The simple, heavyweight cotton Alphabet Bags from the creators of Keep Calm Gallery are now available in every urbanite’s favorite color—black. With the same classic typography as the first round of totes, Keep Calm screen prints each one in the UK and offers up the letter of your choice.
Designed by business partners and couple Hayley Thwaites and Lucas Lepola, the bags are £12 and can be purchased online.
Rapha Performance Roadwear’s new collaboration with tailor Timothy Everest, one of the leading practitioners of the New Bespoke Movement, isn’t doing anything to help stop the brand lust I already have for the cyclewear company. I was recently invited by Slate Olsen, Rapha’s General Manager for USA operations, to check it out at Signature Cycles’ Manhattan showroom near West End Avenue, a trek I made because I know Rapha doesn’t disappoint.
Timothy, who travels to New York nearly every six weeks for fitting appointments, was present to give me some details on the bespoke suit, which is the first piece to emerge from the twelve months of discussion with Rapha. The suit, he explained, draws on inspiration from both classic cycling imagery and more recent examples of urban cyclewear while maintaining Rapha’s commitment to elegant functionality.
Available in three beautiful patterns, the ensemble consists of a button-down jacket, a vest and either plus-fours or full length trousers (with an integrated button to hold the rolled cuffs while riding). The real beauty of it lies in the jacket. Timothy designed the piece with the utmost attention to a rider’s needs. The lower parts of the jacket can be fastened to the pockets so they don’t flap about while pedaling. The buttons close high, keeping the fit snug when leaning over the bars. This high cut also allows for a continuous line when the collar is flipped and buttoned.
In the back, Timothy added extra fabric to key stress points around the the armpits and upper spine so there’s plenty of room for the coat to expand when the wearer hunche over the handlebars. And, noting how exposed shirtsleeves can be an unintended consequence of cycling in a suit jacket, the coat sleeves are cuffed and can be turned down to make up for the extra arm length of a riding posture. Splashes of Rapha’s signature pink highlight many of these details; a smart reveal when the jacket is transformed from office to road ready.
Naturally, the suit wouldn’t make any sense in Rapha’s collection if the rider suffered from dysfunctional fabric. To this end, Timothy developed a proprietary blend of wool for use on the suit, the fibers of which have been treated with a nanotechnology for incredible resistance to water. He demonstrated this several times by pouring water on the floor, the result of it running right of the coat.
The bespoke suit is available immediately for $3,500. Appointments can be made by emailing the atelier: bespoke [at] timothyeverest [dot] com [dot] uk. Oh, and for those whose wallets are a little slim this year, fret not; plans are in the works for an off-the-rack version of the jacket this fall.
Design Indaba 09: the third in our series of videos from the Design Indaba conference and expo taking place in Cape Town this week features David Boira and Zoë Coombes of New York architecture and design outfit Commonwealth. (more…)
Known for its durability, style, quality and efficiency, Retrowerk‘s watch is both tech-savvy and ultra Army-strong. Featuring compasses, portholes, steel pistons, crown covers and revolving jump hour discs, the German watch is prepared for any adventure.
The Piston (left) is a good example of Retrowerk’s strong focus on design. It’s a cross between intricate mechanical detail and functional precision with Swiss ETA 2824 movement, a grenade-like cap and steamroller case, making it a watch to envy .
The Compass (right) features a thick glass and steel case enclosing the dial. It also has three discs, for hours, minutes and seconds for a fun way to watch the time fly by. People will definitely be impressed with this multi-functional piece of gadgetry.
Purchase in steel or brass with prices ranging from $429-$1,098.
Joining the design elite on Soho’s Greene Street, droog opened their multi-story NYC showroom, shop and exhibition space yesterday. Dutch designers Studio Makkink & Bey lent a hand with the interior, a space that blurs the lines between objects, store fittings and architecture with its House of Blue concept, which allows customers the opportunity to purchase parts or fixtures, like a working chimney, and even have it made to fit and function in their own home.
The 5,000 square foot space is the first stateside location for the Amsterdam-based design group, whose only other brick-and-mortar shop is in Tokyo. True to droog ethos, all three offering up a unique shopping experience.
Founded in 1993, droog has helped to launch the careers of many designers as well as shape the way people think about design itself with their innovative products and progressive approaches.
droog New York
76 Greene Street
New York, NY 10012 map
tel. +1 212 941 8350
“Stop Recycling, Start Repairing!”, says Core’s favorite Platform21. After Hacking IKEA (see photos), and a bunch of other great projects, new design activism is coming up!
The all new Repair Manifesto touches the joy of fixing things, sharing ingenious repairing tips and tricks in order to oppose to a throwaway culture and to celebrate repair as the new recycling.
If you want to support the Platform21 people in making repairing cool again then send your projects to info[at]platform21.com and you might see your project featured at their website or upcoming exhibition. Show opens on March 13, so get inspired, get started.
I’m digging the interface on LG’s new iPhone copy-petitor, the Arena:
Launched earlier this month at the World Mobile Congress 2009, the Arena’s new “S-Class” UI will, the company hopes, finally be able to pull people away from Apple’s walkie-talkie.
If you were one of those comic book geeks that put your issues in those clear mylar bags, then d_skin is probably for you.
“d_skin is a patented polycarbonate film that is a breakthrough in CD and data storage protection. d_skin is a thin layer that protects against scratches and other damage to CDs, DVDs, data, games, and other standard size discs,” writes Jon De Castro, the company’s webmaster. To see what he’s talking about:
Judging by web comments, X-Box users in particular may find this handy, as Microsoft’s gaming machine apparently has a tendency to scratch disks if jarred during play.
I was innocently poking around the boy’s closet one day when I found something that literally caused my jaw to drop- dangling from its hanger in a sea of polo shirts was a vintage MEMBERS ONLY nylon jacket! How I had not seen this before was beyond me, but the more pressing issue was the sudden realization that he is so much cooler than me now. Something had to be done. Kidding! But it’s difficult to deny the appeal of a MEMBERS ONLY jacket, which is why we were so excited when we heard that not only is the label back, but it’s better than ever with new styles, colors, and even a denim line! Last week we shared with you our interview with designer and creative director Kelli Delaney, and told about how you could enter to win a MEMBERS ONLY nylon jacket (in your choice of color) AND a pair of liquid leggings- that’s practically an entire outfit! Of course, we hope you’d wear at least a little more than just that, which is why we asked you to tell us how you’d style the goods if you were to win them. Click READ MORE to see if you won!
If you thought washing your back was hard, shaving it must be damn near impossible.
Those of you with excess body hair, someone has come out with a product for you: The Swerve, “designed to enable men to shave their own neck & upper back area,” writes Brian Seidenfrau, co-founder of the Swerve Team.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
