While half of our team is in Toronto covering the Film Festival, our fashion director Liz McClean and her team have been busy making the rounds at New York Fashion Week. Since we aren’t exactly a “shopping” magazine, we’re less concerned about the top trends of the season or the celebrities wearing them. Instead, we’ve got our eye on the talented crop of designers behind the clothing, and the way they spin their inspirations into a cohesive collection. These are the designers who bring new ideas to the table, without ever wavering too far from the foundations and principles of strong, classic, design — something we aspire to do here every day at Corduroy as well!
Read our reviews and see photos from some of our favorite shows from the past few days, after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »
For his spring/summer presentation, Band of Outsiders designer Scott Sternberg turned Milk Studios into a California beach party, complete with mounds of sand, a tidal wave backdrop and even model airplanes. It was an elaborate set-up for his new men’s collection and BOY by Band of Outsiders women’s collection, inspired this season by 1970s Malibu and Beach Boy Dennis Wilson’s solo album “Pacific Ocean Blue.”
The influences were seen in both collections, with cuffed khakis, boat-neck sweaters and shrunken blazers for women, and light tuxedo suiting, chambray shirts and madras prints for the guys. The look for women was loose and relaxed (think pleated drawstring dresses and oversized boyfriend shirts), while the men sported trimmer silhouettes with subtle details like silk trim on the blazers, and inside-out shirts and polos. Band of Outsiders’ footwear partnership with Sperry also continues for spring/summer, with reconstructed penny loafers and suede/nylon boat shoes and chukkas (The women’s shoes were made by — get this — Manolo Blahnik, especially for the collection).
We love Band of Outsiders for being hip without being trendy, and Sternberg has a way of taking classic pieces and updating them with modern, unique touches that make them refreshing to see and wear. In fact, we saw more than a few pieces that we wanted in our closet. And judging by the huge turnout for the presentation (celebs like Kirsten Dunst and Jason Schwartzman included), we can safely assume that the clothes will be in many other closets this season as well.
We took our FLIP camera with us to fashion week this year. Check out video clips we shot of the models hanging out at the Band of Outsiders presentation below:
We stopped by the Band of Outsiders studio when we were in L.A. earlier this summer and spent some time chatting with founder/designer Scott Sternberg (who is quickly becoming a bit of a personal style hero for me with his line of classic, perfectly-cut shirts and suits). During a quick tour around his office, we couldn’t help but notice the collection of vintage polaroid cameras that lined his shelf. As we here at Corduroy make it a point to take a polaroid of all the celebrities we interview, it was with some intrigue and excitement that we discovered Sternberg’s shared passion for the instant film camera. What began as a quick meet-and-greet to check out the label’s latest collection, turned into a lengthy conversation about the joy and unique qualities of polaroid film and the pangs of nostalgia we’re feeling now that the film and camera have been discontinued. It wasn’t long before Sternberg had picked up his camera to take a picture of us… and we happily reciprocated.
Having learned about his love for polaroids, we were stoked to see Sternberg’s vision come to life in Band of Outsiders’ latest lookbook, starring Jason Schwartzman. The actor-musician was photographed on Chung King Road in L.A.’s Chinatown, in a series of polaroids wearing clothing from Band’s fall 2009 collection. Schwartzman’s quirkiness gives a nice balance to the new looks, which range from double breasted blazers and penny loafers to wool flannel trousers and — what do you know — a structured corduroy jacket. Turns out we have more than a love of polaroids in common.
Check out a couple photos from Jason Schwartzman’s Band of Outsiders campaign below and see more images HERE. Then check out Corduroy’s celebrity polaroids (taken at the end of all our photoshoots) by clicking over to our gallery.
