Universal Everything: forever

The Making of Forever / Victoria & Albert Museum from Universal Everything on Vimeo.

Majo Fruithof: Collection 2009

Serious jewelry by Majo Fruithof. I love how complete the aesthetic is from the insanely stunning jewelry to the perfection of the photography and styling. Everything is thought through and beautifully executed. A couple of strengths (among many) of this collection: the sculptural quality that allows each piece to live as separately without relying on the body, there is a wonderful fusion of nostalgic references to the past with the contemporary aesthetics of absolute precision and perfection. Among the many materials used, Fruithof has crafted this collection with some interesting ingredients: black iron, gold beryl, red gold and morganite.

It's hard to choose a favorite from pieces I've chosen to post from her 2009 collection, but I think for now I'll go with the black teardrop earrings... and the art deco morganite earrings... and the cuffs... Well, at least I tried!

Eternal Child: A/W 2008

Maybe it was the extreme cold weather that everyone has been dealing with, but I found myself searching around for beautiful, warm clothes. You can imagine how wonderful it was to stumble upon Eternal Child during my little quest. These are sweaters made with serious attention to detail, with gorgeous colors and patterns while looking so cozy I almost want every single one in my dresser.

Miss Van

A lovely little sampling of things by Miss Van. I've loved her work for a long time. These are images from her 2008 collection of work called Princesas as well as images from the darling jewelry collection that was done in collaboration with Katrin Bauer.

Hideaki Kawashima: wavering

Hideaki Kawashima is one of my absolute favorite painters. Sometimes I think he may be my favorite painter, ever. Anyways, he had a show in 2008 called wavering and these are images of his latest paintings from that show. I love the simplicity and delicacy to the haunting images. They are ghostly, feminine, sometimes sea-like creatures that I could stare at all day. He is represented by Tomio Koyama Gallery. Check out their site and artists here. There is also a short article about this show, read it here.

Samsonite Black Label: Concertine, SBL by Alexander McQueen and Tartaruga

I stumbled upon the amazing Samsonite Black Label and couldn't bear to decide on sharing just one collection, so here are three...

The first collection is Concertine. A small but stunning collection, the design inspiration for these purses is the concertina. Love it. When I first saw these they reminded me of a full blossomed flower or the ripe interior of a fruit such as oranges or grapefruits. I love the hybrid of aesthetic references I see, such as Japanese chrysanthemum flowers or the voluptuous and organic qualities of Art Nouveau. The images above are of the Round handbag and Half moon handbag.






































































































































































































SBL by Alexander McQueen is another intriguing collection. The overall shapes of the pieces are soft and, well, approachable, functional. The collection centers around Hero AI1, a suitcase modeled after a human ribcage. Hm... not so approachable treatment. The rest of the collection has a faux crocodile exterior and an interior with a feather print. The colors are gorgeous: a powdery, chalk white, as well as deep browns and rich blacks. I like this collection because it is playful but still a little dark without entering the territory of being cheesy.

The pieces I've selected here are (from the top down): Hero AI1, Spinner AI2 (it has four multi-directional wheels), Boarding Bag for Men (beautiful, classic shape), Travel Wallet (with a nice thumb print detail on the zipper).

You may have also noticed that many of these are on sale. Some items are out of stock but some aren't. If you're in the market for some extraordinary luggage or accessories this may be your chance to snag some...!

























































Last but not least, Tartaruga. Another leap into a different aesthetic pond. Tartaruga means turtle in Italian and Samsonite claims to have reinvented the backpack. This particular bag has a spine protector, consists of four carbon fiber shells that are hinged together to increase flexibility and has some sort of honeycomb structured foam that maximizes shock absorbency. I was seduced by the design and vibrancy of the fuschia. It's also a nice balance in contrast to the other two collections I chose with the hopes of giving you a broad sampling of what I considered to be the highlights of Samsonite's Black Label.

Gafar on North Avenue

I spotted Gafar on North Avenue this past weekend. It was a pretty cold, dreary day and his sneakers were the first thing to grab my attention. I love the traditional or muted color scheme of his overall outfit punctuated by color in the form of interesting accessories and a nicely detailed denim.

He was really friendly and in addition to letting me snap several shots, he shared his story with me too. He is half Nigerian, half British, a finance student at De Paul, he's developing a clothing line, he's a dj/producer and spends a little time working downtown at the Puma store. If I get a chance to see what this fashion line is all about there may just be another post about him in the future.