stockholm fashion week: hunkydory

stockholm fashion week: minju kim

(images via damernas)

although i’m often at odds with the outcomes of these design competitions, i don’t think i could have found anyone better than minju kim and her amazing a/w 2013 range as the recipient of the 2013 h&m design award at stockholm fashion week. on their site, they quoted the designer as explaining that “(t)he idea of ‘DEAR MY FRIEND’ started from the observation of the people around me, disguised as “a friend “. It’s during my school life here in Antwerp I’ve met people that let me experience a lot of different emotions like sadness, happiness, and some others I really can’t describe. When we finish high school, the first thing that we try is evolving in a mature way. But everybody loves in different ways.” amazing, non?

(see the video here)

stockholm fashion week: marimekko

(images via rodeo)

i’ve been so happy since finnish textile label marimekko ventured into the world of ready to wear, as we saw with their nyfw debut for the s/s 2013 season. and while they didn’t appear in new york for whatever reason this time around, we were lucky enough to see their a/w 2013 range on the stockholm fashion week catwalk, where, although we’re still zooming through and only spotlighting each label for the images, we can quickly excerpt from the mbfws site, which informed us that the collection “was inspired by the clean geometry of 1920s and 1930s art and its similarity with primitive folk art, and exuberant autumnal gardens.”

(check out the collection video here)

stockholm fashion week: busnel

(images via mbfws)

we’ve been covering the preppy swedish label busnel for a good while (see a/w 2011, s/s 2012, s/s 2013), and while i’m definitely sorry that we’re fast-forwarding through and won’t have the time to fully explore the a/w 2013 range presented at stockholm fashion week, the mbfws site nevertheless was there to give some handy background, informing us that the designers drew from the world of equestrians, something that fits in with the label’s overall posh vibe nicely, non?

stockholm fashion week: menckel

stockholm fashion week: menckel

stockholm fashion week: norrback

(images via damernas)

okay, my lovely kiddies, the time has now come to try to zip through the s/s 2013 norrback show at stockholm fashion week (that, yes, happened like a million years ago, but bear with me, because we’ve almost concluded our discussion of this event finally). 

but before we get into a little quick overview, i though i should probably take a moment to point out that if you’re thinking the name sounds familiar, it’s because it is.  we’ve seen designer camilla norrback’s main line at mbfws in the past (for s/s 2011), and also in berlin (a/w 2011), and this appears to be her diffusion line. 

so, right, then.  anyway, according to brand’s press release reprinted on the mbfws site, the spring range was called ‘arabian haze,’ and was “inspired by the Libyan revolution followed by Tunisian and Egyptian revolts and their fight for liberty. The collection is also nostalgically influenced by Beirut in the 60´s, the time of economic growth and glamour, of libertarian spirit and cultural openness. The key silhouettes are inspired by the drapey and voluminous Arabic shapes.”

they carried on to add that “(o)ur prints are as often, animal inspired. Feathers stand for a bird’s freedom and the swan is the symbol of change, a new start. The swan´s natural elegance is how we want our Norrback women to feel like.”

elsewhere, the swedish om magazine commented that (trans.) “Norrback collections always have a soft, feminine and sophisticated silhouette with elements borrowed from nature, mother earth, and a recurring focus on craftsmanship and awareness. For summer 2013, the chief designer and founder Camilla Norrback added the Arab Spring and the 60’s glamorous Beirut to their sources of inspiration…Beautiful garments in soft materials, with volume and Arab-inspired draping.”

and finally, we heard from rodeo, which wondered—interestingly enough, as honestly, it was something that hadn’t crossed my mind, though now i wonder if they could be right—if, in light of recent events in libya, if choosing it was the appropriate thing to do for something as lightweight as fashion.  i can only say in ms. norrback’s defense that these collections are planned quite in advance, and anyway, there certainly are many beautiful, people, customs, and historical moments in the country to celebrate apart from some terrible events and tragedies, so that might be what the designer was trying to focus on.

alas, we shouldn’t end on that heavy note, though, so they did go on to reflect that there were some lovely patterns, and i’d agree.  everything was pretty, wearable, and if a little on the light and flip side, then so much the better, as sometimes in these northern climes, it can be fun to truly appreciate the summer when it does come.

(check out some additional show photos at fashionising)

(enjoy the complete collection video here)

stockholm fashion week: carin wester

(images via mbfws)

do you want to hear something funny?  well, i think it’s funny.  so.  i’ve pretty much always admired the work of swedish designer carin wester, appreciating the manner in which she produces pretty, interesting, yet wearable and daily-life appropriate clothing for women at her stockholm fashion week shows (see s/s 2011, a/w 2011, s/s 2012, a/w 2012), while at the same time the purveyor of new york ‘model off duty’ cool, alexander wang (see a/w 2010, resort 2011, a/w 2012, s/s 2013, pre-fall 2013)…not so much (seriously, i always want to know what the big deal is). 

and really, who would ever put those two together?  certainly not me.  and yet, interestingly enough for all of us, the 1988 film working girl aligns both houses.  mr. wang’s first nyfw collection, for the s/s 2008 season was inspired by the film, as was ms. wester’s latest effort, for the s/s 2013 season in stockholm.  and yeah, i know i shouldn’t be surprised, but really, i wouldn’t necessarily have picked these two to be drawn to the same thing (at all).

anyway, as we heard it courtesy of the mbfws site, the spring range “is dedicated to the independent, modern woman who stays in the city during the summer. Inspired by the characters of the 1980s movie Working Girl, the strict ‘office suit’ changes to a more casual outfit for a late evening on a terrace or a long weekend by the lake. The perfect man she is looking for distances himself from the classic suit, revealing contemporary elegance with a relaxed attitude.”

elsewhere, the swedish site damernas argued—correctly, i think—that although the designer was using the eighties as her inspiration, unlike mr. wang (they didn’t say that, though), the (trans.) “(s)horts-and-blazer-look comes from there, but she has managed to turn it into a 2000s outfit.”  i think they meant 2010s, but whatever, i agree.

elsewhere, i believe the swedish site bon also made some relevant points in arguing that the show was about (trans.) “(r)elaxed chic guys and girls who spend the summer in the city and moving between the office and a roof terrace in Manhattan. And certainly there are some eighties references in the garments. But if the collection breathes any city, rather it is Stockholm. With its androgynous, subtly sexy (this is not an easy trick to enhance breasts, butts or chests) garments making Carin Wester perhaps the ultimate fashion designer…”

they also reflected, and i agreed wholeheartedly here as well, that after a couple of seasons of being a bit ‘off’, she’s totally ‘on’ again.  and finally, we heard from rodeo, relating that “(s)trong, determined, ambitious and destined to be a force – these are our heroines characteristics from the film, yet down our electric yellow runway we saw a looser more feminine approach to our leading ladies. Striking blue and clover green are our impact colors, paired with a singular print that marry all the vibrant colors with graphite and yellow. I did see a great deal of ‘Katharine Parker’ in the collection; single button, square-shaped jackets often coated with long masculine lines” (enjoy some additional images at coute que coute). 

(see the collection video here)

stockholm fashion week: busnel

(images via mbfws)

okay, yes, yes, i’m aware how completely ridiculous it is that it has been taking so long to move through some of these back shows, but rest assured, i’m trying to cover them with a short overview just as quick as i can, so that we can be back on track.  and really, i don’t think it feels right to skip labels like busnel, which admittedly, we haven’t been covering as closely as some of the others at stockholm fashion week, but which we’ve nevertheless discussed at least a couple of seasons prior to this (see a/w 2011 & s/s 2012)

anyway, the house, which often casts its lot into a mix of scandinavian clean minimalism flavoured with a french nautical twist for the s/s 2013 season opted to go for, as the swedish site damernas described (trans.) “(w)ell-tailored and marine [looks], with a hint of pink and orange.”

meanwhile, the swedish blog pernillas värld got a little more descriptive about the collection, opining that it was (trans.) “(c)lassic, elegant and timeless. Busnel delivers a spring & summer collection that exudes French style meets the Middle East,” as the swedish elin fagerberg trilled that (trans.) “(t)he bubblegum pink, peach and blue tones are a hit!”

elsewhere, the mbfws site appeared to have grabbed ahold of the label’s press release, giving us more information in describing the idea for spring as “(a) timeless and elegant beauty stands on the French coast, watching the sun rise from the east. She’s a French girl – classic navy stripes, pleats and gold buttons are the defining details.”

“But imagine… That classic French style meeting Middle Eastern fashion, where traditional midnight blue, sand and white intersect with sweet orange, fairy pink and icy aqua in short or long and straight silhouettes,” they rattled on. “As ever, Busnel’s attention to detail and fabric choices are represented through silk and wool of the highest quality.”

and finally, the examiner weighed in, writing that “(n)t absolutely sure what exactly designer Marina Kereklidou had in mind with this particularly religious motif, but models wore long flowing gowns and loose-fitting pants, shirts and an Arab-like head garment with a headband around the head that makes one question: Jesus?”

“Similarly,” they continued, “there were short tunics that were worn with and without harem style cuffed pants, which makes one question if this particular collection is aimed at a particular demographic in Sweden or Europe and beyond…At the same time, this quasi Middle-Eastern look with its long and short, loose flowing tunics, caftans, rope belts and head bands comprising of ropes or leather thongs, looks quite hippy-ish, as if to usher in the ‘Age of Aquarius’ which we have apparently just entered” (see additional collection images at fashionising).

(enjoy the show video here)

stockholm fashion week: hope

(images via mbfws)

i could probably take us a lot of places nattering on about how difficult labels make it on us when they name themselves things like hope, a rather new house to the ranks of stockholm fashion week, and introducing themselves to opt with the s/s 2013 range.  but i’m not going to.  instead i’m going to say that i enjoyed the breezy, cute, and wearable sportswear. 

anyway, according to the mbfws site, “(f)or its s/s 2013 collection, Hope is inspired by the handicraft of macramé. This folk art was created by sailors in Japan and Europe in the 17th century. This season, we knot together the yellow sun to the blue sky and the glittering silver of the ocean to set the tone of the collection.”

“The materials are raw, clean and structured,” they carried on, “including heavy linen and cotton canvas. The fact that male sailors developed this textile technique ties in to Hope, too, as the brand often straddles the boundary between masculine and feminine.”

sometimes it felt a bit heavy for a summer range for me, but then again, we’re in sweden, so we have to adapt.  and anyway, i particularly loved those striped trousers (above).  those could be for any time.

(check out a short collection video here)