011: My longwinded thoughts on bags
Plus lots of really special underwear, the Acne Studios sale, and something for you ALD heads.
The only thing I (to my memory?) bought this week was a Maryam Nassir Zadeh top from eBay—the green plaid Catalina bralette I’ve wanted as a set with the skirt and pants since I saw it hit runway from that park between Chrystie and Forsyth. If anyone scouts me those missing pieces, I’ll dedicate the next send to you <3
The big hits from the previous issue were: the Lemaire sale (lamentably ended, but plenty of deals on the brand going strong here), the Diesel sneaker heels that someone bought within an hour of the newsletter being published (even better though, here’s another pair of the ones I bought last week), and a gorgina white dress from Kinga Csilla that was gifted my way.
No pressure, but feel free to share this newsletter with a friend :)
What’s new
We’re all just one or two degrees away from the same actually likeable Instagram brand founders (Lesse’s Nedea, say, or Ghia’s Melanie). LA-based Bonita and Chelsea, of Kye Intimates and Chelsea Mak, respectively, are playing to our love of chic, minimal lifestyle moments with a limited-edition collaboration. The bra and panty set pays homage to the Barcelona chair in a sophisticated black lace.
Japanese deisgner Daiki Suzuki put a mirror up to America with his folkloric, workwear-inspired brand that drew upon the classic styles of native labels like Woolrich, with which he took many creative liberties. Now, 20 years later, Engineered Garments is bringing its uncanny, masculinity-deconstructing style to a collaboration with sneaker brand HOKA, including a leopard-print shoe that honors the brand’s core cheekiness.
Nordstrom’s latest New Concepts shop, Found in Translation, digs deeper into this idea of American style informed by global heritage. Curated by Philippine-born Jian DeLeon, the guy from the Complex videos, GQ interviews, and so help me god ALL the podcasts, the shop brings brands like BEAMS, Drake’s, and Our Legends under one menswear umbrella.
Intimates brand Softandwet, which made an appearance previously on this newsletter (my recommendation to guest Carolyne Lorée—one she took, I might add), is now available on SSENSE. Previously only available in a made-to-order capacity with longer necessary lead times or just sold out altogether, it’s an exciting development that the silky, scrunchy drawers are now much easier for us to get our filthy paws on.
Similarly, not-your-department store’s luxury lingerie brand Du Ciel, based in Dusseldorf, restocked its minimalist French silk capsule to SSENSE this week. The retailer’s underlayer category seems to be growing by the day, replete with young, talented brands redefining the contemporary high-end.
It’s probably difficult to conceive of outerwear on a 90º day, but The Arrival’s shearling collection drop is one reason to wrap your head around it. Not much could make me want to move past the hypnotic slurry of sticky fabric and flesh, but as the weeks seem to be evaporating despite me, this creamsicle-colored launch is one thing to look forward to wearing.
I think I managed one or two whole issues without mentioning Hereu, but it’s high time I’m back with news from the shoe brand that’s nothing less than a parasite in my heart (and your eyes, I guess, since you’re reading this). In continuation with its partnership with Cecilie Bahnsen, a new assortment of styles has landed on the site, including color and material updates to the scrunchy ballet flat I have in pink organza, plus actual hard leather boots and slingback loafers.
Chelsea Hansford seems to be having fun in LA with her brand Simon Miller, whose various viral accessories (blackout platforms, puffin bag) have allowed the brand to expand into new categories like home and even collectibles. Its latest collection, Bird Club, features among other tropicana things a portmanteau of several of the best received pieces—birthing the shearling bubble clog.
A few more things of note: Mr. Larkin and Studio Ven collaborated on a stunning tablecloth dress, Vestiaire Collective and Ganni teamed up to resell the brand’s clothes, Cafe Kitsuné and Helinox released some cool pop-up cafe sets (for when ALD is all full up?), there’s now a Hello Kitty x Susan Alexandra Capsule Collection to which we say “get that coin, girl,” Re/Done and Hanes dropped season 3 of their partnership and it’s full of expensive but charmingly authentic pieces from the archives, Levi’s partnered with Naomi Osaka because U.S. Open—it’s only available in the app though, and Dion Lee FW21 is FINALLY live, so now we can all wear those little tennis collar crops to the clerb.
What’s on sale
The Acne Studios sale is on and it’s good! Like half-off good, although you have to poke around a bit—it’s tricky to navigate since the sale isn’t all organized on one page and you have to click through departments on the dropdown, or just start at outerwear and subsequent categories will load at the bottom. Some gems include those leather sock boots, open knit sweaters, and pleated pants.
Awake Mode’s Archive sale is full of gems and legitimately better deals than can be found on the brand elsewhere (often not the case). It started at up to 95% off, but most of the top deeply discounted pieces have been snapped up. The prices are still REALLY good though. You might never find these pieces at these numbers ever again—under £100 on so, so much.
Untitled New York, who I was introduced to by a friend who’s been mentioned twice on this newsletter in the context of caffeine, is having a small sale on its SS21 collection. Their nylon shirts inspire the question, “Prada?” But it’s better that it’s not.
Araks has sweetened its annual swim sale further since I reported on it last week, upping the discount to 80% at its highest—catch is that it ends midnight tonight.
The Perfect Pot from Our Place (they also make the Always Pan) launched last week with daily color drops in limited quantities. It’s currently available for pre-order on the site and I stumbled upon a code for 10% with SHOPSTYLEBAKES. It’s a small dent but good to have if you’re going to buy it anyway (which you should, I’ve been using for a couple weeks and it’s so lightweight and nothing ever sticks).
I came here to tell you about Palomo Spain’s sale on its new collaboration with Clea—20% off everything—and then I realized the brand has a healthy sale section including way more than just the one collection. Lots of things are half off and a few are even under €100.
Apparently this is an intimates heavy send—Bordelle, the UK boudoir brand that uses grosgrain strips to build fantastically sexy pieces beyond your basic garter is hosting a summer sale that reaches up to 70%, plus an additional 10% off with EXTRA10.
Imagine being a milliner in 2021? Clyde, a hat brand that feels contemporary without being condescending, elevated without self-aggrandizing, has its thoughtful and utterly wearable pieces for up to 65% off.
Nisolo’s Semi-Annual Sale is happening now, and you can browse through the whole thing if you want. The only thing that really matters to me right now, though, is that my favorite indoor-outdoor slipper shoes are on sale in a couple colors. The Lima (a creamy leather pointy-toed slide) in Sand and Brown is down to $79 from $100. I’ve influenced people to buy these in the past, and I’ll do it again in the future, that much I know.
Verishop can be sort of a bottomless pit, and it makes the shopping experience a bit weird if I’m being honest. They’re having a sale right now, but only on a few thousand things selected by WhoWhatWear editors, which does help separate the wheat from the chaff. Basically, you can get 25% off the site’s best things with code ASAP25.
A couple more: ThredUp’s The Secondhand Sale is an unlikely place to get vintage designer if you have the time to fine-tooth comb, Rouje’s Last Chance Sale is up to 70% off, and Biossance is 25% off sitewide.
What else
Cryptically, as per usual, Telfar announced over Instagram that they’re “⬆️UPPING QUANTITIES⬆️” adding, “EVERY DROP YOU WILL GET YOUR BAG.” It’s a huge promise considering how insane everyone goes when their color comes back in stock, but for the sake of the brand, we’d of course love to see universal bag security become a reality.
The Zoe-Kravitz-laughing-hysterically-trying-to-catch-some-Channing-Tatum-D blue dress is by Araks, FYI.
Aime Leon Dore’s first FW21 drop lands tomorrow at 11am, and since that’s just past cutoff for this send (and might not be around by next week’s push time), you have been forewarned.
Because I love their olive oil and founder and brand presence in general, I’m excited to hear that Brightland is launching honey next month. Not a typical next move for an olive oil brand, but they also did an unusual collab with Oishii berry that was just ticklishly cute, so we do truly love to see it.
Everlane publicly promised to cut all virgin plastics from their supply chain by the end of 2021, and it turns out they’re currently about 90% of the way there. To knock out the final 10%, they’re launching The Next [Collective], a fellowship program that welcomes applications from pretty much anyone who might have an idea on how they can do it. Is it you?
Handbags orbiting the planet
Orbiting my head
From the center of the earth, pulsing outwards past its magnetic poles.
This space can be objective(ish) in that it delivers the news, but sometimes I feel the need to be subjective(ish), like now, on the topic of bags. The expectation of “It bags” was a mistake—it’s so unintimate to operate on calculated repetitions. A bag’s social role is best when expressed as a nucleus of the parceled-off audiences orbiting it. The molten knowing core sending seismic signals to select receptive onlookers.
Today, in inverse, I am the centrifuge grasping purse strings and spinning and spinning and separating out whichever of those make my heart beat. A ginger few to bring into your life like a rare insect collector, who, if they grow too big, should be abandoned in the forest and never looked back on again.
My metaphors are metamorphosing, so I’d better just get to it:
What haven’t I said already about the SC103 leather links bag? There’s so much story in this Escher-esque spoonerism it’s difficult to unpack—will I ever figure her out? She looks how mushrooms smell.
Lemaire’s croissant bag is ostensibly meant to suggest food, too, but to me it reads as a pre-civilization baby sling keeping life at the bosom, linking all its carriers to their ancestral mother, the Venus of Willendorf.
The Row’s Half Moon Bag brings me an unidentified comfort. (What is that?) It walks me home at night. Despite the autumnal shift away from straight lines I thought I was experiencing, another architectural feat that’s been rattling around my skull is Tsatsas’ Kirat bag. Like a Muji pencilcase with elephantiasis, its scale makes no sense no matter how long you look at it, and I revel in the challenge of being the wearer rather than the wearee. Ratio et Motus belongs here as well—I’d be remiss not to point out the low prices on Vestiaire Collective.
An impossibly perfectly neatly pleated joie de vivre Issey Miyake bag that would give it all up in an instant if the mood hit is countered by a rumpled Azur World plisse silk sleeve touched by a thousand aunts and sisters who who are proud but always pushing you to a greater potential.
Things made of bits of string and straw and wood resonate deeply. Petit Kouraj’s netted bag, with each fringe thread hand tied on, is a moment of reflection. Its sister is this woven Gemsun phoenixed out of swimsuit scraps. Weird-shaped organic vessels are better than ones with Lo(ewe)gos—here are one or two that pull me in.
A Chanel bag is somehow on the list. I have eyes, and feelings too, and just like a real boy I also love the clear patchwork tote (here, here, and cheapest here). It’s Jamiroquai’s moving floor in bag form, but it’s at its best scuffed up because Chanel is only fun coming from messy girls.
And a few impartial observations: the rubber chicken bag is making rounds again, some exhausting new Gucci thing is being gifted indiscriminately, Longchamp bags remain cool at all sizes, Bode’s shopping bags are a dish (served sold out), and Neous’ swirly Jupiter totes are firing like synapses.
You don’t need me to tell you to buy the vintage Prada nylon or the Telfar, because you can and will and I don’t necessarily have to be a part of that transaction. I’d rather tell you to wrap up a hand-painted piece of canvas fabric or outfit a ceramic goblet with a string because that’s what I know to be way more interesting a bag concept than almost anything with a label.
We’re going ashes to ashes today, baby. That’s dust on dust.
Footnotes: A place for food and wine.
No Footnotes today! I’ve given you plenty of top notes and base notes. Maybe you drop me a Footnote every once in a while, huh? Did you ever think of that?
(Really though, if you hit reply and send me wine reccs I promise to try them!)