Intuition: JETS SS14 Collection at VOGUE Fashion's Night Out

Photo via Charlotte Howell @ The Arctic Wolf

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to attend the JETS SS14 Parade at the annual VOGUE Fashion's Night Out in Sydney. Tragically it fell on the date I was faced with a gargantuan media law exam, so I felt a little bit like Cinderella without a fairy godmother. Luckily I still got to have a peak at some snaps from the show, just in time for stirring inspiration for a balmy Queensland summer. The event showcased 16 designs and was accompanied by a Q&A with VOGUE Australia's editor-in-chief Edwina McCann and JETS chief designer Jessika Allen.

It's the inescapable, searing Australian climate that leads me to fervently believe that we boast some of the most dynamic and eclectic swimwear brands in international fashion. JETS exceeds what you might come to expect when buying a new swimsuit. It's a brand that an encompasses an entire culture of sun-drenched summers spent at the beach. 

Perhaps it was the fact Jessika Allen spent her post-grad in Milan studying tailoring, because her collections always seem to emulate a renowned sense of Italian glamour. 

'Intuition', the SS14 line is no different. It combines my two most cherished style staples: monochrome and well-executed tailoring. Waves of colour and bold prints also made it into the mix as statement pieces. A little twist to this season's collection was of course the addition of men's swimwear inspired by the European boy-leg style trunks. 

There's also a lot to be said for the different silhouettes scattered throughout the collection. There's a commingling of classic glamour, minimalism and retro pin-up with striking patterns and exuberant florals. Apparently it was 80s bodysuits that inspired Jessika Allen to use stretch fabric for designers, a move which means JETS swimwear fits us ladies according the natural shape of our curves - hallelujah! 

You can shop JETS here and take an exclusive look at the VFNO Parade and the Q&A with Edwina McCann and Jessika Allen. 

Bonobos Fall 2014 Mens Suit Collection

With menswear becoming a more prevalent entity in the realm of fashion and luxury design, I couldn't be more excited for SILK AND MONEY to team up with Bonobos, one of America's most revered brands for accessible and luxurious menswear. 

It was Ryan Gosling's character in Crazy, Stupid Love who made me reaffirm my appreciation for classic tailoring, reminiscent of London's Savile Row and quite bluntly reminded us that wearing the wrong suit size is a man's most crucial style faux pas. Fear not though, Bonobos' Fall Suit Collection embodies everything a man should look for when buying a new suit. 

For the traditionalists, there's the Foundation suit - a Bonobos classic made using their signature Italian wool. With a few little tweaks, this Fall's latest line features new fabrics and a more detailed, sleek interior including an ergonomic hidden pocket to make "grabbing that business card as smooth as your first impression". For a modern twist, try the Foundation in navy. As Bonobos is centered in New York - the coolest city in the world, which is about to get a whole lot cooler with Fall around the corner - add an extra layer of warmth and a touch of sophistication with a vest underneath or a topcoat to rug up.

Although there's nothing wrong with sticking to tradition, it's the range of wool suits and tweed blazers that make this collection exquisite. The Nottingham Blazer is the quintessential item for quirky creatives who want to add a touch of sophistication to business drinks or a meeting with the boss. 

Finally, unless you're royalty or a film star, there are only a handful of occasions for a man to up the ante and don a tuxedo so you might as well exceed expectations and defy the norm. A slim fit tuxedo always looks sleek and luxurious and the standout for me in this collection is The Capstone in Grey Honeycomb.  

What I love about Bonobos is that they cater to every kind of man. Whether he's an introvert or an extrovert, a slick professional or a wandering artist - there's something in their collection for every man that is made to fit. 

Here are some exclusive photos from the Bonobos Fall 2014 Mens Suit Collection Lookbook, completely evocative of that crisp Autumnal feel. 

One thing is for sure, this collection's resonance is more than just seasonal.

The #CastMeMarc campaign is actually not that iconic

Images via Style.com

By now the world has caught a glimpse of the latest Marc by Marc Jacobs campaign, whereby Katie Grand and Marc Jacobs himself trawled Instagram for models using the hashtag #CastMeMarc.

Inevitably, the response reached an overwhelming 70,000 and beyond and from that 9 have become the new faces of Marc by Marc Jacobs, a brand that cultivates luxury streetwear (I really hate coining wanky terms like that, but in essence, that's what a $350 sweatshirt is). 

Talking to WWD, Jacobs reportedly spoke about his motives for kicking models to the curb in favour of Instagram's untapped crop: 

“It seemed like a great idea to me, as casting through Instagram seemed cool, current, and strong,” Jacobs said. “We wanted the ads to shout with youth and energy…to be fresh and reclaim the spirit that the collection had when we first conceived it — to be another collection, not a second line.” (via Style.com)

Marc Jacobs is someone obsessed with popular culture and the chokehold it has over society as a collective. In the digital age, social media is everything and apps like Instagram make this all the more transparent. For me, Instagram is a very explicit means of visual communication and it talks a lot about identity, legitimate or otherwise; it speaks of narcissism and insecurity in equal measure; it screams of self-publication and self-censorship. 

This is what is what makes the idea of the #CastMeMarc campaign so interesting, with infinite potential to encapsulate the here and now, before it's been and gone. Truth be told, I do love this campaign in part. It is strong, it is rambunctious and it represents the sorts of conjured personas you might happen to stumble across on Instagram. 

However, when I read Marc's interview with WWD further, one line struck me with a certain sense of poignancy; talking of his hand picked models, he described them as "a cast of colourful and dynamic characters". 

I had to stop and ask the question: "Really?" 

The campaign, regardless of all of its merits, features one Asian female and one black male. Reflective of the entire fashion industry, it is dominated by white models. It occurred to me that it doesn't matter to designers whether or not they're booking models from agencies or scrolling through Instagram for fresh faces, the same attitudes towards race and representation that remain rife throughout the industry are still apparent.

Suddenly the campaign I had been so excited about began to dull a little. Speaking as a white woman about these issues in the industry is kind of tentative but nonetheless, they need to be talked about. I'm not alone when I say that although I am irrevocably passionate about pursuing my career in fashion journalism, I am always discouraged about stepping further when questions of ethics come into play. Fashion has the ability to refute normative social values about race, gender, class, structural violence - need I go on? 

Designers like Alexander McQueen have done so in the past. One of McQueen's first collections is seared into the minds of fashion critics forever as one of the most shocking and disturbing collections ever shown. Highland Rape featured models who were sent down the runway looking battered and bruised, with torn clothing exposing their breasts. Although the collection is said to have been a reflection of England's dominance over Scotland, it began to generate discussion about misogyny and the subordination of women - conversations that are incredibly important to keep circulating and building upon. 

Alexander McQueen's AW 1995 collection: Highland Rape (via Wordpress)

Comparatively, it's what makes the #CastMeMarc campaign a little lacklustre. Granted, it will draw attention to the brand and Marc by Marc Jacobs will probably continue to grow into one of the most revered diffusion lines in the world, but retrospectively, it fell short of the mark in challenging some of the really tiresome attitudes in the industry. I've posted before about the how women of colour are extremely underrepresented on the runway and in campaigns, but it doesn't end there. What about the representation of transgender women? Of disabled women? It's time for the industry to stop being so exclusive.

We need to talk about Vogue Black

Garage Magazine's editor-in-chief Dasha Zhukova posing in a deeply disturbing editorial

Truth be told, I believe that certain entities that hold an elite status within the fashion industry do so with such force and extravagance that when we question matters of morality and ethics, they're brushed under the carpet with the manufactured response that "it's fashion - don't take it so seriously!"

In retrospect though, when we consider a multi-billion dollar industry that yields the power to control peoples livelihoods and identities, how is this good enough? The issue of underrepresentation of ethnicities in editorials in magazines such as Vogue are not merely an oversight during the process of creative expression - oftentimes they are visual representations of archaic and deep-rooted themes of segregation and racism engrained in the industry's psyche. 

Let's talk about Vogue Black. A section of Vogue Italia's website launched in 2010, it quite crudely consists of news coverage, street style, celebrity culture and editorial content pertaining to the black contingent of the industry. When we consider that Vogue Italia's editor-in-chief Franca Sozzani, who has been burned before for crossing the threshold of racial insensitivity, it strikes me as absurd that Vogue Black is being heralded as a triumph and a celebration of black people.

Do we need to segregate black models from white models, black celebrities from white celebrities and black journalists from white journalists to actually acknowledge the style, beauty and talent of people who aren't white? Further still, there are a myriad of ethnicities out there who are being excluded by Vogue Italia in this pseudo-celebration of racial diversity in fashion - if you think that such a thing exists at this point, look a little closer. 

The runway shows that models of different ethnicities are being hugely underrepresented by designers who hand pick women to wear their designs during castings.

Images credited to Jezebel

The reality of this is incredibly distressing and I know that I not only speak for myself when I say it's also incredibly disheartening for those who are aspiring to work in an industry that is inherently racist. I think if we understand better that with the sort of elitism of juggernauts such as Vogue also comes a great deal of exclusion and bigotry, the more we should become aware of the ethical issues that are raised in their editorial decisions and not become so passive when we're told not to take fashion too seriously.

OPINION: Street style isn't ruled by the runway

Every morning I take my tea and toast with a side of news. Perusing what's going on in the industry, Style.com is undisputedly one of my go-to sources. What's always interesting about this time of year though, is the influx of those obligatory round-up commentaries on the year just passed. This morning, Style.com featured this montage of street style snaps:

It was accompanied by this statement from Tommy Ton:

"Hedi Slimane's Fall '13 grunge-inspired collection proved 

more influential than critics predicted. Ripped Jeans, waist-

tied plaid shirts, combat boots, overalls, and bomber jackets 

became style essentials across the globe this year."

It prompted me the question as to whether fashion, or rather trends move in a downward spiral from runway to the streets and in all honesty, I don't believe that it's the case. Granted, the industry is hugely influential on the way women and increasingly men, represent themselves but I think in this age, fashion isn't dictated by the collections that designers put down the runway; I think that a lot of the time it's the inverse.

It's a time where women have no qualms spending small fortunes on luxury items as foundational pieces for their wardrobe, but at the same time, will bid $2 on eBay for bulk fabric to make their own adornments.

Before the death of Yves Saint Laurent and Slimane's take over of the French fashion house, the whole grunge-inspired street style movement has been a thing. Only when Slimane released his Fall '13 collection do we pick on the parallels of influence between designers and everyday people, and vice versa. 

So in essence, I think Tommy Ton's statement is a little dogmatic. Whilst you could say that Saint Laurent is catering for a niche of women who don't care that 'x' is the black and who can covet their own trove of statement pieces, it's important to understand why: because that's what women have already been doing for years. The proof is on the street.

5 Unforgettable Shows From PFW

The Spring 2014 fashion cycle from New York to Paris has been a flurry of scandal, disasters, and bold new trajectories for some of the designer's behind the global fashion powerhouses. We saw members of Ukranian feminist protest group FEMEN (the ones who are always topless and causing media storms for their somewhat obscure and aggressive social and political agenda); Rick Owens abandoned models as the lithe, amazonian heirs to the runway in favour of a step team, a poignant performance that fashion blogger Susie Bubble dubbed 'the most powerful and provocative statement this season'. 

A million miles away from the front row, I usually spend the month of fashion week refreshing Style.com and posting angry tweets about collections that I hate. This time around, I thought I'd compile 5 Unforgettable Shows from Paris Fashion Week, at least in my eyes. 

1. Dries Van Noten 

The thing I love about Belgian designers is their consistent attention to detail and the precision with which they cut and tailor their garments. Designers like Van Noten and Ann Demulemeester always create with the female form in mind, but toy with different concepts and design elements such as masculinity, intricate patterns and fabric. The outcome is a string of stunningly audacious and seductive collections that beg desire to look a little closer at the details. This collection was no exception. Simple fabrics such as cotton and linen in cream were embellished with touches of gold ruffle or lace. Injections of colour were rich without being garish and there's texture through layering delicate fabric onto simple silhouettes, which gives the whole collection a sense of romance and opulence.

The stand out look from Dries Van Noten's Spring 2014 Collection

2. Saint Laurent 

I have no words for what Hedi Slimane sent down the runway this season. Actually I have a few: atrocious, tacky, vomit-inducing...

(Yves)Saint Laurent has always pushed the conventions of what is acceptable in the lucrative world of high fashion. Yves was one of the first designers to incorporate 'street' with luxury in the 1960s, throwing leather jackets into the mix of haute couture. It's made the brand one of the most revered fashion houses in the industry, but sadly, Hedi Slimane seems to be pushing the aesthetic of Saint Laurent away from an ingenious era of innovation and more towards a disastrous trainwreck, disillusioned by a tiresome regurgitation of 1990s grunge.

The looked that screamed out to me - for all the wrong reasons

3. Chanel 

I've heard mixed reviews about Karl Lagerfeld's Spring collection for Chanel, but I actually quite liked it. Generally...in most parts...that didn't look like a catalogue collection for dowdy Mums in the 80s. Sometimes there were too many colours, clashing fabrics and excessive layers, but for once, I wasn't bored by what was coming down the runway - maybe because it was conceptually driven by the art world, the set like a commingling of Warhol, Mondrian and Picasso celebrated in one exhibition. Considering this was such a huge collection, I'll cull some of the good, the bad and the ugly.

The good: Clean, adaptable pieces in classic and simple colours

The good: I like the playful fluidity of this look 

The bad: This is just too excessive and looks frumpy/sloppy

   The ugly: I think this one is pretty self explanatory.

4. Celine 

Phoebe Philo is probably up there with Miuccia Prada as one of my favourite womenswear designers. I might be a little bias because Celine is a brand that emulates my own personal style, but Philo has mastered minimalist design. Whenever I envision a Celine woman, I think of someone strong and self-aware, subdued in her expression of style and gets shit done without taking any prisoners. What was unforgettable about this collection was the more diverse colour palette and and different silhouettes that Phoebe Philo has experimented with in the design process to create more striking statement pieces. It's worked.

Rich colour, bold print, simple silhouette.

Sharp lines, sleek fabric and vibrant colour - minimal elements of design that come together to pack a punch.

5. Valentino 

Valentino is incredibly feminine and romantic in equal measure. However, I channel my fellow fashion bloggers' rage (oh God, that sounds disgustingly pretentious, doesn't it?) and frustration each season when we see the same tired concept walk down the runway. This time around Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli remained reverent of the ornate romanticism of the Valentino aesthetic, whilst incorporating beautiful embellishment, stunning hints of colour and tribal patterns, the origins of which remain obscure and all the more intriguing. I love the elegance and gracefulness of Valentino and so this was a definite highlight of Spring 2014. I'm not even going to caption some of my favourite looks from the runway, I think they speak for themselves.

(All images credited to Style.com)

Haute Couture: In a Sketch

The rise of ready-to-wear and mass production has caused haute couture to diminish in demand become more lucrative than ever before. Undoubtedly the most fascinating part of the industry is in the making of couture garments. Churning out ready-to-wear pieces in the face of fickle trends and passing seasons means that sometimes, clothes are simply clothes. There may only be a a handful of women in the world who possess the riches to own and wear haute couture, but each season is anticipated by fashion followers the world over. Couture co-exists in a commingling of fashion and art, or fashion as art, or art in fashion?

There is a technicality to the craftsmanship of couture that is almost mechanical, yet something deeply romantic about the detail - so many fine details. 

Fashion is spectacularly rich when it becomes synonymous with art and British Vogue has collaborated with the Fashion Illustration Gallery to archive a collection of illustrations inspired by designers. 

The illustrations, spanning from the 60s until now, depict some of the most stunning collections in a way that makes the fantasy of couture more tangible for those who can't see it in the flesh. 

I really love David Downton's 2008 Valentino print, and I want every single one of Tanya Ling's pieces to hang in my home forever. 

The full archive of fashion illustrations can be viewed and purchased here. 

(All images credited to Vogue UK and their original artists respectively)