The good people at skate lifestyle driven Altamont Apparel have just released their Holiday 2012 lookbook. Cool prints, warm-muted colors, ombre dip dye, and even a little herringbone. Altamont designer Tristan Ellis seems to have landed another modeling gig and the majority was shot at the new downtown Los Angeles home of the amazing Pony Attack power couple.
Influenced by the Mexican beach culture, Toronto-based Scout & Catalogue was born from creator and designer Breanna Musgrove’s year living in Mexico in 2009. It was there she began exploring the craft of tye-dying leather and ‘accidently’ began making bags and scarves. A couple of years since her trip and currently living back in Canada, Scout & Catalogue is steadily gaining ground and continues to create unique and quality accessories. Now expanding to include “The Scavenger Series” and the “Yard Sale”, Musgrove uses fabrics sourced from thrift stores and restores unique vintage pieces. Also be sure to check out the blog featuring beautiful imagery and designs.
When you enter SUPERbrands new studio in Carlsbad California, you will be met with the unique contrast of surfboard shaping, glassing areas in the back, and silk dresses up front. With their cool and casual aesthetic, creative graphics, strong attention to detail, and use of high-quality fabrics like silks and leather, SUPERbrand has merged boutique and traditional surf fashion to create something new. It doesn’t stop at their clothes either, SUPERbrand has also incorporated this look and feel into their surfboards by covering them with skate-influenced full-board graphics, and bringing in some of the best surfers in the world (Dion Agius, Clay Marzo, and Ry Craike) to help create innovative shapes. This is definitely a brand to keep an eye on as it begins to take off.
Take a look at the entire fall 2012 line: www.superbranded.com
Kelly Shaw has our attention. This young designer from the UK has something special going on here, on so many levels:
1. She’s pulling together Grayson Perry, the Occupy movement, The London Riots, fashion from in between WW1 + 2, and George Orwell, into one eclectic contemporary blend of patterning, color, and design.
2. Her design screams, “Lighten the fuck up!” She’s playing with silhouettes that shouldn’t work together. She’s having fun and looks gorgeous on so many levels.
3. She’s launching her Spring/Summer 2013 Collection right around the corner and she hasn’t held back with anything. Her messages are clear and we have a feeling this line will make some serious noise, if it hasn’t begun to already.
Witness This had the pleasure of speaking with The Leather Shop about their recent release of an arsenal of stunningly hand-crafted leather products. Now we are suckers for this sort of Made in America story, but after talking with Ken from The Shop, we fell even more in love with what they do.
The Leather Shop was founded in Seattle, Washington in the summer of 2008 by a young designer named Mark. Fast forward through the last four years and countless hours of hard work and determination and we now are gifted with the opportunity to share in their craft. You can now get a glimpse below, and on their online store, at what they have created and it’s impossible not to get excited about the finished product. We had the chance to ask the guys about their inspiration, and we love the story we uncovered, “It all started with a leather pouch that Mark remembered from his childhood. His great-great grandfather hand made it in the early 1900′s and passed it down, generation to generation. The pouch had aged beautifully, the leather had character to it- so much so that it carried a history to it. Why not make something that lasts this long? This shaped our company, and our motto Time passes, Leather endures. We craft products that combine old world craftsmanship with modern aesthetics. The results are products that are unique in their appearance and their longevity.”
The Leather Shop studio has found it’s home in the Georgetown district of Seattle, where the craftsmen and artists of Seattle reside. Look them up when you are in Seattle, or visit their online store to share in a beautiful craft that defines heart and hand design.
It’s refreshing to catch the Rush sisters in the early stages of their success. Robyn and Cami don’t have a competitive analysis, they don’t have balance sheets and financial projections. They have a vision that is changing and morphing and evolving purely through the act of feeding their work each time they sit down to mold on their craft.
Robyn laughs when we ask how it all began, “Cami just came to me and said, ‘Hey do you wanna do this?’ And I didn’t even have a doubt – Immediately, I was like, ok! – AND we get to go to Colombia!” With a little help from their parents for their plane tickets to visit a textile factory in Colombia, the Rush sisters set off to create Fenntessa.
It’s difficult to describe the duo to anyone who hasn’t met them. They’re bubbly, bright, blonde, blue-eyed infectious humans. There’s excitement in every sentence and they’re genuinely interested in every topic, those that surround them and in each other. With no clear picture of what it is that keeps them driving this forward and not worried about what might or might not happen, Cami and Robyn remind us of the joy of simply being a part of the process and the power of just doing it.
As I listen to the audio clips from the evening I smile to myself, knowing each sister’s voice from the other but knowing a stranger would be unable to tell them apart. They speak in half sentences, if Cami starts a sentence, Robyn finishes it. Always supportive and affording each other utmost respect, they are always sure to mention the people in their lives that have helped out along the way.
With so many similarities, Cami and Robyn are are also very different. Each one is very unique in demeanor, personality and style. Robyn is in her signature high wasted jeans, a loose, bright tank and combat boots – she’s the hipster rocker chic from a music video. Cami is a bit more reserved, soft-spoken and gentle – in an oversized sweater and dark green maxi dress, she’s mastered trendy meets classy.
Cami and Robyn are incredible hosts. They offer up everything in their fridge, pour you a warm cup of tea while Robyn’s boyfriend Billie puts on some killer tunes. We ask them about how their relationship has changed and what it’s like working with your best friend, sister, business party and ex-roommate. We discuss friendships, life, relationships, music and explore unexpected miscellaneous tangents. Time passes quickly and four hours feel like thirty minutes. Their energy and passion is infectious.
WT: How has starting a bathing suit line influenced your personal life?
Robyn: “My butt is on the tag. It’s definitely keeping me in shape.” [She giggles infectiously] “No- but it’s been a lot of work! I’ve really made the effort to be more social this summer and we’re both putting in a lot of time but it’s fun!”
WT: “Why do you think that this stuff is working?”
Cami: “I think the formula is really about making the effort to be artists just going with it. And then balancing the business. Robyn is SO good at the phone. Robyn’s speedy and-
Robyn: “Cami’s focused. I just don’t have the patience! I’m working on it, Cami is teaching me to be more patient..we just move at different speeds.”
WT: “What is it that is driving this for the both of you?”
Cami: “ I like fashion. I’ve always liked fashion. And I’m fairly good at fashion.
Robyn:“Cami’s really good at fashion.”
Cami: “And I can draw. I understand the body and I can draw. It’s hard to make a living as a painter so I have to find other ways to be creative.”
WT: “How do you think your relationship has changed?
Robyn: “It’s better! We are able to meet and hang out and it’s much more positive. We used to get together and talk about our day and it was great but it wasn’t always super positive but not we’re able to focus on something together and it’s so much more fun.”
“How serious are you about this in your life?”
Both: “Very serious.” [We then go on to discuss their schedules, how much time they're putting in and ten minutes later we smile as we piece it together – it is clear they intend on making this a full-time time gig.] “It’s a great because it’s only one season because it’s a really good starting point. We’re learning, a LOT, just as we go…
All images courtesy of Billie Danger.
