Sat 12th Nov: Absolut Mode 'B store and friends' guest post by Emily Beard

From the early collaborations of the 90s with Tom Ford and Versace, Absolut has long since had an involvement with creatives and fashion. Absolut's newest venture sees them team up with B Store for 'B Store and Friends'. Three new Absolut bottles were designed by Peter Jensen, Sophie Hulme and Tim Soar, showcasing their individual styles and aesthetics on the iconic Absolut bottles.

The sixty 'B Store and Friends' ABSOLUT MODE EDITION bottles will be available exclusively from Selfridges from November 12th.

Photos by Keely Hunter

Thurs 10th Nov: StyleLikeU

Fred Butler Closet Interview With StyleLikeU from StyleLikeU on Vimeo.

Here are some of the photos from my feature on the site StyleLikeU which went live yesterday. I first heard of the NY based project via the stylist Masha Orlov and have been hooked ever since. A mother and daughter (ELISA GOODKIND & LILY MANDELBAUM) teamed up to work together documenting their friends wardrobes and asking them about how the garments mapped out and explained their life story. They enjoyed the process so much they continued the work reaching out to individuals that interested them for their presence and style. The roots of the concept have now grown through the ground into a fully fledged opperation branching out with each day, extending out to other cities for new case studies. Its now an incredible archive to scroll through, with many inspiring unique personalities recounting their own twists and turns which in turn relate to their sartorial choices. Their mission is to question looking to magazines for new ways of approaching dressing when there is a wealth of genuine joy d'vivre in the process of putting together outfits in each other's own way........... here it is all being shared via video interview, photos and text ........ I recommend dedicating some decent time to getting lost in these closets ......

"Dressed entirely in monochromes, but multi-faceted, Fred is reminiscent of a bleach-blonde version of one of her ’60s icons, Peggy Moffitt. Despite how loud and vivaciously she dresses, inside, Fred clarifies that she is the polar opposite. She sees with what seems to be a child’s perspective, with a rainbow maker in her studio window that spreads prismatic light through the room, but Fred is as deep as the blue of the first color that she wore head to toe. She makes adults smile like children when they pass her in a yellow eyelet dress with a chunky Judy Blame bauble charm necklace. As if Fred has never left the short-lived time when one is a kid, free of obligations, and your biggest problem is coordinating colors, she doesn’t like or wear shoes, favoring instead her custom multi-hued Nikes. In fact, Fred is so unaffected by what everyone else is wearing that the bulk of her one-of-a-kind wardrobe comes from the one place she shops at that is on the way to her studio. High Street isn’t on her map.

A bout with chickenpox– life-threatening and cripplingly painful in adults– reminded her of the importance of living fully every day. In purple high-waisted trousers, a Peruvian-patterned jacket and a three dimensional, origami-inspired necklace of her own design, Fred feels that life is too short to waste wearing faux-distressed denim, “like everyone else on the Underground.” Fearing that we are heading back to being four-legged primates staring into our cell phones and computers instead of seeing each other, it would definitely be a loss to miss the heartwarming good energy of Fred in a turquoise raw silk dress that she sewed up the middle to make into wide pants or the shoulder decoration she cut out from a dress. “We have learned to stand up, but we’re going back to the old way, of not looking at each other,” Fred laments."

Weds Nov 9th: London Showrooms in NYC - Sarah Mower's opening reception

Katie Eary

Lou Dalton

Christopher Raeburn


Nasir Mazhar

Ella Dror wearing Nazir Mazhar pink fluffy head band

Sunshine & skyscraper skyline with Susie Bubble


Louise Gray (wearing Meadham Kirchoff SS12 shoes by Nicholas Kirkwood)

Simone Rocha

Cozette from Sister by SIBLING


Craig Lawrence and Cokin Seymour

David Koma

Marios Schwab

James Long


Michael Van Der Ham


Thomas Tait


Jordan Askill


Dominic Jones and Victoria Hatcher (with ring modelled by Katie Eary!)



Holly Fulton

Whilst visiting threeASFOUR in NYC, I travelled over with my PR Ella Dror and another of our crew Craig Lawrence, who is taking part in the London Showrooms showcase. 21 UK designers have taken over the Penthouse of the Soho Grand Hotel for two days to personally introduce buyers and press to their SS12 collections. Sarah Mower hosts a brunch to launch the event which I attended earlier today to catch up with everyone and enjoy a view of the Manhattan skyline from this incredible vantage point. We are so lucky that it has been a heatwave and glorious sunshine since we got here! It's bizarre that many of the designers are based in studios so close to my own back in London, but none of us have free time to hang out at home. I havn't seen Michael Van Der Ham since last season and now we have finally found a chance to chill out all the way across the Transatlantic........... someone I first met and got to know whilst he himself was interning for threeASFOUR in NYC!! Michael is so busy that he has flown in for only the two days of the showrooms, so make the most of this opportunity to meet these new talents of the UK fashion world by coming to the Soho Grand .......

Wednesday 9th November - Thursday 10th November | 9am - 7pm daily
Penthouse Lofts, Soho Grand, 310 West Broadway, New York, NY 10013, +001 (212) 965 3000

Christopher Raeburn, Craig Lawrence, David Koma, Dominic Jones, Felicity Brown, Holly Fulton, James Long, J.JS Lee, J.W.Anderson, Jordan Askill, Katie Eary, Lou Dalton, Louise Gray,Michael van der Ham, Nasir Mazhar, Palmer//Harding, Simone Rocha, Sister by Sibling, Thomas Tait, Tim Soar Woman

I've included Dominic's SS12 film below featuring Florence Welch and Orlando from the Maccabees (known for his pierced ear - a perfect model for Dominic's line!)

DOMINIC JONES SS12 from Rafael D'Alo on Vimeo.

DOMINIC JONES SS12 by Rafael D'Alo

Tues 8th Nov: threeASFOUR "inSALAAm inSHALLOm"

threeASFOUR inSALAAM in SHALOM SHOW video by : brian gonzalez

I have come to New York city to visit my friends threeASFOUR to celebrate our 10 year anniversary of meeting and my induction to their lives as the first intern to enter the silver loft studio in China town. A decade prior to this, the girls ADi and ANGE found each other whilst studying fashion in Germany having both originated from Israel and Tajikistan respectively. Ever since I have spent time with the crew travelling to different cities for projects, it has always felt like united nations crossing borders with this combined cultural collective. The third member of the triangle from Palestinian descent, born and raised in Lebanon is GABi whose surname the group have taken as the label's title, meaning bird.
The immediacy of cross pollination from working as a multicultural team has always informed designs and ideas of mixed flavours and an amalgamated magical unique vision. For the first time, the underpinning structure of the dynamic has been explored with a collection entitled "InSHALLOm" combining the similarities between Jewish and Arab aesthetics. Not only are these cultures literally combined within the group but also incidentally traditionally bound to one another visually.
Here are snaps I have taken of the inspiration imagery, sketches, construction and final garments comprising in a myriad of contrasting materials. Silks are printed in repeat patterns morphed from six-pointed stars and mixed scale kaffiyeh woven check. This 2D emblem of fishing net becomes 3D with panels of net and a bodice sewn into the star shape from individual lengths of twine. Talisman swing from seams with silver Hamsa hands hanging like sequins in conjunction with the glass evil eyes it is believed to defend. This blue is carried thru from a breastplate embellished with eye beads to another, pieced together from broken colour glazed ceramics. Further religious motifs incorporated result in a necklace to cover the décolletage constructed from two upended shofar ram horns (used for prayer at Synagogue). Underneath the detailed show-pieces are signature tailored separates and skin tight stretch body stockings which become almost animal print camouflage in composition. My favourite look of all is super sexy swimwear shown in a white and black version like ying and yang, hand in hand down the catwalk. Which brings me to the show...........
In this film of the runway, you will see from the bird's eyes perspective camera angle that the floor was taped out with the lines of the star for the girls to follow. This is just a hint at a much larger plan in the pipeline, culminating in an exhibition at Beit Ha’ir museum in Tel Aviv the end of this month. This second stage extends the collection, incorporating photography, film, live music and performance from various artists invited to take part. Curating the show, threeASFOUR have brought together practitioners from New York, Israel and Palestine including Yoko Ono, Jessica Mitrani, Bothina Millhem and Shari Diamond. To keep up to date with the project and find out all the latest developments follow either their Tumblr, Facebook or Twitter.