IS THIS SUMMER?

  above: Its a scarf, ear muffs, and hood all in one. A SNOOD!!! (from Makhams)
The summer in South Africa has turned a bit sour, when the sun is out its scotching hot and when the rain starts the wind blows my size zero self straight back into bed. I really wanna blame global warming for causing all this confusion, anyway I thought I'd share some "looks" on how I beat the cold and pouring rain.

I love my heavy knits so when the weather is blurry I whip mine out and instantly look "grungy",  Mr Price knit, Puma vest, glasses from Jay Jays, Jewelry from different places including the market and markhams.

MY SUITE FEVER

Gone are the days when suites were only meant for boardrooms, weddings and cheesy award ceremonies, now you can wear a suite to the mall, a party and even the beach (seriously). All you have to do is add a little personality into it, miss-match your jacket to your pants for a more unique casual look, fold your pants and add on a simple T and a pair of brogues

                                             (image from: streetetiquette.com, my favorite blog)

The "nerd" look can also send you into clubs stress free, the images sourced from the archives of Urban menswear, Street etiquette and google, should inspire you to run straight into Markhams, Borgat Men or Carducci for a new suite.

 

(love the color of this suite and how the draped pants fit on this model)

                                      (Miu Miu suite: what more can one ask for?)

(Angelo Flaccavento always in his dandy looks, gives this look a nerd feel)

Sir paul Smith always gives brogues a modern twist, through color, print and texture) yet keeping its trademark look.

ADDICTED TO LOVE

YOU WOULD LIKE TO THINK THAT YOU'RE IMMUNE TO THE STUFF... OH YEAH. ITS CLOSER TO THE TRUTH TO SAY... YOU CANT GET ENOUGH. YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO FACE IT YOU'RE ADDICTED TO LOVE..... ~Florence and the machine- Addicted to love

(LANVIN BOAT SHOES)

....MIGHT AS WELL FACE IT YOU'RE ADDICTED TO LOVE....

YIGAL AZROUEL

Allow me to introduce you to one of the masters of cool in the fashion industry: Yigal Azrouel. the Israeli American New York based designer launched his first collection in 1998 with no formal training in fashion design. He's collections always have a sense of youth and simply spell out street-chic New Yorker, well known for his expert draping techniques, he has never given trends the upper hand.

• The faded paper leather jacket is one of his desirable staple pieces, seen in both the mens and womens collections.

• His use of soft textures add lightness to his edgy style, making women effortlessly sexy. (above image: Yigal Azrouel ss2010)

• The same goes for men, soft sheer textures, faded greys, clean cut shapes with an abstract edge and nautical stripes. SIMPLE, EDGY, MODERN 

NOTE

DEINDIVIDUATION

...do you really get the trend or are you just another victim of the pop-culture craze? Creamcartel, Smarteez... these are some of the names that pop up when i think South African "pop-culture", it seems as though large numbers of people have become part of this "tradition" just to seem cooler. So wearing ten clashing colours all at the same time gives off the impresson of "i am fashionable and streetsmart"? Well I never got that brief, here's what mine said: WHAT WE ENTERTAIN REFLECTS WHO WE REALLY ARE AND NOT WHO WE HOPE PEOPLE WILL BELIEVE WE ARE, JUST TO FIT IN!. Street culture may be all about whats cool, hip, young and rebels against all norms, but it tends to strip one of their identity and create brainwashed followers. I was content with the existence of this culture while it was still thought of as a movement to allow people to express themselves, but it certainly has changed, thus i question its relevance! i would love to go on and on but I'm no writer but I'm afraid of repeating myself, so before you join the army , think about this: Do I really want to be reffered to as another Momme or Smarteez wannabe?

On a lighter note, below are some of my favorite extroverts who still partake in the culture for its true reasons.

   
(left: ebony bones. above: Jeremy Scott and Agynes Deyn)

                                                              (above: Anna Piaggi)
  

Denim on Denim

                (above from left to right: Chloe ss2010, D&G ss2010, Twenty8twelve ss2010,)

Another trend given the side eye by the masses: the rebirth of the denim on denim trend has got me all excited, not because it takes me back to those days when u and ur dad went to the mall rocking matching denim on denim outfits but just because I'm just a huge fan of denim! This look is very risky since in South Africa it tends to evoke a lot of humor, you may either get laughed at or admired for making it work. My advice? try different shades of denim to create a contrast (e.g pair a stone wash denim shirt and vintage black levi skinnies), add a brown belt to balance look.

(above: designer Henry Holland, image from lookbook.nu, Kanye West)

                                                                (above: D&G ss2010)
The looks above should give you an idea of  how this trend should work.