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The Fashion Club Wraps Up August (8/29)

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Avocado Fashion Club! Here, you can read about style and fashion trends for all gender expressions, browse a selection of runway collections, and chat about style, accessories and more with your fellow Avocados.

This week highlights some of the articles published earlier this summer that I didn’t get the opportunity to feature in previous threads, for a variety of reasons. Sometimes an article slipped under my radar; sometimes it didn’t fit with a particular theme. I’ve taken this opportunity to share these pieces here, which range from the Refinery29 article on the appeal of haute couture to the piece on rental fashion in Harper’s Bazaar. (Credit to regular reader Powerthirteen’s ghost for linking to Put This On’s superb series on understanding menswear silhouettes in last week’s thread.)

This week’s edition includes newer articles as well. Kevin Kwan, author of Crazy Rich Asians, chats with Harper’s Bazaar about how high fashion played a role in his upbringing and influenced the novel, and highlights Asian fashion icons. The Look Book highlights Sophie Hulme’s charming new accessories and the way fuchsia might be overtaking millennial pink as the colour of choice this fall. Finally, the Designer Spotlight features interviews with one of fashion’s legendary designers Pam Hogg, and the forward-thinking up-and-coming designer Recho Omondi.

Settle in and enjoy!

I personally knew women who took the Concorde from Singapore to Paris via London twice a year for their couture fittings and that Queen Sirikit of Thailand had been partial to Balmain since 1960. I have pictures of my grandmother from the 1920s and ’30s in avant-garde dresses that looked like they could have come from the House of Worth or Lucien Lelong. She would never say if they were couture, but I do recall her telling me, “All my clothes and shoes came from Paris.”

In hindsight, I don’t know why a jacket — as opposed to what else was up for the taking, like a ball gown whose skirt should come with its own wide-load permit — seduced me so. It was more beguiling than anything. And comically out of my price range. But, not even two dazzling days into my trip, I was already sold: This is a valid and vibrant art form unto itself, as essential as the Van Goghs hanging nearby in the Louvre, serving no other purpose than as an object of astounding beauty and craftsmanship. And I’m cool with that.

Just think what Airbnb has done to the housing market and how Netflix has changed the way we watch and access entertainment. You can now simply borrow goods from Amazon on a rental basis.

It’s clear that there’s success in simplicity and fashion rental is just that- the idea of using what’s already available and sharing that with others. This isn’t about ownership, rather sharing your sartorial wealth for the benefit of not only yourself and others, but also the environment.

THE LOOK BOOK

Articles on clothes and accessories for all your style inspiration and needs. 

Genuine style is often more about silhouette than fit alone. The two aren’t totally distinct concepts — the lines are blurry and the two overlap. But generally speaking, fit in more meaningful terms is a very small area. It’s about whether a garment’s collar sits properly on your neck; whether things pull or bag where they shouldn’t. A silhouette, on the other hand, is about the shape of your clothes. It’s what’s left when you remove all the details and just look at the lines — and it’s the most important dimension for whether something looks good on you.

Here are some ways to judge a silhouette in casualwear, starting with its basic forms, then moving to more in-depth principles. Note, when discussing silhouettes here, we’re talking about something distinct from different style genres. You can have a heritage-inspired ensemble that fits classically, slim, or full. Same with contemporary or dark, art povera looks. This post is purely about the shape of clothes, which you can apply to any wardrobe.

 In celebration of the milestone, the boutique has launched an exclusive range of leather goods with London design and concept store, Darkroom. Known for their restrained collection of contrasting accessories and hard-edge aesthetic, Darkroom worked on a series of four simple geometric motifs, designed to be applied to the surface of four original Hulme bag styles. 

Fuchsia, the highly-saturated bold pink shade, seems to be stealing this season’s fashion spotlight — and possibly kicking millennial pink out of the door for good. The Barbie-esque tint is traditionally associated with blooming spring and summer, but we’re ready for the vivid hue to shoot some liveliness into our stark winter wardrobes.

DESIGNER SPOTLIGHT

Pam Hogg
Recho Omondi

The designers and collections that caught my eye this week.

Hogg started designing clothes in the early 1980s, a child of the new romantic scene, a time when the fashion world rewarded the bold and the outrageous. Her punk-inspired outfits have been worn by a long list of pop legends – Debbie Harry, Siouxsie Sioux, Kylie Minogue, Taylor Swift and Rihanna – while her PVC and Lycra catsuits have become symbolic of female strength. “Every woman who’s ever tried on one of my catsuits has said, ‘Oh my God, I can’t wear that!’” She laughs. “I always tell them to just try it on. When they do, they instantly feel empowered.”

Back in December, Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn–based Recho Omondi shared a picture of an embroidered sweatshirt with a list of first names that would resonate with any fashion lover in an instant. Isaac. Donna. Calvin. But they were all crossed out. “Sincerely, your successor,” her Instagram caption read.

“The T-shirt was very tongue-in-cheek, but I also meant it, too. I kind of treat them all like ex-boyfriends. There are people I love, but let’s be real,” the designer explains from her one-bedroom apartment, where we meet her and also where she runs her company. “It’s a new day in terms of perspectives, and you don’t need to be behind the new perspectives, but if you don’t, you’ll just get left behind.”