052: Clay pigeon for dinner
052: Clay pigeon for dinner
Plus SSENSE's exclusive The Row capsule, Eny Lee Parker lamps under $200, and Presley Oldham portals.
Does anyone else still online shop when on vacation? The way I see online shopping, like a moving target, makes it hard take my eye off the clay pigeon. Tracing where the cool-fresh-thing Y axis intersects with the stupid-good-deal X axis at an optimal it-would-be-irresponsible-not-to-buy-this point is a full-time job (even if Magasin summer hours have been smoothed back to bi-weekly).
Michelle Del Rio finally released the apparel she's been teasing since last summer—can a skirt be talismanic? More Catalonia belts, too, but my acquisition was the sheer, paneled Soledad with a fringed Indian cotton (please excuse my use of this term) peplum.
There seems to be a surge in unadulterated young brands still driven by purity of concept and not yet degraded by oil on the fingertips of outside touch. Hanrej, which also makes powerful jewelry, created the sunglass frames I've been unknowingly searching for over the past year and a half. I got them, and I feel a sense of calm, closed-circleness, and career advancement that only comes from discovering that a theory you have about yourself is true.
These were made in Italy, and to Italy with me they came. But while in Rome this week, the only things I purchased were a pair of red striped boxer shorts and a ribbed tank, both from one of the city’s beacons of fine shirting: Schostal. The tradition upheld at the library-like atelier draws in a lot of fans, particularly ones that circle this space. I first heard of it via Pien Barendregt of Pien Studios, and it was later recommended by Mona Esser of Gemsun. Photographer Diana Bartlett and jewelry designer Rafael Mocetin also happened to be there within a few hours of us.
Still, despite my instinct to accumulate, it was simpler to under-pack for three weeks away. Interchangeable Pleats Please, white Deiji Studios linens, various lengths of black tube tops, and naturally some silk scarves have resulted in an infinitely re-mixable wardrobe. It’s pulling my brain towards the conclusion that, actually, this might be an easy and rewarding way to get dressed in normal life, too. What can I say. I might not need to kill to eat, but the thrill of the hunt keeps me aiming the barrel upward.
What’s new
Presley Oldham’s body chains and bracelets are rosaries for people whose first religious experience was kissing girls at summer camp. The recently launched Summer ‘22 collection composes “Murano millefiori beads, 1930s Japanese glass, and some precious stones carried from Santa Fe” with the tenderness and determination of a nesting robin, and the resulting lengths feel as though they’ve seen your past and can predict your future. Every piece is a portal.
The Row presents an exclusive, 12-piece SSENSE capsule that caters explicitly to the traveler. Column skirts, unembellished dresses, t-shirts, and starkly simple bikinis (in black and white only, of course), plus a single pair of sandals and a tote are militaristically pragmatic. The cumulative effect could be dangerously misunderstood as being cold and standoffish, but the passion here, as with all The Row, can be found in the negative space created when optimizing for time—time spent dissolving clock time, time for Being!
Eny Lee Parker’s lamps and furniture have been on the wishlist of any New Yorker or Design/ Miami attendee but so far reserved for those serious enough to commit $5,000 or more. A new collaboration with D2C brand Mitzi draws 19 new pendants, sconces, and chandeliers down into the sub-$200 range.
For its sixth anniversary, Agmes is reopening its exploration into glass, first iterated upon in a 2018 collection. Alongside LA-based sculptor Anthony Bianco of Bianco Light and Space, the jeweler presents two new hand-blown objects—a vase and dish—plus delicate beads paired with fine metals for awe-inspiring earrings and necklaces.
The Gohar sisters continue to surprise and delight with their kitchen-centric whimsy, the Bottle Apron being the latest Gohar World creation and finally the answer to what exactly a North African-leaning 750ml would wear to a dinner party of well-to-do creatives attuned to labels.
Having perfected the wear-anywhere boxer short and Italian dress sock, Comme Si has since turned to starchy poplin shirts and now another invaluable styling piece, the Silk Scarf. Available in lilac and a lime green, the watercolor-esque squares submit to their total versatility and can be fashioned as a headwrap, top, bag, or really whatever you can imagine.
Pre-orders from the Yeezy Gap by Balenciaga soft launch were delivered last week, and stock was shortly thereafter introduced to Gap locations in large, thrift store-like hampers for shoppers to dig through. While some styles seem to have sold out or withheld, the collection’s core pieces are now ready to ship from the YEEZYGAP website.
Deutsche design firm Bureau Borsche collaborates with Kappa on the VENEZIA FC 22/23 Home and Away Shirts—‘90s-inspired football long-sleeves embracing the since-dubbed “gaudy” traditions of gold fabric, Italo-stripes, and outsize logo patches. In that same vein, Rowing Blazers joins forces with Argentinian La Martina on a collection that reconnects polo shirts with polo playing (and horse boys). Granted, its heavily stylized graphic collared tops and quarter-zips are similarly fodder for post-ironic Euro bro style sponges.
There’s also: Maryam Nassir Zadeh’s PF22 lands on site, alongside an MNZ t-shirt collab with Istanbul-based artist Izzet; pots and pans savant Our Place releases “traditionware,” a tagine for the contemporary kitchen; Hereu is now available to shop at Bergdorf Goodman; Everlane launches a so-called Los Angeles denim capsule, mostly “inspired” in that it’s emblazoned with big LOS ANGELES lettering around the waistband; Turkish knitwear brand Aeron launches Zero, a sustainable line of basics made with WHOLEGARMENT® technology, meaning the 3D garments are produced seamlessly as a single unit on the knitting machine; Tory Burch releases a limited-edition summer capsule that iterates its house favorites in blocky primary colors; French boot brand Palladium celebrates its 75th year with a collaboration with iconic Japanese designer Junya Watanabe CDG; Ugg has a couple new collections within its Feel Good arm out—the AW22 Plant Power collection and its second Icon Impact collection for SS22; Petit Kouraj lands at Moda Operandi; queer knitwear artist Patcar, who you may recognize from their recent JW Anderson collab, quietly releases a drop of museum-caliber garments baring introspective text; Levi’s taps Naomi Osaka for a five-SKU line that’s currently exclusive to the brand’s app; body care brand Nécessaire launches The Sunscreen; Rebag expands into shoes and apparel, extending the footprint of the quickly growing luxury resale sector; Beyonce’s Ivy Park x Adidas collab is back with IVYTOPIA, full of neon, army green, and Barbie blue; Goop Beauty launches Sleep Milk, a hydrating acid blend providing gentle exfoliation; swimwear brand Summersalt partners with Diane von Furstenburg on a print-celebrating capsule for women and kids; Equinox’s second collection with Monse (playful luxury from Oscar de la Renta alumni) tests the upper limits of what a person will pay for (or wear as) “gym stuff,” ostensibly; crunchy-cool camping furniture brand Helinox teams up with RVCA, and it's the me that would’ve been if I hadn’t moved to New York; not to be overshadowed by all the emerging WASP-sport-cores, Prince x Sporty & Rich keep tennis top of mind with a second co-branded collection; and speaking of “cores,” nap dress people and cottage
cheesecore agenda-setters Hill House Home introduce shoes.
What’s on sale
SSENSE sale temp check: The fact of its existence is no longer front page news, but the deals being wrung from an ever-more-tightly-squeezed discount apparatus are building a stream into a raging river. The impulse to add a suitcase full of fun-priced items to cart in line at the checkout has won, no thanks to the $50 Lauren Manoogian, Eterne, and ERL, $100 Sunnei, Jacquemus, and Fal-Ash, $200 Nensi Dojaka, Margiela, and Lemaire, and $300 SC103, Dion Lee, and Bode.
I’m trying to think of a way to say Fred Segal is like Lisa Says Gah for 30-year-olds without it sounding like a dig, but maybe it’s ok if there’s a sense of, yeah there is a tendency for people to like some of the same things at the same time. These are things that I like, and I don’t pretend to have discovered them or expect them to define my individuality! SIR., Hereu, Simon Miller, Paris Georgia, By Far are discounted at Fred Segal by up to 70% (and prices for all hover around $100, which feels very correct and extremely rare).
Mari Giudicelli, one of the definitive hot-girls-in-homely-shoes brands is, like its contemporary Martiniano, just as relevant to the core community as it was when MNZ introduced it to its audiences however many years back. A deal on a pair is still rare, but Giudicelli’s site is currently offering up to 60% off certain archive styles.
Dion Lee is hosting its (in)famous 80% off archive sale and, like last time, if you didn’t hit checkout the second, no, the second before, the site opened, you likely missed out on the best stuff. Still, less competitive pieces, prices, and sizes can be found if you’re up for some sifting.
Is VooStore just SSENSE for Europeans averse to human mannequins? A great question with an unknowable answer. The Berlin-based retailer is hosting a sale that can scarcely compete with its Montrealean counterpart at just 40% off, but its cultish status has earned it access to designer exclusives you won’t find anywhere else, some of which (like Isa Boulder) are currently marked down.
Maryam Nassir Zadeh’s end-of-season sale hit site almost imperceptibly, which is why certain sizes/styles are still in stock. Olympia wedges are under $200 and some boots are even under $300.
Luisaviaroma is offering an extra 25% off sale items with FR25, and a few pieces from Jil Sander, Agua by Agua Bendita, Dries, Loewe, Jacquemus immediately earned my clicks. Shopping another sale while SSENSE’s is still raging can feel uncanny, but select prices across LVR are undebateably superior.
I fear I.AM.GIA is learning its worth, with new collection prices creeping slowly up—our self-aware hoe clothes may one day be presented with tags that will earn them the recognition and longevity they deserve, but until then, there’s a 75% sale on best-sellers.
Koibird is hosting a sample sale with prices that prove they mean it. I personally judge a sale by how many tabs I have open, and this one was squishing them into millimeters. Koibird preaches resort as a lifestyle, so you can find Rudi Gernreich, Lado Bokuchava, Donni, etc. for up to 80% off and under $100. Plus, take 10% more off with EXTRA10.
Size-inclusive (with a unique grading system that accounts for the broadest range of body types I’ve encountered at this scale) brand Universal Standard is hosting its once-yearly sample sale that touches every category from lounge to work to workout to play. The vibe is basics, but with a few I-see-you nods to bigger picture fashion, via Phoebe’s Celine. Plus, so so so many prices under $100.
There’s also: Mansur Gavriel’s summer sale reaches up to 50% off and begins at $135; new additions just reached La Garconne’s end-of-season sale, now down to 70% off; if you’re looking for a new sharp basics brand, Maria McManus makes great ones, and they’re about half off right now; last chance for The Kooples’ sale, with up to 60% off and an additional 30% off sitewide; Re/Done’s surplus sale hits up to 70% off and includes tanks from its Hanes collab; The Garment Copenhagen may be a favorite new brand of the summer, but some of its best-selling styles are still part of an archive sale that reaches up to 50%; material manipulator Pangaia is hosting a 60% off archive sale on uniform lifewear made from hemp, flowers, recycled cashmere, even peppermint-treated fabric; shop up to 40% off new collection resort at Vasquiat through today with a (free) membership; Saks Potts’ sale starts at just $62, albeit by now the options have been quite whittled down; Pari Desai’s eco-minimalist basics are up to 60% off; Everlane’s summer sale is like, just stock up on some tanks but don’t try and reinvent the wheel (or yourself) in the process—the simpler you keep your cart, the better; and take 25% off $45+ at Milk Makeup’s Friends & Family sale.
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