Menswear Spring 2015 Review: Diesel Black Gold

It's all feeling very British post-punk on the Diesel Black Gold runway, with the models rocking bangs and skinny pants, oozing a sense of rebellious formal wear. 

Here's what I love about the collection: It can be easily adapted to any market, with luxe sport jackets hitting the Jozi Shore mark, parkas for the bearded, Sgt Pepper types and trenches and blazers making an appearance for formal wear. 

And that's the craziest part of this collection, the fact that while all the surface elements scream punk and edge, there are some quality formal pieces just tucked away between the melange and leather. 

These are my favourite looks though:

Charles Finch & Chanel Pre BAFTA Party: An Editorial Red Carpet

Events make a big deal of the heavily branded step and repeat, and no matter how chic the backdrop is, it really isn't. 

So of course Charles Finch and Chanel had to knock the Pre BAFTA party out of the park by scrapping the step and repeat entirely and instead, photographing each of their celeb guests in an editorial-meets-casting fashion, which translated into something so purely fashionable and stunning that I can't help but wonder why this wasn't done before?

Just, just look at it...

iMerchandise: A Fashion Buyer's Dream

The life of a fashion buyer is one that is fraught with rushed shopping trips, hurried runway analysis and a stack of invoices (whether physical or in your inbox) that will bury you before the season has even begun.

Cue David Secul's brainchild, the iPhone app iMerchandise.

Here's an app that simplifies the life of a buyer by allowing them to not only order the items they want, but also to create moodboards, share the hottest items on social media, keep a track of the best events, organise their images, suppliers, invoices, and even export the contents whenever you need to. 

Songs of the Day

DKNY Pre Fall 2014: Nothing Short of Amazing

Let's take some time out to talk about DKNY, where the brand has been, and how far its come. The "fast fashion" essence has come a long way, from body-sculpted dresses, to the street style showstoppers we've been seeing recently. It's clear that DKNY is the brand to watch, not just because the designs are easy-on-the-eye, but because of the brand's complete dedication to what the brand has always been about, innovation.

DKNY's Twitter campaign set across 10 different countries for example, the DKNY PR Girl who has changed how a fashion house should talk to its fans and followers, these are only two examples outside of the store-windows where DKNY has put itself way ahead of its competitors. Forget the Rita Ora hype

 or the fact that DKNY brought the Onesie back in spectacular style

 here's a brand that knows who its dressing, and isn't afraid to get with the people, and get with the program.

And so, we arrive at what is going to set the Street Style scene alight next year, the DKNY Pre Fall 2014 collection, a series of punchy luxe sportswear and yet, items that can move between formal and casual with ease. I guess, as usual, DKNY has provided an entire wardrobe for the fast woman, the DKNY woman that its been dressing since the start.

The SA Fashion Disorder

Now here's the thing, Fashion may be dictated by the season's trends whether they be local or international, but there is no excuse for stealing another designer's work and calling it your 'interpretation' of the trend. Especially not when any person who compares the two can see your blatant disregard for creative intellectual property.

Most of my readers and followers are aware of my former client Rina Chunga who is the mastermind behind Ri.Ch by Rina Chunga. Her signature direction for ready to wear is vibrant prints, unconventional materials and luxe sportswear, and her designs are set apart from the average Afrocentric Print Designer by the workmanship and contemporary crafting of her pieces.

So this girl, who goes by the Instagram handle of @stylealert_thuli has been jumping on a few of Rina's designs and replicating them for a while (Please Note: she is not referencing ideas or trends, you can see in the comparisons below that she is blatantly copying) but the real shocker was when she replicated an entire Ri.Ch by Rina ensemble, posted it on Instagram and acted like nothing was wrong.

Now this is Rina's Tulle Skirt which she'd been making since last year, she wasn't too upset about this because she regarded it as quite a broad trend that was everywhere.

This is @stylealert_thuli 's tulle skirt posted on the 17th of October:

This is Rina's Bandana Print Bustier which we showcased around May this year and her Leather Pencil Skirt from June:

This is @stylealer_thuli 's post on the 19th of November, the plagiarism is obvious, as is the terrible workmanship.

Rina's fiance commented on it expressing his disapproval of her antics and she responded with this:

"U'll probably make more money instead of having those sleepless night[s], and thinking about how Style Alert SA operates!"

These are just two examples of what has been going on for quite a while now.

When did it become ok for designers to steal other designers entire concepts and run with it on the basis that bigger brands do the same thing? Where on earth is the integrity of our design industry that people like this can still be supported and funded?

I'm not writing this post purely because Rina is a good friend of mine, but because I love the SA fashion industry, and I want to see it grow into something that becomes a global commodity, something to uplift us as creatives, but I absolutely refuse to support an industry that supports trashy ethics like this and I'd like to know if other fashionistas and designers feel the same.

If the true fashion lovers in SA don't weed out the people in the shadows who are more concerned with money than the love of art in fashion, then we'll be looking at a very very sad future.

She says she doesn't call herself a designer, so can we call her a leech instead?

Muse of the Day: Cindy Bruna

Fashion Week means a lot of things for the fashion community, but for me it means trend analysis, all day everyday for the next month, and I guess it all comes down to the way my brain works.

I don't just see shows as designs I might want to own. I spot items that I know will be all over every street style blog for the next year, I see fashion trends that will shape the creative direction for fashion publications for the next season and what I enjoy, is spotting the new hot young models that will be gracing covers and fronting campiagns.

One of these Fashion Week Finds is French model Cindy Bruna who this season walked for Balmain, Antonio Berardi and more.

Muse of the Week: Kerry Washington

Look, i should start by apologising to all of you, I haven't posted anything in AGES and i feel properly awful about that. But i'm back! And i'm still as obsessed as ever. 

Let's talk about Kerry Washington, or rather, let's shriek!

The Menswear Staple Face-Off

Quick question, what makes a guy's outfit pop, what's the one piece that every man should have? Is it something that can move between formal and casual with ease? Or would it be the statement piece, the signature of any man, that announces his arrival and cements his impression?

Here's the first face off, between the Desert Boot and the Denim Shirt. Which would you deem ESSENTIAL?

Menswear Essential: Denim Shirt or Desert Boot?

Trend Alert: Dropped-Waists

It wasn't just Gatsby that sparked the trend was it? Or maybe it was the Flapper Fever that was stalking the globe for a good few months in the build up?

But enough about that, let's talk about the trend, Drop those Waists ladies!

Zoe Saldana in Prabal Gurung

BCBG Resort

Carlos Miele

Chanel

Dior

DKNY

Escada

Temperley London