Hasta La Ideas

Following its recent stateside collaboration with the chain store Target, Liberty of London continues its resurgence by partnering with more alluring retailers around the world. In addition to a one-month pop-up with Parisian boutique Merci, and a four-piece handkerchief collection for Japan’s Tokyo-based department store, Isetan, Liberty’s most recent fusion is a limited edition spring/summer capsule line for the Milanese concept boutique 10 Corso Como.

The graphic-heavy 26-piece collection, available online as well as at Corso Como’s storefront and Liberty’s London flagship, includes apparel and accessories for both women and men in an updated version of Liberty’s iconic Ianthe print.

Corso Como’s founder and director Carla Sozzani commissioned the American artist (and a close personal friend) Kris Ruhs to reinterpret the Art Nouveau print for a decidedly more psychedelic effect than many of the classic florals gracing this spring’s collections. The resulting fresh and kaleidoscopic eyeful of swirls and teardrop shapes looks just right for warm days ahead.

Button-down shirts, dresses and ties in Italian cotton poplin, as well as swimwear and silk scarves, canvas totes and leather wallets, all come in color schemes of yellow, pink, and cream or black-and-white.

Pick it up online at Liberty of London and 10 Corso Como.

With one successful collaboration already under their belt, two of fashion’s most loved luxury brands recently teamed up again for another winning collection. First lady fave Lanvin and modern multi-disciplinarians Acne this time came up with lightweight, well-cut silhouettes referencing classic looks from both brands. Acne’s strength shows in the use of quality Japanese denim over typical wide-shuttle woven alternatives, while the resulting inventive glamour of the dresses, skirts and tops comes from the signature drapes and flourishes of Lanvin’s Alber Elbaz.

Touches of ruffles and ruching, positioned slightly below the hip or nestling on the collar bone, draw the eye to all the right places. While the color scheme mostly tones it all down with shades of black and blue, a jet-black tunic intricately studded with silver and crystals pushes it in a tribal direction with a breastplate design.

As yet there’s no menswear, but if the past two collections are anything to go by, it won’t be long. With perfect spring looks and an abundance of style, we wouldn’t be surprised if it was a perennial thing. Prices start at $900 and it’s all available from
Acne’s online shop.

Photographer Ross Evertson‘s 2007 trip to The Great Western Alpaca Show highlights the strangely fuzzy annual springtime exhibition, recently featured by Good Magazine. From shearing contests to best in show, the livestock-friendly fair finds a little something for every Alpaca lover.

Featuring their famous long hair, the Alpaca photo shoot takes a behind-the-scenes look at the largest Alpaca show west of the Mississippi. and continues to expand as Alpaca fleece becomes more popular. Known for its durability and environmental sustainability, clothing labels such as Rogan use Alpaca wool to create ultra-warm and eco-friendly attire.

Check out the full slide show, complete with Alpaca portraits, at Good Magazine.

Founded in 2006 around a conceptual branding approach “seeking to broaden the opinion of what design really means,” Odeur uses “a unique scent and its molecular structure as a replacement for the traditional, word-based logotype.” The upshot, clothes fragranced with an airy, light smell comparable to CK One and a pyramid-shaped symbol, sets the tone for forward-thinking looks that, this season, incorporate subtly odd details like boat-necked and pleated tees.

Inspired by “sun faded lines and transparent gossamer surfaces,” the Spring/Summer 2010 collection uses a washed-out palate of blues and grays in jersey, building on their last season for a series of oversize tees and deeply pleated bottoms that play to an emerging men’s silhouette. This new proportion—exaggerated tops paired with slimmer pants—works equally well for (and is perhaps inspired by) women.

Odeur sells online from Oki-Ni (which we’re excited to report now also carries P.A.M.), starting at £75. See more images after the jump.

Bangkok-born artist Korakrit Arunanondchai originally created his wildly-colorful, limited-edition clothing label Kora-Krit as an extension of his digitally-influenced art. Working chiefly with silkscreen printing, Arunanondchai intended for visitors to his gallery shows to wear the pieces for a fully immersive and visually seamless experience.

The RISD grad (now based in Brooklyn, NY) takes up various themes in his work, but considers them all to have a shared feeling. He sees his layered compositions as a fortunate glimpse of a fleeting moment, like “a bunch of kids playing basketball” who appear to fight and dance as they bump into each other on the court. But in Arunanondchai’s amped-up world, the scene plays out at an even faster tempo and is possibly “happening in the sky.”

The current collection borrows strong graphic shapes found in video games, particularly the letters X and O, as well as triangle and square shapes. Printed on neon fabrics, the choice links the apparel back to his black light art installation on the same subject.

The forthcoming project, dubbed “Thrs” for the typical gallery opening night, takes Arunanondchai back to a simple black, white and gray palette for series of intricate prints that explore computer-generated gallery spaces. (Pictured above.)

A fan of Hieronymus Bosch, the phantasmagorical world Arunanondchai creates has something in common with contemporaries like Ryan McGinness, who similarly makes densely-layered imagery that toes the line between organization and chaos. On the fashion side, the artist’s futuristic prints connect him to those seen in the most recent collections by Proenza Schouler and the late Alexander McQueen (also a fellow Bosch admirer). His passion for creating an unabbreviated universe has led to multi-media installations that transcend physical boundaries, as well as projects as tangible as a laptop for Dell.

Kora-Krit sells online or from La Forêt in Tokyo with prices starting at $29.