we can get at least an online store set up for us Yanks in the mean time!

// DPM ARTIST SERIES //

This past August I got asked to be the Stylist (and do model casting, hair, and make-up) for a limited edition Artist Series Collection from Boston-based apparel company DANCE PARTY MASSACRE. The shoot was held at South Boston's Distillery Lofts, an artist loft building and gallery space that hosts some of the best creative talent in the city as well as the location of DPM's headquarters. I also scouted local DJ Matt Rohr for the shoot who has been blowing up the scene like a drama queen!

The Artist Series Collection is centered around the theme of "Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil, See No Evil." Contributing artists included Carey Haider, Damion Silver, and AC Bananas. Only 50 shirts were produced for each design, so make sure you grab your favorite one before it is gone forever!

To view the entire look book and read interviews with the contributing artists, please visit http://www.dancepartymassacre.com/lookbook/

11.20.10 // BOSTON // MASCULIN/FEMININ / Savant Project / Mission Hill

// NOV 20TH - MASCULIN / FEMININ - SAVANT PROJECT @ 9 PM, BOSTON //

11.08.10 // NEW YORK // Cougar Boots / Williamsburg / Brooklyn

 

Brittany wears the Tibet boots from Canada's Cougar shoes (http://www.cougarshoes.com).

11.07.10 // NEW YORK // Cougar Boots / Bushwick / Brooklyn

Kyle wears the Ringo Star boots from Canada's Cougar shoes (http://www.cougarshoes.com/).

TIP: Listen to the song on the website on loop.

10.26.10 // NEW YORK // London Show Rooms / Soho Grand Hotel / SOHO

// ARCHE POP UP SHOP - 11/1-14 - BROOKLYN, NY //

 

This Fall, Rouge 58 will present The Arche, a pop up boutique running for two weeks only, combining emerging talent and established designers in both fashion and jewelry. This inaugural installment will reflect the dark minimalism that has become an essential element of New York style. Playing on the industrial space of the gallery, clothes will be displayed suspended at different lengths from chains, whilst jewelry will be displayed hanging from a pillar in the middle of the store using satin ties and encased in a jewelry box.

The Arche is a collaboration between Nadja Nebas, owner of Rouge 58, and New York fashion photographer Chris Reed - the duo recognized that what was lacking was an innovative platform to showcase brands respected by their community and deemed as influential in the underground scene. Adopting the word ‘arche’, referencing Greek philosophy that derives from the archaic period, it’s meaning lies in the root, the origin, the source. As a new pop up entity aimed to kick start burgeoning young designers, the name was apt and held resonance.

Arche Pop Up Designer List
Mary Meyer (Woman’s Wear) http://www.marymeyerclothing.com
Trouble And Bass (T-shirt line) http://www.troubleandbass.com/sore
Sea Sick Mama (T-shirt line) http://seasickmama.myshopify.com
Ambit (jewelry) http://sharingambit.blogspot.com
By Natalia (Jewelry) http://bynatalia.com
Lacee Swan (T-shirt line) www.laceeswan.com
Slimm Jones (T-shirts and tote bags) http://slimmjones.blogspot.com
Britney Thomas (Jewelry) (website under construction)

There will be the opening party on November 1st with music by DJ Lloydski (DA Hardy Boyz) and a closing party on November 13th with DJ Whitney Fierce.
ABOUT ROUGE 58 – www.rouge58.com
Another New York dream was successfully launched! Rouge 58 is a hair salon and art gallery combined launched this August 2010. Based in the heart of Williamsburg, Brooklyn the concept was devised by German - born Nadja Nebas combining her passion for art and her professional skills of haircutting and styling. Rouge 58 seeks to uncover progressive talent by exhibiting the work of artists from every medium, simultaneously curating a series of music events with prominent DJs from around the world to illustrate the spirit of the artists’ work. The Rouge 58 space has been designed to function as a modular space; at select times each month the art will remain on the walls but the space will be disassembled to provide a raw space for pop up boutique sales, dance classes, fashion shoots and short film screenings.
Nadja Nebas Clients: Nike, VIBE Magazine, TWISTA, Verve Magazine, Bavaria Film, Turner Broadcasting, Glamour Germany, ZDF Television, Bijules NYC, Kareem Black, Elizabeth Weinberg, DeFacto Agency, Ayzit Bostan (Designer),Starshot Studios Munich, Patrick Mohr (Designer),Marlboro, Phoenix.Agency, Avantagrde Agency, Zelinda Zanichelli, Louisa Models, Attic Futura (Jolie, Glamour), 8112 Studios, Viva Models, Veronika Abbrederris(Designer), Twista, Rye Rye, Dave from Chromeo, DJ Atrak, etc

ABOUT CHRIS REED
Chris Reed has been a freelance professional photographer since 2007 whose work has appeared in Dazed and Confused, Buck Magazine, Nylon, Metal Magazine, Stylecaster.com and others. Focused on fashion and beauty, Chris has been self-taught with his only training coming from his grandfather, a retired army press core photographer when he was 14 years old. His love for fashion stems from his desire to build his own world through the lens, fusing imagination and designing his own rules.

9.25.10 // PHILADELPHIA // Hands and Knees / The Barbary / Northern Liberties

9.7.10 // BROOKLYN, NY // Rouge 58 x Kareem Black / Williamsburg

9.12.10 // NEW YORK // Dirty Durty Magazine Party / Don Hill's / Meatpacking District

9.16.10 // NEW YORK // NYFW SS11 / AK-47 / Lincoln Center

9.16.10 // NEW YORK // NYFW SS 11 / Mari J Brooklyn / Lincoln Center

9.8.10 // NEW YORK // BB Dakota Party / Chloe / LES

9.6.10 // PHILADELPHIA // PYT / Piazza at Schmidts / Northern Liberties

9.14.10 // NEW YORK // NYFW SS11 / Dirty Durty Magazine Photo Exhibit / Milk Studios

9.10.10 // NEW YORK // NYFW SS11 / Tim Hamilton SS11 Presentation / Milk Studios

 

9.10.10 // NEW YORK // NYFW SS11 / Tim Hamilton SS11 Presentation / Milk Studios

9.12.10 // NEW YORK // NYFW SS11 / Staerk SS11 Presentation / Milk Studios

9.12.10 // NEW YORK // NYFW SS11 / Milk Studios