Legendary Collections - Vol 3. - Dior Homme Fall/Winter 2003

Dior Homme's monumental fall/winter 2003 powerhouse collection entitled "Luster" is Hedi Slimane's enduring portrait of the misunderstood artist. At first glance, the dark, layered tones seem to evoke gothicism to the untrained eye, however a closer scrutiny reveals magically illuminated fabrics, shining much like the hearts and minds of the man Slimane had in mind. Many pieces featured in this show were waxed, especially the cotton jeans, some jackets, and numerous shirts and sweaters. This was the pioneering collection for a wave of waxed clothing in menswear, a trend who's ripples were felt strongly last season at labels such as Zara and in the entire "goth ninja" trend of the late 00's. The neon hoodies featured such eloquent details as leather epaulets, a staple of early Dior, and braided cuffs around the lower arms and wrists. Additionally, coats were made with pvc tape piping, jackets with horsehair cuffs and swarovski crystals, and bags in the shape of gun holsters. It was Carol Christian Poell creativity mixed with the Yves Saint Laurent luxury of early Hedi collections, styled in such a way that would make any fashion critic drop their jaws upon first sighting. Luster also marked a turning point in Dior Homme style, as Hedi took his first step away from the aforementioned "luxurious" and formally centered look to a rock and roll mimesis of the changing definition of masculinity that was being metamorphosed by Hedi himself. Regardless of where the look was moving towards, Luster is considered by many to be the defining Dior collection. The one piece that everyone knows and wants from Luster is the Napoleon Jacket, seen at :45 in the below video. Retailing at $5,000 USD, the jacket sells for even more nowadays and is existent in numbers of under 20 worldwide. Everything from the belt straps that hang from the sides to the gold detailed epaulets and straps reveal that this jacket is sublime. Luster, the shining diamond that is misunderstood, passionate, moody, and emotional will forever be interred in the history books as the crowning achievement of menswear, the absolute purest and most spectacular expression of artistic genius, and the epitome of perfection.

Obsession of the Day - Robert Geller Summer Bomber Jacket

This amazing Robert Geller lightweight jacket thats perfect for spring/summer has been attracting my eyes all day long. Beautifully crafted with panels of grey, purple, beige and sky blue, this jacket captures the lighter side of the German born/NYC based designer. The double-zipper and epaulets are just some of the details on this piece that add to the elegance of this piece. Also, note the color sequencing on the arms, starting from a military beige at the epaulets and shoulders, to grey, and then purple at the wrists.
$580 USD at ssense =>
http://www.ssense.com/men/product/robert_geller/summer_bomber_jacket/23400

Legendary Collections - Vol 2. - Cloak Fall/Winter 2004

Few fashion shows have ever garnered such a cult status as Cloak's fall/winter 2004 renegade runway magnum opus. The New York based duo consisting of Marc Jacobs alumni Alexandre Plokhov and Robert Geller became defunct following spring/summer 2007, but has still managed to retain their popularity, which can be seen all over internet forums like superfuture or stylezeigest where scrambling for key runway pieces is not uncommon. Anyways, the f/w 2004 show was filled with Victorian inspired coats and trousers, but with an unmissable bad-ass twist. Que gothic music from the likes of Love and Rockets and Jesus and the Mary Chain, hauntingly styled hair and religious pendants and you get the image. The power of the collection was driven in the moody details, leather gloves and scarfs, incorporated into perfectly executed layering of dark, mostly brown and grey tones, elevate this collection to legendary. 2:53 in the video is the perfect image for the collection, hair wavered enigmatically, rolled up sleeves over gloves, waxed (or leather?) pants, and a legendary flight vest, with cross hidden in the depths of the models chest.

Hedislimaniac

1.hedislimaniac

One who has a passionate obsession for Hedi Slimane (former menswear designer of Yves Saint Laurent and Dior Homme). This includes, but is not limited to memorizing reference codes of his clothes, selling organs to fund a Napoleon Jacket, listening to only runway music from his shows, staring at other men's bottoms to check out if they have Dior jeans on, being able to recognize the amount of wear or washes (hopefully none of the latter) someone's Dior's have just from seeing them being worn, naming your kids after Hedi, and fasting to shorten the time until Hedi returns to fashion (and to get a better fit in his clothes!).
Hedislimaniac (pointing to man on street wearing Dior's): "WHOA! That dude over there is wearing the Jakes (Reference Code:7H3111080585) in size 28 from Fall/Winter 2007 Navigate by These New Puritans. He soaked them once in cold water after three months of wear, no hemming, those could easily fetch up to $600 on eBay, maybe $780 on yahoo.jp"

Friend: "You are such a hedislimaniac."

from urbandictionary

Hedi Slimane's favorite band "The Drums" at Other Music NYC 4/17/10

Hedi Slimane's famous photography transcends past the world of fashion and into music as well. Discovering and photographing bands such as Littl'ans, Eight Legs, and The Rakes, Hedi used most of these musicians for his fashion shows while at Dior Homme, but now the main attraction he offers them is a launch to stardom. Yesterday, April 17,2010, I attended a free show at Other Music in NYC that was headlined by Hedi's latest favorite band, The Drums. He photographed them at a show in California in November of last year and they became the main feature on his website just a few months later. After a short tour of Europe, the band, with facebook fan increases in the thousands after just weeks, took a short break back home in the States and did a pair of shows in the city. The band is set to return to Europe and continue touring there through this summer, along with the release their first album entitled "The Drums" on June 7th. Their sound has been compared to a mix of the Smiths, Joy Division, and Orange Juice. Before the show I was able to meet with the band members and ask about their work with Hedi Slimane. I was told that "he just called us up" and started taking pictures of the band, as well as the fact that he was a "nice guy." One member also revealed that the band still retains some contact with Hedi. The Drums took stage shortly after the minuscule venue was filled, fitting (according to management estimates) 100-125 people, and proceeded to play their hearts out and treat their fans with a performance of pure energy and bliss. The set list included some of the bands staple songs such as "Best Friend" and the trademark "Let's Go Surfing" as well as some new numbers from the upcoming album. After giving their drumsticks and a guitar pick to a devout five year old fan wearing a drums tee, complete with vintage looking leather jacket and slick hairdo, the boys from Brooklyn walked off into the crowd amidst raving applause and cheering, as the following act, the Pains of Being Pure at Heart took the stage.

Link to The Drums in Hedi Slimane's Rock Diary:
http://www.hedislimane.com/rockdiary/index.php?e=viewSpe&rockdiarySpeHomeNo=13

Legendary Collections - Vol. 1- Raf Simons S/S 2008 "Material World"

Here's the first installment of my monthly series on legendary menswear collections. Let's start it off with a personal favorite of mine, Belgian designer Raf Simons' spring summer 2008 masterpiece entitled "Material World." For this show Simons took inspiration from the modern European backpacker, as knapsacks were seen on some of the models' backs, as well as sandals on their feet. The materials used were mostly techno-fabric, primarily consisting of thin waxed cotton, which gave the collection a sleek feel. The silhouette was slim as usual, but included some rather open and even over sized jackets and sweaters. To add to this one of the boys on the runway was even barefoot! Key pieces included the famed De Stijl sneakers/boots which took inspiration from the block paintings of Dutch artist Piet Mondrian (who also influenced some of the late Yves Saint-Laurent's greatest pieces), three section detachable waxed cotton pants, suit jackets made of the same fabric but with drawstrings on the chest and stomach area, as well as sunglasses made in collaboration with Linda Farrow. The soundtrack is a medley of techno songs, most notably from The Chemical Brothers, but also including the famous Zombie Nation tune "Kernkraft 400." Enjoy.

APC New Cure

I recently succumbed to the raw denim cult and bought a pair of APC New Cures. The French label APC (which stands for Atelier de Production et de Création, in case anyone was wondering) was founded by Jean Touitou and is based in Paris. APC is known for offering high quality Japanese selvaged denim at pretty reasonable prices considering the market today for brands like Samurai and Momotaro asks about $300-$600 per pair. The APC denim itself is from Japan, but is sewn in Macau, thus the tag reading "Made in Macau." When I first tried them on in the store, the denim was extremely stiff, and still is after five days of intense wear but is starting to soften up as well as stretch a bit. The jeans will end up stretching 2-3 inches which is why sizing down at least one or two sizes depending on desired fit is highly recommended. What shocks people most about raw denim like these is that the jeans should be worn as much as possible and not washed for at least 6 months; I'm aiming for 2 full years. What to do about the stink you may ask? Instead of washing just stick them in a zip lock bag and then off to the freezer. I'll keep updating on the condition of the fades, but for now there's creasing at the knees and slight whiskering near the crotch.