GUESS WHO'S IN THE GQ?

GQ SOUTH AFRICA MAY 2012

I'm in the latest issue of GQ as one of the magazine's 'Voices Of Menswear'. The editors picked three bloggers and I was lucky to be picked alongside Marko Riekstins and Monde Mtsi even though my blog is not strictly about menswear. As you will know, if you follow this blog, I do have my menswear Q&As which I hope this appearance in GQ will draw more audiences to. I have so far done interviews with Stiaan Louw and Keith Henning of Adriaan Kuiters and both have been very succesful. The former was even syndicated to ifashion.co.za.

One thing about my answers to the questions posed to me by GQ: The part about the skirt? If you follow either my blogging or tweeting, you will know that a skirt is no longer that 'one item you'll never see me in'. Lol. Thanks, GQ!

EXCITING TIMES FOR BRITISH MENSWEAR

The British Fashion Council will this June launch the first ever three day menswear fashion extravaganza under the name 'Fashion Collections: Men', bringing men's fashion out of the shadow of womenswear. I thought I should share this video where experts including British GQ's Dylan Jones, Jeremy Langmead (formerly at Esquire now at Mr. Porter) and others discuss their excitement at what is an undeniable milestone for British menswear. I hope in the years to come we, too, in South Africa will be in a position to have a separate fashion week for menswear. How exciting that would be!

Anyway... My favourite quote from this video:

"Men have always dressed for style, not for fashion..." - Tim Blanks, contributing editor for Style.com

THE SKINNY ON BEING SKINNY

I'm sure by now you will have read in some blog, news site or paper about the picture that brought Alexa Chung a twitter inferno over her weight...

THE INSTAGRAM PIC OF ALEXA CHUNG AND HER MOM
THAT CREATED A TWITTER STORM

The UK Mirror quotes one of her followers as saying "I'm going to be very honest. I look at this picture and think, 'This is a woman not eating.' Thus I worry for women everywhere."

In another report I read, a comment at the bottom of the page goes on about the whole fashion-celebrity-projecting-healthy image thing. What if it is not about an image? What if Alexa is just a naturally skinny girl who doesn't have to be skipping meals to stay skinny? It is no secret that I'm a fan of Alexa Chung's style- I have that on my twitter bio- and this is by no means a tirade by an angry fan. This is something that's been on my own mind for a very long time.

Being 'thinspo' myself I know how it feels to be accused of being anorexic. The other day, after I appeared on the VUZU show '10 over 10' some girl tweeted something along the lines of how I look like my CD-4 count is below negative. It doesn't bother me really (I've had to live with her types since primary school and at some point in my life I didn't even own a pair of shorts, convinced it would set me up to be the subject of thunderous laughter). 

What bothers me is that people with weight issues want to make their problems mine. Just because you can't eat an entire bucket of those oh-so-delicious KFC zingerwings because your love handles will start bulging out over your jeans does not mean the same is true for the rest of us. I chow those wings without batting an eyelid! Moral of the story; don't make your problems mine!

If Alexa Chung maintains that her weight is not a result of self-mutilation (which I think starving oneself is) then who are we to judge? Are you bothered by your own weight so much you must make others feel like they've done something wrong? Must she be apologetic for having a following and start taking fat-inducing nutri-shakes (or whatever you call it) to play 'healthy image' role model to the children you are failing to be a parent to? 

Let us not let our own insecurities be the burden of others. Deal with your own crap!

MY FAVOURITE KNOWLES SIBLING (AGAIN), NAHMEAN?

If you often read this blog or follow my tweets you'll know that I'm a big fan of Solange Knowles's style. The girl just has it in truckloads and she really seems like a cool chicka. Good news: She's managed to update her blog for the first time in weeks! And with that comes a link to this Complex.com interview, where I found the pic below and a behind-the-scenes video. Check it! *scratches like a DJ*

SWAG DONE RIGHT

PIC: THE SARTORIALIST

I don't know how many times I've decried the sad state of style in South African hip-hop. Our guys are just a fail in the style department. Most are copycat dressers stuck in an era where saggy pants still gave one a degree of cool (it all ends after varsity, boys!).

I wish more of them could look more like the dude in the picture above. He is not wearing skinny jeans (nobody says you have to, leave that to me) nor is he dressed in anything that in the average m'rapper's mind would warrant being called a faggot, yet he is a guy with obvious style. He pays attention to detail. I love the clashing camouflage, the rings and dope chain! Look 'n learn!

DOUBLE BREASTED JACKET AND SHORTS? YES, PLEASE!

HOUSE OF OLE AT SA FASHION WEEK SS12

At Ole Ledimo's SA Fashion Week showcase last weekend, the designer sent two of his models sashaying down the runway in shorts paired with a double breasted jacket and sandals. While a lot of people have said to me they didn't like it much for me it is the one look that has stuck in my mind ever since. It's part of his spring-summer 2012 collection and yes I do imagine myself dotting around either Durban or Cape Town in shorts and a nicely tailored double breasted blazer as I take in the cool summer breeze that- with what seems to be an early winter in Johannesburg- I predict we will miss very much over the next six months. 

IF THIS BLOG WAS MY DIARY, THIS WOULD BE TONIGHT'S ENTRY

As I write this, I’m sitting on my bed. There’s no sleep in my eyes. It’s a Saturday night and I really don’t feel like going out. A few years ago- maybe two at most- I’d be sitting with a book, reading, or a magazine, paging through and finding interesting stuff I wouldn’t necessarily read at any other time but on a Saturday night when all my heart and mind want is relaxation.

Right now, however, I feel like I really don’t know how to relax anymore. If I’m not out drinking with friends, there’s an event to go to. If I’m not doing that, I’m sitting at home trying to crack my skull about how to approach blogging in an original way and maybe that’s the thing! I am so consumed with the blogosphere, looking at what everyone else is doing and trying to go about being creative about my own blogging that I’ve forgotten how to read just for the sake of it.

As much as I love blogging, maybe I need to find that part of me that knows how to practice oblivion within the chaos. The part of me with the type of curiosity that goes beyond just the fashion blogosphere. The part of me that knows how to live in the moment. Once I find that maybe the blogging, too, will take an interesting turn. I need to relax.

SKATTIE TV BACKSTAGE AT THE DAX MARTIN UNDERWEAR SHOW

Who doesn't like watching hot men and women with hot bodies doing their thang down the runway? Not me! Skattie TV gives you a rare peek into the backstage preps at Dax Martin's undewear and lingerie show at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Joburg.

Q&A WITH MENSWEAR DESIGNER STIAAN LOUW

Stiaan Louw is my second featured designer in this menswear designer series  (last month I featured Keith Henning of the label 'Adriaan Kuiters')which I hope will help to start a conversation about developing and supporting independent menswear in South Africa. I asked Stiaan several questions about the industry, fashion week and online retail. Here is what he had to say:

SN: What got you interested in menswear design?

SL: I launched my menswear brand in 2008 at Design Indaba. At the time there were almost no independent menswear brands in the market innovating exciting clothes for men. I felt it was important to develop a brand that did not only provide the obvious basics but also challenged the level of menswear design in SA and could compete with what is seen during international fashion weeks and in-store in those countries.

SN: Do you believe there's enough independent local menswear out there for the consumer?

SL: There is definitely still a huge gap between independent menswear and women's brands in this country. I also feel that many of the brands emerging are not providing anything you can't access via let's say Country Road or now Zara with the latter often having lower price points, better quality and access to a higher level of manufacturing.

SN: What would you say are some of the problems that menswear designers in South Africa are faced with?

SL: Manufacturing is a huge challenge, as well as access to fabric. Often as an independent designer you are aware of what is needed to improve the quality of your product but can't access it due to the 'minimums' required by some suppliers. 

SN: If there are any, what would you suggest be done to overcome this?

SL: I think it is important to seek out opportunities through which you can expand your knowledge and build relationships within the industry with larger manufacturers and suppliers. I have participated in mentorship programmes, for instance, which have given me the opportunity of improving the construction of the collars on my basic shirt range.

SN: Last year you showcased at AFI's Joburg Fashion Week, we did not however see Stiaan Louw at this year's Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Joburg. What drove your decision not to showcase this time around. Can we look forward to your return to the runway this year?

SL: I had the opportunity of showing a capsule collection during London Fashion Week in September last year which shifted my perception of local fashion weeks. I think it is important to ask what your motivation is for doing a show locally. If it is purely for marketing, there are more cost effective and innovative ways of launching your work on online platforms. It also makes sense for me to show in Cape Town next, as it is my base and I haven't shown here during fashion week since 2008.

SN: Where does Stiaan Louw retail?

SL: We sell small commercial ranges via the studio in Cape Town and during periodic showrooms in Joburg. Most of our regular clients, which make up the core of our work, visit us for bespoke suits or after they've seen the more design driven collections we launch via online platforms. 


SN: Do you see online retail as an alternative marketplace for SA designers?
SL: I think online retail is viewed as the holy grail by designers who struggle to find stores to stock. I think the market is still quite conservative in regards to this and it would be challenging specifically in relation to menswear. I also feel brands need to be accessible via traditional means first before moving online.  


(PICS courtesy of Stiaan Louw)
This feature has also appeared on ifashion.co.za

THAT GUUURRRL SOLANGE!!!

SOLANGE KNOWLES AT SXSW 2012 (PIC: TMAGAZINE)

I don't mean to compare the siblings, but people always give me the 'you're such a liar look' whenever they pose the question 'Who do you prefer between Beyonce and Solange?'. My answer is always the latter. Why? Because I do. I love her simple, but eclectic style and the fact that she's a club DJ (something I've always wanted to be, too). She seems like that fun loving girl who, despite being a celebrity, seems pretty ordinary (and by this I don not mean 'plain'. She's anything but) and most of all... This guurrlll loves fashion! 

Anyways. I thought I should just share this picture of her at the South by South West Festival (SXSW) I found on TMagazine. Does she not look beautifully normal and downright super cool!