Hasta La Ideas

The handsewn driving gloves from legendary leather purveyor Dunhill make the perfect accessory for a Sunday afternoon drive this spring.

Steeped in history, Dunhill came about over 100 years ago when Alfred Dunhill took over his father’s saddle business in London. The rise of the early automobile led Dunhill to create a line of accessories called Dunhill’s Motorities under the slogan “Everything But The Motor.”

Known for its refined sense of adventure, the luxury brand’s beige driving gloves epitomize that spirit. They sell online from Dunhill for $250.

The Whitney Museum store recently tapped Portland-based print, clothing and design wares shop Stand Up Comedy to conceive a new tote that would accommodate the weight and size of the typical art book. The resulting limited edition Book Bag is functionally pleasing, designed with super long straps and durable reinforced handles. Treated with abstract color washes in either gorgeously muted gray or pink, as well as a warm yellow tone, the look resists “popular graphic rhetoric.”

The label sewed each of the 300 canvas bags in Portland and inked, stamped and numbered them by hand. Book Bag comes in three colorways—Hard (gold), Neutral (gray) and Soft (pink)—and sells online as well as the Whitney Museum store for $36.

L.A.-based architect and interior designer
Alice Park‘s side project focuses on objects considerably smaller than that of an average California home. She brings a hip, sleek minimalism to her line of accessories, which includes keychains, totes and wallets made out of incredibly soft kidskin leather (and sometimes twill).

She designed her line with her own needs in mind. “I make something I like or need, have it produced, and then see if anyone else likes it enough to purchase it,” Park said in an e-mail. Items move in and out of production dependent on demand, availability of quality sources and if she has the time.

Ranging between $26 to $800, check out her collection online at Alice Park, and buy them through the OK Store in Los Angeles or Canoe. See the slide show below for more images.

Following her eponymous label’s dazzling debut last fall, London-based fashion designer Holly Fulton has been on one stellar ascent. In keeping with the momentum, her current Spring/Summer 2010 collection delivers a fantastically vivid flashback to New York circa 1930. While floral and animal prints seem to be the dominating trends this season, the Scottish designer speaks to her signature aesthetic with a series of bold prints and geometric patterns—an Art Deco-inspired tribute to iconic silhouettes adorning the Manhattan skyline.

A recent graduate of London’s Royal College of Art and a recipient of the 2009 Scottish Fashion Awards‘ Young Designer of the Year, Fulton took inspiration from artist Eduardo Paolozzi‘s 1964 colorful screenprint graphic “Wittgenstein in New York for her current collection’s tenor, which includes dresses seemingly suited for the opening party of the Empire State Building.

Emblazoned on silk, lightweight wool and even patent leather, Fulton’s hand-drawn prints—meticulously rendered swirling lines, sharp angles and tromp l’oeil details—recall the architectural embellishments of structures like Rockefeller Center, while visually bold clutches and bib-sized necklaces in lucite, crystal and metal show off her talents as an accessories designer (before launching her own line in 2009, she cut her teeth designing accessories at Lanvin).

The Spring/Summer 2010 collection is available in stores throughout Europe and Asia, and can be purchased online through the London department store Browns.