‘Untitled’ is the innovative new menswear project initiated by online retailer asos.com. Developed from the idea that limited edition products captivate men, ‘Untitled’ invites experts in denim, vinyl, trainers, sunglasses and new designers, to collate, and then offer to asos.com, a series of rare, hard to find or limited edition products for sale. The project propels menswear forward on asos.com and highlights some of the current creativity in men’s fashion and lifestyle products.

Denim expert Neil Christopher was eager to offer his services to asos.com. As a denim addict, Christopher has traveled America sourcing denim for hip stores in New York and Japan. Having worked for denim giants Boxfresh, Carhartt, North Sails and Levi’s he now develops garments for radical denim brand Kato. For ‘Untitled’ Christopher has had Kato products designed especially for the collection and all offered signed, numbered and in small quantities.

Limited edition sunglasses always cause limited edition envy, so asos.com invited expert Fraser Laing to offer his vision for the project. Archiv, Laing’s company was set up in 1997 to sell exclusive vintage eyewear. As Laing explains, “Since then there have been two main rules in pursuit of that goal. One; always keep eyewear which is emblematic of Arckiv’s style, and two; never sell anything which isn’t well designed or well made.” For the ‘Untitled’ project Laing has selected contemporary limited edition styles along with vintage frames such as the 5317, which was worn by iconic jazz musician Herbie Hancock in1986.

Rare vinyl has become something of style status symbol and vinyl authority Jim Henderson threw his support behind the ‘Untitled’ idea. Owner of the world’s largest independent record store Amoeba, Henderson offers music lovers every kind of music from the top 40, to the best in underground rock, hip-hop, soul, electronic, new and classic jazz, from his stores in San Francisco and Hollywood. “As with our amoeba stores and amoeba.com,” explains Jim Henderson, “asos represents a local and global culture with style, drawing from, but not flaunting its expertise. This particular project is introducing its users to new concepts and ideas, bringing an awareness of others who strive for expertise in their fields.” Amoeba’s leading vinyl-buying expert, Rick Frystak, selected the records for the project, choosing rare vinyl albums from multiple eras, genres and styles.

London based fashion writer and author of ‘Modern Menswear’, Hywel Davies approached new international menswear designers, and commissioned them to design limited edition garments especially for the ‘Untitled’ project. Swedish Patrik Soderstam, a graduate from Central Saint Martins, who describes himself as a clothes maker and multi-talent, has designed 5 different limited edition graphic t-shirts which are both bold and dynamic. Berlin based Carola Euler offers a grey pleat front sweatshirt combining her utilitarian design approach for this project. Another Berlin designer, Frank Leder has handmade wool scarves and combined his obsession with historical Germany but applying vintage enamel badges. London based Jean-Pierre Braganza contrasts with expertly cut patterns that emphasise the human figure and offer unexpected detailing- he’s low crotch, slim leg black wool trousers with leather panel detail. Deryck Walker completes the group with his new take on the white shirt, utilising his intricate pattern cutting and attention to detail.

On-line trainer store Crooked Tongues have been selling hard to find trainers since 2000, and were enlisted to attract all trainer geeks. Highlights of their selection include the Adidas 35th Superstar, which was the culmination of the celebrations surrounding 35 years of the Shelltoe. As Charlie Morgan from Crooked Tongue explains “It’s an iconic design that’s timeless and needs little introduction, but as the final release of 35, only a tiny run was released to friends of Adidas. The materials and packaging are incredible, and while few pieces maintain their original appeal, these are still something of a benchmark in how you present a premium, rare release.”

Asos.com is going to radical measures to offer directional and exclusive products for their customers. The project confirms asos.com menswear as a trend setting and opinion-forming brand, offering exciting and cool products to their style savvy shoppers. The Untitled collections launch on 16th October, but act quickly, as product is, of course, strictly limited edition.

For further information, images and samples please contact:
Rob Davies 020 7756 1027 robd@asos.com
Abi Oke 020 7756 1023 abio@asos.com

Gola x eBoy collaboration   
 
Gola, the Great British sports and trainer brand is collaborating with German pixel art collective eBoy for SS09. It is for the third time the two are joining forces. eBoy’s style is a presentation of 3D illustrations filled with structures, robots, cars, and girls inspired by pop culture, LEGO, computer games, topical issues and toy commercials. The brand’s signature style has gained a cult status and a following with graphic designers worldwide.

On the collaboration Donna Hill, PR and marketing manager of Gola commented: “The Gola by eBoy collaboration is an exciting development as eBoy’s vibrant pixel graphic designs perfectly compliment Gola’s ethos for colourful funky footwear design. The eBoy team has been great to work with, this has been a real team project as we’ve used the key attributes of each brand and fused them together with fabulous results.”

The new range features three footwear styles and a selection of bags for both men and women. Designs include ‘city’ options from eBoy’s city themes and signature ‘Eater’ character. The used materials are a mix of leather and canvas across a variety of high and low tops. The collection will be sold globally through selected stores.

Finally, Martin Ksohoh has relented and produced authentic Red Monkey Company denim shorts for the Spring/Summer 2009 Collection. Apparently the shorts will be available in the stores late this year.

Pringle of scotland collection - Menswear autumn/winter 2008

Pringle of scotland’s autumn/winter 2008 menswear collection is inspired by the lean, sleek silhouettes of the 60s and 70s, combining pringle’s pre-eminence in creating exquisite knitwear with refined modernity in tailoring and outerwear. Fabrics are always luxurious, often sourced from british mills or created exclusively for pringle of scotland.

The collection takes a closer look at colour; strong accents of rich berry or purple and pops of mustard are bold highlights within a palette of stone, grey melange, snow, pale lilac and navy.

This season’s chunky handknits experiment with new stitch techniques and innovative fabric mixes. A super-soft chinchilla-cashmere mix cable knit is the ultimate in luxury, and pure cashmere or super-fine merinos appear in a range of styles featuring shawl and roll collars or button detailing at the neck. Argyles are approached with an abstract eye, reinterpreted with graphic sensibility, whilst icelandic fairisle designs are also visited. Finest 18-gauge merino knits are perfect for layering under silk printed shirts, which incorporate graphic stylised paisleys and 60’s retro prints.

In outerwear, a traditional belted trench coat reflects a military influence and is updated using bonded and seamsealed finishes — a wool-panelled collar and leather epaulets are new details. Peacoats feature widely in luxurious cashmeres or silkwool herringbones and a blouson shape is interpreted in refined fabrications.

Following chat on Kitmeout about the various Boss brands, here is the official brand list:

HUGO BOSS is represented in the fashion market by the BOSS and HUGO brands. These brand collections and their fashion lines are aimed at various target groups, creating a brand world of extraordinary fashion diversity at a constantly high level of quality.The BOSS Black, BOSS Selection, BOSS Orange and BOSS Green lines as well as the accompanying accessory collections are all part of the core BOSS brand.

BOSS Black
The womens- and menswear collections in the BOSS Black line offer versatile fashion ranges with a rich array of elegant “modern classics” in business-, leisure- and formalwear: perfect looks that satisfy the most demanding tastes and accentuate the wearer’s personality.

BOSS Selection
The womens- and menswear collections in the BOSS Black line offer versatile fashion ranges with a rich array of elegant “modern classics” in business-, leisure- and formalwear: perfect looks that satisfy the most demanding tastes and accentuate the wearer’s personality.

BOSS Orange
The BOSS Orange collections offer leisurewear for men and women who enjoy dressing in style and sporting surprising looks. Unconventional material mixes, a playful approach to proportions, and contrasting colors and patterns appeal to a savvy clientele that delights in experimentation.

BOSS Green
BOSS Green presents golf- and sportswear for men that pairs classic cuts with refreshing designs in brand new constellations. The line successfully bridges the gap between fashionable sports apparel and sportswear fashions.

HUGO
HUGO delivers unconventional looks for men and women: clothes that are progressive yet never overstated. The collections feature architectonic lines and new takes on classic shapes. By offering trendsetting design and superior quality, HUGO satisfies the high expectations of´its fashion-conscious customers.

Mad Madge, whose latest single is in support of Barack Obama, isn’t the only one injecting politics in to pop music. Vivienne Westwood is tossing her hat into the ring too: “I’ve written a political song about the legalized, 42-day detention of suspected terrorists,” said the designer at the London launch of her compilation CD at Selfridges on Monday. “I never listen to the radio, but I had to recently to see who’s out there to sing it. I didn’t like any of them! So it looks like I’ll have to. I’m not a singer really, but I’ll do something.” Westwood’s CD “Catwalk Breakdown,” a selection of favorite tracks by everyone from Tchaikovsky, The New York Dolls and Luca Mainardi, is on sale this week in Selfridges’ in-house concept store the Wonder Room. Maybe she can get Johnny Rotten on backing vocals.

Maison Martin Margiela 20th anniversary exhibition   

Martin Margiela, the reclusive and elusive Belgian fashion designer, is celebrating 20 years of his deconstructive label. Recognizable by white hand-stitched branding, Maison Martin Margiela (20), the exhibition, is not a classic retrospective exhibition, instead exploring the different themes and concepts the house has embraced during the 20 years of its various collections, catwalk shows, concept design, branding and communications policy.

Margiela’s entire work is characterized by an exceptional combination of classic tailoring and conceptual thinking. His garments depict the inside of a clothing item, exposing its construction and focusing on that which fashion anxiously tries to conceal. Unraveling the language of clothing, Maison Martin Margiela reveals the strategies of the fashion system as he constructs something radically new. The working method produces an analysis of the system that underlies fashion and is followed through in the many varied aspects of the fashion house.

In addition to his 20th anniversary exhibition, Maison Martin Margiela is also launching a collaboration with Italian jeweller Damiani this November. A 14 piece collection of rings and pendants, deceptively transformed from earrings, will be available in yellow and pink gold and silver, all bearing the number 12. The classic signet ring has been deconstructed to be worn as either a bracelet or a pendant, oval links are sized up to form chunky, skeleton-like necklaces and bracelets.

The Martin Margiela exhibition runs from 12 September until 8 February 2009 at the Antwerp Mode Museum. limited-edition items designed specifically for the exhibition will be on sale.

There is also a rumour Martin Margiela will be collaborating with a famous Eastern denim brand.

Urban lifestyle brand Carrot Clothing can trace its roots back to 1999, a tumultuous time for the brand founder’s native Serbia. In a noble effort to uplift lagging spirits and voice personal concerns about freedom, he began printing t-shirts featuring unmuted anti-war messages for family and friends.

Since then, he has joined forces with skateboarders, street artists, and other creative minds to establish Carrot Clothing, a brand whose very essence is based upon the family-like relationships between global art, skate, and street communities. The brand aims to transcend typical business aspirations, hoping to inject the streetwear industry with its own unique perspective. In the two years since its inception, Carrot has developed into a globally-recognized lifestyle brand with an exciting collection available in more than 20 countries worldwide. Carrot hopes to continue on its promising journey with the hope of inspiring people in the same way that they themselves have been inspired by the remarkable feats of others.

Trousers London is a London-based premium men’s jeanswear label. The brand was launched in early 2008 by a team of four creatives whose training and professional experience span the fields of design, architecture, advertising and business. This multi-disciplinary background helped fuse into being the brand these visionaries had so boldly imagined.

Trousers London is an experimental, ambitious, future-focused jeans label inspired by London. From unique designs and shapes, to small but important details, Trousers London stands alone among the clones of the daily jeans parade. Trousers London makes jeans for the genuine modern day gentlemen, for the man who loves the thrill of the new and is always at the forefront of the avant-garde. This season, however, brings the launch of new designs for the ladies, a slim leg and a bootleg flare with the distinctive tailoring and quirks of the men’s lines.

We at Trousers London believe in ecologically friendly materials and we care that our products are not born of exploitation. Our range is crafted with patience and skill in small batches, in our Italian factory using organic premium denim.

Each new jeans model is numbered in the order of its design. Our debut collection consisted of Trousers ‘One’, ‘Two’, ‘Three’ and ‘Four’. To ensure the exclusivity of our jeans, as well as carefully selecting materials and applying intricate details, every pair is given a unique ID number. The first batch, available from August 2008, is limited to 600 pairs.

A Major Kitmeout Shout:

This K-Swiss Lined Jacket features perforated microfibre cire and padded collar detailing. Striped velour lining for an extra touch of cool. MSRP $175.00. This is the Black version. Perforated microfibre ciré jacket with padded collar detail. Striped velour lining and elastic waistband cuff.

This is part of K-Swiss’ premium apparel line which is sold at Barney’s and Saks’ Fifth Ave. There are always a handful of pieces that just stand out as perfect and cool. This jacket is one of those. It’s made of preforated nylon and crafted in a true windbreaker style. It’s lined in the inside and a high quality piece.

K-Swiss was founded in 1966 by two Swiss brothers who were well known international skiers. After moving to California, the brothers became fanatic tennis players and developed the K-Swiss ‘Classic’, the first successful American leather tennis shoe. Their experience with skiing equipment is suggested in some now purely visual elements like the characteristic 5 stripes and the D-rings.

The ‘Classic’ has remained unchanged and as a real classic is still available next to the broad range of styles K-Swiss offers today.

Competition details are here: http://forum.kitmeout.com/online-competitions/5989-k-swiss-competition.html#post34286

Visit K-Swiss

Cole Haan, a wholly-owned subsidiary of NIKE, Inc., today announced Maria Sharapova as a lead collaborator and the face of Cole Haan Sporting, a new collection for Spring 2009, rooted in sport and remixed with fashion.

Cole Haan Sporting stakes out fresh territory with a new, dynamic pairing of Cole Haan’s authentic craftsmanship and Nike’s sports innovation. The collection introduces new technologies like Flywire which build on the successful Nike Air franchise by recasting them into fashion-forward designs.

The Spring 2009 global launch of Cole Haan Sporting includes men’s and women’s footwear and accessories, and features international tennis champion Maria Sharapova. This lifestyle fashion collection will encompass day to evening silhouettes in both the footwear and accessories categories.

“Maria Sharapova embodies the blend of fashion and sport that makes Cole Haan Sporting unique,” said Cole Haan Chief Executive Officer James Seuss. “We created this collection as the foundation to a dynamic lifestyle - weaving Cole Haan’s history of craftsmanship with Nike’s tradition of high-performance innovation.”

Maria Sharapova, 21, is a triple Grand Slam winner who has a longstanding passion for style. She will step into the role of collaborator for the Fall 2009 season.

“Cole Haan Sporting proves that fashion and technology can work together to change the way women think about and wear sport-inspired product,” said Sharapova. “I look forward to working with Cole Haan to bring new innovations to this leading fashion brand with such a rich history.”

For Spring 2009, Cole Haan Sporting will embody sport style with a collection inspired by nautical, court, track, and golf. The women’s footwear collection includes elevated wedges, chic flats and sleek sandals. Signature men’s styles include the brand’s iconic boat shoe and edgy lace-ups in bold color palettes paired with classic neutrals.

This new collection will continue to showcase Nike Air, an innovation that has enabled Cole Haan to redefine luxurious style and comfort. Outside, the styles are pure Cole Haan, luxurious and fashion-forward; inside, they share Nike’s innovative technology that debuted in Beijing.

The accessory collection encompasses a range of silhouettes from a tennis racquet bag to a versatile duffle. Continuing to weave style with innovation, the accessories will be created from recycled plastic bottles and will be trimmed in vegetable chrome-free leather. Cole Haan Sporting will be sold at Cole Haan boutiques worldwide, luxury department stores and on colehaan.com. Price points range from $115 to $200 (footwear) and $225 to $550 (accessories).

55DSL the Italian streetwear brand 55DSL related to Diesel, shares their Fall Winter ‘08 collection.

The graphic story of 55DSL’s Fall Winter ‘08 collection was inspired by hi-fidelity stereo equipment and twisted references to the late 80’s. Quirky audiocassette graphics, as well as old LP covers, are corrupted with our usual irreverence. Besides the main theme, we still haven’t freed ourselves from our habitual obsession with dynamic and abstract geometric graphics - sometimes softened up by mimicking a hand-drawn style.

Three saturated colours feature in this collection: hot-red, turquoise and purple. These lie alongside the more seasonal colours of military green, grey and white - two T-shirt programs are presented only in white to give maximum relief to the prints.

Our silhouettes are polarized between super-slim and wildly oversize, especially in the pants collection, with a wide range on offer: from the super slim fit of the coloured gabardine, to the extra loose of our oversize raw-denim jeans.

As usual we’ve presented a thoroughly complete range of jackets. Lightweight sport jackets, such as our dip-dyed program, are augmented by new heavyweight options - including a pair of aggressive jackets in tough aviation-style satin and a seen-to-be-believed military parka named Jagg for male and Jagg-FL for female! The spotlight however, is on our new FiftyFifty5 range, positioned halfway between our jacket and sweatshirts - They’re comfortable lightweight garments with a slim silhouette, worn like a sweat but offering the protection of a jacket. Wearable all year round, an ideal range for city use when you’re constantly swapping between in and outdoors. The highlight of this range is a sublimation printed check on a polyester piquet, lined in black sports mesh. In addition we developed another light weight multi purpose jacket with a sublimatic all-over print, containing all ingredients of the seasonal graphics.

The denim collection has increased fourfold this season, consistently growing in response to its increasing success. The extreme fit of our slim models has led to about a third of our fabrics being stretch or at least comfort. Coloured denim has been a real hit for 55DSL in the past and continues this season with a selection of both bright and more sober earthy hues. A new quality of coloured lurex denim is available for the party crowd. Black is featured in an array of interpretations, from resin coated black/black, black spray on grey, unwashed stretch and acid wash. Blue denim represents about half the collection and goes from unwashed organic to ripped vintage  finishes.

This season’s pants collection becomes more varied than ever before, with an accentuation of our “proprietary” silhouette featuring a wide leg with a rib finish on the bottom - which nips in the silhouette in round the ankles. Fabrics range from roller-painted broken twill, micro-herringbone jacquard, cotton/nylon double-face and street-map-camouflage (which is based on a street map of our home town, Marostica.) A more frivolous “dancing ladies”- camouflage in the same colour range, is available for our girls. A couple of sturdy but sexy all-in-ones are the must haves for this season’s fashionados  .

Our sweats are an eclectic mix, from rugged looking military hoodies, to refined melange sweats lined in satin - a kind of street chic. Sweats with detachable details in nylon and a sophisticated stretch quality complete the offer. Shirts are similarly diverse, with a series of hooded models and a stunning check - hand sprayed with in a range of bright, strong colours.

Tees and polo shirts are in many ways the focal point of our collections and as usual the offer is immense. Process (CYMK) printed pima cotton - an ultra high quality cotton - lies beside sublimation printed melange, irregularly died jersey, ultra shiny interlock and heavy cotton/hemp jersey. Each program has a dedicated tailor-made graphic style of its own. A new addition to this part of the collection is 10.55. A limited-edition series of Tees designed by internationally sourced artists. Each season 55DSL will select 5 artists from around the globe and give them total freedom to design their exclusive graphic to be printed on a 55DSL T-shirt. The selected artists for FW’08 are: Brosmind (Spain), Andrew Rementer (USA), Luke Insect (UK), Arthur King (France) and Komatsu 1000 (UK).
In addition a small series of sublimatic printed mesh was designed for the girls collection, by our very talented in house graphic artist Rinii (GR).

This season we are proud to announce a series of creative collaborations with two high-profile brands. KWAY, the renowned French company famous for their iconic ‘80s anoraks, has worked with 55DSL to develop a co-branded special edition version of their classic KWAY jacket. For FW’08 it’s presented in two stark colours – black and red - with both the companies’ logos on the front and a 55DSL graphic on the back. NEW ERA, a brand famous worldwide for their baseball caps, has also been chosen for a collaboration with 55DSL. They’re producing three co-branded caps for us: two with our shield logo embroidery and one in our camouflage. All three carry their trade-mark gold sticker on the peak of each cap. Both collaborations were carefully chosen to highlight our shared brand heritage and values.

Started in London in November 2007, ARMREVOLUTION is a new men’s luxury accessories brand that is re-inventing the design of cufflinks. The products are so different that the company refers to them as ‘arm architecture’.

All ARMREVOLUTION “arm architecture” or cufflinks come with luxurious packaging, with access to special ARMREVOLUTION events and with a leather traveling case. Founder and Chairman, Anthony Hayward, states, ?Innovation is key to every aspect of ARMREVOLUTION “we want people to expect the same advances in the design of Cufflinks as they do within the luxury watch industry. Many of our clients are watch connoisseurs and want to wear cufflinks that complement that sort of
quality.”

SNEAK PEAK: atmos x K-Swiss Fall 2008 Check out the new collaboration between atmos and K-Swiss. This 6 shoe collection is set to debut on Sept 18, 2008 at Atmos Harlem as well as Sak’s Fifth Avenue with Atmos Tokyo set to debut on Sept 28, 2008. There are only 300 pairs globally and will be split between Japan and USA. K-Swiss will be hosting an event in both Toyko and Harlem to launch the collection on Sept 18. Invite attached. Featured shoes include: atmos Classic Los - $100.00 US: Crocodile embossed leather with pearlized leather stripes and lining in metallic shades of silver and gold with D-ring lacing. atmos Classic Luxury Edition Boot Jewel - $150.00 US: Crocodile embossed leather with pearlized back pull strap and lining in metallic shades of silver and gold, D-ring lacing, and snake pearlized leather stripes with crystals. atmos Si-18 Bristel High - $120 US: Gull Gray leather and medieval blue suede high top with gold accents and D-ring lacing. atmos Si-18 Rannell - $120 US: Gull Gray leather and fiery red suede running inspired style with gold accents and D-ring lacing.

Red Monkey reveal a number of incredible new designs at The Magic, Vegas 08. Red Monkey Jeans changes name to RMC Martin Ksohoh. Martin Ksohoh of the exclusive ONE DOUBLE “O” ONE shops on the Kowloon Island of Hong Kong is the man behind the amazing Red Monkey Jeans brand. The brand concept was born of Japanses influence, constructed of specially modified colored cotton, woven into selveage denim, materialized into the form of the Red Monkey Company. A brand named after its creator Martin, who was dubbed Red Monkey by the Japanese native “YAMANE”, creator of the “AVISYA TAILOR” retail concept and more.

House of Holland is taking you back to the days of Beverly Hills 90210 and 90s American youth culture. Directional label, House of Holland redesigned Levi 501® and created a limited edition range of six unique designs. The 501® Jeans by House of Holland collection comprises three printed and three laser-cut styles that juxtapose texture, striking foral prints and bold polka dots.

On the collection designer Henry Holland commented: “Being involved in the relaunch of something as iconic as the Levi’s 501® is a real honour and has allowed me to work with denim properly for the ?rst time. I’m so happy with the outcome”.

The limited edition will début at London Fashion Week on 17th September 2008, and will be exclusively available the following day from Selfridges Superbrands floor.

The Crooks & Castles brand gets Kitmeout’s vote as the best up-and-coming brand at “The Magic” 2008. The Crooks & Castles brand has come a long way in the past few years and now deserves respect and recognition for innovative and stylish collections. With 4 seasonal collection per year, Crooks & Castles has proven to be an acountable brand. Every collection has a variety of items from the strong graphic Tees, to selvage Denims, classic americana jackets and NewEras. Every season is spiced up with special products and collabos. Hat’s off to the guys!